Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth

by Jill O'Connor, Leigh Beisch (Photographer)

Chocolate Caramel-Pecan Souffl Cake . . . Cinnamon-Donut Bread Pudding . . . Double-Crumble Hot Apple Pies . . . Giant Coconut Cream Puffs . . . Here's a collection of desserts that gives more than 75 sticky, chewy, messy, gooey reasons to stock up on napkins. In addition to each sugary favorite, the author has included simple techniques and tools to help home cooks recreate each decadent treasure again and again. Sprinkled throughout are tips on using phyllo dough, toasting nuts, and making a heavenly ganache, so every over-the-top treat tastes as irresistible as it sounds. For the serious sweet tooth, pour a tall glass of milk and get ready to bite into all that's Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey !

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Food and Drink, Foodie

168 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2007

Reviews

[Shelah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of people think they have a sweet tooth, then go on to say that their favorite dessert is something like Strawberry Pie (which has way too much healthy stuff in it to qualify as a decadent dessert) or cheesecake (which in its vanilla form is way too blah for serious dessert lovers). This morning in Gospel Doctrine, the teacher talked about how she had a craving for the Klondike bars in her freezer, but decided she was too lazy to make the effort to go downstairs to get one. Believe me, if there's something that contains both ice cream and chocolate in my household, only extreme willpower will keep me from it. I'm the girl who always adds a cup of chocolate chips to a brownie mix and isn't happy when there's no hot fudge in the freezer. I've never met a dessert that was too rich. Unlike most cookbook authors, Jill O'Connor gets it. She's a kindred spirit, with my mom and little sister, who knows that you can never, ever have enough chocolate. We made a recipe from her book (for blondies, but they had a boatload of chocolate in them) and it was so good. I'm hungry for more.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The photos and anecdotes that accompany the recipes are almost as delicious as the sinful treats themselves- rich, oozy, & oh-so-chocolatey! Yes, some recipes are a little more involved than others, but the end product is so worth it. Plus you can have loads of fun whipping these desserts up and luxuriating in the sweet smells swirling around your kitchen. Buy it, bake it, eat it up!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The recipes in this book are all very enticing with easy to follow instructions. I wish I could have desert for breakfast, lunch and dinner so I could work my way quickly through the recipes. Fun quotes and interesting information and helpful hints are sprinkled throughout the book too. I enjoy seeing my scrapbooking hobby influencing the the layout design of the book too.

[Farrah Soares Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't made anything from this book, but let me tell you I wish it was a scratch, sniff & lick book!! The pictures are to die for, and the page colors, textures and appearance of the book makes me want to buy it!

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to love this cookbook, and I keep opening it to the recipes I've marked and then deciding they will take too long and require too many specialized ingredients. Might copy a few in case inspiration strikes, but not all that hopeful.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have owned this cookbook for at least a dozen years but have only made 3 recipes. They were three really good recipes so I made them over and over. I decided to read over the entire cookbook to see if I can branch out to more sweets. I found a few I might try in the upcoming months.

[Lauren Gulisane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you not already drooling just looking at this cover?! The other girls at the library were when this came in! And I was nearly the entire time I was reading this. This book definitely did not help me in my quest to start working out more and lose some weight... and I'm pretty okay with that.

This book has some delicious dessert recipes and beautifully yummy photography to go along with them. Along with the recipes are some helpful kitchen tips, tools, and techniques that you can read about. I learned all about the differences in types of sugars you can bake with.

I especially loved the random quotes about food thrown in among the pages and some of the personal stories that O'Connor included about her experiences with some of these recipes. It added just the right amount of personal touch.

If you're the kind of person who finds apple pie too sweet, this book is not for you. But, if you love to sink your teeth into something full of chocolate and sweet goodness, you need this book in your life!

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title should explain it all. Amazing recipes for holiday dinners and special occasions. Very clear directions are easy to follow and the text offers good advice and even more ideas. Reading this book could put 5 pounds on you very easily, let alone enjoying the cooking. My only criticism is that I wish that there were more photos of the dishes.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

You had me at Chocolate Soup!

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recipes seem fine, but the book seems a bit outdated in style and lack of pictures.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

the book definitely delivers on the title. Probably not my choice of desserts but definitely some decadent and gooey options.

[Rose Royale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute recipes, but honestly so much work I would likely make them once and never again.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indulge your inner Augustus Gloop with white and dark chocolate fondue with coconut madelines and homemade marshmallows, chocolate soup with cinnamon-sugar pound cake croutons, mascarpone cheescake pots with shortbread spoons, or butterscotch bourbon macadamia nut pie.

These desserts truly are for the "serious sweet tooth," and will appeal to those of us who love to spend our evenings in the kitchen working with various sugary substances and baking materials.

