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| DK Start Something New Boutique until January 31 |
If you want success in the kitchen, DK's new Step-by-Step Series will take you through every single stage of classic recipes with clear, illustrated, step-by-step instructions that guarantee you will be cooking with confidence.
Featuring two hundred recipes in easy, step-by-step sequences that showcase every single stage, Step-by- Step Cakes covers a spectrum of cakes, from angel food, jelly rolls, and mini cakes, to red velvet, sponges, and chiffon cakes.
Step-by-Step Cakes will have readers cooking the world's classic recipes successfully, whether making a birthday cake or whipping up biscuits, cookies, or treats for the family.
- Series: Step-By-Step
- Hardcover: 192 pages
- ISBN: 9780756692674
REVIEW:
One of my goals for this year is to bake more, or should I say, learn to bake more. I have always been handy in the kitchen, but at mealtimes only. Baking and sweets I didn't do. The older I get, the more I want to bake. The hubby loves cakes so I figured I would give this book a try.
I gotta be honest. I suck at cakes and need to keep trying. Practice makes perfect they say, and I need lots of practice. You will soon see why.
I made two honest attempts in this book and both were fails. Here's the first:
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| Bienenstich 'Bee Sting Cake' |
I know. I couldn't resist giving it a try. Imagine a green-horn like me attempting one of the hardest ones in the book... no wonder it was a fail.
But it could have been good.
I just need to learn how to work with yeast. Yes, I am green there too.
Any way, here is what I got:
It looks yummy, but it didn't rise.
Couldn't be split and that is a shame since my custard mixture came out perfect.
I didn't have any vanilla bean left so didn't want to even bother trying again.... in the garbage it went.
Next day, I thought, "Hey, pick an easy cake."
Sounds fair, since I am as new as they get in the cake department. (Yes, I have baked tons out of a box, but does that really count?!)
Anyway.... attempt number two was in full swing.
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| Victoria Sponge Cake |
Guess who can't do a regular cake?
Yup. Me.
It came out tasting perfect. It would have been so nice..... had I had smaller baking pans or doubled the mixture. No, like a twit I spanned the mixture out in big pans and wondered for a fraction of a second why it looked like two cookies.....
Then I re-read the instructions, and sure enough, it says in huge letters clear as day what size pans I need are much smaller than what I used....
Oh, I cursed myself....
And now I get to show you fail #2.... lucky me.
No this is not a sugared peanut butter and jam sandwich... though that sounds pretty yummy too.....
This is my spongy not spongy cake.
It tasted ok, but not enough to eat more than a bite. So off in the garbage it went too.
I'm not gonna give up though. Even if maybe baking just isn't for me... No, I plan on trying some more in this bad boy, and maybe even tonight. I am bound and determined to master cakes. Watch me.
Believe me when I tell ya it's not the book, it's me. The book is amazing. And it will teach this greenie how to bake. Watch for updates on my bakescapades.
5/5
My review for Step-By-Step Bread
Looks tasty
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness...I want this book! I LOVE cakes and love to bake. This looks like it has so many awesome recipes. And your cakes still LOOK really delicious! The taste is all that counts ;) hehe I've done that before as well, where I misread or skimmed through a recipe and missed key points lol. Thanks for the great review!
ReplyDeleteGood for you! What do they say that you need to make 10,000 mistakes before you get it expertly right? So good for you! Thank you for sharing your failures and I know inevitable successes!!!
ReplyDeleteweird, I left a comment here but don't see it?
ReplyDeleteHopping over from the Nonfiction Reading Challenge.
ReplyDeleteHa! Great to see the failures as well as the successes. If you keep baking, you might want to link your posts up to the Weekend Cooking meme. We always have a good time there. It's hosted at Beth Fish Reads (http://www.bethfishreads.com/) each Saturday.