BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts
- Downloads：2242
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-02-11 06:54:09
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Stella Parks
- ISBN：0393239861
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
From One-Bowl Devil’s Food Layer Cake to a flawless Cherry Pie that’s crisp even on the very bottom， BraveTart is a celebration of classic American desserts。 Whether down-home delights like Blueberry Muffins and Glossy Fudge Brownies or supermarket mainstays such as Vanilla Wafers and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream， your favorites are all here。 These meticulously tested recipes bring an award-winning pastry chef’s expertise into your kitchen， along with advice on how to “mix it up” with over 200 customizable variations—in short， exactly what you’d expect from a cookbook penned by a senior editor at Serious Eats。 Yet BraveTart is much more than a cookbook， as Stella Parks delves into the surprising stories of how our favorite desserts came to be， from chocolate chip cookies that predate the Tollhouse Inn to the prohibition-era origins of ice cream sodas and floats。 With a foreword by The Food Lab’s J。 Kenji López-Alt， vintage advertisements for these historical desserts， and breathtaking photography from Penny De Los Santos， BraveTart is sure to become an American classic。
Reviews
LondonFrog
，
This is my absolute favorite cookbook that I have in my collection。 Bravetart has a focus on classically American desserts， including homemade versions of our favorite brand name treats。 The recipes are excellent。 I have made lots of them， some of them multiple times。 Stella includes lots of useful details about technique， ingredients， and tools。 But what makes this book really special is the bits of history about each recipe; fascinating and well- researched stories about how these American ico This is my absolute favorite cookbook that I have in my collection。 Bravetart has a focus on classically American desserts， including homemade versions of our favorite brand name treats。 The recipes are excellent。 I have made lots of them， some of them multiple times。 Stella includes lots of useful details about technique， ingredients， and tools。 But what makes this book really special is the bits of history about each recipe; fascinating and well- researched stories about how these American icons came to be what we know and love today。 If you are a baker， you should definitely check it out。 It would also make an excellent gift for any bakers in your life。 。。。more
Mckinley
，
Lots to choose from and even more if you add in the variations to each recipe。 Fun in that author gives history for recipes。
Sarai Mcculley
，
one of my favorite cookbooks。 tons of gluten free adaptations
Robyn
，
One of the most entertaining cookbooks I've read in a while。 I'm now a font of knowledge on random dessert history trivia， and have new techniques to try in the kitchen。 One of the most entertaining cookbooks I've read in a while。 I'm now a font of knowledge on random dessert history trivia， and have new techniques to try in the kitchen。 。。。more
Tim Badmington
，
It's weird to put a cookbook on goodreads but I really did read this cover to cover so im counting it 😤 It's weird to put a cookbook on goodreads but I really did read this cover to cover so im counting it 😤 。。。more
Maria
，
I never thought of a cookbook as something to read， but this one is great fun！ I love Stella Parks’ history of these all American baked goods， and her description of pantry basics and when to use them。 I made her Pineapple Upside Down Cake and it was delicious。
Denise
，
One of the best cookbooks I’ve ever read！ Seriously， this thing is packed with all sorts of truly useful information。 Love， love， love it！
Sherry Cook
，
The author， Stella Parks， writes with humor and much research into our Americana deserts: the chocolate chip cookie， oatmeal cookies， peanut butter cookies， etc。 etc。 She tells the historical truth that we are greatly influenced by advertisement， and the industrial growth post civil war。 I entertained my guests on Thanksgiving day with the story of the carrot cake; its evolution and the great leap forward when someone substituted oil for butter。 I loved this book， and hope you will too。
Lauren Moore
，
I've only made 4 recipes so I may circle back on this and increase the rating。I like the set up of the book where you have a base recipe followed by variations。 There are weight and volume measurements for each recipe and the book was organized well。What was a miss for me was that the recipes could get more complicated than what felt necessary。 Example: the pumpkin pie has no pumpkin in it。 It is butternut squash which means you're guaranteed to be creating your own puree。 She also recommends ma I've only made 4 recipes so I may circle back on this and increase the rating。I like the set up of the book where you have a base recipe followed by variations。 There are weight and volume measurements for each recipe and the book was organized well。What was a miss for me was that the recipes could get more complicated than what felt necessary。 Example: the pumpkin pie has no pumpkin in it。 