Introduction
 
Each year, hundreds of cookbooks are released, which means that inevitably, many must go to make room for the new. But I was always surprised, and delighted, to hear from so many people that mine were the ones in their collection that they used the most.
 
When I began writing cookbooks over a decade ago, someone told me, “If a book has one great recipe in it, then it’s a good book.” So while I considered calling this book David’s Greatest Hits, that idea was (wisely) nixed by the powers that be. But, from all the positive feedback my cookbooks have received, I don’t know if that title would’ve been all that far off. Over the years, I’ve heard again and again from enthusiastic home bakers that many of the recipes from my first two books were their all-time favorites.
 
Room for Dessert was released in 1999. I hadn’t written a book before, but was thrilled when the New York Times singled it out for praise in a very crowded field of cookbooks. It was also lauded by colleagues such as food writer Arthur Schwartz, who complimented the book as “deceptively slim,” meaning it packed an expansive variety of desserts in a very approachable, and not at all daunting, format.
 
My second book, Ripe for Dessert, continued that philosophy with an emphasis on baking with fruit. I’m very keen on incorporating fruits and berries into my desserts and know that many people share my affection for fruit desserts. The book came out in 2003 just as Americans were rediscovering the rewards of using regional ingredients. At the same time, there was a rising national awareness about healthy eating. Although it was cert...