Great British Bake Off - Bake it Better: Sweet Bread & Buns - Linda Collister (2016)

Welcome bakers!

This book gives you 40 great recipes for sweet bread and buns, which explain and show all the techniques you need to become a better baker. Starting with the key skills of mixing, kneading, proving, shaping and baking, recipes move you gently on to enriching with butter, incorporating fruit or nuts, and more complex shaping and finishing techniques.

Start with the ‘Easy does it’ section, then, as you become more confident you’ll be ready to move on to the ‘Needs a little skill’ section. The ‘Up for a challenge’ recipes are the real showstoppers, perfect for weekend baking projects or to show off your bread-making skills: try the Twisted Apricot and Almond Couronne, for example, or the complex Pains aux Cerises.

The colour strip on the right-hand side of the page is your guide to the level of difficulty of the recipe: one spoon for the easiest, up to three for the more complex and challenging. It also lists any special equipment needed, as well as giving an indication of the hands-on and baking times you will need to allow (plus resting and rising times). But before you start to bake, take a look at the Baker’s Guide at the beginning of the book as this will give you a head start. It explains in more detail the terms and techniques used in the recipes, as well as the most important ingredients and essential equipment you’ll need.

Bread can be simple - a warm scone topped with jam and cream; a slice of toast - or it can be the centrepiece of special meal, but every loaf can taste and look impressive. With Bake It Better: Sweet Bread & Buns you can learn to bake like a pro, so now’s the time to get out the flour, start baking and show off those skills!

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

SECTION 1: BAKER’S GUIDE

Read this section before you start baking. The Baker’s Guide contains key information on ingredients (here), equipment (here) and skills (here) relevant to the recipes in the book.

Refer back to the Baker’s Guide when you’re baking if you want a refresher on a particular skill. In the recipes the first mention of each skill is highlighted in bold.

SECTION 2: THE RECIPES

Colour strips on the right-hand side and 1, 2 or 3 spoons show the level of difficulty of the recipe. Within the colour strips you’ll find helpful information to help you decide what to bake: Hands-on time; Hands-off time; Baking time; Makes/Serves; Special equipment and Storage.

Refresh your knowledge of any essential skills by referring to the Baker’s Guide before you get started.

Refer back to the Baker’s Guide when a skill is highlighted in bold in the recipe if you need a reminder.

Try Something Different options are given where the recipe lends itself to experimenting with ingredients or decorations.

Easy does it

Needs a little skill

Up for a challenge