One of the upsides to this year’s coronavirus crisis is the home baking phenomenon that dovetailed with stay-at-home orders. With people reluctant to venture out, they took control of their kitchens, feeding sourdough starters, brushing off old cookbooks, and trying new pie and cake recipes.
Even reluctant home bakers have been turning to cookies and simple desserts as a source of comfort during the weirdest of times.
Three newly released cookbooks offer new takes on desserts that are perfect for this moment. They rely mostly on pantry staples many people have on hand right now, plus some of-the-moment ingredients like seasonal strawberries.
YouTube and Instagram sensation Gaz Oakley is back with his third cookbook, “Plants Only Kitchen” ($24.99; Quadrille; 224 pages), featuring 70 recipes designed for busy people. Unlike his previous books, which featured more-complicated recipes, Oakley leans heavily on shortcut ingredients. For his Portuguese Tarts, store-bought puff pastry eliminates the most-complicated steps in creating the three-bite wonders. Just look over the list of ingredients to make sure the pre-made puff pastry is dairy free, such as Pepperidge Farms’ version, which is in the freezer case of almost every grocery store.
Recipes included with this story: Portuguese Tarts; Strawberry Shortcake in a Jar; Crackly Brownies.
It’s prime time for Oregon strawberries, and the folks at the restaurant chain Café Gratitude came up with an adorable take on shortcake in “Love Is Served” ($35; Avery; 336 pages). The Los Angeles-based restaurants name dishes after self-affirmations, so a Mexican chopped salad goes by “I Am Lucky,” and a Bibimbap bowl is known as “I Am Evolved.” Sure, the preciousness is laugh-out-loud silly, and we’re going to resist calling their shortcake “I Am Divine.” The gluten-free shortcake bakes in muffin tins while you assemble a quick strawberry jam that gets its thickness from chia seeds. Then you pull everything together in individual Mason jars with dollops of cashew whipped cream. It may not be divine, but it’s certainly adorable and delicious.
One of the most-comforting things you can pull out of the oven is a pan of rich brownies, and Lisa Dawn Angerame has an unusual one in “Wait, That’s Vegan?!” ($21.99; Page Street Publishing Co.; 192 pages). For her Crackly Brownies, the rich chocolate flavor doesn’t come from cocoa powder, as it does in most recipes. Instead, melted semisweet chocolate chips are mixed into the batter, which deepens their intensity. It’s a perfect way to use some of those chocolate chips you stocked up on recently.
-- Grant Butler
503-221-8566; @grantbutler
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