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Summary: A Perfect Follow Up To The Cake Bible!
Review: Rose does it again! I have only just begun to indulge in this book, but have found everything so far to be as expected...spectacular! This has joined my other two favorites...The Cake Bible (of course) and Bernard Clayton's Book of Bread. Thank you Rose. Keep up the awsome work!
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Summary: The Best and Only book you will need!!
Review: I have not ever read a more detailed book on this subject yet. The author explains not just how to buy why. Every one I have showed it to has ordered it. If want to know everything there is to know about pies and pastries, then you have found the ultimate! GREAT
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Summary: Excellent "technical" reference for seasoned bakers!
Review: This is a terrific cookbook for a seasoned cook with a lot of time for preparation-intensive, step-intensive recipes. The few items that are photographed are beautiful and true to the recipe. There is excellent information on the "science" and "technology" of pastry making that is really useful. The storage information and resources for difficult to find ingredients is also great to have. The recipes are quite detailed and I really appreciate the fact that she offers ingredients by measurement and weight, as I much prefer cooking with a scale. However, the first two recipes I tried had errors--one SERIOUS measurement error (the Chocolate Cream Pie recipe), and the other two are errors in steps or in referring to an incorrect recipe as part of the main recipe (Lime, Kiwi, Blueberry Tart). The Creme Anglaise recipe appears to be egg-yolk heavy (especially compared to other tested recipes) and may or may not be an error. Needless to say, I was less than thrilled to have to figure out what SHOULD have been printed in the recipe, while I was scrambling to get them finished in time for a party. I now know to try these recipes waaay in advance of actually needing to make them! This is definitely NOT a cookbook for someone who is in a hurry...many of the steps for normally simple recipes are quite complex and tedious. If, however, your goal is to really shine--many of the desserts in this book are incredibly impressive, and all have been delicious. The Lime Curd used as a base for the Lime, Kiwi, Blueberry tart was so good by itself that I had to make a second batch for the tart!
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Summary: yes!
Review: What can I say, I am a collector of cooking books. I buy at least once a week. When I bought the Pie and Pastry Bible my baking lifestyle change. I kissed the books a hundred time. My english is limited but I still able to bake successfully. Thank you Rose. I can get rid all my cooking books and buy all your books. I just made my first time Tiramisu and I ate them all too.
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Summary: The perfect companion to The Cake Bible
Review: Just when I thought that The Cake Bible was the ultimate culinary experience, Rose Levy Beranbaum strikes again. I just bought a copy for my mother who taught me to love and bake my own pies from scratch. She lays it all out for you, step by step, and never leaves you hanging. Not only are there wonderful decadent recipies for pies of all kinds, but also for savory breads as well. How do I feel about this book? To paraphase a famous saying -- you can have my Pastry Bible when you pry it from my cold dead fingers!
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Summary: I want her other books now!
Review: I asked for this book for Christmas. I made my first pie ever (apple pie) and it turned out perfect! I was very pleased because I didn't expect it to turn out at all since I'm an inexperienced baker. I plan to make more of the recipes. It's definitely a book worth having in your cookbook collection.
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Summary: A must for every pie-crust lover.
Review: As someone who had tried various pie-crust recipes over the years and never gotten it quite right, reading Berenbaum's aptly named bible was a revelation. The complex and rather unorthodox techniques for cutting in fat into the flour had me skeptical at first but, having tried several of the various crust recipes in this book, I will never make a crust the easy old way again. If you want to make consistently perfect, by which I mean delectably tender and flaky, crust, this book is for you. The cream-cheese crust that Berenbaum calls the soul of her book is alone worth the price of the book. In addition, there's the fool-proof technique for ensuring an apple pie in which the juices cling just so to the apple slices yet puddle just a little on the plate -- no more runny apple pies. The multi-step technique, which involves macerating the apple slices, draining the liquid that forms, and boiling down the liquid to a syrup before baking, is time-consuming, but the results are worth it. I tried the apple pie recipe, and my husband rated it a 10! I am one reader who will never again simply toss the apple slices in sugar and bake, on the off-chance that the liquids might (or might not) reduce enough during baking. The book is invaluable also for the understanding it gives the reader of how the various ingredients in pie crust work, e.g., why the addition of baking powder to pie crust is a must for flakiness, why the crust dough needs to be kneaded harder and longer to make it strong enough to wrap around a meat loaf or the filling of a turnover, etc. I could go on and on about the merits of this book. Although I wish no one else would read it so that I could be the only person in the world (besides the author) who can make marvelous crust, I cannot help thinking this is a book that should not be kept a secret.
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Summary: Inspiring, informative, and useful--a model cookbook
Review: I learned so much from reading this book. Beranbaum not only explains every step in her recipes; she also inspires and directs you to the perfect ingredients. The many charts about quantities, pan capacities, etc. are invaluable for making many things besides pies and pastries.
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Summary: another wonderful guide to baking
Review: Rose has created yet another essential guide to the world of baking. My only concern is that it might take her another ten years to put out her next masterpiece. She is, as usual, concise, clear, and oblivious to calorie counting, so you can be assured of turning out desserts that your family and guests will swoon over without having had to attend culinary arts schools around the world. For those of you who have and enjoy her Cake Bible, ponder this a moment: Rose relates to us that, while she likes cake, she's really a pie person--can you imagine to extra effort that went into this book? How can you resist?
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Summary: A great book, though a bit over the top
Review: This is clearly a very thoroughly-written book on a subject that is often intimidating to American cooks. It will be an essential addition to any serious baker's collection, but I wonder if it will be approachable by the average cook. The recipes can be very lengthy, with little picky steps that could be side-stepped by someone with a bit more familiarity with technique. However, her pie pastry is incredible, and though challenging, is well worth the effort. Everything I have made from this book has received high praise from my guests, too. Just don't plan to whip something up from this book.
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