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Christmas 2025 Gift Guide: The best cookbooks for bakers

by Jessica Lockyer-Palmer

published on 20 September 2024, last updated on 14 November 2025

Find the perfect gift for the star baker in your life with our pick of the best cookbooks on baking below.

Looking for more gifting inspiration? From the best vegetarian and vegan books, to stocking filler and secret Santa gifts and the perfect recipe book for the cook who has everything , discover all of our Christmas gift guides here .

Learn the fundamentals of accomplished baking with Nicola Lamb

From bread to pastry, cakes to cookies, discover 100 beautiful recipes organised according to the time taken to bake them

A must-have addition to any baker’s cookbook collection

SIFT: The Elements of Great Baking

With her debut cookbook, pastry chef and Kitchen Projects creator Nicola Lamb has created the ultimate baking bible. Find recipes for every kind of baking occasion, whether you’ve got a free afternoon or a whole weekend to dedicate to a passion project. As well as being beautifully photographed and filled with must-try recipes, Sift is a hugely informative cookbook that demystifies the fundamentals of creating perfect cakes, cookies, pastry and more – making it the perfect book for any baking aficionado.

I’ll Bring Dessert

The ideal gift for the designated “dessert person” at every dinner party, Benjamina Ebuehi’s debut cookbook comprises 70 recipes that find the perfect balance between effortless and impressive. From Burnt Basque Cheesecake to Cherry Slab Pie, I’ll Bring Dessert is your one-stop shop for rounding off a good meal with the perfect sweet.

Jane’s Patisserie Easy Favourites

Eeasy Favourites is the fourth collection of recipes from baking sensation Jane’s Patisserie and it’s all about creating simple sweet and savoury treats for any occasion. Jane covers classic favourites – layer cakes, chunky cookies, fluffy cupcakes, cheesecakes and more. As in her previous cookbooks, Jane breaks down each recipe in a step-by-step guide that even novice bakers can follow.

250 classic recipes including 20 brand-new bakes

Every recipe newly tested and photographed

From cakes and brownies, to biscuits and breads

Mary Berry’s Baking Bible (2023 Edition)

Mary Berry’s Baking Bible is an indispensable kitchen companion for anyone wanting to learn the secret to fail-safe cakes and bakes. In the updated 2023 edition, featuring over 250 new and classic recipes, you’ll find cakes, meringues, muffins, scones, bread and more. Whatever you fancy baking, there’s a recipe to guide you all the way through to the first bite.

90 colourful fan-favourite recipes for every occasion

From cakes and cookies to brownies and blondies

Packed with tips and tricks from the team behind the successful bakery

Crumbs & Doilies

London-based bakery Crumbs & Doilies is famed for its cupcakes piled high with icing and picture-perfect layer cakes in every colour of the rainbow. In her new cookbook, founder Jemma Wilson shares ninety of the bakery’s essential recipes, including cupcakes, cookies, traybakes, layer cakes, and more. Bakers will also find equipment lists and plenty of invaluable guidance on how to decorate your cakes to Crumbs & Doilies levels of perfection. Expect fun flavours (hello, baklava cupcakes), brightly coloured bakes, and plenty of whimsy.

100 recipes all designed for one 20cm tin

With brand-new recipes alongside fan favourites

From brownies and blondies to cakes and cookies

Baked In One

Fitwaffle’s Baked in One is the second cookbook from TikTok and Instagram sensation Eloise Head (aka Fitwaffle). It’s the ultimate accessible baking book, given that each of the 100 recipes can be made in one tin. Eloise knows how to create a crowd-pleasing bake and this collection of recipes includes the likes of cheesecake, brownies, fudge, and cookies – many of which require fewer than five ingredients.

Discover 80 plant-based recipes for the beginner to the experienced baker

From cakes to cookies, there is no compromising on taste or texture

Learn to expand your skill-set with step-by-step guides to creating crunchy honeycomb, or luscious chocolate ganache

The Little Book of Vegan Bakes

The Little Book of Vegan Bakes is the essential guide to vegan baking. It includes eighty recipes for cakes, muffins, pastries, and desserts alongside essential tips and information on plant-based ingredient swaps and baking techniques. If there’s a bake or dessert you’ve always wanted to veganise, you’ll find it here, from plant-based mince pies and hot cross buns to sticky toffee pudding and doughnuts.

85 beautifully photographed recipes from the founder of Violet Bakery

From cookies and cakes, to desserts and savoury favourites

Packed with twists on classic English bakes alongside Californian staples

Love is a Pink Cake

Claire Ptak’s cookbook Love is a Pink Cake is a treasure trove of delicious recipes and heartfelt stories. With her unique twist on classics (think Brown Sugar Victoria Sponge, or Tahini Halva Brownies), Ptak guides you through irresistible bakes that can accompany any breakfast, lunch or dinner. You’ll even find the recipe for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s famous Lemon and Elderflower Wedding Cake.

