Spagos pastry chef to the stars and author of the James Beard Award-winning Secrets of Baking shares the recipes that propelled her to the top of her profession. Night after night at Spago in Beverly Hills, Sherry Yard dazzles the powerful, rich, and famous with incredible desserts. Her marvelous confections have won over patrons from Madonna to Frank Sinatra. Now the countrys premier pastry chef reveals the recipes that have made her a star in her own right and won her two coveted James Beard Awards. Desserts by the Yard begins with inspirations from Yards childhood, such as My Favorite White Birthday Cake with Chocolate and Butter Fudge Frosting, and culminates in the spectacular creations she makes every year for the Academy Awards. Included here are some of Yards most famous recipes: the slinky crème brûlée she perfected when she worked at New Yorks Rainbow Room, the coffeecake that made Campton Place Hotel San Franciscos most popular breakfast spot, and the souffléed crème fraîche pancakes with strawberry sauce she learned in Vienna. Dont miss the chocolate caramel tart that Hugh Grant loves, former President Clintons favorite oatmeal raisin cookies, or the treat that made actress Suzanne Pleshette exclaim, Bitch! Youre gonna make me fat! Desserts dont get easier than Yards No-Bake Cheesecake, more decadent than Chocolate Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Gelato, or more holiday-perfect than Triple Silken Pumpkin Pie. In sidebars to each recipe, Yard shares tricks and techniques along with hilarious anecdotes that show her pluck, determination, and generosity.