Dehradun, Sept. 21 -- The 1st edition Cover

Occasionally, by chance, a hint of cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg wafts through the air. It tries, but fails to overpower the all-pervading stink of burning brakes and the acrid fumes that continue to linger in the air as the vehicles go up and down our narrow lanes.

Dotting the hillside are Cafe Viola, Emily's, Landour Lotte, Mudcup Cafe, Landour Bakehouse and the Northern Store Bakery. All their secret tips for baking at high altitudes come from a single book: the Landour Cookbook. It was first published by the Landour Community Centre in 1930, subsequently reprinted in 1938, and a third, spiral-bound, impression appeared in 1946.

Baking at 7,500 feet can be dicey: 'To make a cake is gratifyi...