Recipes for 30 kinds of bread, including classic sandwich loaves, rolls, rye, and ciabatta,

Plus 50 meal ideas to help you use up every last crumb of delicious homemade bread

Easy instructions for everyone from total beginners to veteran bread makers.

Bake With Jack

Perfect for budding and veteran bread bakers alike, Bake With Jack: Bread Every Day is a celebration of the perfect loaf. With Jack’s signature no-nonsense instructions for over thirty types of bread and an additional fifty recipes to help you make the most of each loaf, Bake With Jack: Bread Every Day is all about making great bread, minus the fuss.

75 laid-back bakes from the author of The Roasting Tin series

From traybakes to tarts, cupcakes to cookies

With recipes for every season, occasion and skill level

The Sweet Roasting Tin

If the baker on your Christmas list is a fan of Rukmini Iyer’s best-selling The Roasting Tin cookbooks, you’ve just landed on their dream cookbook. The Sweet Roasting Tin is the latest in the series, and this time the focus is on cakes, bakes, puddings, pastries and more, all made in the most common baking tins. Much in the same vein as the recipes across the series, Rukmini’s one-tin bakes promise punchy flavours, contrasting textures, and recipes that deliver results without the fuss.

With 120 show-stopping Bundt recipes for every occasion

For the first time Bundt baker or the experienced cake maker

Classic recipes, experimental Bundt pan bakes, and plenty of helpful advice

Bundt

With their towering stature and intricate design, Bundt cakes are the undisputed beauty queens of the baking world and many bakers can feel a little intimidated by them as a result. In this definitive guide, esteemed food writer Melanie Johnson seeks to demystify Bundt cakes and reveal their endless potential for inspiring designs and ingredient combinations. The one hundred and twenty recipes include the perfect Bundt for every season, occasion and baker.

70 batch baking recipes to make it easier to enjoy your favourite treats

From cookies and pastries, to doughs and frostings

Make ahead now for easy baking later

Batch Baking

Batch Baking is a busy baker’s dream cookbook. The seventy recipes span doughs, batters and dry mixes that can be stored, whipped out and baked when needed. With Cynthia’s helpful advice on making, handling and storing your pre-made mixes, you will always be just a few steps away from freshly baked cookies, cake-ies, pizzas, pastries and more.

Bakes That Break The Internet

Social media is a wonderful place for discovering recipes, and it’s no surprise that there are so many trending bakes. In Bakes That Break the Internet , blogger Kat Buckley (known as @thebakingexplorer) shares recipes for nostalgic treats like Jammie Dodger Ice Cream and School Dinner Cake, as well as show-stopping desserts like Nutella Freakshakes and Faultline Cake. The result? Simple recipes that will impress the guests at your next dinner party.

Bold, colourful, customisable bakes for every skill level

From tea time treats to celebration centrepieces

Accompanied by Jane’s top tips and baking hacks

Jane’s Patisserie

Jane Dunn, the baker behind the website Jane’s Patisserie, is somewhat of a baking sensation. Adored for her easy, customisable bakes, she has amassed hundred of thousands of devoted followers who never miss the opportunity to try out her latest gooey-centred NYC-style cookie, drip cake, no-bake cheesecake or loaf recipe. Her first cookbook brings together the most popular recipes from her website, alongside all-new recipes, and is a must for bakers of all levels.

Browse 75 recipes for showstopping bakes and sumptuous desserts

Follow tips and tricks for more intricate bakes, like tempering chocolate and ‘ombre’ icing

From familiar favourites to impressive celebration cakes, there are bakes to suit every taste

Finch Bakery

Sisters Lauren and Rachel Finch are the founders of popular Blackburn-based Finch Bakery. In their first cookbook they let readers in on the secret to their dreamy drip cakes, fudgy brownies, creative cake jars, and much more. Packed with tips and tricks to help you master everything from a smooth icing finish to different piping techniques, Finch Bakery is all about elevating your baking skills to the next level with Instaworthy bakes to show for it.

A collection of all new baking recipes accompanied by gorgeous photography

Packed with cakes, pies, and puddings to warm the heart and lift the spirits

Including mouthwatering savoury bakes as well as irresistible sweets

Nadiya Bakes

Whether you’re a novice baker or total pro, there’s something in this book for everyone, with fun, creative, and totally unique recipes. Every page is infused with Nadiya’s warmth and enthusiasm, and with her straightforward, step-by-step instructions you can be confident every bake will deliver.

Ottolenghi’s cakes, bakes and desserts

Inspiring ideas for edible gifts

Dinner party and occasion showstoppers

Sweet

If you’ve ever wandered into an Ottolenghi deli and found yourself mesmerised by the counter of baked goods, this cookbook is for you. In his first cookbook dedicated to all things sweet, Ottolenghi goes back to his pastry chef roots with his go-to fellow baker, Helen Goh. Full of beautifully-shot inspiration for all manner of bakes (including all of your deli favourites) it promises precise and easy instructions and results that deliver Ottolenghi levels of flavour and presentation, every time.

