BAKE: My Best Ever Recipes for the Classics

A passion for baking

Baking is all about sharing. Even after more than three decades in many different professional roles, nothing beats making something for someone else and seeing their eyes light up when they taste it. It brings me pure joy and is a real privilege. It’s not been an easy task choosing my favorite classic recipes for this book, and everyone will have their own view of what those classic bakes should be, but these are my classics. These are the recipes I enjoy, that I have refined and perfected over the years. I have judged, tested and tasted literally thousands of cakes, cookies, pastries and desserts, and have probably baked as many myself! Each time I taste or bake something, I learn something new and am inspired to improve and develop my recipes further. This collection brings together all my ultimate versions of the recipes that are special to me, adjusted, updated and honed to be the very best they can. I want to share these recipes with you so you can enjoy making them as much as I do.

When you’ve baked something yourself – when it comes out of your oven, filling your kitchen with the smell of banana bread, a sponge cake or a great loaf – you’ll appreciate it so much more. Even better, it means you can share that experience with others: your family, friends, colleagues or neighbors. I think, ultimately, we’re all very nostalgic, and baking taps right into that.

We love the memory of something our grandmothers used to bake for us. You bite into it, and it takes you straight back to eating it when you were five or six years old. I think people really yearn for these kinds of memories, and you usually don’t have to dig all that far into most people’s history to find a family recipe. If you don’t already have that connection in your life with someone who bakes a lot, then the recipes in this book are an opportunity for you to be that person for someone else, to pass know-how on to those in your life so we don’t lose these skills and associations. A tray of cookies still warm from the oven or a slice of freshly baked cake means more than you realize at the time and will create treasured lasting memories.

I honestly feel that baking is in our DNA. From local fairs and bake sales to school fundraisers, everyone wants to share their homemade creations and be known for making the best lemon cake, the gooiest chocolate brownie, the crumbliest shortbread or the flakiest pastry. It’s like there are mini Bake Offs happening all over the place, and there always have been. I think we often overlook how good at baking we are in the UK but it’s something we should be proud of. I love to be surprised and inspired by what people produce, and I enjoy seeing the passion for baking in people’s faces. It’s that baking passion that keeps them going, and I can completely relate because I share it too.

Baking around the world

It’s fascinating to me how baking has evolved and developed over time, and from country to country. As people have moved around the globe, we’ve picked up techniques, styles and ingredients and we’ve experimented with them and adapted them. We’ve made use of regional recipes and local ingredients, from the dates and honey of the Middle East to the sugar and sweet fruits of the West Indies, and we’ve incorporated them into our own baking. A lot depends on the climate where you live, too. For example, it will determine what grain thrives best in the area and that grain will dominate in local baking. In Eastern and Northern Europe, you’ll find breads made with rye flour which can better tolerate cold conditions; whereas in milder climates, lighter types of flour like wheat are more commonly produced. I really enjoy working with ingredients from different parts of the world, learning what they bring to baking and how to get the most from their unique qualities.

I’ve been incredibly lucky during my professional and personal life to have worked in and traveled to some amazing locations and to have tried so much incredible food. These experiences have had a huge influence on the kinds of recipes I bake today. From my time living in Cyprus to trips across the United States, and learning from the best in Italy, France, Spain and elsewhere, I have taken inspiration from all around me. But, of course, at my heart I’m a northern lad. And I will always be drawn back to my roots in the north-west of England. That’s where I grew up and that’s where I first learned my trade. That’s why you’ll find in this collection of classics, almond and orange biscotti, New York chocolate brownie cheesecake and beef empanadas sitting comfortably alongside those timeless British favorites, cheese scones, pigs in blankets and savory pies, and in a nod to my northern upbringing, barm cakes and bin lids. If you are not familiar with bin lids, I urge you to make one so you can have the best “chip butty” of your life!

Back to bread

At the heart of almost every culture in the world you’ll find some kind of bread, and you can tell a lot about the history of a society by the breads it baked. Back in the day, nomadic communities didn’t have bread ovens like we do today. Instead, they’d bake over fires, almost like a broiler, producing amazing, quick flatbreads. I love how versatile flatbreads are. It’s a very basic dough but tastes fantastic topped with your favorite ingredients, used as a wrap, or for dipping. From tortillas and naans to lesser-known flatbreads like maneesh and lagana, I’ve included some of my absolute favorites for you to try.

As people started to settle in one place for longer periods of time, they began to build dedicated bread ovens. This is when the kinds of breads we are more used to today (that use raising agents) were developed. They required slow proofing and longer cooking, so were more suited to communities that weren’t frequently on the move.

Of course, it’s no surprise that I’ve included plenty of great bread recipes here, from my fail-safe sandwich loaves (here, here and here) and traditional sourdough to a rich cheesy bread and a lovely sweet orange brioche. For me, the bread thing started from a really early age.

My mother was great at making biscuits and pastries, but my father was the bread and pie man. He would always come home from work at his bakery smelling of bread. It’s the same with me now – I love my pastry, scones and doughnuts, but it’s bread that’s my real passion. When I joined the industry, I started out working at my father’s bakery and the first thing I learned was how to make a proper loaf. My father put me with the best guys who mixed and shaped the dough on the table, and who ran the ovens. They taught me so much and I’m so grateful to them. Through these recipes, I’ll share my top tips with you too.

Something sweet

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a sweet tooth, and in this book I’ve brought together all my favorite sweet treats. Whether you want a comforting apple or pecan pie that reminds you of cozy days at home with your family, or you’re looking to impress with a showstopper of a dessert, like a baked Alaska or chocolate and raspberry entremets, the beauty of baking is there’s something for every occasion and every mood.

Honestly, though, I don’t think there’s much better in life than a cup of tea with a slice of cake or a homemade cookie. Baking trends will come and go (we’ve had cronuts and cruffins, and who knows what’s next) but you can’t beat the classics – a Victoria sandwich, carrot cake, ginger snap or a buttered scone. One of the reasons I think baking has stayed so universally popular is that it mostly uses really basic ingredients and at its core it’s simple to do. The majority of people will have the ingredients to make a Victoria sandwich in their cupboards right now. Baking is approachable, relatively cheap and most of the time needs only very standard pieces of kit.