After many years of gluten being disparaged, now bread is back, especially homemade bread that you can make yourself to share with family and friends. If you’re wondering where to go to get started in bread-baking, you can never go wrong by starting with the master of American cooking, James Beard.

Back in the 1970s, Beard wrote his masterful Beard on Bread. And now, to celebrate a new generation of bread bakers, Knopf has put together a collection of 13 recipes (a baker’s dozen!) from his original work. It’s just enough recipes to get you a really good start with breads without being overwhelming. And the price is good.

The Essential Bread Cookbook contains well tested recipes for Basic Home-Style Bread, French-Style-Bread, Sourdough, Rye, and Brioche. There are also recipes for Refrigerator Potato Bread, Norwegian Whole-Wheat Bread, Irish Whole-Wheat Soda Bread, and Anadama Bread. There is Mother’s Raisin Bread, Lemon Bread, Pita, and Parker House Rolls.

So . . . so what? It’s a short cookbook, Kindle version only, with only 13 recipes it in? What makes that so special? Here’s what makes it so special: James Beard. The man is a legend, cooking and teaching at a level that our current awards for the best chefs are the James Beard awards. These recipes have been tried and tested by one of the best in the business, so you know that they are reliable, they are delicious, and they are timeless.