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asurges's review
5.0
Accessible and *really* good recipes. I've always avoided breads, but this book has gotten me to bake a cinnamon-raisin jumble loaf twice because it is that good. I also made a gluten-free cake without all the usual expensive ingredients I would need, and the GF person who got it loved it. The recipes aren't overly sweet and have lots of flavor, and the only trick is figuring out the metric system and WTH caster sugar is.
seyfert's review
4.0
This is a very good cookbook made all the more enjoyable if you've watched the show. That said, you must really like baking to get the full enjoyment out of it. If, like me, you're not a perfectionist, this might be a little frustrating with all the weighing, exact measurements, use of ingredients you've never heard of, and the like. There are recipes more familiar, and some that are easier, but I will admit to some frustration baking them, but then again, I prefer cooking over baking!
nathanaeljs's review
5.0
I've been a fan of The Great British Bake Off for about two years now and it turned my occasional baking habit into an actual hobby. When I found out there were cookbooks, I couldn't wait to get my hands on one.
The recipes range across all the types of baked goods: bread, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies, even savory bakes. Mary Berry's and Paul Hollywood's technical challenge recipes are here too, as well as recipes from all of the contestants in series five. The recipes are clear, with a lot of helpful tips and instructions. If there is one complaint I have, it's that I feel that there could be more pictures, since it helps to have a good idea of what the finished product should look like.
Highly recommended for fans and non-fans.
The recipes range across all the types of baked goods: bread, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies, even savory bakes. Mary Berry's and Paul Hollywood's technical challenge recipes are here too, as well as recipes from all of the contestants in series five. The recipes are clear, with a lot of helpful tips and instructions. If there is one complaint I have, it's that I feel that there could be more pictures, since it helps to have a good idea of what the finished product should look like.
Highly recommended for fans and non-fans.
dray's review
4.0
A true slice of the show, with a wide array of baked goods that were featured in the bake offs. Well worth reading.
mrremi's review
4.0
Typically I prefer cookbooks that give stories, history and traditions of the food and the country it is discussing and this doesn't have this. But it has great baking advice and I can't wait to make the recipes. Plus I love the GBBO!
mjmbecky's review
5.0
Great variety of recipes from the show and otherwise. I've already made Mary's Cherry Cake & loved it! Dare I admit I like it best for breakfast?!? A fun cookbook to help the home cook revisit all the glories of The Great British Bake Off!
hopegirl0727's review
5.0
My husband knows me so well. For Christmas this year, he bought me what feel like an infinite amount of mini peanut butter cups, the big beautiful boxed set of Beatrix Potter tales, and this book: Great British Bake Off: Big Book of Baking. I became enamored of this show last Christmas break, when I had some time off and one of the seasons showed up on Netflix. It is my absolute favorite cooking/baking show because of how delightfully British it is. I love how kind everyone is, the terrible puns, the treats so different than American ones... I love how the show is split up into different categories, so different styles of bakers have different places where they can shine. I love learning, too! Not just the technical stuff (like how to make a crisp bread crust), but all the little British things. For example: mixed spice. Not just any spice, no, no! A blend of specific spices that is pungent and peppery and so, so much more than plain Allspice (its American cousin). Or what a "bap" is (a bread roll). I also had a fair amount of a good giggle at some of the bakes, like the chewy oatmeal cookies. In America, they're just cookies, hahaha. I love how the British were like, "how odd these biscuits are -- crispy on the outsides and chewy in the center!" Well, yeah, that's how cookies ought to go. Or the recipe for Maple and Lemon Ricotta Scones. Dude. Those are pancakes. (Which, to be fair, they mentioned, although they called them "scotch pancakes". Good on you, Scotsmen [and Scotsladies].) This book has all kinds of helpful hints, as well. Every recipe has a spoon setting in the upper corner to tell you about the difficulty. There's a whole section of terms and techniques at the beginning, like how to properly temper chocolate (so useful). Beyond that, the interviews are delightful, the pictures brilliantly gorgeous, and the colors all so light and happy. For each new section there's a new color (yellow, pink, lavender, blue, etc.) and every time I'd turn to one, I'd turn to my husband and say, "Here's a color I'd really love to put on a wall!" This book made me so happy I cried a little. I really can't wait to get cracking! On your marks, get set, BAAAAAAAAKE!
shanbear16's review
5.0
This is another one that I need to own instead of borrowing from the library. There are so many recipes in here that I want to try! I'd buy this one for the section on breads alone. There are so many tips and info for novice bakers like me and it has some of the recipes the contestants made on the show that I wanted to try for myself.