Rating: 
Summary: A Chocolate Lover's Delight
Review: It's delightful to enter Marcel's world of "chocolate enchantments"!! The recipes are not for the weak of heart when it comes to rich and chocolaty. Chocolate Heart of Darkness Cakes and Excessively Expressive Espresso Fantasy (pictured on the cover)are sure to satisfy even a non-chocophile. One of the features that I have come to enjoy in Marcel's books is his "Chef's Touch". He did not disappoint in Cakes. His Chef's Touch at the end of each recipe is filled with practical technical information, tips for beverage accompaniment, and wonderful vignettes. From his witty introduction to mouth watering recipes and practical advice on technique and equipment,and to the Chef's Touch, this book truly is a chocolate lover's delight and a good read!
Rating:
Summary: A Chocolate Lover's Delight
Review: It's delightful to enter Marcel's world of "chocolate enchantments"!! The recipes are not for the weak of heart when it comes to rich and chocolaty. Chocolate Heart of Darkness Cakes and Excessively Expressive Espresso Fantasy (pictured on the cover)are sure to satisfy even a non-chocophile. One of the features that I have come to enjoy in Marcel's books is his "Chef's Touch". He did not disappoint in Cakes. His Chef's Touch at the end of each recipe is filled with practical technical information, tips for beverage accompaniment, and wonderful vignettes. From his witty introduction to mouth watering recipes and practical advice on technique and equipment,and to the Chef's Touch, this book truly is a chocolate lover's delight and a good read!
Rating:
Summary: Another chocolate classic from Marcel Desaulniers
Review: Marcel Desaulniers has a feverish brain, and the fever has been induced by chocolate. In "Death by Chocolate Cakes," he provides recipes for mind-blowing chocolate experiences from Chocolate Peanut Butter Some More (Please) Cakes and Chocolate Chip Goober Gobble Cupcakes to Chocolate Peanut Root Beer Rumble to Cocoa Skillet Cake with Tequila Sunshine Salsa. The range of his imagination is breathtaking, and we should count ourselves lucky that the reach of his culinary prowess is just as broad. These recipes are wonderful!Those who like to wing it in the kitchen may chafe a little under Desaulniers' firm touch--the recipes are nothing if not detailed, but that's because Desaulniers has the experience and expertise to tell you exactly how to do it. If you follow his directions, you can plan on spending a little longer in the kitchen than usual--but you can also bank on the fact that your family and friends will be first amazed, then delighted that you prepared anything from this book. Don't worry if you're not an incredibly experienced baker. You'll look at the level of detail involved and be intimidated at first, but in fact, Desaulniers' recipes are practically custom-made for the baker who likes a lot of hand-holding. He guides you from one step to the next with assurance and grace. Desaulniers knows that we eat with our eyes before we eat with our mouths, and he is rightly known for preparing desserts which are as magnificent to gaze upon as they are to eat. He is aided greatly in this by the evocative photography of Duane Winfield, who captures with loving detail every chocolate cake oozing chocolate ganache, every glossy icing, and every delicious crumb of chocolate goodness. Recipes I highly recommend include the Chocolate Heart of Darkness Cakes (in which you insert frozen chocolate truffles into cake batter just before baking--soooooooo amazingly good you just have to try it!) and the Chocolate Chunk Cookie Cakes (which I made with my 8-year old son and 5-year old daughter, who loved these as much as my husband and I did!). This book's a definite keeper!
Rating:
Summary: Another chocolate classic from Marcel Desaulniers
Review: Marcel Desaulniers has a feverish brain, and the fever has been induced by chocolate. In "Death by Chocolate Cakes," he provides recipes for mind-blowing chocolate experiences from Chocolate Peanut Butter Some More (Please) Cakes and Chocolate Chip Goober Gobble Cupcakes to Chocolate Peanut Root Beer Rumble to Cocoa Skillet Cake with Tequila Sunshine Salsa. The range of his imagination is breathtaking, and we should count ourselves lucky that the reach of his culinary prowess is just as broad. These recipes are wonderful! Those who like to wing it in the kitchen may chafe a little under Desaulniers' firm touch--the recipes are nothing if not detailed, but that's because Desaulniers has the experience and expertise to tell you exactly how to do it. If you follow his directions, you can plan on spending a little longer in the kitchen than usual--but you can also bank on the fact that your family and friends will be first amazed, then delighted that you prepared anything from this book. Don't worry if you're not an incredibly experienced baker. You'll look at the level of detail involved and be intimidated at first, but in fact, Desaulniers' recipes are practically custom-made for the baker who likes a lot of hand-holding. He guides you from one step to the next with assurance and grace. Desaulniers knows that we eat with our eyes before we eat with our mouths, and he is rightly known for preparing desserts which are as magnificent to gaze upon as they are to eat. He is aided greatly in this by the evocative photography of Duane Winfield, who captures with loving detail every chocolate cake oozing chocolate ganache, every glossy icing, and every delicious crumb of chocolate goodness. Recipes I highly recommend include the Chocolate Heart of Darkness Cakes (in which you insert frozen chocolate truffles into cake batter just before baking--soooooooo amazingly good you just have to try it!) and the Chocolate Chunk Cookie Cakes (which I made with my 8-year old son and 5-year old daughter, who loved these as much as my husband and I did!). This book's a definite keeper!
Rating:
Summary: The most luscious cakes you'll ever taste!
