Few activities are as perfectly suited to pairing with library materials as baking. Need something to do while waiting for your bread to rise? We’ve got a book for that! Have an hour to spare while your slow-cook apple pie is in the oven? There are baking shows at the library that are just calling your name. Need the perfect cookie cutter for a party with an obscure theme? Actually… yeah, we can help with that, too.
So, to celebrate this beautiful connection between baking and the sweet stuff you can borrow from the library, we would like to offer a few recommendations – for cookie cutters to make, recipes to try, shows to watch, and of course, books to read. Whether you’re an experienced baker, a complete beginner, or someone who feels baking is best left to other people as you look on, we have something for you. Just don’t get cake batter on the books, okay?
Picture Books
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
By Laura Joffe Numeroff
Picture Book
This beloved children’s book relates what might happen if you bake a batch of cookies – and give one to a friendly mouse!
In the Night Kitchen
By Maurice Sendak
Picture Book
Our young hero falls through the darkness and into a bowl of cake batter! The three bakers in the Night Kitchen were looking for milk to add to the batter, but if there is none to be found, they might bake their cake with Mickey in it instead!
Cookie
By Andrea Posner-Sanchez
Board Book
This board book is a great literary introduction to everyone’s favorite Baking Day monster – we refer, of course, to Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster! Read along to learn more about Cookie Monster’s favorite activities, including, naturally, baking and eating COOKIES!
Beginner Books
Baking Day
By Natalie Shaw
Beginner Book
In this entirely-coincidentally-titled book, Daniel Tiger takes a trip to the bakery to bake Trolley Cookies with Baker Aker and Prince Wednesday.
A Cake to Bake
By Apple Jordan
Beginner Book
Disney princesses plus baking? Yes please! And that’s exactly what you’ll be getting when you check out this book.
Intermediate Books
Roxie the Baking Fairy
By Daisy Meadows
Intermediate Book
As the baking fairy, Roxie’s job is make sure that baking is fun and safe for everyone. But disaster looms at the cookie shop on Rainspell Island – the cookies taste awful! Can Rachel and Kirsty help Roxie find her magical cookie cutter and save the day?
Aven Green, Baking Machine
By Dusti Bowling
Intermediate Book
The intrepid Aven Green decides to enter a baking contest at the county fair with her friends. But having so many cooks in the kitchen may turn out to be a recipe for disaster!
Junior Fiction
Cookies & Milk
By Shawn Amos
Junior Fiction
Ellis has a busy life – he’s making new friends, adjusting to his parent’s divorce, and on summer break from school. But he’s about to get busier helping his father open the world’s first chocolate chip cookie store right in Hollywood, California!
Teen Fiction
Cold Fire
By Tamora Pierce
Teen Fiction
Daja is one of a small group of mages whose magic works through everyday activities, rather than through spells and potions. Though Daja’s own magic manifests through her work as a blacksmith, while traveling she comes across a girl with kitchen magic. Daja must both arrange for the girl’s training and at the same time, stop a deadly arsonist working in the area.
A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking
By T. Kingfisher
Teen Fiction
In a world where powerful wizards control lightning and other such impressive feats, Mona’s magic seems small. Her familiar is a sourdough starter, for example. Her magic works on… bread. That’s it. Just bread. But in a time of crisis, Mona may be just the wizard her city needs.
Adult Fiction
Eat Cake
By Jeanne Ray
Adult Fiction
When everything else in Ruth’s life falls apart, well, at least she can still bake! As one relationship after another undergoes drastic changes, Ruth is left to save the day for her family.
Baking for Keeps
By Jessica Gilmore
Adult Fiction
Lacey is loving her life in the town of Marietta after a childhood spent traveling. She’s even helping to organize the Bachelor-Bake-Off to raise money for local children. But as things heat up in the kitchen, so does Lacey’s relationship with one of the bachelors – one who plans to leave her beloved town.
One Poison Pie
By Lynn Cahoon
Adult Fiction
Mia is a kitchen witch who finds herself, somewhat unexpectedly, moving to a small town in Idaho and opening a dinner delivery business. But even all of that is less unexpected than when her first catering job ends with her client stabbed to death and stuffed under the table. If Mia can’t find the killer, she risks being a suspect herself – or worse, the next victim.
Aunt Dimity’s Death
By Nancy Atherton
Adult Fiction
No matter where you start in the Aunt Dimity series, you will find a cozy mystery story full of characters you’ll love. If you’re one of those people who likes to start at the beginning, though, then this is the right book. Lori inherits from one her mother’s old friends – a woman she had always believed to be a myth. But it turns out that Aunt Dimity was quite real – and still willing to offer Lori the same friendship and guidance she once offered her mother, even if she had to wait until after her death to do it! And each book has a delightful recipe at the end, so you have something to munch on as you read.
Nonfiction
Baking School
By King Arthur Flour Company
Adult Nonfiction
King Arthur’s Baking School has taught thousands of students the secrets of baking all kinds of breads, pastries, and cakes. This book gives you the opportunity to learn from their expert teacher-bakers from the comfort of your own kitchen and focuses on teaching the ‘how’ and ‘why’ rather on just following a recipe, empowering learners to make changes and understand how they will affect their finished products.
The Official Harry Potter Baking Book
By Joanna Farrow
Junior Nonfiction
First, let’s get this out of the way – yes, this is non-fiction. If it was a book about Harry Potter baking, it would be fiction, but instead it’s a book to help you bake Harry Potter-inspired treats, so it’s non-fiction. And now we’ve spoiled what the book is about. Anyway, if you want to learn how to bake Owl Muffins, this is the book for you!
Do You Know the Muffin Pan?
By Amy Fazio
Adult Nonfiction
It turns out that you can use a muffin pan to make a lot more than just muffins! This recipe book will give you the know-how to create appetizers, sides, and even entrees using your handy muffin pan.
Super Good Baking for Kids
By Duff Goldman
Junior Nonfiction
Learn to make dessert pizzas and unicorn cupcakes with Duff Goldman, host of Ace of Cakes and the Kids Baking Championship.
Media
The Great British Baking Show
DVD
This may be some of the most wholesome reality television out there, but don’t be fooled – these sweet British bakers have some serious skills! And while watching may not automatically increase your baking skills, you’ll at least be able to impress your friends with your newfound knowledge of what a Cornish pasty is.
Murder, She Baked: A Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
DVD
Series and characters are based off of the writings of Joanna Fluke. Heroine (and cookie baker) Hannah Swensen jumps in to help solve the mystery of her friend’s murder – with the help of a handsome detective.
Kiki’s Delivery Service
DVD
When a young witch sets out on her own, she is taken in by a friendly baker – and has a lot of adventures as she makes a new life for herself!
Makerspace
Custom Aprons
Not only can you come into the Makerspace and use the sewing machine to make your own apron, you can further customize it using the Cricut machine and some heat-transfer vinyl. No charge for use of either machine, but please bring your own materials.
Cookie Cutters
Did you know that the library has 3D printers available for you to use? For free? That’s right – you only pay for the filament you use. Check out thingiverse.com for files you can use to make cookie cutters, or use Tinkercad.com to design your own!
Cupcake Topper
Do you prefer an easier way to decorate your sweets? Cupcake toppers are your friend! And you can design and 3D print your own right here in the Makerspace, paying only the cost of the filament you use.
Written by Christine C, Makerspace Volunteer
