A scale is great for accuracy and Ratio is a wonderful book but I think it can be intimidating if you have never baked before.
That said, I bake a lot using old-style volume measurements, using recipes, for the most part.
The King Arthur book suggestion is a good one. Rose Levy Barenbaum's Baking Bible is good, too.
You want a reputable book/author and you want to follow the recipes in that reputable book exactly as written. Unlike cooking, baking is science and, until you have a very, very good feel for proportions and the order of operations that different kinds of recipes follow, baking is not a place for improvisation.
Bread is an entirely different animal than other baking. I do that by feel but to learn how to make bread, I would suggest the Bread Baker's Apprentice or Crust and Crumb by Peter Reinhart.
That said, I bake a lot using old-style volume measurements, using recipes, for the most part.
The King Arthur book suggestion is a good one. Rose Levy Barenbaum's Baking Bible is good, too.
You want a reputable book/author and you want to follow the recipes in that reputable book exactly as written. Unlike cooking, baking is science and, until you have a very, very good feel for proportions and the order of operations that different kinds of recipes follow, baking is not a place for improvisation.
Bread is an entirely different animal than other baking. I do that by feel but to learn how to make bread, I would suggest the Bread Baker's Apprentice or Crust and Crumb by Peter Reinhart.
