More Than Cake by Natasha Pickowicz
More Than Cake is the work of mastermind pastry chef Natasha Pickowicz, a California-born, New York City-based chef and four-time James Beard Foundation Award finalist. I came across Natasha almost by accident, and boy am I glad I did. I’m getting married in May, and my partner and I, who share a love of watching cooking videos, came across a New York Times video of Natasha making a wedding cake. That led to another video on Claire Saffitz’s YouTube channel, to another, and eventually, to this book. In fact, Natasha Pickowicz is also the reason my partner and I now spend our weekends in the kitchen testing cakes for May.
The book begins with Cookies, and while you might recognize some of the components, many of the flavours and textures will be new to you. Shoyu Peanut Cookies, Black Sesame Fortune Cookies, and Brown Butter, Buckwheat Chocolate Chunk Cookies. I actually made the buckwheat cookies (replacing regular AP with gluten-free Bob’s Red Mill), and the method, while straightforward enough, was totally new to me. They were delicious and absolutely worth the overnight rest in the fridge.
Brown Butter Buckwheat Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Following the cookie section, we move into Cakes. The star of this book (if I had to choose) is the cake section, or rather, sections: Single Cakes and Modern Cakes. There’s so much inspiration here that you can take something from one cake and experiment by adding it to another. As Natasha says, “these cakes welcome your own interpretation, circumstances, and creativity.”
More Than Cake is one of the most unique baking books I’ve come across, as is Natasha’s style of cooking and baking. The recipes are an infusion of unexpected flavours and textures, drawing from her Chinese and Californian heritage. Think nectarine and miso, black cardamom in sticky buns, or brown butter added to buckwheat chocolate chunk cookies. Not to mention, the recipes are visually stunning as well (props to photographer Graydon Herriott).
Every turn of the page is a new adventure. And while I don’t want to scare you off by saying there’s lots of new and not super commonly found ingredients, meaning you might have to track down a few unfamiliar things. The reward by doing so is absolutely worth the effort.
It’s worth noting that there’s an entry point for bakers of all skill levels, reinforcing my own belief that baking should be accessible to anyone, anywhere. More Than Cake is also a book that prioritizes joy, not diet culture. These days, it can be challenging to find a baking book that truly leans into flavour without compromise, so I appreciate that here. This is a book that’s brimming with a genuine love of baking as a communal act. As Pickowicz writes in the introduction, “being a pastry chef is so much more than cake—it’s the patience and focus to execute it, the hard work and fortitude to continue, and then, finally, the indescribable, euphoric finale of bringing people together over something special that you made.” At its heart, this is a book about building and reinforcing relationships and community.
There’s so much more I could write about this book. As someone with literally no shelf space left, I’m telling you that More Than Cake is the kind of book you make room for. Although, to be honest, this is a book that likely won’t even live on your bookshelf, because you will be opening and closing it constantly in search of delicious inspiration.
I think Dorie Greenspan put it perfectly when she said this book captures “the happiness of baking” and the satisfaction of sharing what you’ve made with others. More Than Cake is, for lack of a better term, so much more than cake. It’s a celebration of everything that comes with baking: creativity, patience, experimentation, and, perhaps most importantly, the joy of bringing people together over something you made with your own hands. I can’t recommend it enough.
Absolutely serious when I say I’ve run out of room
About the Author
Natasha Pickowicz is a California born, New York City–based chef, a four-time James Beard Foundation Award finalist, and the author of More Than Cake, which was named a New York Times Best Cookbook of 2023 as well as a James Beard Foundation finalist in the baking category.
Much of her work explores the relationship between baking and social justice, including ongoing collaborations with seminal New York City institutions like Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, God’s Love We Deliver, the Brigid Alliance, and Planned Parenthood of Greater New York, for whom she produced a massive city-wide bake sale, raising more than $200,000 between 2017 and 2024.
Pickowicz’s recipes and writing have been published in the New York Times, Vogue magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Bon Appetit, Saveur, Food & Wine, New York magazine, Cherry Bombe, and many other publications. Follow her on Instagram at @natashapickowicz.
More Than Cake is available for purchase in hardcover or eBook format. Check Bookshop.org to support an indie near you.
