Customer Reviews

The Sweet Melissa Baking Book: Recipes from the Beloved Bakery for Everyone's Favorite Treats

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have been a customer of Sweet Melissa Patisserie for years, and am so excited to have Melissa's "secret" recipes in my hands! I made the Fallen Chocolate Souffle Cake (cover photo) for a dinner party last night. It won rave reviews and everyone had seconds! (And was also most excellent for breakfast this morning!)

The recipes are well thought out and easy to follow. The hardest thing about this book is to decide what to make next. I see myself working my way through this book ala Julie and Julia! Next up: Chocolate Espresso Cheesecake with Blackberry Glaze. Yum!

"The Sweet Melissa Baking Book," by Melissa Murphy, is a book that lives up to its subtitle: it really is filled with recipes that are bound to become everyone's favorite treats. From `Raised Waffles with Warm Brown Sugar Bananas' in the "Dessert for Breakfast" section, to `Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Caramel-Rum Raisin Sauce' in the "Sunday's Supper's Grand Finale" chapter, the goodies in this book are tempting and satisfying. The `Hazelnut Raspberry Cake' was one of the best desserts I have ever tasted, while the `Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies' were just the thing to eat with a glass of cold milk. Of all the recipes I tried, the only one I did not like was the `Whole Orange-Poppy Seed Cake', which had a bitter aftertaste, but I've heard that others have enjoyed this recipe so perhaps it's simply my taste buds that were the problem. There are only eight color photographs in the book, but recipes are written in such a clear, approachable manner that I dare say you don't need the photos to create even the most mouth-watering results. Murphy prefaces each recipe with a short story, which adds a warm, friendly feel to her instructions. I especially appreciated that she outlines how to store her cookies, muffins, cakes and other treats so that they will last as long as possible. She also includes helpful sections on how to frost multi layered cakes, toast nuts, and even make preserves from scratch. Overall this is a great book for bakers (and candy makers) of every skill level. If you're looking for a baking book that will add oomph to your collection, this is definitely one to try. I'd recommend you make the `Bee Stings' first, which are yeasted buns sprinkled with sliced almonds, drizzled with a honey caramel glaze and filled with vanilla bean pastry cream. Yum!

Chapters include: Dessert for Breakfast, After-School Snack, It's Somebody's Birthday!, What Will We Do With All This Fruit?, Sunday Supper's Grand Finale, and Favorite Gifts.

There isn't much not to love about this cookbook(my only complaint is my usual one...not enough photos). These are good solid recipes that are not fluffed up(no deconstruction and big towering desserts). Simple and good.
If you are a novice baker you will find that the instructions are easy to follow and the results will be positive ones for you. If you are a veteran baker like myself you find little twists on classics that you most likely didn't think about. All around, if you are a baker, you should be owning this book. If you are not a baker and you want to be...you should be owning this book.

As a devotee of the madeleines at Sweet Melissa, I was excited to try her recipe from The Sweet Melissa Baking Book. I'm not someone who just happens to have things like madeleine molds or hazelnuts just laying around the house. Nor am I a gifted separator of egg whites or recipe follower. However, after two hours of refrigeration and fifteen minutes in the oven, 24 perfect chestnut honey madeleines lay cooling on my kitchen counter. Moist, sweet, and perfect for dusting with sugar. Though my version was not quite as good as the one Melissa makes in her bakery, I place the blame squarely on my shoulders. Her recipe was clear and easy, and the madeleines were believably baked by a pro.
This is my first (only) dessert cookbook, and I don't think I'll need another.

For most of us, the first we had ever heard of baker Melissa Murphy was when she took home the grand prize this past year on the Food Network's Edible Ornaments Contest. But the folks in Brooklyn have adored her devotion to making the finest baked goods in the five boroughs since she first opened Sweet Melissa Patisseries in 1998.

Since then, the accolades have been many. In addition to the Food Network victory, Sweet Melissa's was also honored with the Zagat award for "Best Tarts and Pies" in New York City. Melissa and her bakery have been featured in both local publications, like the New York Times, and in national periodicals like Food & Wine and Fine Cooking. On the heels of this success, Murphy is releasing her much anticipated Sweet Melissa Baking Book from Viking Studio, a division of the Penguin Group.

Flipping through an advanced copy with a friend who loves to bake gave me some true insight to the Sweet Melissa methodology. Each stunningly photographed treat brought a similar response from my friend, "Ooh, that looks good, but I would have drizzled chocolate on the plate first," or "Pretty. I bet powdered sugar would have made that even prettier." Murphy's plate presentation is fine, but not the focus. She decided years ago to concentrate on always preparing the absolute best recipe, not the trendiest. In fact, she states in the introduction, "The best food doesn't have to be challenging in its preparation, but should recall our fondest food memories."

Thumbing through the recipes myself later on gave me the chance to fully appreciate why many say Melissa Murphy is the best baker in the nation. After reading some of her creative specialties like Guinness (yes, the beer) Gingerbread and Sweet Plum Clafoutis with Almonds, I then took time to notice her takes on some of the classics ... sheer genius.

At times the narrative seems a bit cocky when you read things like, "The cakes in this chapter are so uniquely delicious, yet the ingredients are so familiar. If you make any one of the cakes from the chapter, you will become somebody's hero!" But when you observe the attention to detail, you begin to understand that Murphy is not bragging, she is stating fact. What makes Sweet Melissa's Red Velvet Cake so good? Dutch-process cocoa, red wine vinegar, and buttermilk in the cake batter. The secret to her Carrot Cake? The zest of one orange in the frosting.

