Book excerpt: ONE OF THE TEN BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR: Boston Globe • ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR: Food Network, The Washington Post, Time Out, Glamour, Taste of Home, Southern Living, Library Journal “As much about a collection of recipes that makes your mouth water and tugs at your heart with food memories as it is about the chronicles and life lessons of a true comeback kid.”—Carla Hall Popular baking personality and lawyer turned baker Vallery Lomas debuts her first baking book celebrating more than 100 recipes for everything from Apple Cider Fritters to Lemon-Honey Madeleines and Crawfish Hand Pies to her Grandma’s Million Dollar Cake. Vallery shares heirloom family recipes from her native Louisiana, time spent in Paris, The Great American Baking Show (which she famously won!), and of course sweets and breads inspired by her adopted hometown, New York City. Vallery’s “when life gives you lemons, make lemon curd” philosophy will empower legions of bakers and fans to find their inner warrior and bake their best life. “Life Is What You Bake It is not only a collection of recipes but also an empowering book that shows us there’s often more possible than we can even imagine.”—Julia Turshen, bestselling author of Simply Julia, host of Keep Calm and Cook On podcast, and founder of Equity at the Table