New York Times Best Cookbook of 2025 "In Dobre Dobre Laurel Kratochvila leads us down the
gloriously buttery poppy-seed-strewn path of modern and classic Polish baking. Ms. Kratochvila
who runs a bakery in Berlin writes meticulous recipes that deliver impressive results." -New
York Times Discover the vast and varied Polish baking tradition old and new Jewish and
diasporic in this authoritative collection of 120+ recipes from James Beard Award finalist
Laurel Kratochvila. Poland’s distinctive baking culture is a product of its rich and
complicated history from the World Wars to the rise of Communism to the cultural exchange that
inevitably happens to a country with seven neighbors and endless migration. Step into the
Polish piekarnia (bakery) and be greeted by an abundance of tiny cookies and rugelach
decorative layer cakes and cheesecakes sweet yeast buns and danishes and hearty rye breads
and sourdough loaves. In this repertoire-expanding baking book American-born Berlin-based
baker and 2023 James Beard Award finalist Laurel Kratochvila brings you more than 120 familiar
and inventive treasures—innovative recipes of her own and from pioneering Polish bakers
including: Horseradish Beet and Summer Greens Bialys Sunflower Rye Loaf Plum Butter Carnival
Donuts Rano Piekarnia’s Summer Bilberry Buns Chocolate and Whipped Cream Warsaw Cake Karpatka
(Cream and Choux Cake) Soft Iced Toruń Gingerbread Rose and Almond Jewel Rugelach Twisted
Krakow Bagels Sauerkraut and Mushroom Rolls And much more. Vivid storytelling and fascinating
historical details illuminate each recipe’s significance: If you want to start a fight with a
French person tell them that baba au rhum is Polish. In the eighteenth century while exiled
in France Polish King Stanislaw I sent a dry babka back to the kitchen spurring his pastry
chef to soak it in sweetened alcohol to everyone’s delight—and thus the emblematic French
dessert was born in a Polish court. Beautiful photography makes it feel as if you' re
right there beside Laurel stepping into a warm bakery on a cold winter' s day picking
baskets of wild bilberries in July and biting into a soft yeasted bun jammy strawberries
oozing down your chin. Cheesecakes wafer cookies gingerbread country loaves : These recipes
aren' t just for those curious about the new wave of Polish bakeries or nostalgic for the
old-world treats or Jewish delights of their childhood—they' re for any home baker looking
to fill their cookie jars and bread boxes with inspiration. EXPERT AUTHOR + RELIABLE RECIPES:
Lauded professional baker Laurel Kratochvila is the owner of Fine Bagels bakery and café in
Berlin and author of the award-nominated cookbook New European Baking . Her thoroughly tested
reliable recipes range from easy to advanced and include clear instructions and step-by-step
directions for making and shaping various base doughs. SURVEY OF POLISH BAKING : Dobre Dobre
' s curated selection of more than 120 recipes encapsulates the wide range and diversity of
Poland' s exciting baking culture . Discover contemporary spins on the classics traditional
holiday treats desserts from the diaspora recipes with Jewish roots including bagels bialys
and challah and much more. No one book can capture a country' s entire baking catalog but
Dobre Dobre comes close. UPLIFTS PIONEERING BAKERS: In addition to Kratochvila’s work the
book spotlights ten stars on the Polish baking scene and in the diaspora by featuring their
recipes. BEAUTIFUL TRAVELOGUE: Visit Poland via these stunning photographs and delectable
recipes perfect for armchair travelers and heritage seekers . Perfect for: Home bakers of all
levels Bakers of Jewish or Eastern European heritage Those curious about the ongoing bakery
renaissance in Eastern Central and Northern Europe Cookbook collectors Buyers of books like
Mooncakes and Milk Bread by Kristina Cho New World Baking by Bryan Ford Scandinavian from
Scratch by Nichole Accettola Mamushka by Olia Hercules and The Nordic Baking Book by Magnus
Nilsson
