The 10 Best Dessert Cookbooks by ‘Great British Baking’ Contestants
Since its premiere in 2010, The Great British Baking Show has welcomed many talented and passionate bakers from across the UK to showcase their work on a global scale. Many contestants go on to write their own cookbooks to show fans how to create some of their dishes themselves, furthering their fame around the world.
Nadiya Hussain’s ‘Nadiya Bakes’
Nadiya Hussain won season 6 of The Great British Baking Show. Since then, she’s become a household name, even appearing on other cooking shows, The Chronicles of Nadiya, Nadiya’s British Food Adventure, and Nadiya Bakes.
She’s released seven cookbooks, including one focused on desserts, Nadiya Bakes. The book features 100 simple recipes for nearly every baked good you can imagine.
Liam Charles’ ‘Cheeky Treats’
Liam Charles appeared on season 8 of The Great British Baking Show and has since published two cookbooks. Cheeky Treats is made for the Charles fans with a sweet tooth, but the book isn’t just limited to sweet recipes. It’s split into five sections: sweet, savory, nostalgia, simple, and “celebrate.”
Kim-Joy’s ‘Celebrate with Kim-Joy’
Kim-Joy captured hearts everywhere when she competed on season 9 of The Great British Baking Show. Her cookbook Celebrate with Kim-Joy is all about cakes and other sweet treats designed to make your next party as joyful as her name. The book even includes gluten-free and vegan options.
“When I think of celebrations, I think of food, color, and joy,” she writes in the book’s intro. “So this book is full of just that!”
Benjamina Ebuehi’s ‘A Good Day to Bake’
Benjamina Ebuehi’s book A Good Day to Bake is all about highlighting the therapeutic benefits of baking while delivering readers some yummy recipes to try themselves.
“I want this book to help us all remember and hold on to those moments of pause,” she wrote in the book. “Every day could do with a bit more slowing down, a little more stirring, kneading, folding and peering into the oven watching bread puff up like magic. More than what the end result looks like, the route to get there can be just as fulfilling.”
Giuseppe Dell’Anno’s ‘Giuseppe’s Italian Bakes’
Giuseppe Dell’Anno won season 12 while incorporating his Italian heritage into many of his dishes. Giuseppe’s Italian Bakes puts that power in readers’ hands as they learn how to make focaccia, panna cotta, tiramisù, rum baba, piadine, Sicilian cannoli, and pizza.
Candice Brown’s ‘Comfort’
Season 7 winner Candice Brown penned her Comfort cookbook to do what the title suggests: create comfort for those who bake her recipes.
Steph Blackwell’s ‘Bake Yourself Happy’
Season 10 finalist Steph Blackwell has been open about her struggles with depression, disordered eating, and anxiety, and how baking has helped her through it all. Her cookbook Bake Yourself Happy is her guide to using baking as a boon for your mental health.
“Putting yourself forward for the nation’s biggest baking show isn’t exactly meditative,” Blackwell wrote in the book’s introduction. “However, the experience was life-changing and my appearance on the show has afforded me incredible opportunities like this one: writing about the two things that I’m passionate about, baking and happiness.”
Helena Garcia’s ‘The Wicked Baker’
Helena Garcia won hearts on season 10 of the show with her consistent witchy aesthetic. The Wicked Baker, then, makes for the perfect Halloween cookbook. But don’t be afraid to make some creepy cakes all year round.
Lottie Bedlow’s ‘Baking Imperfect’
Lottie Bedlow’s book Baking Imperfect is all about embracing every part of the baking process, even if things don’t go according to plan.
“Baking — which had begun as my secret hobby and turned into a personal, creative outlet — was now a hilarious and messy process that I actually enjoyed sharing with others. The sense that we were ‘all in this together’ was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. I want to give other people that feeling. That is why I’ve written Baking Imperfect. To encourage anyone who feels nervous about baking to give it a go, and to push more experienced bakers to challenge themselves,” she wrote in an essay about the book. “What is the worst that can happen?”
Freya Cox’s ‘Simply Vegan Baking’
Freya Cox made history as the first vegan baker on The Great British Baking Show. It only makes sense, then, for her to pen a cookbook filled with recipes for vegan baked goods, including sugar cookies, scones, and tiramisu.
Rahul Mandal’s ‘Showstopping Cakes’
Rahul won hearts and the Baking Show crown in 2018 and has garnered a large following since then. His Showstopping Cakes cookbook is for bakers prepared to make jaw-dropping creations their friends will be jealous of.