It is butternut squash which means you're guaranteed to be creating your own puree。 She also recommends making your own condensed milk which takes continual/very frequent stirring for 30-40 minutes。 To me， the best part of baking is not standing over a stove so that was frustrating。 Recipes often called for coconut oil （which is pricey） and either no eggs （so little fat） or 7-9 eggs for white cake。 Cake recipes also call for 8" pans unlike the common 9" pans。 There's a valid point here that less surface area = more moist cakes （a point that I don't think was made in the book but would've been appreciated） but again， the bill adds up to make one cake。The marshmallow frosting broke the whisk attachment of my stand mixer， it was so thick。 The one perk was I didn't have to clean off that painfully sticky mess from the whisk。 I greased the bowl but apparently not enough。 I could look past the complicated-ness of the recipes if it resulted in good food。 The texture was perfect for the snickerdoodles， and （not） pumpkin pie but even after multiplying the spices by 2 in the recipes， the flavors were underwhelming。 I multiplied the spices by 8 （I was not eating more bland desserts） in the white cake and it turned out OK， a little dry for my tastes。 I added a lot of powdered sugar （and extra extract） to make only a little of the marshmallow icing usable and even then， it was just sickly sweet and bland。All bakers are different and maybe this just wasn't a good fit for me but I would not recommend this to others。 。。。more
Zoomers
，
For our February meeting I picked a dessert cookbook that also included the history behind each famous recipe and invited members to try one of the recipes and review it virtually with the group。
Craig C
，
I can't recommend this enough， even if you have no desire to create the iconic American desserts within， Stella Parks does an amazing job of providing some interesting historical context and journalistic anecdotes that make this a very interesting read。 I can't recommend this enough， even if you have no desire to create the iconic American desserts within， Stella Parks does an amazing job of providing some interesting historical context and journalistic anecdotes that make this a very interesting read。 。。。more
Hanne
，
I‘m not going to give it a rating as I haven’t made anything yet。 The writer is renowned and clearly an expert in her field。 The recipes are solid。 I feel for me as a non-American baker it’s hard to find a recipe I want to try。 I don’t have the experiences and nostalgia for distinctly American flavours which this book relies on。 However， it’s probably one of the must-haves for a well-rounded baking library， if for no other reason than that it gives you a detailed recipe for making rainbow sprin I‘m not going to give it a rating as I haven’t made anything yet。 The writer is renowned and clearly an expert in her field。 The recipes are solid。 I feel for me as a non-American baker it’s hard to find a recipe I want to try。 I don’t have the experiences and nostalgia for distinctly American flavours which this book relies on。 However， it’s probably one of the must-haves for a well-rounded baking library， if for no other reason than that it gives you a detailed recipe for making rainbow sprinkles！ 。。。more
amin
，
stella parks is literally an icon。 her pastry and ice cream base has become a tried and true staple for pretty much everyone， and her recipes are very easy to follow even if you dont have all the latest and greatest equipment
Katie
，
Best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made。 Also looking forward to making some of the more complicated recipes。 Almost every recipe had a brief historical essay， which I loved， made the book that was interesting to read and provided fun context。 Would recommend！
Heather Kirkpatrick
，
This is a fascinating cookbook。 The recipes look good， but the author has thoroughly researched classic american desserts， so you get the history of "Boston Creme Pie" （hint: it's not really from Boston）， Oatmeal Creme Pies， Oreos， and brownies。 I'm thinking of buying it， I like it so much！ This is a fascinating cookbook。 The recipes look good， but the author has thoroughly researched classic american desserts， so you get the history of "Boston Creme Pie" （hint: it's not really from Boston）， Oatmeal Creme Pies， Oreos， and brownies。 I'm thinking of buying it， I like it so much！ 。。。more
Alaina
，
This bakebook covers A LOT of bases。 There are base recipes plus flavor variations with gluten/vegan substitutions， and recipes listed both by volume and weight。 When alternative techniques are being used there are explanations why。 My favorite part （and why I was drawn to this book in the first place） was reading about the history of the desserts， which accompany every section。 Quite interesting。Note - I have not made any of these recipes。。。 yet。 I am particularly looking forward to attempting This bakebook covers A LOT of bases。 There are base recipes plus flavor variations with gluten/vegan substitutions， and recipes listed both by volume and weight。 When alternative techniques are being used there are explanations why。 My favorite part （and why I was drawn to this book in the first place） was reading about the history of the desserts， which accompany every section。 Quite interesting。Note - I have not made any of these recipes。。。 yet。 I am particularly looking forward to attempting the smores strategy when in the appropriate smores weather。 。。。more
