Customer Reviews

Thoroughly Modern Milkshakes

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You can tell the author has done his homework and gives you step by step instruction on creating milkshake masterpieces. Bananas Fosters and Malted Caramel shakes are worth the price alone. If you love milkshakes and malts, look no further because this book will have you in milkshake heaven.

Let me start by saying that the book is really well executed, as one would expect from Adam Reid, an alumnus of the well regarded Cooks Illustrated team. It sets out to demystify the art and science of making great milkshakes and accomplishes that task handily.

The book seems to be directed at two distinct audiences. The first, those who really need a recipe for making milkshakes (no shame in that) and the second, those who want to take the art of making milkshakes into new territory.

The author's core strategy generally starts with vanilla ice cream and milk as a palette and then uses highly concentrated sorbets, jams, nuts, herbs and spices to create the unique flavors that he strives for. For example, his basic chocolate shake calls for a combination of vanilla ice cream, milk and chocolate sorbet. Having spent a year behind the counter of one of New York City's best ice cream scoop shops, I was skeptical of his approach but when I tried it, I found that he was right on the money. I also found that I had much more control over the intensity of the chocolate flavor by varying the amount of sorbet I used relative to the vanilla ice cream.

Mr. Reid will also suggest that specific ice cream brands don't matter all that much. I would qualify that by saying that it's worth experimenting to find what you like. I found that the really high-end vanilla ice cream brands that I would normally eat on their own did not work as well for me in milkshakes as the more generic grocery store brands that I would rarely eat if given a choice.

For many people, the more appealing aspect of this book will be the new and unique flavors that the author urges on his readers. While the appeal of these concoctions is fairly subjective, I suspect that virtually everyone will find something that they love in here. Real flavor pioneers should check out Page and Dornenburg's excellent The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefs.

Pros: Excellent methodology for making great milkshakes; good guidance for people wanting to do something a little different.

Cons: It's a lot of money to spend for a book about milkshakes.

What i love about this book is that it is as fun and engaging for adults as it is for kids. Adam has come up with lush and wonderfully creative milkshakes as well as classics from here and afar. Plus, his writing is as dreamy as his recipes. My favorites, so far, are the Vietnamese Iced Coffee Shake and Ballistic Vanilla Shake but I plan to blend my way through this book.

Plenty of cookbooks offer milkshake recipes which are mostly standards with a few variations, so it's a pleasure to see a cookbook entirely focused on milkshakes, offering staples plus new twists in classics - such as a Mocha-Cardamom shake, a Ginger-Chai Shake, or Coffee-Hazelnut Shake. Add some histories and colorful photos and you have an eye-catching cookbook perfect for any lending library.

After hearing an interview with the author on NPR, we immediately bought this book. We've made over a dozen of the recipes so far, and our friends love helping us make and sample the concoctions.

The book is great!! I bought it as a gift for my son, and now he may get a used book!! It's detailed and has some pictures, but mostly it's fun!! GET IT!!!

I love vanilla malts, particularly if they are made with frozen custard, but I had a hard time finding a good one anywhere in our area. I decided to make my own, but I was not at all happy with the milkshake recipes in any of my standard cookbooks. I got this book, along with malt powder and made the best milkshake I've ever had in my own kitchen. I've tried the strawberry, vanilla, and vanilla malt shakes and have liked them all. My only word of warning would be that some of the ingredients may be difficult to find. For example, the recipe for the strawberry shake includes strawberry sorbet, which I have been unable to find. I made the shake without the sorbet, though, and liked it very much.

I gave this book to my brother-in-law who is always making milkshakes. He likes this book because he says that this guy knows how to make "real" milkshakes, as in thick and delicious. Recipes are interesting and diverse. A good book for people who love to try new things.

I was looking for more usual and classic reciepies and would like to have picture placed next to the reciepy.