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21st out of 134 books
—
22 voters
The Cake Bible
"If you ever bake a cake, this book will become your partner in the kitchen." -- from the foreword by Maida Heatter
This is the classic cake cookbook that enables anyone to make delicious, exquisite cakes. As a writer for food magazines, women's magazines, and newspapers, including The New York Times, Rose Levy Beranbaum's trademark is her ability to reduce the most complex...more
This is the classic cake cookbook that enables anyone to make delicious, exquisite cakes. As a writer for food magazines, women's magazines, and newspapers, including The New York Times, Rose Levy Beranbaum's trademark is her ability to reduce the most complex...more
Hardcover, 592 pages
Published
September 20th 1988
by William Morrow Cookbooks
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I think this woman might be mad. My man, my ma and I spent an entire day constructing her white lilac nostalgia cake, which I -- sucker! -- chose for its name. It involves a mouselline. What is a mouselline? Mainly: delicious varieties of fat. As we are baking all of the nuptial cakes our own mad selves we needed, of course, the cake bible. The recipes involve asteriks and multiple sidebars and accompanying essays and pronunciation keys and ingredients for which one must hunt, gather, peck, beg,...more
Back in the early 90s, I was watching the Today Show and saw a segment on The Cake Bible. On it, the host was happily devouring a slice of one of the cakes Rose Levy Berenbaum had baked and raving how this was the best cake book ever. At that time, I enjoyed baking but without a box mix the cakes were dry, kind of gritty and required a lot of time with separating the eggs, folding in etc. From scratch was a requirement for me but moist and delicious was the goal. I immediately checked out a copy...more
The recipe of the cake I'm making for Lily's birthday is out of this book. We'll see how that goes. Truly a fascinating book about a woman with a scientific passion for baking, which, let's face it, is all about chemistry. I would love to try some of the more complicated cakes in here, but am a bit intimidated- right now I"m sticking to the butter cakes in the front. The decorating isn't really my style, but she has made some gorgeous stuff. Very exact recipes with volume and weight measurements...more
Everything in this recipe works the first time you try it. Well, except if you try to make spun sugar or hard caramel on a rainy day, but she does say not to do that. Each recipe ends with a section explaining why the recipe is put together the way it is, and the explanations are thorough enough that you could modify recipes successfully if you were feeling brave. I don't know why you'd need to, though, as there are SO MANY cake & decorating options detailed here, from the very basic (poundc...more
I'm a chemist. Baking is organic chemistry. The Cake Bible teaches organic chemistry (unintentionally) and then you get to eat the results. Can't do that in a chemistry lab. I love Rose. The Cake Bible is not a book for folks who want only simple, easy-to-follow recipes. It's a book for learning about the processes and chemistry involved with baking. After studying The Cake Bible, you will have a solid understanding of how ingredients combine to make different textures and flavors.
The Cake Bibl...more
The Cake Bibl...more
These are not a style of cakes you would make for an inaugural dinner. They are down home cakes, cakes you would find at bake sales on a church lawn. They are meant to be informal although the author does throw in a few fancier cakes with spun sugar cages and Christmas yule logs, but for the most part these recipes are for the everyday baker. I was not impressed with several recipes. Some are heavy heavy heavy and ludicrously sweet. However, the recipes did turn out fine when directions are foll...more
May 26, 2012
Andrea
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Intermediate to experienced cake decorators and bakers
I love this book on so many levels that it would be impossible to list them all here. It has been my "go-to" manual for inspiration and for recipes for many years. It is not for the beginning baker, more for the intermediate to advanced level baker/decorator.
The recipe comments are very specific about the type of crumb to expect and many are dense, moist cakes that will stand up to the weight of formal decorating. All are quite delicious.
I have been inspired to create new recipes of my own using...more
The recipe comments are very specific about the type of crumb to expect and many are dense, moist cakes that will stand up to the weight of formal decorating. All are quite delicious.
I have been inspired to create new recipes of my own using...more
I own this book but have yet to follow one of the recipes. It's a little overwhelming with so many cake options that a few times when I've gone through it, I've actually given up and not made a cake. Also, Beranbaum does not believe in frosting cakes with frosting, choosing flavored whipped cream or buttercream or glaze. I don't usually like buttercream, and my honey is not a huge fan of whipping cream on cakes. Another stumbling block I have to trying many of these recipes is that they have eit...more
So RLB is a perfectionist. This is not necessarily a bad thing for someone whose occupation relies so heavily on chemistry. She is also an excellent teacher and that part of her personality appeals to me. I am at my best when I understand the 'why's' and not just the 'how's'. This book is not merely a collection of recipes; it is a compendium of cake baking instruction. The decorative style is outdated, but since the book was published in 1988, she gets a pass. I made my first rolled fondant fro...more
Jan 04, 2009
Terran
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Passionate would-be pastry chefs
Recommended to Terran by:
A professor at MIT
Shelves:
for-eating,
reviewed
While "The X Bible" is an all-too-common cutesey title, in this case it is actually justified. This is a fantastic book on cake baking, covering almost every subject you can think of in the realm. (Ok, except high altitude baking. A personal gripe, b/c we live at high altitude and almost nobody covers it well. For a notable exception, check out Purdy's Pie in the Sky Successful Baking at High Altitudes.)
