It’s no secret that sourdough is as loved for its unique flavours as it is for its health benefits, in particular gut health.

Vanessa Kimbell is an expert in both baking, as a third generation baker of Italian descent, and in gut health, an interest stemming from her own health issues which saw her give up her beloved bread for years.

Vanessa runs The Sourdough School in Northamptonshire, where she teaches sourdough breadmaking and baking classes to students from around the world.

After a quest to understand the link between nutrition and the gut biome, Vanessa is internationally renowned for her passion and unique understanding of long slow fermentation. In many ways, she came full circle as she taught the nutrition and digestibility of bread course to doctors and health care practitioners – accredited by the Royal College of General Practitioners.

The Sourdough School: Sweet Baking is a companion to the best-selling The Sourdough School, and focuses on the techniques and ingredients involved in successful sweet sourdough baking, with recipes that are gut-friendly and rely on natural sweetness where possible.

More than just a recipe book, Sweet Baking also explains the intricacies of the relationship between food, the gut microbiome and health – particularly mental health.

Sweet Baking is something of a choose-your-own-adventure style recipe guide, with classic recipes and new ideas for flavour combinations to offer bakers an alternative method of baking cakes, tarts, biscuits, doughnuts, brioche, pretzels – nothing is off limits. If it rises, it can be made with sourdough. Also featured are recipes for compotes and syrups to accompany your bakes.

The Sourdough School: Sweet Baking is available from Hachette Books, RRP $49.99.