A masterclass in baking from Bread Ahead

Inspiring recipes for sweet and savoury bakes

Bread-making made simple

Baking School

Beautiful recipes from Claire Ptak, baker of Megan and Harry’s wedding cake

Delicious sweet and savoury bakes

Inspiration for everyday baking and special occasions

The Violet Bakery Cookbook

Claire Ptak hit superstardom in 2018 when Harry and Meghan chose her to bake their wedding cake. Bringing the bakes of her hugely popular East London-based bakery to your home, The Violet Bakery Cookbook is a great choice for adventurous bakers who like experimenting with new flavours and techniques, and incorporating seasonal fruit into their bakes.

100 inspired recipes using only three ingredients

Foolproof recipes for classic favourites

From indulgent desserts to guilt-free treats

Three Ingredient Baking

Tapping into the trend of the moment, Three Ingredient Baking features 100 bakes made with just, you guessed it, three ingredients. This is a cookbook that proves you don’t need a store-cupboard full of ingredients to make accomplished breads, brownies, cakes, biscuits and more. All you need is a little baking alchemy and Sarah’s easy-to-follow instructions.

Decorative biscuits for every occasion

Inventive ideas for biscuits and cakes

Fun family projects and gifts to bake at home

Biscuiteers Book of Iced Gifts

From the popular Notting Hill Bakery, Biscuiteers, this cookbook demonstrates all of the essential recipes and techniques behind their awe-inspiring biscuits. From different types of dough and icing skills, to how to make different biscuit designs, this book is a treasure trove of ideas for the baker wanting to expand and refine their skills.

Celebrating the UK’s best-loved margarine with a collection of mouthwatering bakes.

With savoury treats, nostalgic cakes, and impressive show-stoppers.

Including classic recipes as well as modern twists on old favourites.

Stork: The Art of Home Baking

Stork: The Art of Home Baking marks 100 years of the iconic British margarine brand with 100 recipes spanning breads and brownies, cakes and biscuits, tarts and desserts. With archive material and vintage packaging, this is a nostalgic baking book for classic bakers.

Discover the secrets to mastering dessert-making with 80 delicious recipes

Organised according to hero sweet ingredients, from vanilla to honey, strawberry to peach

The perfect cookbook for budding bakers, keen hosts and anyone with a sweet tooth

Sweet

Sweet is perfect for bakers who are looking to experiment in the kitchen. Make decadent desserts with an elevated twist thanks to creative flavour combinations crafted by baking sensation Alexia Anatole. Think: Matcha Tiramisu, Sticky Figgy Pudding, and Peach Melba Galette.

Learn to make three basic dough recipes – focaccia, sandwich bread and pizza dough

Discover 20 creative recipes for each dough type

Each dough also has practical step-by-step instructions, detailed photography and QR codes linking to video tutorials

3 Doughs, 60 Recipes

3 Doughs, 60 Recipes is a baking book for novice and expert bakers alike looking to expand on their love of bread. Once you perfect the three simple dough recipes (focaccia, sandwich bread, and pizza dough), home baker and viral food creator Lacey Ostermann shares an additional 20 recipes for each dough accompanied with QR codes to video tutorials.

100 traditional Irish bakes from Jonny Murphy (aka The Hungry Hooker)

With easy-to-follow recipes designed for bakers of all levels

Nostalgic, comforting treats, many of which Jonny learned from his nanny

Bakes and Wee Treats

Bakes and Wee Treats is for bakers of all skill levels. Jonny Murphy aka The Hungry Hooker shares 100 traditional and contemporary Irish recipes inspired by his upbringing. You’ll find delectable baking recipes for all sort of occasions, from a birthday celebration to a slow day with a cuppa.

Sugar & Spice

Self-taught home cook Remi Idowu shares her favourite comfort food in Sugar & Spice. With sweet and savoury recipes, there are plenty of options to satisfy any cravings. Soon you’ll be able to master the art of cooking and baking just like Remi herself.

Master the art of baking, from savoury pastries to fluffy bread to decadent desserts

Recipes that are easy to follow and will guide you to success

Find your next show-stopping celebration cake or a simple afternoon treat

Jane’s Patisserie Classic

Bestselling cookbook author Jane Dunn is back this time sharing her favourite classic sweet treats, such as Battenberg, Jammie Dodgers, and Mini Victoria Sponges. Each recipe contains tips on how to adapt making this the perfect gift for beginner bakers.

Beyond Baking

Beyond Baking is a plant-based baking holy book that revolutionises the future of dessert. In his latest instalment, renowned pastry chef Philip Khoury demonstrates how to make classic sweet treats with a vegan twist.

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