Reddit reviews BakeWise: The Hows and Whys of Successful Baking with Over 200 Magnificent Recipes

I'd go with Bakewise by Shirley Corriher. She explains methodology, chemistry, and how to adapt.

Bakewise is awesome, the author is a chemist and really delves into the science behind ingredients, techniques, etc.

From amazon: "It's not surprising that James Beard Award-winner Corriher (CookWise) once worked as a chemist. Her no-nonsense approach to cakes, muffins, breads and cookies shows her deep knowledge and understanding that baking is, above all things, a science. This hefty collection of more than 200 recipes offers amateur and expert bakers alike clear, numbered steps and a plethora of information on ingredients, equipment and method. Invaluable troubleshooting sections solve pesky problems on everything from pale and crumbly cookies to fallen soufflés."

Bakewise
http://www.amazon.com/BakeWise-Successful-Baking-Magnificent-Recipes/dp/1416560785

https://www.amazon.com/BakeWise-Successful-Baking-Magnificent-Recipes/dp/1416560785/ref=cm_rdp_product

I've decided on this book.

I quite liked Bakewise by Shirley O'Corriher. She goes into how ingredients will affect the finished product, how to spot cake recipes that won't turn out well (and how to fix them), and why technique matters.

> http://www.amazon.com/BakeWise-Successful-Baking-Magnificent-Recipes/dp/1416560785
This is looks like what I am looking for. Off to see if they have it at the library.

One of the best things you can do is to train your palate. This way, when you taste something, you can figure out what's in it, and make it yourself if you want. It will also help you to learn what goes with what. For example, dill goes with salmon, lemon with raspberries, tomato with onion and cilantro or basil, etc. That kind of knowledge will help you to invent your own recipes which are catered directly to your tastes.

If you really want to know what makes food do what it does, I would recommend the following books:

• For general culinary science, On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee. It is one of the best books ever written which actually explains why things happen in the kitchen.
  
• I usually buy a copy of Shirley O. Corriher's CookWise for anyone who says they want to learn to cook. It is perfect for beginners and has lots of very useful recipes. If you watch Alton Brown's "Good Eats", you will see Ms. (or is is Dr.?) Corriher explaining some of the science.
  
• If you want to learn how to bake incredible cake, Rose Levy Beranbaum's The Cake Bible is indispensable, same for her Bread Bible and Pie and Pastry Bible. I rarely fuck up a cake now, and if I do, I know why. And her cake recipes are brilliant. From learning to make her chocolate butter cake, I also discovered the secret to making the BEST cup of chocolate ever. The aforementioned Ms. Corriher's BakeWise is also excellent for beginners.
  
• The Larousse Gastronomique is probably the most famous book on cuisine. It's an encyclopedia which contains pretty much every cooking term. It's a pretty high-level book, but it is the authority.
  
  Have fun with it! =)

My own search ended with Shirley Corriher's Deep, Dark Chocolate Cake recipe from BakeWize: The Hows and Whys of Successful Baking. The only thing I've changed from her original recipe is an increase in oil.

Deep Dark Chocolate Cake

2 1/3 cups sugar (463g)
3/4 tsp salt (5.4g)
3/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder (69g) 
1 tsp baking soda (5g)
1 cup water
1 cup canola oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (218g)
4 large egg yolks (74g)
2 large eggs (99g)
1/4 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place baking stone in center of oven if you have one.
   
2. Generously spray cake pan(s). Line the bottom of the pan(s) with parchment paper that has been cut to size. Spray top of parchment paper.
   
3. In a heavy saucepan, stir together the sugar, salt, cocoa, and baking soda. In another pan, heat water to boiling. Stirring constantly, pour boiling water a little at a time into cocoa mixture, mixing well. Place on heat and bring back to a boil. Turn off heat and allow to stand in pan for at least 10 minutes.
   
4. Pour cocoa mixture into a mixing bowl. Add the oil and vanilla and beat on low for 10 seconds. On low speed, beat in the flour and then, with minimum of beating, beat in the yolks, eggs, and buttermilk.
    5. Pour batter into prepared pan(s). Place in oven on the stone and bake until the center feels springy to the touch, about 25 minutes for round layers or 35 minutes for a 9x13 sheet cake. (I use an instant read thermometer and call it done when the temp reaches 206F) Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a rack. Run a thin knife around the edge and jar the edge of the pan to loosen. Invert onto the serving platter. Cool completely before icing.

My mother bought me this cookbook a few years ago and it teaches the actual science of cooking. She also talk some about baking bread in there and about the different flours, how they interact with their ingredients and so forth.

While I don't have this book, the same woman wrote Bakewise. It will also get into the sciences of it and all the "whys". I would bet that once you have some experience with this book that you would be able to start making up your own recipes as well. Once you know the ratio's, you should be golden. (I didn't even know she had done written this book till I searched for Cookwise. I might have to get this one for myself!)

EDIT: Someone else mentioned The Joy of Cooking. My husband is one heck of a baker and he gets a lot of his recipes from The Joy of Baking. They have all been excellent so far.

EDIT II: (Sorry, I love this kind of thing and keep thinking of more stuff). I have gotten a lot of excellent dessert recipes from Southern Living. Before they changed the layout of their magazine a few years back, I would get their magazine. I poured over it for hours. While the magazine isn't as good, their recipes are still excellent. Type in what you are looking for and it will give you several recipes to choose from (the search engine in the middle of the page, not the one in the upper right corner).

My favorite apple pie comes from there. I get wonderful compliments whenever I make it. Don't leave out the brandy-caramel sauce linked in the ingredients!