Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've had this book for 20 years and made nearly everything in it. The only recipe which I think must have a mistake in it is the "pepper" brownies. I've never been able to make them come out, and I've varied the cooking times, the tempetature, the ingrediants etc.
Ok, my favorite is the "French Chocolate Mint Truffles." You can vary this one to your heart's content. First, you can roll the results in "dipping chocolate" get a bar of high quality chocolate heat on a double boiler and use a fork to dip the cured truffle, place on wax paper to cool. Second, you can use almost any flavoring, almond, coconut, orange, lemon, peppermint, etc. Third, you can use milk chocolate, if the the mix starts to thin when you heat it, add a tablespoon of powdered sugar. Fourth you can use white chocolate although this is tricky and requres a lot of powered sugar to get it to "set" like a 3 to 5 tablespoons of powdered sugar. (With the coconut ones I mix in a 1/4 cup of grated coconut.)
Ok, then the basic brownies, ooooh you'll never buy a box mix again.
Then the flourless cakes, so rich, its incredible.
On to the "Pots of Creame" Yum, you'll have people begging for more. The trick here is to use a pan to hold the pots in, put the pan with the pots in it in the oven, then add "boiling water" and cook for exactly 22 minutes. The centers will be smooth and look runny but they'll finish cooking as they cool. Also be very careful getting them out of the oven, hot water will go right through your oven mitts. I use a canning jar lifter to get the pots of creame out of the pan. But in any case please be careful the burn you could get is bad.
I could go on and on, but if you can follow directions they all seem to come out fine.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts

Chocoholics rejoice! Heatter's perennial favorite has everything for the chocolate-loving cook--cakes, cookies, pies, puddings and more. Each recipe is precisely detailed, and Heatter provides valuable advice on cooking techniques, ingredients and equipment.

Click here for more information about Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts

Read More...

The Cake Mix Doctor Returns: With 160 All-New Recipes Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Not much to say, except -- if you have the other Cake Mix Doctor books, you do not need this one (unless you simply want to complete the library). It it mostly a rehash of the first two cake books...and the "low-fat" changes do NOT improve the recipes. Here's an example of a repeat: "Key Lime Cheesecake". The recipe is a repeat of the same one featured in "The Cake Mix Doctor Does Chocolate"...except it does not have a chocolate crust and pecans are added. The "lighter" version of "Darn Good Chocolate Cake" is NOT as good -- just stick with the original recipe. The change in the "Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars" is NOT for the better. For those of you who have made them (featured in the second Cake Mix Doctor book), the coconut is in the original recipe for a reason...it holds the chocolate filling together. Taking it out in the "revised" recipe is NOT an improvement. Apparently, the publisher wanted to squeeze another book out of the series, and did what Southern Living/Oxmoor House is infamous for -- printed a "new" book filled with recipes from other books in the same series. For those of you who have none of the Cake Mix Doctor books -- bypass this one and purchase the original "Cake Mix Doctor". It's the best and comes highly recommended.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Cake Mix Doctor Returns: With 160 All-New Recipes

What could be better than a phenomenon? The return of a phenomenon. Ten years ago Anne Byrn's The Cake Mix Doctor began its extraordinary run as one of the most popular baking books of all time. Now Anne Byrn is back with the all-new Cake Mix Doctor Returns! From the beloved author who showed home bakers how adding a touch of sweet butter or a dusting of cocoa powder, a dollop of vanilla yogurt or flurry of grated lemon zest could transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. Here are 160 brand-new recipes-that's right, 160 amazing cake mix recipes-for luscious layer cakes, sheet cakes, brownies, bars, cookies, and more.And the book is needed more than ever. Today 90 percent of home cooks use prepackaged mixes, while the economy is creating a perfect excuse to let them eat cake-cake equals happiness. And what cakes! 40 layer cakes, from Tiramisu Cake to The Best Red Velvet Cake, Strawberry Refrigerator Cake to Chocolate Swirled Cannoli Cake. 35 sheet cakes. 38 bundt and pound cakes. 16 cupcakes and muffins, plus the cult classic Whoopie Pie. And brownies, bars, and cookies, including Spice Drop Cookies, Angel Food Macaroons, and Chocolate Espresso Biscotti. There's even a wedding cake, a frequent request from the author's passionate online community.The Cake Mix Doctor is back-just say ahhhhh!

Get 38% OFF

Click here for more information about The Cake Mix Doctor Returns: With 160 All-New Recipes

Read More...