Unforgettable Desserts

I find that it is very easy to remember a good dessert, but some desserts truly stick in your mind as something special. The cookbook Unforgettable Desserts certainly hopes to put each of its 150 recipes into this category, and offers a wide range of recipes, from very simple to complex showstoppers, to bakers to try. What you end up trying in your own kitchen and what you end up remembering is, of course, up to you, but there is no shortage of ideas in this book.

The cookbook starts out with a chapter full of basic recipes. From pie crusts to puff pastry, these are recipes that you’ll use over and over with the recipes in this book and with others. Ingredients and equipment are also touched on in an introductory chapter before getting into the recipes. The recipes are well written and easy to follow, and there are notes with tips on baking each specific recipe to help answer any questions that might come up while you work. I like the fact that many of the recipes have a twist that makes them stand out (hence the unforgettable name!), such as oatmeal cookies that sandwich a bright purple blueberry ice cream. That isn’t a dessert that you’ll easily forget.

The only drawback here is for photo fans, since not every recipe in the book comes accompanied by a photograph. This isn’t a problem for some of the cookies and things, but might make you shy away from trying the more involved cake recipes if you are the type who prefers to know what the finished product should look like, or wants some visual assistance when putting all the components of a dessert together. Still, a well-written recipe will get you through the process and if you just have a little extra confidence (and are willing to take a chance on decorating without a guide), you’ll do just fine here.