I’ve long wanted to take baking classes to help fill the gaps in my Betty Crocker upbringing. On a recent Paris vacation, there wasn’t time to take the croissant or macaron classes that tempted me. And the cost of a class, or two? Mon dieu! It couldn’t possibly be worth it, right? I will never know, but I may find time for a little class here at home someday.

In the meantime, I bake—and I experiment. Even with recipes I have been making for years, the slightest intentional variation can make a mess of things. Then there are times when I follow a recipe exactly and something goes wrong. I’ve turned out some delicious cakes, cookies, and breads over the years and even changed up the ingredients a bit, but I’ve always known it was just dumb luck. I had no idea, for example, why creaming the butter and sugar one day was easy and another day took forever and came out gunky.

Which variable turned a yummy treat into a hot mess? I only had the faintest notion, and sometimes no clue at all, until I began reading pastry chef Johnny Iuzzini’s book for home cooks, Sugar Rush. Now I feel confident that the rules of science, of cause and effect, are within my grasp. Making dessert, especially the baking I so enjoy, isn’t hocus pocus. It can be magic!  (Full disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of the book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my honest review.)

Sugar Rush offers recipes for everything from caramel and custard to brioche and buttercream. Iuzzini lays out the basics of making the fundamental recipes, with lots of very useful tips about temperatures and handling and appliances and tools. Right there on page 171, he explains the reasons he recommends using cold cubed butter and having eggs and liquids at room temperature when making a cake. Who knew? I suppose most chefs do, but it’s Iuzzini who is sharing the information. Thank you, Johnny!

He enlightens his readers about the similarities and differences in making custard, pastry cream, flan, and pots de crème so we too can understand the point at which the same essential ingredients are transformed into unique, delicious desserts. This kind of insight is what makes the book so dear to me. Reading Sugar Rush from cover to cover, which I did before attempting to make a recipe, was like getting my hands on a magician’s secrets.

Iuzzini then expands on the basics, showing off his pastry chef credentials with enchanting, modern flavor combinations. To wit, recipes for Green Tea Macarons, Rustic Fig and Spiced Almond Cream Tart, Coffee-Cardamom Éclairs, and Chai Crème Brulée—to name a few. Again, the recipes are not intimidating because he’s included how and why the building blocks come together first.

The book itself is beautiful, with gorgeous food porn photos throughout. My only complaint with the book is that I would prefer more photos that illustrate the processes that Iuzzini so carefully describes in his recipes.

Writing this has given me a craving for some recipe making. I’m off to the kitchen to whip up some Smack Caramel Corn, or maybe Caramel-Chocolate Cupcakes with Sea Salt, or perhaps Chipotle Churros. I might be busy for a while…