Cookbooks
Art of the Pie: A Practical Guide to Homemade Crusts, Fillings, and Life
Home Cooking with Kate McDermott
Pie Camp: The Skills You Need To Make Any Pie You Want
WBUR Here and Now Cookbooks Of The Year 2020
Dallas Morning News Favorite Baking CookBook of 2020
James Beard Nominee 2017
Inaugural Book Read for Food52 Community Cookbook Club, Feb 2017
Starred Review by Publisher’s Weekly
Library Journal Best Books of 2016
Leite’s Culinaria Best Cookbook of 2016
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Best Cookbooks of 2016
Eat Your Books Best Cookbooks of 2016
Washington Post Best Cookbooks of 2016
InStyle Best Fall 2016 Cookbooks
Epicurious.com Best Cookbooks of 2016
Radio Milwaukee Top 10 Cookbooks 2016
Sunset Magazine’s November 2016 Cookbook of the Month
Good Words About Kate's Books
"Kate McDermott is inarguably the pie-making queen."
- Chowhound
“McDermott, a self-taught baker whose workshops have taught hundreds how to make a proper pie, shares that knowledge in one of the best books written on the topic. Those expecting a quick preamble followed by hundreds of pie recipes will be sorely disappointed―basic instructions take up a third of the book―but readers interested in the hows and whys of pie-making will find McDermott’s tutelage invaluable…McDermott excels, giving readers an informative guide they will be referring to for years to come.”
-Publisher’s Weekly, *STARRED REVIEW*
"Kate’s methods are impressively well-researched from a technical perspective, but even more impressive is her ability to distill complex technique into confidence-boosting instruction. Pie crusts can sense fear. Kate McDermott’s Pie Camp is here to banish it."
- J. Kenji López-Alt, author of The Food Lab
“Baking from Art of the Pie is like having pie maker Kate McDermott at your elbow, encouraging, instructing and cheering you on. Whether you’re a seasoned pie hand or a beginner with more enthusiasm than skill, Kate’s got you covered.”
-Dorie Greenspan, award-winning author of Dorie’s Cookies
"Pie Camp gives you recipes that’ll earn you a merit badge in pie making. It is a comprehensive and indispensable guidebook to crimping, braiding, baking, and reveling in delicious pie pleasure!"
- David Lebovitz, author of The Perfect Scoop
“I’ve been baking pies my entire life, but making them with Kate was a liberating experience. With pioneer spirit she throws the textbook out the window and comes up with absolutely perfect crust filled with fruit that actually sings to you, telling you when it’s ready to be removed from the oven.”
-Ruth Reichl, Former editor of Gourmet
"Filled with clear explanations, straightforward instructions, helpful tips, and tricks accompanied by her enthusiasm, this book will surely be a favorite among pie makers of every skill level."
- Nik Sharma, author of The Flavor Equation and Season
"The thread that runs through [Pie Camp] is joy ― the joy that baking can bring, and the joy that comes from eating and sharing pie with friends, family or even your postal worker on a snowy day."
- Jackie Varriano, The Seattle Times
"A thorough overview, with warmth and cheerleading mixed in among the recipes and demonstrative photos, Pie Camp is the paper version of Ms. McDermott’s immensely popular classes… There’s a wealth of information about tools and ingredients, instructions for making rolled and press-in-pan crusts, recipes for dozens of different pie fillings, tips for frugally limiting waste, and much, much more."
- Toledo Blade
"There isn’t a person alive whom I trust more than Kate McDermott when it comes to pie making. There isn’t a question you have that isn’t answered here."
- David Leite, creator of the James Beard Award-winning Leite’s Culinaria
"If you're unable to bask in Kate's deep well of baking experience in-person, this book is surely a wonderful stand-in for shepherding you to pie success in your very own kitchen!"
- Lauren Ko, lokokitchen.com
"Kate McDermott’s Pie Camp is a delightful deep dive into pies. The reader is given all the tools needed to create their own signature pie, to imagine pie of any stripe, and to gain confidence guided by Kate’s loving instruction."
- Cathy Barrow, author of Pie Square
"Kate McDermott's precise, thorough instruction will make you proud of your next Mocha Banana Freezer Pie or Classic Blackberry Pie."
- Dianne Jacob, author of Will Write for Food
“Kate McDermott will not only teach you how to make a pie―and a damn fine pie at that―she’ll show you how the homey and grounding craft of baking contains important life lessons. Her expertise, creativity, and generosity abound in these pages. The Art of the Pie is destined to be one of those fruit-stained, dog-earred, spine-snapped books you’ll cherish for years.”
-David Leite - LeitesCulinaria.com
“In an era of video recipes and scientifically informed cuisine, Kate teaches us to make pie in the oral tradition passed down by generations of women before us. Art of the Pie puts the reader at a grandmothers knee, where the sensibility of pie is taught, along with a few life lessons. While information is now transferred in blips and bytes, zooming by us at increasing rates, it's pure wonder to take a step back with Kate, and learn not only how she makes her pies, but discover how we can begin to shape our own.”
-Dana Cree, Author and executive pastry chef of the Publican restaurants in Chicago
“Kate McDermott is a masterful, no, magical teacher. She reminds us that pies, like human beings, don’t have to be perfect, all the while showing us in perfect detail how to make a truly great pie.”
