Baking, chapter 16
Cakes & Bakes
These are the bakes people ask for again: a chocolate birthday cake, a proper apple pie, brownies, scones, a Norwegian cream cake for the seventeenth of May. Baking is less forgiving than cooking, so weigh everything, including eggs and liquids, and bring butter and eggs to room temperature when a recipe asks; that one habit fixes most dense, split or flat cakes. Ovens vary more than recipes, so trust the cues — springy tops, clean skewers, a wobble in a custard — over the timer, and use an oven thermometer if your cakes always run early or late. The chapter opens with the two pastry doughs that every pie and tart in the book is built on, and good store-bought pastry is always an honest alternative.
20 recipesOpen the chapter in the app
Chocolate Chip CookiesCrisp-edged, chewy-centered, with brown butter and pools of chocolate1 h 20 min
Fudgy BrowniesDense and fudgy with a shiny, crackled top2 h 40 min
Banana BreadMoist, deeply banana-flavored, made in one bowl2 h 30 min
Carrot CakeSpiced, moist two-layer cake with tangy cream cheese frosting3 h
Chocolate Layer CakeDark, moist sponge with a glossy whipped ganache frosting3 h 30 min
Baked Vanilla CheesecakeCreamy, dense and crack-free, baked low and cooled slowly11 h
Apple PieFlaky double crust, a juicy filling that holds its shape5 h 30 min
Tarte TatinUpside-down apples in dark caramel under crisp pastry1 h 35 min
PavlovaCrisp shell, marshmallow heart, soft cream and sharp fruit5 h
SconesTall, light and flaky, ready in 30 minutes35 min
Lemon TartSharp, smooth lemon custard in a crisp, sweet pastry case6 h 20 min
Pepperkaker (Nordic Gingerbread Cookies)Thin, crisp, deeply spiced Nordic-style biscuits14 h
Norwegian Cream Layer Cake (Bløtkake)Feather-light sponge, berries and whipped cream for every celebration4 h