The Baker's Dozen, a list of 13 essential baking books that span almost four decades, from 1973 to the present, should cover any and all of your baking needs.

The book list, selected by the James Beard Foundation Book Awards Committee, was released this week.

Local note: No. 4 "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" was written when Peter Reinhart was an instructor at Johnson & Wales University in Providence.

My favorite on the list: No. 5 "The Cake Bible"

1. "Baking: From My Home to Yours," by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2006).

2. "Beard on Bread," by James Beard (originally published 1973; reprinted by Knopf, 1995).

3. "The Book of Great Desserts," by Maida Heatter (Andrews McMeel, 1999).

4. "The Bread Baker's Apprentice," by Peter Reinhart (Ten Speed, 2001).

5. "The Cake Bible," by Rose Levy Beranbaum (William Morrow, 1988).

6. "Classic Home Desserts," by Richard Sax (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2000).

7. "Cocolat," by Alice Medrich (Warner Books, 1990).

8. "The Fannie Farmer Baking Book," by Marion Cunningham (Gramercy, 1996).

9. "Great Pies and Tarts," by Carole Walter (Clarkson Potter, 1998).

10. "The Italian Baker," by Carol Field (William Morrow, 1985).

11. "Martha Stewart's Cookies," by Martha Stewart (Clarkson Potter, 2008).

12. "My Bread," by Jim Lahey (W.W. Norton, 2009).

13. "The Simple Art of Perfect Baking," by Flo Braker (Chronicle, 2003).

Release of this list follows "The Core Collection: 20 Essential Books to Build Your Culinary Library," published in 2007 by the Foundation.