Mowie Kay is a professional food photographer, but unlike a lot of his contemporaries, he is also an accomplished baker. Speaking as someone who is still finding her feet and learning about food photography, his work is quite inspirational.

First impressions of the book were just how beautiful all the pictures were, and how the order of the recipes were entirely logical and easy to follow.

There are 50 recipes to choose from and as you would expect in a book about doughnuts, all the recipes are sweet, although many contain savoury ingredients. One recipe includes bacon (whimpers) and another is a potato doughnut (popular in New England I believe). Amusingly, there is a recipe for what to do with any leftover doughnuts… ha! Like, that’s ever going to happen in my house.

The book starts off with an introduction from the author on the history and worldwide appeal of doughnuts. This is followed by a few very useful chapters covering ingredients, equipment and techniques. The recipes themselves are divided into 3 main chapters: Classic Doughnuts, Doughnuts Around The World, and Modern Twists. The book closes with a comprehensive index.

The photos within are glorious, as I would expect from someone in Kay’s profession. Not only are you treated to beautiful well-staged completed recipe photos, but extremely useful step by step photos.

The steps are clearly laid out, and the instructions easy to follow. I would say this book is suitable for bakers of all skill levels, as any unfamiliar techniques are demonstrated in the introductory chapters. I only attempted the baked doughnuts, as I have doughnut pans and they are marginally healthier than their fried cousins. I do have a doughnut cutter, however, so will attempt the fried ones at a later date. There are so many flavour combinations with room for customisation, filled or glazed, so this book will keep a baker, and their family, happy for ages.

Easy-To-Make Doughnuts by Mowie Kay is available now from Aquamarine.