Dessert First

David Lebovitz: Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accompaniments

Carole Bloom: Bite-Size Desserts
I had the pleasure of meeting Carole at a chocolate event. Her other books have been adorning my bookshelf forever, and I was thrilled to discover that she had a new book coming out. Bite-Size Desserts is just adorable, with predictably fantastic recipes!

Trish Deseine: Chocolate
A oldie but goodie. Chocolate has rarely been so lusciously photographed, and the recipes are a playful and inventive.

Fran Gage: The New American Olive Oil
Gage's A Sweet Quartet is a mainstay of my bookshelf; even though her newest effort is not strictly devoted to pastry, it _is_ a fascinating exploration of the American artisan olive oil movement. And there is a dessert section!

Johnny Iuzzini: Dessert FourPlay
Beautiful inspiration. Iuzzini's witty, inventive takes on dessert are a joy to behold.

Sur La Table: The Art and Soul of Baking
A wonderful new baking bible from Sur La Table by Cindy Mushet. It's a must have for bakers both new and experienced.

Matt Lewis: Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
I didn't get a chance to visit the Baked bakery in NYC but this fun cookbook, with hip twists on old desserts, has made sure I put it on my list for the next visit.

Francois Payard: Chocolate Epiphany
Another pastry chef/author I'm glad to see come out with another book - I adore Payard's patisserie in NYC. How can you resist a cover - or a title - like that?

Nick Malgieri: The Modern Baker: Time-Saving Techniques for Breads, Tarts, Pies, Cakes and Cookies
Finally, another book by master baker Nick Malgieri. What I love about baking is that there's always some new trick or technique to learn - and here Nick shares many of his own to make baking a little easier for all of us.

Peter P. Greweling: Chocolates and Confections: Formula, Theory, and Technique for the Artisan Confectioner
For the true technician: the science behind chocolate making. If you really want to understand how to make perfect chocolates, this is the book. One of the most beautifully-shot books I've seen, to boot.

Jehangir Mehta: Mantra: The Rules of Indulgence
Jehangir Mehta, chef-owner of Graffiti in New York City, draws from his Indian heritage and the ancient practices of ayurveda to create exotically-flavored, beautifully balanced desserts. His use of flowers, spices, and herbs make for some of the most unusual and fascinating recipes around.

Jamie Cahill: The Patisseries of Paris
This is not my book, but I wish I'd gotten to write this book. The sweetest spots in the capital of pastry - perfect fuel for your sugar daydreams.

Elisabeth Prueitt: Tartine
One of the most famous bakeries in San Francisco for good reason - and the cookbook is equally wonderful. If you can't visit SF, this is surely the next best thing.

Krystina Castella: Pops!: Icy Treats for Everyone
Frosty, frozen art. You will definitely want this on your bookshelf when summer really kicks into gear.

Martha Rose Schulman: Spain and the World Table
What, a non-baking book? Well, I do have to eat sometime - and this latest book from the CIA presents beautiful tapas - one of my favorite foods - and some mouthwatering desserts too.

Melissa Murphy: The Sweet Melissa Baking Book
Never has homemade looked so classy and delicious. You may think you don't need another recipe for chocolate cake or muffins but you'll change your mind when you see this book.

Valerie Peterson: Cookie Craft: From Baking to Luster Dust, Designs and Techniques for Creative Cookie Occasions

Elizabeth Falkner: Demolition Desserts: Recipes from Citizen Cake

Sherry Yard: Desserts by the Yard

Alice Medrich: Pure Dessert

Pichet Ong: The Sweet Spot: Asian-Inspired Desserts

Eric Kayser: Eric Kayser's Sweet and Savory Tarts

Donna Hay: Modern Classics Book 2

Carole Bloom: The Essential Baker

Robert Steinberg: Essence of Chocolate

Kate Zuckerman: The Sweet Life: Desserts from Chanterelle

Dorie Greenspan: Baking: From My Home to Yours

Emily Luchetti: A Passion for Ice Cream

Michel Bras: Notebooks of Michel Bras: Desserts

Thomas Keller: The French Laundry Cookbook

The Cook's Book

Fran Gage: A Sweet Quartet : Sugar, Almonds, Eggs, and Butter

Alice Medrich: Bittersweet

Emily Luchetti: A Passion for Desserts

Linda Dannenberg: Paris Boulangerie-Patisserie : Recipes from Thirteen Outstanding French Bakeries

Rick Rodgers: Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague

Claudia Fleming: The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern

Michael Recchiuti: Chocolate Obsession

Dorie Greenspan: Paris Sweets : Great Desserts From the City's Best Pastry Shops

Dorie Greenspan: Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme

Dorie Greenspan: Desserts by Pierre Herme

David Lebovitz: The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious - and Perplexing - City

Dalia Jurgensen: Spiced
For those of you curious to know what the live of a pastry chef is like, here is Jurgensen's memoir, brutally honest Bourdain-style.

Mark Kurlansky: The Food of a Younger Land

Hallie Durand: Dessert First
How could I not read a book with the same title as this blog? A slim little children's book, it is very appropriately sweets-filled, and the heroine quite endearing.

David Shalleck: Mediterranean Summer: A Season on France's Cote d'Azur and Italy's Costa Bella

Michael Ruhlman: The Reach of a Chef: Beyond the Kitchen

David Kamp: The United States of Arugula: How We Became a Gourmet Nation

Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Bill Buford: Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany

Ruth Reichl: Garlic and Sapphires : The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise

Chloe Doutre-Roussel: The Chocolate Connoisseur

Michael Ruhlman: The Soul of a Chef : The Journey Toward Perfection

Steve Almond: Candyfreak : A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America

Rudolph Chelminski: The Perfectionist : Life and Death in Haute Cuisine