Saturday, October 11, 2014

Sweets - Cookbook Review

Sweet: Our Best Cupcakes, Cookies, Candy and More from The Editors of Food Network Magazine

I have a sweet tooth.  Like a crazy hard to satisfy kind of sweet tooth.  If I could only eat one type of food for the rest of my life it I would pick dessert with very little hesitation.  Based on the cover alone I couldn't pass this book up!  And I'm so glad I didn't!

Now cookbooks that center on sweets are sometimes amazing but frequently uninspiring or focus on decorating which is just not in my wheelhouse.  While I'd love to make a cupcake look like a puppy or a butterfly my rather limited artistic abilities assure me that that isn't going to happen.  So I wasn't sure what to expect when this book arrived but I sat down with an open mind and my handy post it tabs and prepared to do a flip through.

Now a couple of weeks ago I reviewed another baking book called Ovenly which featured amazing and unusual baked goods.  This isn't that kind of book.  While there are some interesting ideas here it's not something that's new and different.  Instead there's comforting favorites with the occasional slight twist like Peanut Brittle Chocolate Cupcakes, Chocolate Malt Cupcakes, Strawberry Blondies, Classic Lemon Bars and Boston Cream Pie.  There are chapters for cupcakes, for cakes, cookies, candies and frozen treats.  As well as one chapter for decorated desserts and another chapter that focuses on holiday treats.  There's also a handy frosting guide that shows you the ratios of food color to use to get every color you can possible think of.  The book itself is well photographed with a picture for almost all the finished products and several guides and charts.  This is definitely a great how to guide for anyone who enjoys baking or wants to learn how to bake.

So when it came time to choose a recipe to test I had lots of options.  After much debate I went with Whoopie Pies.  Now apparently this is a Maine specialty so I can't say I've ever had an official Whoopie Pie so I can't really speak of the accuracy.  What I can tell you is this is the most pillow-y soft chocolate cookie you'll ever have with a smear of creamy vanilla frosting in between the layers.  They were simply amazing.  The instructions were easy to follow and like most of the recipes didn't require any difficult to find ingredient.  The cooking time was accurate and my results when follwing the recipe exactly were very tasty.  The only problem I had was that I ended up with quite a bit more cookies than the recipe specified and barely had enough frosting to go around.  When I make these again (and trust me I will be making these again) I will increase the frosting by abut 50%.

If you want to bake, enjoy baking or know someone who does either this is a great book that covers all bases from the simple to the complicated and the plain to the elaborate.  I will definitely be reaching for this one next time I want to do some baking.

*Received through Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.


24 comments:

  1. I'd been eyeing this one. I love my sweets too. As is totally evident by the donut I just had for breakfast. ::snort:: Yay for this one being awesome!

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    1. It really was awesome! I'm craving those whoopie pies again already!

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  2. I've been seeing this one around but I wouldn't have picked it up based on the cover because it looks so outlandish! Glad to know there are lots of basics included. The whoopie pies sound delicious!

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    1. The cover definitely intimidated me as well but there's actually a lot of fun recipes that you could make easily even if you're not great at decorating (like me!)

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  3. I too have been looking at this but the cover turned me off too -- way too rich and sweet looking.

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    1. The cover is definitely scary but I was surprised by how many practical recipes there were!

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  4. I'm not a baker (strictly a cook...I don't like to measure!), but love eating baked goods and also love the Food Network. Those Whoopie Pies sound amazing - I'll eat cookies with icing any day!

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    1. They were so good! I'm tempted to make more right now but I'm kind of afraid I'd eat the whole batch on my own!

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  5. I got an email about this one and was tempted. But, ya know, I'm actually not a good baker. :D So I skipped it. I like that it's simple and focused not on fancy stuff but basics. It might actually work for me in that regard.

    A friend of mine loves whoopie pies and often bakes them; I can take them or leave them. :D

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    1. There are small segments on fancy stuff but there's definitely more than enough for everyone. These whoopie pies were so great!

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  6. My sweet tooth is at times absolutely uncontrollable! I may need this book ... Well, I want this book more than need it :-)

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    1. Mine's the same way! I envy those people who don't love sweets sometimes!

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  7. The cover didn't appeal to me either, but it sounds like a great basic baking book. Whoopie Pies make me think of my aunt... they were one of her specialties and always a welcome treat.

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    1. They were so good! It definitely is a more basic book than the cover makes it look.

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  8. Hmmmm, whoopie pies! Had some authentic Maine ones last year. The recipe sounds good. Will have to look for this book at the library :).

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    1. It's a fun book. If I ever get up to Maine whoopie pies will be first on my list of things to try!

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  9. We are in the same boat. I love looking at the cute baked goods but I'm not one for making them. I'm sure I could if I tried really hard but I don't have that kind of patience. I'm more apt to eat the cupcake well before it resembles a dog. Glad to hear this cookbook worked out for you.
    Kristin @ Book Sniffers Anonymous

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    1. I definitely agree about the patience problem! This was a really fun cookbook for the patient or the not so much!

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  10. I've been wondering about this book, and now I really want to get it! My local library carries it so I'm going to put a hold on it-thanks for the review :)

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    1. It's definitely worth checking out! I hope you enjoy it!

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  11. Even before my mom let me cook, she let me bake and I still love it. This sounds like a great book!

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    1. This was a really fun book. I didn't do much baking or cooking as a child but there's definitely a special joy in baking!

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