Mary Berry - Mary Berrys Baking Bible: Over 250 Classic Recipes

The only baking book you will ever need.

In Mary Berrys Baking Bible , the undisputed queen of baking shares over 250 foolproof recipes, includeing her classic Victoria Sponge and Very Best Chocolate Fudge Cake. From a quick fruit cake to stunning party cakes as well as hot puddings and pies, breads, biscuits, traybakes and tarts, there are recipes for every occasion and for every level of skill.

Mary Berry is one of Britains foremost cookery writes and her books were voted on of the Top Three Most Reliable Celebrity Cookbooks by BBC Good Food

Conversions are approximate and have been rounded up or down. Follow one set of measurements only do not mix metric and Imperial.

When I published my first major baking book, Ultimate Cake Book, in 1994, it was with the hope that it would encourage more people to take up homebaking, and show inexperienced cooks that cake making isnt as complicated as it might first appear. The success of that book has been tremendous and I have been touched by how many people still rely on it even now, nearly fifteen years later!

In 2003, as I wrote the introduction for the revised edition, I remember marvelling at the continuing demand for cake-making instruction. Now, it seems, people are turning to homebaking even more than before whether it be to save money as basic baking ingredients are so inexpensive, with greater awareness about their food and a desire to know that what they feed their families is natural and free from unwanted extras, or simply for the enjoyment of baking because baking is fun!

In light of this increased interest in homebaking, I felt it was time to create a new ultimate cake book, and here it is my Baking Bible. I hope this book will inspire a new generation of cooks as well as prove useful to seasoned bakers.

The aim was to produce an easy-to-use baking collection to satisfy all your baking needs. For the first time, I have included a bread section, containing my new bread recipes. There are some unusual cakes to try, like Courgette Loaf, and recipes for the latest craze, Cupcakes. But as this is a baking bible I have tried to include as many classic recipes as possible. There are lots of traditional celebration cakes for occasions such as Easter, Christmas and christenings, birthdays and weddings, and some well-known favourites like Victoria Sponge and Chocolate-Chip Cookies.

Ive included lots of simple recipes for children to make (with supervision), and some more challenging recipes that require careful timing, and more skill, including patisserie-style desserts, such as Gteau Saint Honor. Cooks of all levels of experience should find something to make and to challenge them here.

Since I first started writing recipes, the equipment available has evolved and improved enormously. Now we have reliable ovens with fan assistance, food processors and electric whisks, non-stick tins and trays, and bread makers. With the help of these aids, baking has become quick, easy and stress-free. All you need is to carefully measure your ingredients and follow the tested step-by-step instructions.

I have tried to include recipes for all occasions and I hope you will find plenty of bakes to suit your tastes, but most of all, I hope that this new collection of my favourite and trusted recipes will help you enjoy homebaking. Cakes are made to be shared so, once you have mastered a recipe, invite your friends and family to enjoy the fruits of your labour with a good pot of tea happy baking!

MARY BERRY 2009

Some people may be put off from baking because they think it requires lots of expensive utensils, but this really isnt the case. Although electric-powered equipment saves time and effort, its not essential and many of the recipes in this book, such as the traybakes, Victoria sponges, cookies and biscuits, require little more than a set of scales, a wooden spoon to beat the ingredients, a mixing bowl and a cake tin or baking tray.

A lot of the equipment you will probably have already, and some you can improvise. If you are buying new equipment, do buy the best you can afford; good-quality baking equipment will last a long time so it will be a worthwhile investment.

Scales

One piece of equipment that is critical to achieving the perfect bake is a good set of scales. Some people prefer old-fashioned balance scales with weights, but there are now a number of very reliable electric and battery-operated digital scales that can measure weights and volumes in metric, Imperial and liquids. Test the scales for accuracy by putting something on them that has the weight printed on it, such as an unopened bag of flour or sugar.

Measures

You will need a set of measuring spoons including a teaspoon, teaspoon, teaspoon, tablespoon and dessert spoon. All the amounts given in the recipes are for level spoonfuls unless otherwise stated. To measure liquids, use a transparent heatproof jug that shows both metric and Imperial measures.

Spoons

A wooden spoon is vital, but it should have a rounded edge to get into all the bends of the bowl. A large metal spoon for mixing egg whites into a mixture is useful, as its sharper edges flatten the egg foam much less than a wooden spoon does. Use a bendy, rubber or silicone (also heatproof) spatula to get all the cake mixture off the sides of the bowl.

Whisks

Use a balloon whisk or a hand-held electric whisk. Its useful to have two sizes of balloon whisk: a large one for whisking eggs and a small spiral one for small amounts of mixture.

Mixing Bowls

I have a range of different sized bowls that fit inside each other for easy storage. If you are baking for the first time, invest in one large and one small, preferably Pyrex, mixing bowl with a rounded base so you can get to every bit of mixture with your whisk, spoon or spatula. For all-in-one cakes you will need only one bowl, but its useful to have at least two as some recipes require you, for example, to whisk egg white separately, then add it to the rest of the mixed cake ingredients.