Yvette Zuniga Jemison

The way that I've filled this cookbook with highlighted sections, underlined sentences and handwritten notes in the sidebar makes my copy of this cookbook look almost like one of my graduate school textbooks. I’m an overly curious person in the kitchen and the way that Shirley addresses both how and why things happen while baking has been wonderfully helpful to me as a home cook. Now that I develop recipes for articles and for my own cookbooks, I appreciate this book even more. The section on How Leaveners Work has been invaluable and one that I often apply throughout my recipe development.

This was one of the first cookbooks I purchased, and I have baked most of the dessert recipes within this charming book. I love the photographic choices made here, like capturing multiple baked goods in one photo, followed by the recipes on the following pages. The headnotes for each recipe are so personal and sweet, providing a glimpse into Mr. Bailey’s life and dear friendships while giving the reader a taste of southern living and hospitality.

When shopping for cookbooks I gravitate toward heavily worn and stained ones. When I purchased this book, the salesperson noticed that the cover was deeply scratched. She tried to swap it for a perfectly new one, and didn’t understand why I wanted the deeply scratched one. In my opinion, it had a jump start on the lovely patina and wear of a cookbook. When I read through this cookbook it makes me imagine the hustle and bustle of this bakery. I love how the writers introduce us to their butcher, baker, farmers and regular customers. I’ve enjoyed the orange almond cake, fresh ginger cake and their artichoke and tomato cake.

This cookbook's photography by Peden + Munk is so vibrant that it makes you want to reach in and lift the desserts off the pages while reading it. When I am in search of an approachable dessert with a flavor twist, this is my go-to cookbook.

Kit Wohl has created a beautiful collection of sweets that the Crescent City is known and admired for. She's included recipes for everything from cakes, cookies, and flambeéd restaurant favorites to the sauces for serving them up. Throughout the years, I’ve enjoyed making the Beignets, Banana Cream Pie, Baked Alaska and Brennan’s Bananas Foster.

This is truly a regional cookbook filled with Southern Louisiana home cooking at its best. I actually have my mother-in-law’s copy of this cookbook that was gifted to her in 1987. When I married a man from New Orleans I discovered that his family had very different regional dishes than I had grown up with in south Texas. This cookbook gave me an intimate glimpse into the home cooking of southern Louisianians. I often refer to this cookbook for simple starters, seafood and sweets.

Birthdays are always big celebrations in our family and there’s nothing quite like a homemade birthday cake. Our youngest daughter always enjoyed flipping through the pages and selecting a recipe for her birthday cake each year. As she got older, she even realized that we could mix and match the cake from one recipe and the frosting from another. Her all-time favorite is The Taste of Heaven cake on page 166.

I love Claire’s use of the four seasons to drive her flavors in this book. I also really enjoy her social media posts about her cookbook recipes and how she's adapted her American recipes for a European customer. I've mastered her signature swirl on top of her layer cakes and one day, when I make it over to London, I look forward to enjoying the toasties and pastries at Violet Bakery. In the meantime, I’ll enjoy them in my home with the assistance of her lovely cookbook.

Many years ago, this cookbook caught my eye in a bookshop. I’ve baked the nectarine and summer berry tart on the cover more times than I can even count. From rich chocolate cake to savory tarts, this cookbook often inspires my regular weekend baking.

I’ve enjoyed reading this mother-daughter written cookbook over and over again because of the way that the storytelling beautifully illustrates the life and hospitality provided by this Napa family. Annie and her mother, Margrit, create gorgeous seasonal menus that are mouthwatering just to read. Margrit’s hand painted menus that are scattered throughout the cookbook are truly a work of art. Frequently preparing Annie’s Caesar Salad with pan-roasted garlic and coddled-egg dressing actually helped me to master the art of coddled eggs.