Extraordinary Cakes: Recipes for Bold and Sophisticated Desserts

How to make cakes that are as delicious to eat as they are beautiful to behold. Karen Krasne the Queen of Cakes according to Gourmet magazine brings a fresh and contemporary sensibility to special-occasion cakes. Instead of the conventional fondant and gum paste she relies on natural frostings based on chocolate cream or butter (which are also easier to make). What makes these cakes showstoppers is their unexpected flavor combinations-take for example the Blood Orange Ricotta Torte the Chocolate Tiramisu or the Yuzu Tea Cake. These desserts take full advantage of layering-contrasting textures in each bite-as seen in the New York New York (chocolate ganache devils food cake chocolate chantilly and caramelized apples) or the Beau Soleil (mascarpone mousse peaches pralines and honey-soaked pound cake). Krasne favors vibrant touches like fresh fruit and real flowers which add flair without being fussy. The recipes include tips from her twenty years as a pastry chef and a step-by-step introduction covers basic techniques. Extraordinary Cakes shows how to create amazing cakes that satisfy sophisticated palates-but are still achievable for the home baker. Some of the luscious cakes included are Toasted Macadamia Caramel Cheesecake Shangrila (Guava Mousse White Chocolate Mousse Fresh Strawberries Pound Cake) Vallarta (Key Lime Cream Whipped Cream Tequla-Infused Genoise) Marco Polo (Vanilla Mousse Blackberry Gelee Tea-Infused Cake) Chocolate Nirvana (Chocolate Mousse Chocolate Cream Chocolate Cake) King Kamehameha (Coffee Mousse Chocolate Mocha Pralines Chocolate Cake) Beau Soleil (Marscapone Mousse Peaches Caramelized Pralines Honey Pound Cake) Blood Orange Ricotta Torte Carnaval (White Chocolate Banana Truffle Chocolate Mousse Rum) Caribe (Banana Mango Passion Fruit Chocolate Cake) Tortamisu (Marscapone Cream Espresso-and-Rum-Soaked Cake).