Dessert Designer: Creations You Can Make and Eat!
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About this ebook
Dana Meachen Rau
Dana Meachen Rau is an author, editor, and illustrator of children’s books. She has written more than 100 books for children, many of them nonfiction in subjects including astronomy, history, and geography, as well as numerous biographies. She lives in Burlington, Connecticut, with her husband and two children.
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Reviews for Dessert Designer
3 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Children will have a blast making these desserts! All are fairly basic and simple enough for younger cooks to do; some are a little more complex than others, but nothing is too hard for this age group to manage. The designs are innovative and clever, with many that the reader will have never seen before. The reader can flip to any page and find a fantastic way to spend an afternoon.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is like one of the “coffee table” adult cookbooks I have at home. Wonderful to look at and contemplate making, but to actually do it will be more challenging than I had planned. The pictures are beautiful, and maybe with help some of the desserts like the coconut bunny cake could be made, but for me this is a “dream about” book. The author has done a good job explaining the tools and the steps for those serious cake decorators.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dessert Designer: Creations you can make and eat! by Dana Meachen Rau is full of fun desserts that almost anyone can make. Judging by the type and design of the recipes included, as well as the ease of making them, this book seems to be aimed at upper elementary through high school students looking to wow friends and family. Wonderful photographs highlight what each creation looks like, and much of the fun of this cookbook is simply seeing all the creative edible decorations. I shared this book with my fifth grade daughter and ninth grade son, both of whom frequently enjoy cooking with me. Both found recipes they immediately wanted to try out, including (but of course not limited to) mini-mice, sock monkey cookies, volcano cupcakes, berry baskets, armadillo cupcakes, and cupcakes made to look like mugs of hot cocoa. The book has a full-page photo of the finished product on one page and the recipe and instructions on the other page. The only downside to this layout is that the instructions are sometimes rushed, and for this age group step-by-step photographs could be very helpful--especially for younger cooks. In one instance, for a large peacock cake, additional photos and instructions are included for a four-page recipe. However, most recipes are simple enough that a thorough reading of the steps before starting is sufficient to make these wonderful desserts.I plan to add a copy of this Capstone series to my school library as well as my home cookbook library. Highly recommended for elementary, middle, high school, and public libraries, as well as for any home kitchen where fun, simple desserts are in demand.
Book preview
Dessert Designer - Dana Meachen Rau
PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD!
Your kitchen is more than a place to make supper. It’s an art studio. When you combine dessert and your imagination, you can create amazing works of art that taste as good as they look! Turn cakes into roller coasters. Top cupcakes with crazy creatures. Make cookies hoot with awesomeness and candy flutter your taste buds. There’s no end to what you can do with desserts!
How to Use This Book
Ready to get started? It’s a piece of cake! Start by gathering the supplies you need. You may already have the ingredients in your kitchen. But if not, all the supplies can be found in grocery stores, convenience stores, or the cake-decorating aisles of craft and hobby stores.
~ use your Imagination~
The ideas in this book are just that—ideas! Don’t like a color or decoration we used? Change it! Can’t find the same candy? Use something else. The best part of dessert designing is getting to be creative. Have fun!
~ The Best Part! ~
Some might argue that frosting is the most important part of a dessert. Stores sell super-tasty tubs of premade frosting. But if you want to whip up your own, here’s a simple recipe. It makes about 2½ cups (600 milliliters) of frosting.
Ingredients
½ cup (120 mL) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
½ teaspoon (2.5 mL) vanilla extract
2 cups (480 mL) confectioners’ sugar
1–2 tablespoons (15–30 mL) milk
Tools
large bowl
measuring cups and spoons
electric hand mixer
spatula
Steps
1. In a large bowl, cream the butter and vanilla with the mixer on medium speed until fluffy.
2. Beating on low, alternate adding sugar and milk until the ingredients are mixed well. The frosting should be thick, creamy, and spreadable. Scrape the sides of the bowl often with the spatula.
3. Store the frosting in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Bring it to room temperature and rewhip before using.
For chocolate frosting, follow the recipe above, and add ¼ cup (60 mL) unsweetened cocoa powder along with the sugar.
ROYAL ICING
For many recipes in this book, you’ll need to make royal icing. Royal icing hardens into a firm shell so your dessert has a smooth finish. There are two kinds of royal icing. Flood royal icing is thinner and good for filling in large areas. Edge icing is thicker and good for making details and edges.
Edge Icing
2 teaspoons (10 mL) meringue powder
2 tablespoons (30 mL) water
2 to 2½ cups (480 to 600 mL) confectioners’ sugar
With a mixer on high, blend the ingredients together in a bowl for about four to five minutes. The icing is the right consistency when it forms little peaks that hold their shape.
Makes 1 cup (240 mL) of icing
Flood Icing
Make a batch of edge icing. Then add water ½ teaspoon (2.5 mL) at a time, blending after each addition. The icing is ready when drips hold their shape for just a moment before they blend back into the icing.
Keep royal icing in an airtight container when you’re not using it. If you don’t, a crust will start to form on the top. You can keep icing for about a week at room temperature. Rewhip before you use it.
DECORATOR'S TOOLBOX
A painter needs brushes and canvases. A carpenter needs hammers and nails. A dessert designer like you needs tools too!
ALOHA LEI CUPCAKES
A Hawaiian luau is the ultimate beach bash. Tropical parties need necklaces of flowers—especially ones you can eat! Enjoy these tasty blooms, then hula until sunset.
INGREDIENTS
vanilla frosting
12 mini cupcakes
36 jellybeans
96 wafer candies in a variety of colors
18 green wafer candies
1. Frost the top of each cupcake.
2. Place three jellybeans in the center of each cupcake. Surround the jellybeans with four wafer candy petals. Then add four more petals behind the first ones.
3. With an adult’s help, gently drag a knife across the surfaces of the green wafers to score them. Don’t try to cut straight through the wafers or they will crack.
4. Break the green wafers in half along the scored line.
5. Tuck the green wafer pieces behind the petals to look like leaves.
6. Arrange the cupcakes on a platter to look like a lei.
~ A Basket of Blooms ~
You can also arrange these flower cupcakes in a basket. Cut a block of flower foam to fit tightly in a basket. Cover the foam with plastic wrap. Poke a lollipop stick into the foam. Place a cupcake on the stick to hold it in place. Repeat with more lollipop sticks and cupcakes until you have a bunch of beautiful blooms.
BERRY BASKET
A tisket, a tasket, a tasty cupcake basket. Serve up these cupcakes for a berry amazing treat!
INGREDIENTS
vanilla frosting
1 mini cupcake (paper liner removed)
1 graham cracker square
8 vanilla or chocolate cream wafer cookies
1 orange or brown licorice twist
raspberries, blackberries, or blueberries