I have to tell you, I bought this book strictly from conradd’s epinion on it. Actually, I didn’t buy the book, I emailed the epinion to my husband and he bought it for me for Christmas. I couldn’t wait to dig into it and start baking. I mean with a name like Rosie’s All-Butter Fresh Cream Sugar-Packed No-Holds-Barred Baking Book, how could anyone not want to try the recipes in it.
I kind of flipped through Rosie’s book and was very disappointed, as it didn’t have any color pictures in it. What kind of cookbook doesn’t have color pictures of perfectly styled food to tempt every taste bud in your mouth? Honestly, I almost took the book back, but decided to just start reading. The reason Rosie’s book doesn’t have pictures is because the recipes are so incredible, they don’t need pictures.
The Product:
Rosie’s Baking Book is way more than just recipes, it’s tips, tricks and information to help all of your baking the best it can possibly be. Judy Rosenberg, or Rosie as she’s fondly called, has been in the baking industry since the 70’s. She started out in her home and then branched out to a full-range bakery.
Rosie discusses some basics of baking such as organization and equipment. She invites you into her pantry where she recommends you keep certain items such as Unbleached all-purpose flour, Fruit preserves, Instant espresso and a host of other ingredients, so you can “bake from this cookbook with a degree of spontaneity".
She also makes notes of some special ingredients (Butter, Cake Flour, Sugar, Chocolate and Eggs) which she expounds on and explains the importance of using specific types of. For instance, did you know cake flour is lighter than all-purpose four because it contains less gluten? Did you know that granulated, light and dark brown sugars differ in moisture and mass even though they are the same in weight? Dry granulated sugar makes crunchier cookies and slightly drier cakes.
She explains baking as a chemical reaction when ingredients are put together and discusses many of the reasons why you do or don’t get the results you want when you bake.
Each chapter starts with an explanation of the recipes in every section. The first recipe chapter is cakes. She discusses personal experiences she’s had baking cake and how she came to the recipes she’s included in this baking book. She mentions that:
“I learned quickly an old baker’s strategy of taking a basic recipe and adding one or two things to make it into a whole new cake. For instance, once you’ve perfected a simple chocolate cake, you can layer it with fudge, preserves, whipped cream, mousse, fresh or frozen fruit, bananas, and cream, or liqueur and voila! Have seven additional cakes in your repertoire."
Textures of cakes, the type of pan to use, creaming methods, sponge method, butter sponge method, flourless cakes and cheese cakes are some of the cakes she focuses on in her book, she describes each one and how to get the effects you want. She also goes into detail about oven temperatures and times as well as frosting and decorating your cakes.
Then she temps your taste buds with recipes like Rosie’s Famous Chocolate Sour-Cream Cake Layers, the basis for many of her chocolate cake recipes. Queen Raspberry Cake, which drips with Hot Fudge and raspberry fillings. Chocolate Mousse cake made with real heavy cream. Apple Cake, Breakfast Coffeecake, Cream Cheese Pound Cake, Lemon-Glazed Orange Chiffon Cake and Traditional Cheesecake a la Rueben’s are just a few of the amazing cakes Rosie offers recipes for.
After giving you some frosting and filling recipes, she moves on to cookies. She treats each chapter the same, explaining and informing on how to perfect your baking techniques. She tells of the different types of cookies: log cookies, drop cookies shortbread cookies, rolled cookies and filled pastry cookies. Here are just a sampling of her cookie recipes: Soho Globs, Ginger-snappers, Chocolate Macroons, Very Short Shortbread Cookies and of course everyone’s favorite, Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Rosie’s claim to fame is probably her brownies. Her brownie originated from her mother, as it was the only dessert her mother knew how to bake. Rosie has taken that recipe and produced Rosie’s Award Winning Brownies, as it was named Best Brownie in America. She uses her Award Winning Brownie recipe as a basis for most of her other brownie recipes including her famous Chocolate Orgasms. Some other alluring recipes are Boom Booms made with Cream Cheese, Mint Brownies topped with a peppermint buttercream frosting, White Chocolate Brownies made with white chocolate chunks and Lemon Cream Cheese Squares.
When Rosie discusses pies, it’s mostly about the crust. Many bakers avoid pies because they have “Pie Crust Anxiety”. Rosie gives wonderful explanations as well as hand drawn examples of how to make the perfect pie crust. She dives into decorative edges, lattice tops and even fruit fillings explaining how to create the perfect pie. Her recipes include many different types of crust as well as Fruit, Mince, Chocolate, Lemon, Sweet Potato, Custards and Chiffon pies
Puddings are next and Rosie gives her readers easy to follow directions for many different creamy desserts. Mousses and gelatins, custards and puddings are all included. Be prepared for your mouth to water as you skim over (no pun intended) these lip licking recipes of Butterscotch Pudding, Baked Chocolate Custard, Truffle Soufflé, Bourbon Bread Pudding, Chocolate Mousse and Orange Cream-Cheese Bavarian.
My Experience:
I’ve never recommended a cookbook until now. Rosie’s All-Butter Fresh Cream Sugar-Packed No-Holds-Barred Baking Book by Judy Rosenberg is absolutely amazing in every way.
I’ve never learned so many wonderful baking tips (in layman’s terms) in one cookbook before. I never knew until now why I bake at a particular temperature, mix for a certain amount of time or use butter rather than margarine. It’s all very simple now that I’ve read Rosie’s book.
Even though Rosie’s a chocoholic, she does have a reasonable amount of “non-chocolate” recipes in her book. I’m allergic to chocolate, so I’m always on the look out for “chocolate-less” recipes.
To date, I’ve made the Cream Cheese Pound Cake three times, and it’s nothing short of amazing. I’m not much of a cake eater, and actually pass up cake most of the time. But not this cake! I’m finding that I need to give away half my cakes so I’m sure not to devour the whole thing myself. Rosie’s Cream Cheese Pound Cake is very dense, but not gummy or spongy like many pound cakes. It’s heavy, yet light at the same time and you don’t need any kind of topping on it, as it’s perfect all by itself.
I’ve also made Rosie’s Award Winning Brownies, but unfortunately, I couldn’t try them. My family had no problem downing the whole pan in less than 48 hours though…so I’ll assume those were amazing as well.
Finally, I’ve made the Cheesecake a la Rueben’s. I was shocked when I read the ingredients and actually had to do a double take. It calls for three pounds of cream cheese. That’s six blocks! Not only that but you can’t sample your creation until the next day, as it needs to be refrigerated overnight. But you know what? It was so worth it. Cheesecake is my favorite dessert, and by golly it’s the best darn cheesecake I’ve ever eaten. I typically like a dry cheesecake, but Cheesecake a la Rueben’s has changed me over to a creamy cheesecake lover. The pecan and ‘nilla wafer crust was to die for to say the least.
If you love to bake, and want a more in-depth book on the ins and outs of perfecting your baking, Rosie’s All-Butter Fresh Cream Sugar-Packed No-Holds-Barred Baking Book would be a great one to use. But you know, ever since I received this book, my clothes have been shrinking…I wonder why?
***Rosie's book was purchased at Border's for $13.95***
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