Review: Marcel Desaulniers is the most consistently amazing dessert cookbook author I've ever come across. Take, for example, Martha's Chocolate Freckles Fresh Blueberry Ice Cream Cake. It's based in a "Chocolate Freckles Cake," which is a non-chocolate cake with finely-chopped or grated chocolate mixed into the batter. A homemade blueberry ice cream fills the space between the layers - this is honestly one of the best ice creams I've ever had, with a tart flavor created by the sour cream, cream cheese, and lemon juice. The topping is sweetened, vanilla-flavored whipped cream, and further fresh blueberries are ringed around the top. Next we made Marcel's First Birthday Chocolate High and Fluffy-on-Top Cake. This is a chocolate cake with a vanilla frosting. It sounds so simple, but it's so delightful! This is truly the ultimate icing: sweet, not too buttery, and remarkably fluffy. I have never had such a fantastic icing before, and intend to use it on cake after cake in the future. You'll find everything in here from Chocolate Rocky Road, to Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Cake, Chocolate Caraway On-the-Rocks Trifles, Chocolate-Dipped Orange Fry Cakes with Coffee and Cream, Uncle Sam's in the Black Cake (with a toasted oatmeal raising topping), Chocolate Tender Passion, and much more! Each recipe comes with a gorgeous picture. The recipes are inventive and of consistently excellent quality; the directions are thorough without being labyrinthine. They're several pages long for each recipe, but I never feel lost. Marcel repeats the amounts of the ingredients in the instructions so you don't have to flip back and forth to the ingredient amounts. You'll probably not want to get this book unless you have a stand mixer--the key to many of these delights is loooong mixing times, sometimes of stiff batters. Other than that, however, Marcel tries to limit himself to common household equipment and time-scales. In short, if you like to cook and love chocolate cakes, buy this cookbook!
Rating:
Summary: The most luscious cakes you'll ever taste!
Review: Marcel Desaulniers is the most consistently amazing dessert cookbook author I've ever come across. Take, for example, Martha's Chocolate Freckles Fresh Blueberry Ice Cream Cake. It's based in a "Chocolate Freckles Cake," which is a non-chocolate cake with finely-chopped or grated chocolate mixed into the batter. A homemade blueberry ice cream fills the space between the layers - this is honestly one of the best ice creams I've ever had, with a tart flavor created by the sour cream, cream cheese, and lemon juice. The topping is sweetened, vanilla-flavored whipped cream, and further fresh blueberries are ringed around the top. Next we made Marcel's First Birthday Chocolate High and Fluffy-on-Top Cake. This is a chocolate cake with a vanilla frosting. It sounds so simple, but it's so delightful! This is truly the ultimate icing: sweet, not too buttery, and remarkably fluffy. I have never had such a fantastic icing before, and intend to use it on cake after cake in the future. You'll find everything in here from Chocolate Rocky Road, to Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Cake, Chocolate Caraway On-the-Rocks Trifles, Chocolate-Dipped Orange Fry Cakes with Coffee and Cream, Uncle Sam's in the Black Cake (with a toasted oatmeal raising topping), Chocolate Tender Passion, and much more! Each recipe comes with a gorgeous picture. The recipes are inventive and of consistently excellent quality; the directions are thorough without being labyrinthine. They're several pages long for each recipe, but I never feel lost. Marcel repeats the amounts of the ingredients in the instructions so you don't have to flip back and forth to the ingredient amounts. You'll probably not want to get this book unless you have a stand mixer--the key to many of these delights is loooong mixing times, sometimes of stiff batters. Other than that, however, Marcel tries to limit himself to common household equipment and time-scales. In short, if you like to cook and love chocolate cakes, buy this cookbook!
Rating:
Summary: Book is filled with decadent recipes
Review: Not too often do you find a book that is filled with those types of recipes for foods you never knew exsisted, but instinctively you know you desire. This book is filled with wonderfully rich, and recipes that will tickle your tongue. This book is is for those with a little cooking experience behind their apron.
Three of my favorite recipes out of this book was the Heart of Darkness Chocolate Cake, which was a cake that featured a soft gooey chocolate center surrounded by chocolate cake. Happy All of the Time Cakes, which was a rich cocoa bourbon cake with a chocolate honey bourbon glaze. And finally Mocha Mud Cake with Espresso Chocolate Chunk Mud Slide, need I say more.
You will feel you entered your own personal pastry shop with recipes like these. The book has many photos of prepared recipes. I like this book as the ingredient list is printed on the right hand side of the page, leaving almost an entire page for their very detailed instructions. This book is very well put together, and will give you many tasty results that you are sure to enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Great stuff, sometimes a little too sweet
Review: Some real innovations here, but as with all of his books, some of the cakes are a little too sweet for my taste. Tough to tell the first time you make them, of course, but you may find that the next time you can cut the sugar down a bit without sacrificing texture. It's great that many of the cakes have accompanying ice cream recipes -- and if you don't feel like making the ice cream, it's often possible to get something nearly the same flavor to go with it. The directions are flawless. My only little quibble is that I don't own four nine-inch cake pans, so I'll have to go get one more before I try some of the bigger cakes.
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Have for Chocoholics
Review: The one thing I have to say about this book (and all his others) is that if I'm giving a dinner party, I do not have to do a "test run" of desert. I know that it will be perfect. That is the highest praise I can give any cookbook (and I own over 400). I find it a fun book to read as well. The only problems are so many recipes, so few dinner parties!
Rating:
Summary: Decadent Chocolate Deserts For the Making
Review: This book is a must-have item for baking fans and chocoholics alike. All of the cakes are fairly complicated productions, but the instructions are clear and explicit and the results spectacular. I made the (aptly named) Excessive Espresso Expression cake four months ago and my family and friends are still talking about it! Go for it, you might hate yourself in the morning but you'll float to that guilty place on a silken chocolate cloud.
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