If you have ever seen pastry chef Claire Saffitz tackle some crazy recipe challenges when she was host of “Gourmet Makes” for Bon Appétit’s YouTube channel, you may question whether picking up her first book Dessert Person (Clarkson Potter, $35) is right for you. I suspect Claire may have felt that apprehension from home bakers and provides a handy rating system at the beginning of the book and labels each page accordingly. Level 1 beginners get Almond Butter Banana Bread for instance, while a level 3 can tackle a St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake and move up to level 5 Spelt Croissants. Being an accurate recipe tester by trade, Claire provides volume as well as weighted measurements in ounces and grams and labels each recipe with total/active time, seasonality, and any dietary considerations such as gluten-free. None of her ingredients, techniques or flavor combinations are overly intimidating. Rather, she asks you to take a journey with her to try a few new things, maybe finally making a fruitcake or adding her twist of earl grey to traditional apricot hamantaschen. Whatever your level of expertise or taste, Saffitz makes it clear that everyone has a dessert person inside of them.
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