Anyway, the point is that this is a lovely book for those passionate about cakes and their...more
Anyway, the point is that this is a lovely book for those passionate about cakes and their...more
This truly is a cake 'bible', the ultimate resource for bakers. Just about any cake you could hope to make is covered here and some of the science behind it, too. Rose has made me a believer in weighing ingredients rather than just measuring. I give it only four stars for two reasons: one, the directions are clear and precise, but if you stray from them at all, disaster follows. These are not forgiving recipes. So you really have to be on your toes. Second, there are not enough pictures. But des...more
This book is the reason I am a better baker. I think that this book was enough; frankly, RLB could've stopped here. The other "Bible" books she's written are not, in my opinion, remotely equal to this one for depth, breadth, or detail. Years later, I still find new things to love.
Is it complicated? Yes. I have, however, read it cover to cover more than once, and appreciate the complexity and detail, because they are in service of the greater goal of truly understanding cake baking and execution....more
Is it complicated? Yes. I have, however, read it cover to cover more than once, and appreciate the complexity and detail, because they are in service of the greater goal of truly understanding cake baking and execution....more
I love cookbooks that give reasons for what I'm doing, the science behind the baking. Ms. Beranbaum delivers but I wish it was better organized. Yes, each cake comes with a helpful story and she compares and contrasts the recipes so you understand how basic recipes can be tweaked to generate different results. But I wanted more in-depth explanation about cake making, all the dirty details. For example, I wanted to make cupcakes instead of a layer cake, but there was only was passing reference in...more
I'm not a huge cake enthusiast to begin with, but a lot of these recipes look like much more effort than I'm willing to put in. While the details about technique and equipment were excellent, I've read much of the same in other books (especially Shirley Corriher and Alton Brown) and many of Beranbaum's confections seem a bit intricate for my tastes.
This cookbook made a leap for me to making fancy cakes and understanding why things might not always turn out--she demystifies alot about cake baking,a nd while i have only made a dozen things from here, it astonishes me as a cookbook because everything works--my favorite ganache recipe is from here.
I love this book, but it's a little fussy. For example, I know from experience that you don't actually need to measure the temperature of the sugar syrup when making Italian meringue - if you heat the syrup just to a rolling boil, and no further, it's the right temperature.
I wouldn't quibble with Rose about this, except that her emphasis on precision might lead an amateur baker picking up this book to think that only you can only get good results if you make yourself crazy with the details. Trut...more
I wouldn't quibble with Rose about this, except that her emphasis on precision might lead an amateur baker picking up this book to think that only you can only get good results if you make yourself crazy with the details. Trut...more
Where can I begin? The book is full of blah recipes which seemed to have a few base cake recipe structures and minor changes made to create a 'bible'. I tried a couple of these and found them to be typically greasy and almost have a 'week old' taste to them despite them being fresh.
This book explains a lot of the important principles and techniques of baking. There are some excellent base recipes for cakes, but mostly it's fancy cakes which I'm less likely to make and I find I run out of things to try with this book.
My favorite cake cookbook! I love the science lessons paired with the recipes. My only complaint is that the wedding cake portions are extremely stingy (or her guests are very abstemious!): take care if baking your wedding cake.
It's the most wonderful time of the year! For me, Christmas is all about getting blacked out on champagne-and-brandy cocktails. And this year, I will use a buche de noel to soak up some of that booze. Meringue mushrooms make the Baby Jesus laugh and smile!
This book contains a special section of photos of delightfully hideous extra fancy cakes from the eighties. Still, it stands alone in precision. Enjoy!
This book contains a special section of photos of delightfully hideous extra fancy cakes from the eighties. Still, it stands alone in precision. Enjoy!
Owning this book makes me feel like Frances' mother at the end of A Baby Sister for Frances ("You may be sure that there will always be plenty of chocolate cake around here").
I've only made two recipes, but I'm giving it five stars because I read through it like it was a novel and enjoyed every bit.
I've only made two recipes, but I'm giving it five stars because I read through it like it was a novel and enjoyed every bit.
I heard about this book from a student at CCA in San Francisco, this is definitely an advanced cake cookbook. I've only succeeded in the simpler recipes. But I look forward to conquering these recipes.
Okay, I confess, I didn't believe my friend at first when he said this book was definitely the bible of cakes. But I was so wrong! This book is the bible of cakes!!!! It is absolutely amazing and is the first book I would recommend to anyone who wants to bake a cake. It has just about every cake recipe you'll ever need with tips and suggestions on how to make/bake and store each recipe. If you have absolutely no idea how to assemble or decorate a cake, this book will definitely tell everything y...more
I stole this book. I did, I confess. I worked somewhere where they let us borrow books and then I stopped working there and I just never returned the book. It's kind of like a science book anyway.
I learned everything you could want to know about cake. Plus how to make a rose out of Tootsie roll. I would love to take a class with this woman. My all time favorite baking book.
Horrible recipes... I have made a few, and they just don't turn out.... still have the book, it was so expensive, and everyone else seems to love it... but I had terrible luck.
I am not a skilled baker, I don't have a standing mixer, and my oven is crumby. But when I do exactly as Ms. Beranbaum says, I can make really very good cakes. It's amazing.
Marvelous cookbook, professional results for the sweet tooth in everyone! I've made chocolate cloud cake with raspberry cream several times, never fails to impress.
Feb 13, 2009
Debbie
is currently reading it
Bought it for myself 12/07. Trying to find the chocolate to make the cake on the cover has been impossible even online. 55% dark chocolate is just not out there.
Recipes more detailed and fiddly than usual but results in excellent cakes even for less pedantic bakers. Requires flour modifications for bakers outside America.
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Rose Levy Beranbaum is an award-winning American baker and cookbook author.
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Jul 30, 2008 05:59am