Butter Sugar Flour Eggs: Whimsical Irresistible Desserts

I baked my first pie using this apple pie recipe. Gale's great instructions took the fear out of pie crust and it was so easy! The crust came out so buttery and flaky without using any solid vegetable shortening. Besides giving thorough instructions, there is useful information on ingredients and baking equipment that other books omit. It's great for any baker experienced or not.

This is easily the best dessert cookbook we've ever run across. With everything from traditional long-standing favorites to "nouveau" modern day treats - all of which are easy to follow and very approachable, even for a beginner. Great anecdotes accompany each recipe, which detail the history or creation of the dessert, or provide helpful tips on the preparation. Excellent book - a must for any dessert lover.

My husband and I ended up buying a copy of this book for each other for Christmas. It was a good thing we had two copies in the house for a while because neither of us wanted to put it down. Tiramisu is my all-time favorite dessert and I have tried many recipes and variations--both at home and dining out. I made the Tiramisu in this book for a New Year's Eve party and it was BY FAR the most incredibly wonderful piece of tiramisu I have ever had. It was time consuming, but well worth the effort! The other recipes look equally wonderful and I can't wait to try them!

What a great book to actually read first, then cook. Not only are the recipes clearly and simply written, but the scientific side notes are interesting and make everything click. I can't wait to try the cover recipe - Pavlova - looks delectable!

No one in the world of baking understands the '4 basic food groups' - butter, sugar, flour and eggs - like Gale Gand. After a lifetime of collecting dessert cookbooks, this one now has the place of honor, IN the kitchen, not ON the shelf!The recipes are thoughtful and easy to follow and the results delicious and fun...an unbeatable combination.AND, can we talk about he BLACKOUT CAKE! It appears that Gale has cracked the code and figured out the secrets of this legendery New York icon. For that alone, buy the book!This book is a must-have and a must-give.