Chocolate Cake at Chef2Chef

Urvater has both studied and taught the culinary arts, and readers reap the benefits of her knowledge. She begins with a clear and informative chapter on ingredients, one on baking equipment, and one on techniques, and then organizes the recipes from simple to most complex. Because they are all chocolate cakes, chapters are divided by technique. Plain and Easy Batter Cakes include easy favorites like the Classic Brownie, with its crispy crunchy top protecting a moist and chewy interior, and a Chocolate Pudding Cake, a soufflé-like cake on top of a custardy layer--heavenly when warm from the oven. A short chapter on cheesecakes gets creative with smooth and silky creations such as the Berry White Chocolate Cheesecake. Butter and Shortened Cakes start with the Dependable Chocolate Pound Cake with numerous variations, and move on to the most delectable, delicious, and easy-to-make Chocolate Banana Tea Cake. Rich and moist, studded with chocolate chips, nuts, and dried fruit, it is with great pleasure that we read that it's "fabulous for breakfast." Urvater continues to tempt with foam cakes, biscuit cakes, individual cakes, flourless cakes, and icings, and then explains a number of fancy decorative techniques like Caramel Shards and Meringue Mushrooms.

Even though everything is chocolate, the varieties are endless. With 150 recipes for desserts like Streusel-Woven Chocolate Coffee Cake, Minted Chocolate Cake, White Chocolate Flourless Cake with Lemon, and the Gianduja (an aromatic hazelnut praline and chocolate "creamy concoction"), no chocolate lover should be without this delectably chocolate volume. --Leora Y. Bloom

From Library Journal
Urvater is well known for her "Monday to Friday" cookbook series and the accompanying Food Network show. But at the age of 50, she signed on for the one-year pastry arts program at the French Culinary Institute in New York, which in turn led to this baking book. She begins with a thorough introduction covering equipment, terms and techniques, and ingredients, followed by dozens of recipes for chocolate cakes of all types, from Boozy Mud Cake and The Brownie Torte to the Marzipan Lover's Dream Cake. Recipes are graded by level of difficulty; some of the three-star recipes come from pastry chefs, but there are many that will be easy even for the novice baker. There are also delectable recipes for frostings, fillings, and sauces, as well as a detailed section on decoration and garnishes. Highly recommended. [Main Selection of The Good Cook.]
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Reader Reviews
I recently purchased a copy of this book and found the recipes to be quite scrumptious. However, aesthetically it left much to be desired. Chocolate Cake has nearly 400 pages, and only 8 color photos, jammed in the center section. This is certainly not enough for a book of this caliber. As a baker who likes to look at photos of the finished product... I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I DO recommend this book. The recipes are divine. Particularly the Chestnut Chocolate Meringue Cake and the Raspberry Scented Cocoa Cake, but I felt let down by the overall lack of photos and illustrations, which usually make books like this, great. Comment | Permalink | (Report this)