Sweet, Savory, and Sometimes Boozy Cupcakes

by Alison Riede

Europeans serve savory cheese after a nice meal. Americans prefer something sweet and sugary. Alison Riede manages to marry the two concepts with her wildly original and surprisingly delicious cupcakes. She starts with the flavors and winds up with something that defies expectation. Recipes for salty, nutty, spicy, savory, tart, fruity, and chocolaty desserts include:

Lemon Olive Oil Cupcakes with Sage and Sea Salt Buttercream
Rosemary Parmesan Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting and Toasted Almonds 
Cucumber Mint Cupcakes with Lime Buttercream and Fresh Mint
Banana Cupcakes with Mango Filling and Banana Rum Frosting
Chocolate Pinot Noir Cupcakes with Strawberry Filling and Dark Chocolate Pinot Buttercream
One taste and it will be clear why Cupcake Wars handed her the crown. Her recipes are simple and straightforward, illustrated with mouthwatering photographs. This is a truly original winner of a cookbook.

Genres: Cookbooks, Adult, Nonfiction, Cooking, Food

208 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2015

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the recipes sound good but these are too fancy for me.

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review written for and published by Portland Book Review on November 23rd:

Sweet, Savory, and Sometimes Boozy Cupcakes is a cupcake cookbook for enthusiasts. The book is small for a hardcover, which means cooks will have more room on the counter for baking materials, and contains 50 different recipes. Every recipe has a picture of the cupcake, giving an example for decoration. The cupcake recipe is usually on one full page and the frosting on a facing page, although it may occasionally be on the next page. However, you’ll never have to flip the page in the middle of a recipe, which helps make baking a breeze. The book is broken into six sections, each focusing on a different type of flavor. The difficulty level varies, depending on ingredients and if the cupcake has a filling or an extra exotic topping.

This reviewer tried two different recipes to get a feel for the quality of the recipes within. The Pink Champagne Cupcake with Vanilla Champagne Buttercream frosting came out light and fluffy – a true melt in your mouth cupcake. The Dark Chocolate Cupcake with Salted Chocolate Frosting is understandably heavier, but has the perfect level of sweetness without being too much. The family loved both recipes, and this book has earned a permanent spot on our shelf.

Sweet, Savory, and Sometimes Boozy Cupcakes is a small but wonderful cupcake cookbook with such a variety of flavors that there is something for everyone – a perfect gift for the baker on your Christmas list.

[Cindy]

This was a library copy. I did a browse through. So many delicious recipies. I have not made any, but I want to purchase this book.

Written by a winner of Cupcake Wars