Customer Reviews

Simple Desserts

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

All-dessert cookbooks often fill me with trepidation. The book cover usually features a photograph of some dessert guaranteed to strike fear in the heart of even the most intrepid baker, and recipes that promise to be the soul of simplicity frequently reveal themselves to be of a nature as involved and delicate as I would imagine hostage negotiations to be.

Ken Haedrich's "Simple Desserts" looked as though it might actually fulfill the promise held by its title. Of course I expected that the book would hold at least a few recipes that required more than the attention span of a gnat; after all, if a book like "Simple Desserts" were 100% true to its title, you would open it to find one-sentence recipes along the lines of, "Have a nice apple."

As early as page 32, though, things begin to unravel. Haedrich succumbs to the temptation of including a Mocha Brownie Cheesecake recipe he developed while making restaurant cheesecakes for a living. He semi-apologetically writes:

" . . . this is not a snap to make . . . you must bake a crust and brownies ahead, and make the icing if you're using it . . ."

Haedrich also includes a recipe for Dark Chocolate Fruitcake which requires a whopping 19 ingredients and an overnight rest, and a recipe for Steamed Black Chocolate Cake which, while it sounds lovely to eat, sounds ridiculous to make (lots of melting and cooling of different ingredients, a two-hour steam bath, and lots of checking of the water level during said steam bath. I would imagine that along with this comes lots of chewing of the fingernails). The Lemon Cheesecake Tartlets require the following:

"Cut 12 strips of wax paper 6 inches long by 3/4 inch wide. Press 1 strip into each [muffin] cup, neatly tucked into the bottom seams. It should run down the sides and across the bottom, with an even overhang on each side of the cup."

Just the thought of having to do this makes me want to go stick my head out the window and scream. You may rest assured that, delectable though they may be, these Lemon Cheesecake Tartlets will not be made anytime soon by yours truly.

Haedrich thinks nothing of asking you to let a dessert sit before serving, frequently overnight, and fully half of his cookie recipes call for refrigerating the dough before baking. In another cookbook, none of this would offend me in the slightest, but in one bearing the sunny subtitle of "Sweet Endings with a Carefree Spirit," I have to say that sweet endings of this ilk make my carefree spirit start to deflate.

I have nothing against any of Haedrich's recipes themselves; they look fine, and some even have wonderful twists on the usual (Orange and Toasted Coconut Crème Brūlée and Semolina Cake with Olive Oil are among the many that intrigued me). I do, however, have to take exception to the fact that quite a number of these were included in a book with the title "Simple Desserts." Certainly, simplicity is in the eye of the beholder--but it is fair to say that in order to really fit the book title, the ingredient list, the method of preparation, or the amount of time involved (or, preferably, all three) must be of a lucidity and a conciseness that even a kitchen neophyte could embrace. That is simply (pun intended) not the case here.

That said, it is a pretty book to look at, and the directions seem mostly pretty clear. Haedrich is particularly strong on fruit-based desserts, a rarity in our chocolate-obsessed society. While I would recommend "Simple Desserts" as a nice compilation of yummy-sounding recipes, I would not consider getting it for a beginning cook--or even for a cook who is simply pressed for time.

I have only used one recipe from this cookbook so far, but it really is worth the price of the book. His pie crust recipe was the final touch to make my own Southern pecan pie perfect. It's different in that it has some rolled oats (processed until they are like meal) and an egg yolk in it. The dough is a little sticky, so you have to get used to handling it. BUT .... it bakes like a dream - tender, tasty, just perfect.

The rest of the book seems to have a broad range of recipes and I plan on trying many of them. The ones in the back for chocolate sauces and ganaches will be the first, I'm sure.

This is not the cookbook to buy for the regular dessert fare such as plain chocolate chip cookies and standard apple pie, if that's what you're looking for then the all-inclusive Betty Crocker would be a much more straightforward choice. This book has a wonderfully fresh and creative selection of dessert varieties, many fruit-related, that are beyond your average Betty Crocker recipe. Desserts such as 'Lemon Cake with Wheat Germ' have healthier twists and were absolutely delicious (despite my extreme wariness of adding wheat germ to sweet things and ruining their wonderful dessert-ness). Other recipes such as 'Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Warm Chocolate Sauce' and 'Blueberry Pear Pie' take some of your more standard dessert ideas and add a fresh flavor to them that comes out tantalizingly delicious.

The recipes aren't, perhaps, as "simple" as the title may lead one to believe, but they are definitely easy enough for the average cook to perform. There are also helpful tips scattered throughout the book such as how to neatly cut a cheesecake without having it stick to the knife or what to do about troublesome phyllo dough, and each recipe comes with a brief paragraph about what you might expect from the dessert you're about to make ("this is a cross between a pudding and a custard" or "The cake is black, thanks to the molasses, coffee, and cocoa") so that when your cake comes out black, you know that that's ok. He also includes a number of other ideas even within a recipe such as "goes well with chopped dried pears or dried cranberries instead of raisins" which makes substitutions much easier if you abhore raisins, for instance.

Overall a wonderful twist on standard desserts that comprehensively covers pies, crumbles, cheesecakes, cookies, bars, ice cream, and much more.