Laurel Kratochvila, an American-born, France-trained, Berlin-based baker, has spent nearly two decades exploring Polish baking traditions, culminating in her cookbook 'Dobre Dobre: Baking from Poland and Beyond.

' Her journey began with an encounter with chałka, a braided egg bread, which connected her to her Jewish heritage and inspired a deep dive into Polish culinary culture.The book highlights both the baking practices in Poland and those preserved in the Jewish and Polish diasporas.Kratochvila emphasises the collaborative nature of baking and shares stories from her fellow bakers in Poland.

She celebrates the return to traditional food values, such as using local grains, seasonal fruits, and homemade fillings rather than industrial ingredients popular during the communist era.

'Dobre Dobre' includes recipes like twisted Kraków bagels (obwarzanki), loaded potato knishes, and sour cherry with salty sheep's cheese danishes.

Each recipe reflects not only technical baking expertise but also the rich cultural heritage and history intertwined with Polish and Jewish traditions.

Kratochvila aims to communicate the depth and excitement of Polish baking, often overlooked compared to French baking, and encourages readers to explore these flavours and techniques themselves.