Customer Reviews

400 Sensational Cookies

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
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The only cookie cookbook you will need! From equipment to instructions to excellent recipes to problem solving, this cookbook is complete. Recipes are well written with concise easy-to-follow instructions. Every page has handy tips. Ingredient lists are in both English and metric measurements.

And, .... the cookies are delicious!

At 600 pages (really, ... www.amazon.com shows 472 pages, but my copy of the book actually has 576 pages of text plus 24 pages of full-color photographs), this 10" x 7" cookbook with gorgeous full-color photographs will be an impressive gift to your favorite cook!


Table of Contents:
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Baking Great Cookies:
- Cookie Baking Equipment and Tools
- Ingredients for Flavor-Packed Cookies
- Baking Perfect Cookies
Over 400 Recipes for Cookie-Lovers of All Ages:
- Drop Cookies
- Hand-Shaped Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Heaven
- Oatmeal Cookie Delights
- Dream Cookies
- Rolled Cutout Cookies
- Refrigerator Slice-and-Bake Cookies
- Bars and Squares
- Brownies, Brownies and More Brownies
- Biscotti
- Shortbreads
- Extra-Special Cookies
Appendices:
- Blue Ribbon Cookies
- Packaging Cookies for Mailing
- Cookie Problem Solver
- Cookie Supply Sources

This is a fabulous cookbook for many reasons:
1.) Included are easy to read and follow chapters on baking equipment, tools and ingredients. Helpful tips are also included with each recipe.
2.) The layout for each recipe is clean and offers measurements in English and S1.
3.) The photos are tantalizing and inspiring
4.) The recipe list is diverse and interesting, offering classics and new types

Most of all the author is inspired, and obviously has a passion for the subject. A must for any baker!

This is the BEST cookie book on the market. Linda Amendt is a primo cookbook writer, and I sincerely wish all cookbooks were written as well as hers. She is typically thorough, comprehensive, knowledgeable, but also very easy to understand and read. This book includes a great clear discussion of cookie baking equipment, ingredients (yes, there are lots of different kinds of sugar which have different results), do's and don'ts, problems and how to fix them, which cookies ship well, and even how to win cookie baking contests. All the recipes are easy to follow, clear -- and they all sound delicious. There are whole chapters on brownies, chocolate chip cookies, dream cookies, bar cookies, and more. Some are old favorites, some are interesting variations of old favorites, some are utterly exotic adventures, and some are just -- "OOOOOH, that sounds so GOOD". My favorites so far are German Chocolate Brownies,Orange Marmalade Cookies, White Chocolate Chip Cookies (with macadamia nuts and almond extract!), Banana Rum Oatmeal Cookies, Butterscotch Dreams, and Favorite Sugar Cookies. But there's alot more to go, and my family and friends will be feasting throughout the holiday season, and well into the coming year.
Some of the other cookie books on the market are pretentious coffee-table books(does a cookie really have to be a confection that looks like a sculpture?), slapdash (you wonder if anyone actually baked these cookies), or just plain ordinary. 400 Sensational Cookies escapes all those cookbook traps, and is a solid, practical book -- one everyone will actually USE, not put on the shelf to gather dust. I can foresee where my copy will be dog-earred with use, and I might have to buy another copy in a couple years. I'm buying this book for all my cookie baking friends for Christmas. It's the Best!

400 Sensational Cookies is a wonderful and incredibly informative book that belongs in the kitchen of everyone who loves to bake cookies.

There are detailed chapters on ingredients and equipment, and an extensive chapter on how to bake perfect cookies. The ingredients chapter is quite impressive. The author not only discusses individual ingredients but also explains how different ingredients interact with each other and the results they produce in cookie baking. In the thorough equipment chapter, she covers all of the pans and tools used in cookie baking. The how-to chapter is terrific. It is packed with techniques and baking instructions to help you turn out great cookies. Have problems with your cookies spreading out really thin, burning on the bottom, sticking to the pan, or they turn out tough or just don't have much flavor? This chapter provides the solutions. There's even a quick reference Problem Solver at the back of the book. Although already an experienced baker, I learned quite a lot from reading this book and I'm now an even better cookie baker.

The recipe collection is quite extensive and there are so many new and exciting recipes created by the author to explore. I've tried a number of recipes from this book and they have all turned out beautifully and have really great flavor. They are so good that it's hard to stop eating them! Some of my favorite cookies so far are: Buttermilk Chocolate Chip Cookies, Amaretti, Spumoni Biscotti, Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies, Cranberry Coconut Squares and Almond Pockets. I love how much flavor these cookies have and I can't wait to try even more of the author's first-rate recipes. My family is clamoring for more of these yummy cookies!

These cookies are not only really delicious, they also are very pretty and many are quite colorful. The photograph pages contained in the book are beautiful and the cookies seem to jump right off the page. The cookies I've tried look just as good as the pictures.

I love the tips included on each recipe page and all of the neat cookie ideas the author included throughout the book. They're very helpful and really add to the value of the book.

I'm giving a copy of 400 Sensational Cookies to everyone I know for Christmas!

Well written and well researched, this is a cookie cookbook that will please beginners, experts, and those in between. Author Linda J. Amendt starts with the basics, including equipment and ingredients, carefully explaining why one would use flat baking sheets instead of jelly roll pans, to give one example. There are tips on hosting a cookie exchange party, mailing cookies, and even a Cookie Problem Solver section.

All of this would be helpful but it's the recipes that make you want to get in the kitchen and do some baking. The ultimate dark chocolate espresso cookies earned a score of 8 out of 10 from my husband the chocoholic. A friend who tried those loved them but thought the cranberry coconut cookies were even better. There are clear, step-by-step directions, and each recipe has a tip or two, including how to store them (frosted cookies should be layered with wax paper, which makes perfect sense when you think about it). I know I'm going to have fun working my way through the yummy-sounding recipes.

I have used lots of cookbooks over the years. Betty Crocker, my families recipe cards, Holiday Cookie Books, you name it. This one tops them all!
The ingredient lists are perfect and easy to read,the directions easy to follow,from Novice to Master, you couldn't ask for more!
There is a great section in the beginning about ingredients, and each section opens with methods to make those type of cookies.
The color photo inserts are a real added bonus, just beautiful.
There is a section for problems,such as if your cookies are too dry,along with solutions.
There is a supply section and even the index is pristine.
I would recommend this book for bakers of all ages, and I know it will become the most treasured resource in your library!

This is a no nonsense, simple cookie book. Some recipes are quite creative, still simple. Some are the tried and true. They all work and it's a great, inexpensive gift for cookie bakers. Looks are deceiving until you read through it and try some of the recipes like pumpkin crunch bars - they are excellent!

I enjoy trying new recipes, so when I stumbled across this book in the library I was intrigued. After trying half a dozen of the recipes with exceptional results, I was hooked - and had to buy a copy for myself. The title says it all - the cookies range from simple to fancy, and they all use very basic ingredients that you can find at most grocery stores. There are a number of brownie variations, as well as drop, rolled and bar cookies that unique and tasty. Finally, the book offers tips for successful baking, so even novice cooks will be able to get great results using these recipes. All in all, 400 Sensational Cookies is an excellent investment for anyone who loves home baked cookies.