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"I hope that you were not planning on starting a diet tomorrow. After reading this book your thoughts will be focused on the cakes. Even if creating an "extraordinary cake" is not in your future the recipes are too good not to try." ~Chocolate & Croissant
“Modern flavors meet classic techniques in these beautiful, delicious desserts.” —Barbara Fairchild, author of Bon Appetit Desserts “One bite would hook any patisserie lover. The desserts are beautiful too … sublime.” —Los Angeles Magazine
“Extraordinary is too mild a name for this collection of spectacular cakes. I’ve been a fan of Karen Krasne’s for years and I’m particularly overjoyed to see her powerfully delicious and tastefully decorated creations in print. The only problem I can see with this book is deciding which cake to prepare first. Extraordinary Cakes is destined to become a classic.” —Nick Malgieri, author of Bake! and The Modern Baker
“On Saturday nights, the line outside Extraordinary Desserts can extend onto the sidewalk. But once you’ve tasted Karen Krasne’s creations, you’ll forget about the wait.” —The New York Times “Extraordinary Cakes offers up easy-to-follow recipes for deliciously creative cakes, allowing avid bakers to replicate Karen’s trademark desserts at home.” —Jacques Torres, Dean of Pastry Arts, French Culinary Institute
“Talented chef-owner Karen Krasne serves ‘incredible,’ ‘divine,’ ‘world-class,’ baked goods and desserts that are ‘gorgeous to behold.’” —Zagat Survey
Karen Krasne is the owner and executive chef of Extraordinary Desserts, San Diego’s number one destination restaurant for desserts for the last twenty years. Her cakes have graced the cover of Bon Appetit, and Forbes recognized her as one of the country’s ten best pastry chefs. She has been featured in The New York Times, Gourmet, Sunset, and The Los Angeles Times, among other publications. Tina Wright is a professional pastry chef and coauthor of two books. A graduate of the Institute for Culinary Education, she helped write the pastry curriculum for the French Culinary Institute in New York.
There aren't other words to describe this absolutely breathtaking book of cakes that please both the eyes and the palate, all from Ms. Karen Krasne, owner and chef at "Extraordinary Desserts" restaurant located in San Diego, California.
An incredibly accomplished chef (just look at her resume on the website), she has generously shared a goldmine of talent with us, through gorgeous, pristine photography of some of the most ethereal cakes you will see. To be more specific, these are not character cakes or object cakes; these are very fancy "wow" factor presentations that will give your guests a "gasp" moment.
That being said, this is not a book for baking weaklings, because as Ms. Krasne states in her Introduction, these cakes take time, as in a couple of days, to make. Yes, some can be done within a day, but for the majority of these fabulous cakes, you definitely will need time on your side. Also, you need some solid baking skills or possess much patience, as she has given the recipes in great detail, starting with the batter, then going on to the fillings and frosting, and ending with the assembly and decorations of each masterpiece. And to note, "decor" to her is not sugarpaste or fondant but rather fresh flowers, or ganache, or purees that dot the plate, which is all that is needed with many of these cakes because the dessert itself is so beautiful.
As I mentioned previously, the photography is of each finished cake and a slice within, though in the "Introduction" section, there are several photos of how to decorate. Her presentation of each recipe is very detailed with multiple steps; this also describes the way she presents cakes that have either subtle nuances to those with complex flavors that build on each other. Most of these are those she has created from her years of crafting and loving this vocation of her life.
The book is also broken into seasons so that you can get the best out of the offerings that each holds for you. I also enjoy mentioning that several recipes are gluten-free (GF), as she has noted it is becoming an important health issue for many of her clients.
Her book has so many beautiful cakes that it would take quite some time to describe each one, therefore just a handful will be given. I guarantee that you will be enchanted with these and will want to have the rest:
PREFACE:
INTRODUCTION: This includes equipment, ingredients,and techniques. The end of this part has a listing of edible flowers and berries, etc that are safe to use, their availability, and in what recipes they were used.
SPRING: Lemon Praline Torte
Toute Fraisies (strawberry cupcakes)
Ivoire Royale (beyond jaw-dropping; a vanilla infused sour cream pound cake w/ a white chocolate mousse, fresh berries, a whipped cream dress, and white chocolate curls on top!)
