This information-packed volume opens with detailed descriptions of equipment--both the basics and tools for the more ambitious baker. All the standard baking ingredients are then explained, along with helpful tips on how to work with them. A handful of fundamental baking techniques follows, each one presented in an illuminating series of step-by-step photographs and text. Next come eight chapters filled with more than 130 recipes, ranging from everyday baking powder biscuits to celebratory layer cakes to elegant custard-filled eclairs. Each chapter introduction includes such information as how to choose the right baking pan, how ingredients work together, and what problems might arise and how to solve them. Some chapter openers also feature step-by-step photographs and text that explain techniques specific to the subject at hand, such as how to knead bread dough, how to frost a cake, or how to fold puff pastry. Many individual recipes include invaluable instructional photographs as well. A collection of favorite sauces, fillings, frostings, and glazes and a glossary complete this indispensable volume, leaving the reader fully prepared to heat up the oven and begin baking.