The recipes used at Sweet Melissa's are not just her spin on each dish, but rather the result of lots of trial and error. Murphy has tested hundreds of versions of each delicacy she produces to find what she, and her many patrons agree are the best recipes for each. One might say that the Sweet Melissa Baking Book is a greatest hits of baking.

I loved this book. The stories are so warm, and give you a real picture of the author, they make the recipes more fun. I can picture going to the strawberry farm and picking strawberries when I make the shortcake recipe or the strawberry rhubard pie. The cake on the cover, fallen chocolate souffle cake is really impressive when served to company, and simple to make following the well written instructions. I look forward to using these recipes over and over. Thank you Melissa for a wonderful book.

I received this as a gift from a friend who loved visiting the Sweet Melissa store. If you like reading cookbooks, this one is a delightful read. The tone and Nigella-y commentary is warm, caring and made me really want to try the recipes. But I've made 6 recipes so far, and one was fantastic, 2 were good but had issues and 3 were duds. The Hot Pepper Muffins with Orange Maple Butter were excellent. The Guinness Gingerbread was good, although not very sweet and a bit dry. The thumbprint cookies were yummy, but needed more jam than the recipe called for. But overall, I didn't feel she meet her goal to have the "best versions" of recipes.

I bake cookies, pies and cakes quite often, and I've never run into so many issues with a cookbook. The main problem I've diagnosed is her baking times are sometimes too long. Once I adjusted for that, my results were better. But some of the recipes (like the hazelnut raspberry cake) just didn't work for me. I'm not sure why. Perhaps downsizing the proportions for home bakers gone awry? The instructions are generally painstakingly clear, although she doesn't do a great job explaining what the finished result will look like. That becomes a problem when things go wrong. For example, I'm not sure what the double chocolate cherry cookies are supposed to look like, but I'm guessing something other than heavy little turds.

I really like some of her flavor combinations (like the cashew butterscotch bars) so I'll probably just use those ideas with the recipes that I already have.

The Sweet Melissa Baking Book is totally my type of cookbook. It has tons of recipes that I will make, even though I'm not much of a baker. Everything appears approachable, from old standards like snickerdoodles to more original (and very appealing) things like sweet potato bread with connamon-rum-orange glaze. I can already vouch for the Guinness gingerbread - it's pretty great and perfectly simple to make. I don't think there's much anyone could really mess up - the recipes are clearly written and they're not terribly intimidating, even to me, and I wince at the sight of a measuring cup.

The author, Melissa Murphy, owns Sweet Melissa Patisseries in Brooklyn, though from her picture on the back cover, it's sort of hard to imagine that she really eats much of what she bakes - she's tiny. It's also kind of hard to imagine that she won't be on the Food Network soon enough, she's too cute not to be.

She starts out each section of the book with a personal note, then prefaces every recipe with a little blurb about the recipe - something from when she was a kid or when she created the recipe or something like that. I love backstory - the blurbs alone make the book for me.

My only real criticism of the book is that there really aren't very many pictures. There are a handful, but just not a ton. I just wish there were more.

Overall, though, it's a really nice book and one that I'll definitely use - it's earned a spot in my kitchen!

(This review is reprinted from my blog, Mango & Ginger)

On first glance, this book is a slightly smaller than the average
glossy cookbook, you know the kind - almost ready to feature as
a coffee table book, rather than a cookbook that goes on your shelf.

That kind of cookbook has really become a standard trend.

Unlike allot of other cookbooks, The Sweet Melissa Baking Book gets right to the point. There is no lengthy forward, just a few pages mentioning Melissa Murphy's schooling and where she has gotten her restaurant experience.

She explains her love of baking and why she bakes certain items at her bake shop - Sweet Melissa Patissarie in New York, which has been going strong for 10 yrs .

Reading the forward is enough to make you love this cookbook even more. The forward really sets the tone, and you began to see Melissa's thoughtfulness shine through in each and every recipe she features in this book. The recipes are all easy to follow and have detailed instructions from the procedure, through baking of the final product.

When it comes to cookbooks the trend is to have a glossy full size picture on every other page. This sometimes can deter the purpose of a cookbook - to showcase the recipe it's self. The Sweet Melissa Baking Book is mainly recipes, with a short insert of assorted glossy pictures, but the pictures in noway detract from the main purpose of this cookbook.

As for skill level, I would say that this book is great for all skill levels --- just pack a love of baking and an attention to details, so your recipes will come out just as yummy as they sound in this book.

As you start to delve into the contents, you will notice throughout the book Melissa offers her commentary with personal antidotes on how she feels about the baked goods, she features in each chapter. Also throughout the book there are special notations with instructions to "do it like the pros".

My favorite recipes from this book include: Hot Pepper Muffins with Orange Maple Butter ; Guinness Gingerbread; and Raised Waffles with warm brown sugar bananas,Pear Cranberry Pie with Ginger Snap Crust, Strawberry-Ruby Grapefruit preserves.

I think that The Sweet Melissa Baking Book is a purchase well spent. It will become a favorite addition to any cookbook or baking library.

Visually lovely book enhances the reading of some delicious recipe treasures that Miss Murphy shares with the reader. Her anecdotes of childhood memories make for pleasant and heartwarming reading. The coconut custard pie is one of the best I've ever made. I had the pleasure of buying and giving the book to several women in my family.