Nothing evokes the comforts of home better than freshly baked treats straight from the oven. But too many home cooks believe they don't have the time to bake except for the occasional special dessert. If you are one of them, this comprehensive baking collection, with nearly 400 recipes for everything from homespun favorites and bake-shop sweets to popular restaurant-style desserts, is guaranteed to change your mind. In this inspired book, you will find recipes that both fit into your busy schedule and suit nearly every occasion, from quick dessert for weeknight suppers to fancy cakes for holiday tables.

Whether you are dreaming of buttery shortbread for an afternoon snack, a luscious berry pie for a midsummer get-together, a buche de Noel for a Christmas Day buffet, or a batch of rolls for Sunday supper, you will discover how to make it in these pages. The recipes are organized into eight comprehensive chapters: Cookies and Bars; Muffins and Quick Breads; Coffee Cakes, Scones, and Biscuits; Cakes and Tortes; Pies and Tarts; Yeasted Breads; Fruit Desserts; and Custards and Egg Dishes. Each chapter provides an array of flavor options to match the seasons and to accommodate a variety of tastes. Every recipe includes a photograph of the finished dish, so you can see how it will look, as well as photographs illustrating key baking task, ingredients, and/or equipment.

Classics enjoyed by adults and kids alike are here, such as lemon bars, chocolate-studded cookies, blueberry muffins with brown-sugar topping, buttermilk biscuits, birthday cake with fudge frosting, pumpkin pie, and country-style cinnamon rolls. Detailed directions for baking chocolate cupcakes, bagels, and madeleines make these typical bakery specialties easy to prepare at home. A large selection of recipes for special occasions, such as almond-flecked chocolate cake with caramel sauce, pear torte with fresh ginger, and cherry cheesecake with a biscotti crust, provides plenty of ideas for holiday and dinner-party tables. Rounding out the book are dozens of recipes for savory baked items, from Roquefort-laced popovers and goat cheese muffins to olive bread and mushroom quiche.

An extensive reference section at the end of the book includes basic recipes, such as pie and tart doughs, dessert sauces and glazes, and cake frostings and fillings. Also included is a tips-and-techniques primer, with photographed step-by-step instructions on everything from rolling out pie dough, making decorative crusts, and frosting a cake to kneading bread dough in a stand mixer. Cooking and ingredient charts and a comprehensive glossary complete the section.

With The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book on your kitchen shelf, you will find yourself baking more often, with results that are always both delicious and rewarding.