Raquel （Silver Valkyrie Reads）
，
This needs to go back to the library， but I would definitely come back to it to finish reading the historical background for each recipe。 I didn’t find any recipes I was inspired to try yet， but I liked the overall approach， so there may be some later in the book I’d want to try。
Jacqueline
，
I’m a weirdo and supermarket cupcakes are the gold standard to me。 I always like them more than whatever I can come up with。 The white mountain layer cake （cupcake variation） may finally kick me off the supermarket cupcake habit。 So light and fluffy and delicate！ Sweet without being overwhelming， and really pretty。 I also love Stella’s writing。 Her bits of history and science before each recipe are my favorite part， and I enjoyed reading this book cover to cover before I made anything out of it。 I’m a weirdo and supermarket cupcakes are the gold standard to me。 I always like them more than whatever I can come up with。 The white mountain layer cake （cupcake variation） may finally kick me off the supermarket cupcake habit。 So light and fluffy and delicate！ Sweet without being overwhelming， and really pretty。 I also love Stella’s writing。 Her bits of history and science before each recipe are my favorite part， and I enjoyed reading this book cover to cover before I made anything out of it。 The marshmallow buttercream is also a standout。 So tasty。 I also appreciate the detailed instructions on each recipe。 。。。more
Alexia Chantel
，
When I pick up a cookbook I want to have a picture with every recipe， this book did not have nearly enough。 4-11 printed pages between images is too many。 We did enjoy making the Oreo cookies and Milky Way bars！
Chris Carlson
，
After the third incredible， this might be my new favorite dessert， recipe in a row， it’s time to evangelize。 Don’t sleep on this incredible dessert cook book。 Everything we’ve made had us both change our ranking on favorite deserts and start to wonder if we should become professional chefs。 While the ingredients and cookware for every recipe might not be in your cupboard already， the recipes are precise， straightforward and easy to follow。 And the outcome。 Oh， the outcome。 Excuse while I go try After the third incredible， this might be my new favorite dessert， recipe in a row， it’s time to evangelize。 Don’t sleep on this incredible dessert cook book。 Everything we’ve made had us both change our ranking on favorite deserts and start to wonder if we should become professional chefs。 While the ingredients and cookware for every recipe might not be in your cupboard already， the recipes are precise， straightforward and easy to follow。 And the outcome。 Oh， the outcome。 Excuse while I go try and digest。 。。。more
R
，
“I believe in the power of fudge frosting， rainbow sprinkles， and warm cherry pie。 I like sticky buns for breakfast and strawberry shortcake for dessert。 I’m all about layer cakes， mile-high merengue， and cookie dough straight from the bowl。 There’s a sleeve of Thin Mints in my Freezer and a jar of Skippy on the shelf。 I set marshmallows on fire， I fry doughnuts in oil， I steal Santa’s cookies， and I always lick the spoon。”Such is the first paragraph of Bravetart: possibly the best first paragra “I believe in the power of fudge frosting， rainbow sprinkles， and warm cherry pie。 I like sticky buns for breakfast and strawberry shortcake for dessert。 I’m all about layer cakes， mile-high merengue， and cookie dough straight from the bowl。 There’s a sleeve of Thin Mints in my Freezer and a jar of Skippy on the shelf。 I set marshmallows on fire， I fry doughnuts in oil， I steal Santa’s cookies， and I always lick the spoon。”Such is the first paragraph of Bravetart: possibly the best first paragraph in any cookbook I have encountered。 I *loved* this book。 It is not often that I sit down with a cookbook and find myself reading it cover to cover， but Bravetart was that kind of book。 Parks is not only an excellent pastry chef and recipe developer， but also a convincing historian。 Her thoroughly-researched histories of classic American baked goods and packaged foods。 I’m not sure that I will ever try most recipes from the book， but the reading was pure fun – joy in wild stories of the 19c。 biscuit industry， the delightful if slightly quixotic desire to make things like sprinkles and Twinkies at home， and pure Americana。 。。。more
Rini P
，
a beautiful book to read and look at。 the desserts are awesome -- a little something for everyone。 when she says iconic american desserts， she's not kidding and I loved reading recipes for every day items that I wouldn't have thought about making from scratch。 a beautiful book to read and look at。 the desserts are awesome -- a little something for everyone。 when she says iconic american desserts， she's not kidding and I loved reading recipes for every day items that I wouldn't have thought about making from scratch。 。。。more
AlexandraB95
，
（3 stars for so-so brownie）
Jo Lin
，
