Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies [ペーパーバック]

This is my new favorite baking book. How do I love it? Let me count the ways. First and most importantly, the recipes produce absolutely astonishingly good cookies. Try My Chocolate Chip Cookie to see what I mean. Second, many recipes make use of innovative techniques and ingredients. For example, I was amazed at how using melted butter in oatmeal cookies could produce such a wonderful buttery crisp-chewy texture. Third, the recipes are clearly written with short introductions that evoke food well without being gushy, self promoting, or too cutesy. Fourth, the book is beautiful printed and illustrated. Fifth, you get all this for under $20, an almost unheard of low price among high quality baking books. Who might not enjoy this book: someone looking to learn cookie decoration or a very casual baker wanting something "semi homemade." But for someone who loves baking and for whom spending time in the kitchen is a reward rather than a chore, this book is the year's best find.

The book starts off with an explanation of terms used in the recipes. Then, it moves into a FAQ section covering a variety of topics, such as pan preparation, cookie, storage, and choosing/preparing the ingredients.

The sections in the book are divided by the topics in the title (crispy, crunchy, chunky, chewy, gooey, flaky, and melt-in-your-mouth). At the end, there are a couple of other informative sections. There is a component section with various things like fillings, frostings, cookie icings, and crusts. There are also ingredient and equipment explanatory sections.

Some of the dry ingredients in the recipes, such as flour, sugar, and nuts, are given in both volume and weight measurements. Many of the recipes have an "upgrade" (variation) section following the recipe. There are also mini tutorials throughout the book. For example, there are a couple pages devoted to tuiles. The mini tutorial talks about tuile basics, how to make and use a stencil for tuiles, more efficient tuile baking, and how to make ice cream cones from tuile batter.

There are a variety of recipes in this book. There are a few traditional stand-bys like chocolate chip cookies and snickerdoodles. There are also more unusual recipes, such as honey hemp bars, pebbly-beach fruit squares, breakfast biscotti, spicy carrot masala macaroons, and alfajores. Also, macarons are becoming popular, and there is a recipe, with variations, for French macarons.

One note for people looking for recipes for individuals with food sensitivities or special diets - there is a guide at the back of the book the lists recipes for wheat-free cookies, dairy-free cookies, cookies made with whole grains, and less fat and 2 (Weight Watchers) point treats. Each of the cookies in the point section lists how many cookies you can have for the points. For example, melting chocolate meringues - 2 cookies for 2 points. Other listings include doughs that freeze well, cookies that will keep for at least two weeks, and quick and easy recipes. For some reason, the listings don't have page numbers with the names of the cookies, but the index immediately follows the listings.

There aren't very many pictures in the book - only about 2 to 4 recipes in a chapter are pictured. I find that a little disappointing because I love to see what I'm about to make.

I received this book as part of a cookie class (demo) with Alice Medrich at our local Central Market. The book is beautiful, with wonderful pictures and great organization. I can vouch for the cookies that Alice graciously baked for us during our class time...they were all delicious, as well as the macaroon topped brownies that I made the other day. A great book to have on hand while you do your holiday baking. And if, like me, you missed out on an opportunity to purchase the now out-of-print Cookies and Brownies, you'll be happy to have this collection in its place. The recipes are clear, with great instructions given to complete each step, and weights are provided for the ingredients in addition to the normal "cup of flour" that can lead to varied results between batches even with the same baker at the oven. I'm a cookie hound with a full collection of cookbooks and holiday cookie magazines and I can say that this book is pushing it's way to the top of my favorites based on the first few cookies tried.