Buttercup Bakes at Home: More Than 75 New Recipes from Manhattan's Premier Bake Shop for Tempting Homemade Sweets (Hardcover)

by Jennifer Appel (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
When prepared the old-fashioned way, nothing tastes as delicious and comforting as homemade sweets fresh from the oven. Now Jennifer Appel, cookbook author and owner of the world-famous Buttercup Bake Shop, shares more of her popular recipes in Buttercup Bakes at Home, a collection of more than 75 new and tempting treats from the much-loved bakery and her own kitchen, for home cooks to enjoy.

Family and friends will swoon over the Lemon Coconut-Filled White Buttermilk Cake, Buttercup Golden Layer Cake with Chocolate or Vanilla Buttercream, and Banana Oatmeal Crumb Cake. A wide variety of cookies, bars, and other goodies, such as Dried Cranberry Pumpkin Bars, Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars, Pear Nectarine Crisp, Mixed Berry Trifle, and Chocolate Sandwich Cookie Bread Pudding will tempt any palate. There is also a chapter on making delectable cheesecakes, including Lime Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust and Cappuccino Cheesecake; and what would a book from the owner of the Buttercup Bake Shop be without cupcakes? Here you'll find Gingerbread Cupcakes with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Icing, German Chocolate Cupcakes with Caramel Pecan Frosting, Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes (perfect for an after-school snack), and even Splenda-iferous Cream-Filled Vanilla Cupcakes. There's also a chapter on baking with children, with simple recipes such as Candy Bar Ice Cream Pie and Peanut Butter Chocolate No-Bake Cookies.

For bakers and home cooks of any skill level, Buttercup Bakes at Home is the perfect addition to any kitchen bookshelf -- with recipes for any occasion -- whether you are entertaining guests or cooking for loved ones. Complete with preparation tips and easy-to-follow instructions, this delightful collection is sure to satisfy dessert fans of all ages.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

It seems like just yesterday when I first opened the doors to Buttercup Bake Shop one sunny August morning. I remember customers lining up for a taste of our divine creations, and the lines haven't stopped in the six years we have been here. Innumerable cupcakes and countless birthday and special-occasion cakes later, my tiny Midtown bakery is as popular as ever, churning out our from-scratch confections in full view of our devoted customers. Each of our famous cupcakes is lovingly frosted by hand in our front window and our mouthwatering layer cakes are iced and decorated in our glass-enclosed kitchen, as customers watch with their noses pressed against the glass whenever possible.

Seeing customers sit down and enjoy their desserts is a joy. It seems that peeling off the paper to each cupcake transports folks right back to their childhood, and the expressions on their faces are always the same: deep satisfaction and happiness.

Our from-scratch baking is so delicious and down-home that customers try to pass off our desserts as their own! I know this because one day several years ago a woman purchased a birthday cake inscribed for her son's birthday and asked us not to "put the sticker on the box." By sheer coincidence, her son was working nearby and stopped in just for a Buttercup snack. It was quite a funny moment, but all was forgiven, even though the jig was up!

While our popularity has grown over time, so has the list of clientele who enjoy Buttercup's freshly baked goods. More and more folks are hosting parties and events featuring our signature cakes and cupcakes such as Buttercup Golden, Lady Baltimore, and German Chocolate, including the Today show, Live with Regis and Kelly, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Saturday Night Live, and Miramax Studios, as well as dozens of television stations, publishing houses, and major magazines. It appears that New Yorkers, famous or otherwise, can't get enough of our sweet creations.

As the desire to bring back the neighborhood bake shop grows, so has my passion to deliver freshly baked all-American desserts to the people who love them. With that in mind, I have plans to bring the neighborhood bake shop to every neighborhood in New York City and even farther, to your favorite city or town. Each bakery will have that same old-fashioned nostalgic charm, with those familiar sights and smells to delight the senses.

