Title: Buttercream Dreams: Small Cakes, Big Scoops, and Sweet Treats
Author: Jeff Martin
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: May 5th 2015
Source: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Description:
Maybe a cupcake will help? That's the slogan of one of the nation's most popular sweet spots, Smallcakes. Here are thirty of the best, fun, and easiest recipes for iced cupcakes, ice creams, and sweet treats from this fast growing company.
More than just a super cookbook, this is the story of how Jeff Martin created the wildly popular and fast-growing Smallcakes franchise. He shares his experiences on starting his business and coming up with some of his very first signature cupcake flavors like Cookies-n-Cream. He appeared on the Food Network's reality show called Cupcake Wars and famously became the guy who forgot the pumpkin in a pumpkin cupcake challenge. That popular recipe for a Pumpkin Cupcake with Cardamon buttercream is among the recipes in this book. He also introduces some of his creative new flavors like Peanut Butter Pretzel and French Toast with Bacon. Since they are a family owned company, he also includes his kid's favorite flavors. His son Jax loves bubble gum so they created a Bubblegum Cupcake. His daughter Lily is a very crazy kid, so she asked her dad to come up with some crazy flavors like Orange Creamsicle and Caramel Pecan Carrot Cake. This is not just another cupcake book, it also contains recipes for ice cream and other confections offered now at Smallcakes locations such as Jeff's recipes for their famous Nutella Wella Ice cream, Mama's Chocolate Fudge, and Smallcakes Crazy Monster Cookies. These are thirty recipes to make and enjoy with the whole family.
★★★★★
Review:
It's no secret that I love to back. Additionally, my girlfriend has an unhealthy obsession with cupcakes. So when I stumbled across this title, I knew I had to give it a read.
This is a very short, sweet, and to the point book. It's conveniently sorted by the type of treat for easy navigation when you're searching for something specific to make. This is a great book for beginners, thanks to the instructions. They're numbered and step-by-step so they're easy to follow. Plus, there are foolproof descriptions of what your creation should be looking like at each step, to help keep you on track. There's also a conversions chart, should you need it.
The recipes are interwoven with a lot of personal stories and pictures, which make it clear that the author made this book as an object of passion and love. It was nice to learn about the family and why certain items exist on the menu.
There are lots and lots of pictures, which is great for me since one of my biggest pet peeves is cookbooks with no pictures. They're bright, colorful, and delicious, and make you want to bake everything in this book at once.
There's quite a few recipes in this book that I look forward to trying, but the ones that I'm most excited for are Blueberry Muffin Ice Cream, French Toast and Bacon Cupcakes, and Infamous Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cardamom Buttercream.
Overall, I think this is a great little baking book that is awesome for beginners, but that more seasoned bakers will enjoy too. It's easy to follow, has lots of pictures, and has a good variety of recipes sure to please anyone.
I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.
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