[.ca] The Cake Bible (ISBN 0688044026)

From Amazon.com:
Rose Levy Beranbaum is a kitchen chemist extraordinaire--this, after all, is the woman who wrote her master's thesis on the effects of sifting on the quality of yellow cake. In The Cake Bible, she explains the science behind types of leavening, the merits (or not) of sifting, melting chocolate, preheating ovens, and more. There are precise and detailed instructions for intricate wedding cakes as well as cakes that can be mixed and in the oven in five minutes. In addition, nutrition information is included with every recipe. Cake scientist Beranbaum doesn't forget the art, either; pencil drawings teach novice bakers how to create a garden full of flowers from royal icing and mushrooms from piped meringue. It's no wonder that the International Association of Culinary Professionals picked The Cake Bible as their cookbook of the year for 1988--this book has something to teach bakers at every level.

Cake baking primer:
This is a wonderful book and tho in possession of 2 bookshelves full of baking books, this is one i always return to. Her instructions are always very detailed, leaving no guesses for the beginner to the advanced baker. All her recipes that I've tried seem to be foolproof (and appreciated at all my german in-laws functions) and the range of cakes in this book (catering to bakers of all levels) lives up to its name - a real cake bible (unlike some other cake book authors). From basic pound cakes to cheesecakes, chiffon and angel food cakes to the more complicated tortes, Rose's got a variety for her readers to choose from. I won't trade this book for any other book in my shelf.After having this book, I won't buy any Sara Lee pound cake anymore - even when I'm screaming for time. Rose's pound cake tastes 10 times more heavenly. In fact, this book's so well-loved and used that I've got to get 2 more copies - one for my mom and another to replace a tattered copy.

Mixed Results:
I have had mixed results with this book. The cakes that turned out well (downy yellow butter and golden almond, for example) were among the best cakes I've ever tasted. The ones that didn't, however (including the white spice pound cake and chocolate genoise) were dry and tasteless. I recommend this book for the intrepid experimenter: you will probably not like all the recipes in this book, but the ones that you like, you will love. The directions are extremely clear and detailed; I am an intermediate baker and I learned a lot from this book. Two words of advice: 1. Start checking your cakes a good 5-10 minutes before the suggested baking time; many of these cakes dry out in a heartbeat and are best just a touch underdone (and my oven temperature is perfect). 2. Berenbaum's buttercream is not for the faint of heart (4 sticks to frost one cake)! You might want to look elsewhere for buttercream recipes.

Love the Cake Bible, outstanding!:
I spent the first three days I had the book just reading it from cover to cover. My sister owns the cake bible also. We have both made many of the recipes, such as the Downy yellow butter cake and the white cake, domingo chocolate cake and the wedding cakes, and must not forget the delicious cheese cake. The lemon curd is to die for. We both loved all of those. I did not like the egg based butter cream at all. It tasted like I frosted the cake with a stick of butter, and had a nasty after taste. My sister and I have made three special occasion cakes that served 100-150. We received rave reviews by our friends. The cakes all disappeared which did not happen before we started using the cake bible. I have incorporated some of her methods in my other baking as well with improved results. I like the fact that she explains the why's and what for's of baking. She has an excellent trouble shooting guide on page 476. One thing I found was that you need to use the size and depth pans that she recommends. I started with three inch deep pans, since then I have purchased the 2" deep pans that all most all her recipes call for. Make sure you have a good oven thermometer and that you use the exact temperature she recommends. If you don't have a 5 quart stand mixer you will be frustrated with these recipes. I started out with a kitchenaid 5 speed hand mixer. My first cakes tasted great but all fell in the middle. It was rather frustrating. My sister bought me a kitchenaid stand mixer and since then my cakes have been beautiful. (With Rose's help) I have ordered the Bread Bible and the Pie and Pastry Bible as well. I hope my results with those Books will be as good as I have experienced with the Cake Bible.

"Too much butter?" Yes, it is possible...:
This book is the source of the single-most-baked-cake in my household: the white chocolate whisper cake. Rose Levy Berenbaum shows her genious in this one simple recipe. Not only does the white chocolate add wonderful flavor, but because it melts at a different temperature than butter, it stands up better to icing and cutting while still melting in your mouth! This cookbook is full of such wonderful gems--recipes that produce not good cakes, but *amazing* cakes. This book is aimed at someone with a bit of experience in the kitchen. Pretty much everything is measured by weight, as is normal with professional pastry chefs since it's much more accurate than measuring dry ingredients by volume or eggs by number of eggs. Some of the more complex creations will require experience, an artistic hand, and/or specialized equipment, but even if you don't want to make those, the basic recipes are stupendous. The fruit sauces meant to go with the cakes, for example, make us swoon! Try serving that white chocolate whisper cake, for example, with a raspberry sauce. My one complaint about this cookbook is the icings. Buttercream icings, in my experience, come in three varieties: lots of shortening (blech!), lots of butter, or lots of sugar. I'm really not fond of the lots-of-butter variety, as I find that it unpleasantly masks the flavor of the cake beneath. Unfortunately the buttercream frostings in this cookbook are of the lots-of-butter variety. Do keep in mind that many of the recipes in this cookbook are *not* aimed at beginners. It's a great primer, though, for anyone who wants to make a true exploration into the world of cake-baking!

Finally, High Altitude Recommendations!:
I live at an elevation of nearly 5,000 feet and this is the first book I have found that addresses baking at high altitude! I have been trying to teach myself to bake cakes for about 4 years now and they have been a disappointing 4 years--until I found this book. I searched many baking books only to be disappointed with their lacks of high altitude recommendations. As soon as I read the section of recommeneded adjustments for baking at high altitude in The Cake Bible I quickly made the sour cream cake and it turned out FABULOUSLY! The crumb was perfect! I decreased the leaving and increased the flour. Finally, success! No more wet cakes that cave in the middle. There are soooo many cakes I want to try in this book and now I have the tools necessary to bake with success. Thank you Rose!