-Elise Bauer, SimplyRecipes.com
“Kate McDermott guides us through the Zen of pie with patience, kindness, and humor. From her reliable butter-and-leaf-lard crust to the "secret of the sizzle-whump" to the "recipe" for a good mud pie, her guidelines are the ones you want in your kitchen for the rest of your baking life―and after, if you have a choice.”
-Jess Thomson, Author of A Boat, A Whale & A Walrus among other titles
“Kate McDermott's Art of the Pie will make you want to spend your waking life baking pies. She guides you step-by-step, making pie crusts and all sorts of fillings, teaching you how to handle traditional pie dough nimbly with your fingers so that your pastries turn out both tender and flaky. I've taken Kate's workshops and can honestly say I've never made a better crust. Her book will become your lifelong friend.”
-Greg Patent, James Beard-winning author of Baking In America and A Baker’s Odyssey
“Kate McDermott is God's gift to the nervous pie maker. Not only will Art of the Pie make you into a confident, versatile, and charming pie maker, it will teach you the secret to being a confident, versatile, and charming human being. Wisdom is baked into every page of Art of the Pie, as it is into every lovingly made confection.”
-Rowan Jacobsen, James Beard Award-winning author of A Geography of Oysters and Apples of Uncommon Character
“Kate McDermott teaches us how to make a perfect pie―and more than that, she teaches us how to understand what we're doing and why. In her hands, both baking and life seem sweeter.”
-Rebekah Denn, Seattle journalist and two-time recipient of the James Beard Award for food writing
“Kate McDermott is a pie maker’s pie maker, someone who knows the ins and outs of pie in a way few others do. She brings several decades of experience to her beloved craft. More importantly, however, she exudes the passion and joy we all hope to see in our mentors―the obvious reason that her pie camps and workshops regularly sell out. Kate’s on my short list of the best pie teachers around.”
-Ken Haedrich, Author of Pie and Dean of The Pie Academy
“Kate McDermott is a pie guru, gently and delectably guiding her students in a moving meditation on sugar, fat, flour and fruit.”
-Becky Selengut, Chef, instructor, author of Good Fish and Shroom
“With cold hands and a warm heart, Kate McDermott uses flour, fat, fun, and forgiveness to teach the Art of the Pie―lessons in pie making that take us far beyond the kitchen counter.”
-Nancy Leson, Seattle food writer and KNKX food commentator
“Kate, whom I fondly refer to as ‘the Pie Queen,’ is one of the most passionate, talented bakers I know and a fount of pie knowledge. She seems to have singlehandedly brought back the tradition of home baking pies; she inspires so many of us to get back into the kitchen and bake just with her warm encouragement, her thoughtful guidance, and her incredible, scrumptious pies! For those of us not yet lucky enough to go to Kate's pie camp, her cookbook is very much anticipated, much like a generous wedge of pie warm from the oven!”
-Jamie Schler, Award-winning food writer at www.platedstories.com
“Kate is without doubt the Queen of the American Pie. There is nothing about pies that she doesn't know, and she is so generous in the way she shares this knowledge.”
-Alison Swan Parente, Founder, The School of Artisan Food, UK
“It is so rare of late for someone to completely take on a task; to master it; to make it theirs in its entirety. Kate McDermott has become the master of pie making and her enthusiasm and love of this core skill is infectious. Reading through Art of the Pie, I was tempted at every page to put the book down and roll out my own pie, and to share in her love of this great craft.”
-Kurt Timmermeister, Farmer and author of Growing a Feast: The Chronicle of a Farm-to-Table Meal and Growing a Farmer: How I Learned to Live Off the Land
“A brilliant, expert teacher, Kate gives away the magic, coaching and encouraging beginners while inspiring experienced pie makers to embrace and understand the how and the why of pie. This book glows with Kate's passion and knowledge, which she shares with clarity and kindness. Sweet and savory, wheat and gluten-free, double-crust and lattice topped―it's all here, shared with Kate's expertise, generosity, and joy.”
-Nancie McDermott, Author of Southern Pies: A Gracious Plenty of Pie Recipes from Lemon Chess to Chocolate Pecan
“Kate has long been my go-to source for all things pie. In Art of the Pie, Kate achieves in print what she does in her classes and blog: serves as a patient and encouraging teacher and guide who shepherds the reader through the process of making delectable pies that not only feed the body, but enrich the spirit. The recipes are wonderfully clear and easy to follow, and Kate provides helpful explanations about the processes and ingredients. Whether you are a newbie pie maker or an experienced one, this book will quickly earn pride of place on your most-used cookbook shelf.”
-Jeanne Sauvage, author of Gluten-Free Wish List: Sweet and Savory Treats You’ve Missed the Most
“Just as others roll out their yoga mats to still the mind, Kate McDermott rolls out pie dough. For her, making pie is a spiritual practice, the steps of which are a metaphor for the ups and downs of life. And what she practices she so masterfully teaches, spreading the good word, gospel, Tao of Pie -- or whatever you want to call it -- in a way that is like no one else. Is she a traveling preacher? Kind of. A fairy godmother. a den mother, an earth mother and a good witch, too. But one thing's for sure: She -- and her world view of pie -- is singularly, deliciously Kate.”
-Kim O’Donnel, author of the “Meatlover’s Meatless" Books
“One of the fondest memories of my life is baking pies with Kate. This extraordinary woman makes magic in the kitchen. Not only did she give me the skills to make spectacular treats for my family and friends, I learnt about love and life. Now, you can, too! And, with Kate, it’s as easy as pie…”
-Tess Masters, author of The Blender Girl and The Blender Girl Smoothies