While my business has flourished, so has my family. Since my last cookbook was published, I have gotten married to my sweetheart, Hernán. And in case you're wondering, the answer is yes, I made my own wedding cake! It was a simple but beautiful old-fashioned white cake with silky buttercream frosting, adorned with pale ivory buttercream dots and drop flowers.

In 2004, my husband and I welcomed our remarkable daughter into the world, Isabel Eliana. What a treat it will be when she can climb up on a chair in the kitchen and bake with me! I'm sure she'll love to, since she already has a sweet tooth, and with a chef for a father and a baker for a mother, I think a love of food is most certainly in her blood.

As a baker, I'm constantly creating new desserts. This book is a result of that creative desire. While it's hard to pin down my absolute favorites, a few of

my new confectionary loves include Drizzled Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies, Cranberry Tea Loaf, Black and White Cupcakes, and Butterscotch Pudding. And while rich old-fashioned desserts continue to please our customers, today's crowd also wants a few low-fat, low-sugar treats. So I've whipped up a few recipes to include that satisfy the taste buds but won't necessarily pack on the pounds, like Low-fat Chocolate Bread Pudding with Raspberry Sauce, Teatime Apple Cake, and Splenda-iferous Cream-Filled Vanilla Cupcakes. I've also included a chapter just on cupcakes, as well as one for baking with children. So here are more than seventy-five new recipes that promise to be as enjoyable and easy-to-bake as they are delicious and satisfying to eat.

And if you're in the neighborhood, don't forget to stop in to see us at Buttercup and say hi!

Jennifer

Copyright © 2006 by Jennifer Appel

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (October 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 074327122X
• ISBN-13: 978-0743271226
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #223,248 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent, not essential, March 23, 2008

By	Michael Suh - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As much as I love Buttercup's baked goods, the recipes here represent a different class of sweets that won't be found in their stores, with the exception of their chocolate cake recipe. And why wasn't that included in the first book?? I for one would have preferred the chocolate cake to that insulting recipe on how to make Rice Krispies Treats.

Moving past this gross oversight, a lot of the cake recipes here focus on her favorite flavors: almonds, berries, bananas, and random liqueurs. Pumpkin and gingerbread make prominent appearances. Clearly she wrote this book in the fall. If you don't like a lot of these flavors, this is a book to skip for sure. For a person who claims to love chocolate at one point in the book, Appel sure is stingy on chocolate based recipes.

There are a ton of quick breads, pound cakes, and pie/tart recipes. I just don't care about a lot of that stuff -- you'd think a bakery that sells mostly cakes and a few icebox pies would focus on their strengths. Instead, half of the book is filled with recipes that haven't been tested on her customers. Why would I trust her Cranberry Tea Loaf if she hasn't sold any of it? Does adding Lipton tea to a bread sound at all appetizing?

There are a few true knockouts in this book that you can't get anywhere else. The Orange Almond cake in this book might be the best cake I've ever had -- you might consider buying this book on this recipe alone, it's that good. And those black and white cupcakes another reviewer mentioned are pretty tasty.

If you're buying this book just because you like Buttercup's baked goods and want to make them at home, stick with the original book or Magnolia's. This book really doesn't supplant the original books that started the American cupcake craze.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Special Collection, November 4, 2007

By	Mrs. Siobhan C. Saunders "Vonnie" (Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have now made each item off the cover and many more, I love this cookbook full of classic treats, and my family loves it too! The instructions are clear and easy to understand, however it would be nice to have a few more pics of the contents.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The real deal, May 14, 2007

By	D. Souzek (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Absolutely awesome baking book! It has a small selection on everything you'd want to make: cookies, bars, coffee cakes and then some impressive but simple to make layer cakes and cupcakes. I made the carrot cake and the chocolate cake with brandied whipped cream... a little time consuming but not complicated and very very impressive. I highly recommend it if you are looking for recipes you can use for special occasions and want a real alternative to the boring cake mixes.