I suppose， as the title suggests， this is a book meant for an American audience。 In the sense that every recipe I made for this book seemed too sweet， even with the sugar levels reduced by 10%。
Katie
，
In a year when I’ve craved distraction from the darker side of American culture （or， perhaps better said， craved a reminder of the rich history that unifies us）， Stella Parks’ study of American sweets restored my faith in American ingenuity。 Baking has always intrigued me， as the best bakers have mastered both science and art， tugging at our heartstrings with confections requiring equal understandings of chemistry and psychology， nostalgia and novelty。 I enjoyed this book for its recipes， but th In a year when I’ve craved distraction from the darker side of American culture （or， perhaps better said， craved a reminder of the rich history that unifies us）， Stella Parks’ study of American sweets restored my faith in American ingenuity。 Baking has always intrigued me， as the best bakers have mastered both science and art， tugging at our heartstrings with confections requiring equal understandings of chemistry and psychology， nostalgia and novelty。 I enjoyed this book for its recipes， but the stories， photos and history lessons turned this into a cover-to-cover read for me。 。。。more
Catherine Woodman
，
I am one who has literally hundreds of cookbooks on my shelves， but if you are not in that family of cooks， one where you need a lot of inspiration on hand， then this is one to own none-the-less。 Because it is such a great book， there are many recipes from it available on line and you can see if it is for you， but the idea is that classic American desserts are made as well as they can be， and are also well presneted。 The first recipe that my husband made from here was the Oreo recipe--which is t I am one who has literally hundreds of cookbooks on my shelves， but if you are not in that family of cooks， one where you need a lot of inspiration on hand， then this is one to own none-the-less。 Because it is such a great book， there are many recipes from it available on line and you can see if it is for you， but the idea is that classic American desserts are made as well as they can be， and are also well presneted。 The first recipe that my husband made from here was the Oreo recipe--which is the very best Oreo you could imagine。 It led to me getting a design imprinting rolling pin to make them prettier next time。 The other think is that if you are not a Milk Bar kind of crazy time consuming cake baker， the best birthday cakes can be found within these pages。 。。。more
Renee Klevenhagen
，
Being a collector of cookbooks， I enjoy looking for something new and different and I sure found it in BeaveTart。 It is unusual that I come across a cookbook about baked goods or desserts that I find more than a few recipes that are new to me but this book really has a huge collection of treats of all types。 Beginning with classics like Chopped Chocolate Chip Cookies， Ms。 Parks shares copy-cat recipes for candy bars and cookies like Oreos and Nutter Butters， she includes Animal Crackers， Homemad Being a collector of cookbooks， I enjoy looking for something new and different and I sure found it in BeaveTart。 It is unusual that I come across a cookbook about baked goods or desserts that I find more than a few recipes that are new to me but this book really has a huge collection of treats of all types。 Beginning with classics like Chopped Chocolate Chip Cookies， Ms。 Parks shares copy-cat recipes for candy bars and cookies like Oreos and Nutter Butters， she includes Animal Crackers， Homemade Wonder Bread and Pop-Tarts and ends with the chapter Classic American Ice Cream which also includes Homemade Magic Shell and Cookie Dough Nuggets you can use for Cookie Dough Ice Cream。 Ms。 Parks includes several good tips and tricks as well。 It is clear that she truly enjoys making desserts and treats and I'm glad she's shared some of her talents with us。 。。。more
Tasnim
，
I made the red velvet cake + cream cheese frosting and it was bomb。 10/10 have been a bravetart fan for years and this cookbook has solid recipes for underrated american desserts。
Lauren James
，
January quarantine baking。 I plan to make: apple spice white layer cake， Boston cream pie， Grasshopper devils food cake， key lime pie， twinkies with tres leches malted spice filling， lofthouse cookies， malted banana pudding， butterscotch hostess cupcakes， raspberry chiffon pie， eggnog yellow cake， brown butter Carrot cake and oatmeal lemon creme pies。 Phew， wish me luck！November quarantine baking: Baking at the 20th Century Cafe （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。）December quarantine bakin January quarantine baking。 I plan to make: apple spice white layer cake， Boston cream pie， Grasshopper devils food cake， key lime pie， twinkies with tres leches malted spice filling， lofthouse cookies， malted banana pudding， butterscotch hostess cupcakes， raspberry chiffon pie， eggnog yellow cake， brown butter Carrot cake and oatmeal lemon creme pies。 Phew， wish me luck！November quarantine baking: Baking at the 20th Century Cafe （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。）December quarantine baking: Dessert Person （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。） 。。。more
Ro
，