In her hotly anticipated debut solo cookbook, Ottolenghi pastry chef and recipe developer Helen Goh shares her 100 favourite baking recipes to show the many ways baking brings meaning and joy to our lives.
No one knows the 'why' or 'how' of baking better than Helen Goh, recipe developer with Yotam Ottolenghi for more than a decade, co-author of bestselling books Sweet and Comfort, food columnist for the Good Weekend, The Guardian and Observer, and practising psychologist. In this, her first solo cookbook, Helen draws on her upbringing in Malaysia and Australia, her acclaimed work with Ottolenghi and her psychology training to share her distinctive approach to baking with 100 delicious sweet and savoury bakes.
With recipes like Chocolate Tahini Cake with Sesame Brittle, Plum and Pistachio Bars, Pandan and Coconut Chiffon Cake, and many other shareable treats that offer both tried-and-true and creative flavours, this book is a celebration of community, connection and pleasure through baking. Helen's Champagne and Blackcurrant Celebration Cake will become your new go-to for a special occasion, while a batch of Perfect Vanilla Cupcakes for a picnic or charity bake sale is a small but powerful building block of community and solidarity. All of her desserts are impressively sweet ways to celebrate milestones and connect with family and friends. And after your sweet tooth has been satisfied, there are more than 15 savoury baking dishes, from a Puttanesca Galette with Lemon Ricotta to a Potato, Garlic and Rosemary Focaccia.
With inventive flavour combinations that showcase Helen's creativity, a wealth of thoroughly road-tested bakes and her reflections on living and baking well, Baking and the Meaning of Life is a one-of-a-kind companion bakers will return to again and again to spread joy, one cookie, cake, or cheese puff at a time.
By:
Helen Goh
Imprint: Murdoch Books
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions:
Height: 250mm,
Width: 190mm,
Weight: 1.372kg
ISBN: 9781761500145
ISBN 10: 1761500147
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 01 October 2025
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Introduction Cook's Notes Chapter One: Giving, Receiving & Sharing Chocolate Mousse Tart with Ginger-Poached Pear Apricot Galettes with Chrysanthemum Frangipane Peach & Blueberry Buckle with Hazelnut Crumble Pistachio & Dried Sour Cherry Scrolls Vanilla & Nutmeg Crme Caramel Puttanesca Galette with Lemon Ricotta Hojicha Shortbread Cracked Wheat Loaf Potato, Garlic & Rosemary Focaccia Gnocco Fritto Dutch Baby Pancake with Mortadella & Rocket Dutch Baby Pancake with Berries & Yoghurt Cream Chocolate, Rosemary & Hazelnut Financier Roasted Pineapple with Coconut 'Crack' Cream Chapter 2: Nurturing A Very Good Apple Pie Chocolate Cake for Everyone Green Tea & Red Bean Brownies Crisp & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies Plum & Pistachio Bar Jude's 'Bababka' with Chocolate & Halva Banana, Pecan & Chia Bread Rice Pudding with Plums & Cardamom Apple, Blackberry & Yuzu Crumble Lao Gan Ma Cheese Biscuits Lunchbox Madeleines Wholemeal Sultana & Walnut Loaf Pita Cheese Crispies Red Curry Chicken & Vegetable Pies Caramelised Cinnamon Doughnut Cake Maple Graham Crackers Chapter 3: Celebrating Matildas Tribute Cake King's Coronation Scones with Morello Cherry Jam Giant Chocolate Macaron with Chestnut & Chantilly Cream Wimbledon Cake Brown Butter Durian & Coconut Brownie Ottolenghi Lemon & Labneh Cake Broccoli, Leek & Ricotta Pie Chocolate Tahini Cake with Sesame Brittle Banoffee Ice Cream Cake Chocolate Ginger Beer Cake Champagne & Blackcurrant Celebration Cake Carpathian Mountain Birthday Cake Chapter 4: Remembering & Continuity Italian Breakfast Cake with Olive Oil & Polenta Peanut & Goji Berry Rice Krispies Baked Nashi Pears with Five-Spice Chocolate 'Turtle' Pudding Favourite Orange Cake Quince Tarte Tatin with Normandy Cream Kopi Cake with Peanut Honeycomb Grissini with Nori & Shichimi Togarashi Prawn Sambal Buns Strawberry Iced Finger Buns Roasted Vegetable 'Pasties' with Kimchi & Cheddar Crepes with Red Bean Paste & Walnut Praline Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake Pandan & Coconut Chiffon Cake Pineapple Pudding Cake with Salted Tamarind Caramel Chapter 5: Community & Belonging Blueberry & Vanilla Sugar Crackle Loaf Pistachio & Cumquat Amaretti Pickled Jalapeo & Cheddar Scones Rhubarb, Vanilla & Almond Tessellated Cake Fruit & Nut Biscotti with Lemon & Fennel Iced VoVo Mini Cakes Biko with Salted Coconut Caramel Fundraising Cornbread Plum, Almond & Lime Baby Cakes Pistachio & Pomegranate Madeleines (Very Addictive) Chewy Cheese Puffs Hazelnut Coffee Thins Lamb Schwarma Cigars One Penny Cake Nat's Double Drizzle Lemon Loaf Cake Spinach & Coconut Cake with Cream Cheese Icing Chapter 6: Ritual & Tradition Anzac Cake Challah with Artichoke & White Bean Hummus Karipap Ginger, Orange & Almond Florentines Apple Cakes with Ginger Glaze Winter Pavlova with Cranberry & Lime Travelling 'Speckled Bread' Ten Layer Honey Cake Peanut & Black Sesame Sand Biscuits Coconut Tuiles Vanillekipferl Shoo Fly Buns Golden Syrup Nut Tart with Figs Pineapple Ma'amoul Chapter 7: Learning, Growth & Achievement Perfect Vanilla Cupcakes Passionfruit & Dandelion Cookies Napkin Cakes with Jam & White Chocolate Cream Donovans Chocolate Hazelnut Bombe Alaska Breton Butter Cake with Apple & Prune Sticky Apple Pudding with Miso Butterscotch Carrot Layer Cake with Buckwheat Praline Lemon, Lime & Orange Brle Tart Hojicha Cheesecake Pear, Pepper & Parmesan Cake Gypsy Tart with Bay Leaves & Cereal Crumble Olive Oil Tortas with Sesame & Orange Persimmon & Pecan Cake with Maple Icing Acknowledgements Index
Helen Goh was born in Malaysia and came to Australia with her family at age 11. A trained psychologist, she combines psychology practice with a cooking career, becoming head pastry chef at a landmark Melbourne restaurant before moving to London and joining Ottolenghi. Co-author with Yotam of the bestselling baking book Sweet and family food book Comfort, she has worked closely with him in recipe development for over 10 years, drawing widely on Asian, Western and Middle Eastern influences. Helen is a food columnist whose recipes appear in The Sydney Morning Herald, Guardian and Observer. She lives in London with her husband and two sons. @helen_goh_bakes
Reviews for Baking and the Meaning of Life: How to find joy in 100 recipes
'Helen in her absolute element. It really doesn't get any better.' Yotam Ottolenghi
