Nothing Says Lovin' Like Something From the Oven

That doughy boy from Pillsbury was on to something with that catchphrase. And, if you have someone in your life that gives YOU some lovin' from the oven, we hope you'll be giving them a special gift...and more, this holiday season. Today, we continue our list of Cookbooks for Giving.

If Seattle crowd-sourced a baking cookbook, it would include bakery favorites like Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, Scones, Lemon Poundcake, Rhubarb Pie, and Macarons. But wait! All those things and more are already in this great book from Seattle's cherished Grand Central Bakery.

Authors Piper Davis and Ellen Jackson understand the perils and pitfalls of the home baker and gently guide you through various baking tasks with "Workshops." These sections of the cookbook give you step-by-step instructions for various baking tasks and recipes: cookie decorating, cake mixing, pie dough, and more. There are also insights from their collective years in commercial kitchens about choosing ingredients, freezing and scaling recipes up or down.

Give: Bakers, gluttons and thieves.

I always thought "game night" was code for "drinking night," but along comes this book that makes game nights sound fun and full of good food, plus some booze thrown in as a bonus. That being said, Gourmet Game Night is a great book. It sells itself short by calling this "game night" food. It should be called, Small Plates, Big Flavor. Or, Small is Beautiful: Miniatures We Love.

The recipes are not simple, so if you are used to opening a bag of chips and mixing up some Uncle Dan's for game night, consider yourself warned. While many people might be happy with English muffin "pizzas" for a game night, Nims ups the ante with homemade pizza crust and sauce in a recipe for Almost Bite Size Pizzas. There are also recipes for Spiced Cherries and instructions for playing Farkel, and those two things alone are worth the cover price.

Give: Boozers, gamers, miniature enthusiasts