Aside from the decadent recipes, Jill's introduction to the book had me hooked after the first paragraph. Jill says that she was drawn to cooking through her favorite childhood stories:

All of my favorite stories kept me in thrall through the descriptions of real and imaginary foods eaten and prepared. I always smiled imagining Winnie-the-Pooh's great golden paw dipping into his pot of honey, or the Pokey Little Puppy lapping up rice pudding when he finally makes it home to his mother. At the end of Bread and Jam for Frances, Frances digs into the school lunch to end all school lunches, complete with lobster salad (on thin slices of white bread) and, among other things, 'two plums and a tiny basket of cherries. And vanilla pudding with chocolate sprinkles and a spoon to eat it with.'

Within the pages of her own book, Jill embodies the playful adventure and magic of childhood in her imaginative, sticky, chewy, messy, gooey creations.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't even begin to say how much I love this cookbook! I finished it today and already put it on my to-buy list on Amazon. It's like the author knows exactly what I like and has all these amazing recipes to cover it. For example, she has this dessert called Chocolate Malted Madness which is basically a chocolate Pavlova with chocolate malted creamy filling and topped with malted milk balls. Then there is Cinnamon-Donut Bread Pudding, Coconut Milk-Cream Cheese Flan, or best of all the Mocha Hazelnut Trifle with Kahlua Whipped Cream (that has a whole jar of Nutella in it!). These are not low-fat recipes (though the author does have a healthier desserts cookbook), but if you're getting it, it's not for that reason.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

if ever you're looking for a delicious dessert with a major wow-taste factor, it is in this book!! i have my copy in storage and won't be able to get it again for a while, so i bought it again in kindle format-- that's how worth it is. this book is wonderful for anyone ranging in skill level from beginner to advanced. the author jill o'connor is wonderful about explaining all the technicalities involved in the terms, and she makes it fun and easy. and the recipes!! oh my god, don't get me started on how AMAZING everything tastes!!! SO worth it. i couldn't recommend a recipe book higher than this one. :]

[Cynthia Edge · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of the goodies that were featured in this book looked delicious, but they also did not really move me to make them. Maybe I didn't find them that original?

I made just one thing from this book, and that was the death by chocolate brownies, the first recipe. I used M&Ms in lieu of nuts because of a hater in the household. I did one batch in he muffin tin as it instructed, but they were murder to get out, despite following instructions. I made the rest of the batter in a 9x13 and they were amazing. The most delicious brownies I have ever made!

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favourite baking book. Her recipes are always perfectly lavish, the pictures are beautiful, and the design of the book is really pretty. Every recipe I make out of the book is always decadent and worth the (sometimes extra) effort. I've been baking from it for 3 years, and I haven't tired of the fun descriptions at the top of each recipe or the range in yummy, special desserts waiting to be baked.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has some delicious sounding desserts in it, but many were way too fussy for me. I suppose I shouldn't "mark it down" for that, but I only photocopied five recipes from it, which is a bad sign. However, if you love to bake and don't mind making something that is time consuming, you'll love this book!

[Challis · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most delicious looking dessert books ever. Like another reviewer said, it was like scratch n sniff trip and you want to lick the pictures. Incredibly decadent fabulous looking recipes like 'Chocolate soup' and she even has spoons made out of cookies to eat your dessert with. Absolutely love it!

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the title. It works perfectly for the book. The author has 4 sections in the book: 1)Sticky, chewy chocolate. 2) The Pudding Club. 3) Cookies, Cakes and Pies. 4)Do Try this at Home!. The author has also included a lot of tips and information to help you get the best dessert possible. The recipe for "Deep, Dark Chocolate Pudding" sounded divine :)

[Ardis · Rating 2 out of 5]

If there are too many accessories involved, I'm just not going to cook it. Also, desserts on sticks don't appeal to me. Some of these recipes sounded great, but looked like too much trouble to make.

[Png · Rating 3 out of 5]

Toothsome, sinfully-rich, decadent-looking chocolate and dessert pics. These recipes are for those who have a (very serious!) fondness for sweets! Loved the cute quotes and the scrapbooking look. The New York Cheesecake Milkshake sounds DIVINE!!

[LibraryDanielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

My rating on this one is more a comment on the formatting than the actual book itself. The formatting SUCKED. Big time. Recipes ran into each other, photos were funky, spacing was weird, etc. The recipes all sounded good, and I would totally make them, but the format of the book put me off.

[katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

almost every dessert in here looks amazing and the design is all cute and pink and adorable. the author's stories and anecdotes are charming as well.

[Phoenix]

yummmmm

[Amy Berry King · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great! I want to make every recipe in the book. I've made a few already and they are all fantastic.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gorgeous cookbook -- beautifully layed out and photographed. I've got several recipes marked and I can't wait to try them!

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love sweets, and this is seriously the best, and cutest, baking cookbook I have ever seen! I recommend this for everyone who loves to bake and who is looking for some delicious treats to try.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

looks tasty but it's too hot to cok anything right now

[Traci Hewitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most PERFECT dessert cookbook!