SUMMER: Passion Fruit Ricotta Cake
Beau Soleil (thinly sliced juicy peaches, rosette-style, resting atop a hazelnut vanilla jocande cake infused w/ simple orange syrup and mascapone mousse w/ hazelnut praline crunch on the sides)
Diamond Head (a bittersweet chocolate genoise infused w/ rum simple syrup w/ vanilla bean custard and macadamia brittle)
Strawberry Shortcakes
Citronesse (a lemon cheesecake w/ lemon curd and swiss meringue)
Blackberry Cheesecakes (darling mini-cheesecakes w/a pecan crust, sour cream top and blackberries)
Blood Orange Ricotta Cake (a powerful burnt orange presentation of a ricotta pound cake w/ blood orange simple syrup and curd, plus cranberry orange preserves and whipped cream)
WINTER: Versailles (the alternate cover cake where a almond jocande is infused w/ a rum simple syrup, salted caramel mousse, and pistachio almond praline; the cake is then decorated on the sides with macarons, w/ which a delicate thin ribbon ties them all together, and the cake is topped with a simple yet delicate bouquet of white ranunculus w/green & gold berries)
Holiday Yule Log (this is a definite departure from the " wooded branch" cake you normally think of; this is made in a rectangular shaped cake pan w/ a chocolate-raspberry ganache, topped w/ shards of chocolate-almond tuile and raspberries; very different but beautiful)
Love is Chocolate (this is a bread pudding of croissants and a vanilla creme brulee mixture)
SAUCES
SOURCES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INDEX
I realize that this book might not be for everyone; it is intense and detailed. But for those who enjoy "beautiful baking", this would be a very wonderful companion for you or as a gift for someone who also enjoys "beautiful baking". Thank you so much Chef Krasne! Hope to visit your restaurant some day! Peace.
I have been a home baker for many many years I find it to be such fun and a great challenge to create wonderful deserts for my family and friends. I own way to many cook books I love each and every one of them. I purchased Extraordinary Cakes by Karen Krasne even though I had promised myself to hold off on more cook books due to lack of space in my kitchen bookcase. I was looking for inspiration for my baby brother Wedding cake I was in a rut so I ordered this book based on the photos and reviews I read on this site. Yes the photos are great and the combinations are inspiring it's what I needed as a treat right before Christmas. Extraordinary Cakes is not a book for a novice bakers; It takes an expert eye to know that some of the recipes are off and the directions are missing steps. So far I've make variations on the Ivoire Royale and the Strawberry Poppy Seed Cake I ended up double checking the cake recipes with the Cake Bible by Rose Levy, Perfect Cakes by Nick Malgieri and the Wedding Cake Book by Debe Wilson. I did not use the cake recipes from Extraordinary Cakes. I think that Extraordinary Cakes is very inspirational but proceed with caution when using the recipes double check the recipes against baking cook book essentials that I mentioned above or other classics. And keep on Baking
This book is like being given the manual on fabulous! As an avid Extraordinary Desserts fan I have long been curious as to the "how is that done" I experience regularly there. Now I know! I have already made two of the recipes in this book with stellar results. Karen Krasne I thank you!
This Cake Cookbook is a MUST HAVE for anyone who is seriously passionate about baking cakes for their loved ones to enjoy. I made the Viking for my Grammy's 87th Birthday and let's just say I got one of the best compliments EVER about my baking when she told me "it's a shame not more people got to eat that cake, it was so delicious!" (only my immediate family celebrated with her that day).
I LOVE the way, like other reviewers have said, the steps are really broken down step-by-step. Karen even gives you REASONS in some recipes too, for example, not under-whip a chocolate chantilly. I LOVE when chefs give me reasons as to why they're telling me to do something a certain way or for a certain amount of time!!!!
DO READ the beginning parts of the book before diving into any recipes, and give yourself about a month in advance before making your first cake from this book to line-up online orders or shop in-store for necessary cake pans, a good 14" serrated knife, parchment paper rounds, etc. These are NOT quick, easy, inexpensive cakes to make. The Viking cost me $20 worth of Valrhona chocolate to make 1 cake! I'm in NO WAY complaining though because the taste was out-of-this-world, but it isn't cheap. These recipes are for those who want to make GOURMET, like, super-gourmet, next-level cakes... they're not your run-of-the-mill Food Network cakes (many of those are good, too!) BEST PART IS, you don't have to have trained with Jacques Torres in order to make them, because 1) Karen shares her genius recipes and 2) she shares them in such a way that, I'd argue avid(not beginner) home bakers can execute the components accurately.
The good news is, I can now bake almost EVERY cake in the book with just a few new essential baking tools. Cake pans with removable bottoms = AMAZING!!!
THANK YOU KAREN for giving me the chance to bake in my own, tiny, little apartment kitchen making NEXT-LEVEL cakes without having to have studied in France for years!! I WILL PURCHASE ANY FUTURE BOOKS YOU PUBLISH, just FYI :)Ok, enough said... I think one can get how highly I recommend this book!!!
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This item: Extraordinary Cakes: Recipes for Bold and Sophisticated Desserts
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