Book of recipes written by none other than Lal Majid of Lal’s patisserie fame.
I consider myself something of a dessert connoisseur, and I often find myself (oddly enough) fantasising about the way a cake rises in an oven, or about mixing ingredients at various stages.
Having said that, I’ve never been a huge fan of Lal’s desserts, and I always felt there was something ‘off’ about them. This book, however, is full of marvellous and simple recipes. Personally, I believe that if something tastes good, it should be easy to make; nothing too complicated has ever tasted good to me, especially when it comes to dessert. What I loved about this book was the honesty with which the recipes were written, the simple methods and the convenient ingredients. What did turn me off a little were the pictures — no normal person can make a cupcake look that beautiful, or cinnamon rolls that perfect. I prefer pictures that can take you through the various stages of baking, like a picture of the batter at some stage for instance. But the truth is that presentation sells and our ‘yummy’ hormone kicks in at the sight of sumptuous-looking deserts.
Another thing that stands out is the way in which the book has been published: it’s no less in quality than any foreign recipe book. From the layout to the pictures, the font and finally the colour, it can easily be compared with a Martha Stewart or BBC Food cookbook.
So if you find this book on a shelf, do not hesitate to pick it up. I guarantee that it’s a great way for a beginner to learn the basics of baking.
Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, February 10th, 2013.
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dessert connoisseur? that stands proved on what authority exactly? your outlandish fantasies that make you sound like a 9 year old wishing to add an erotic undertone to their literary work ? or your inability to provide even one simple reason for us consumers to buy that book? 'apparently' this is a good buy and yet here i am, having wasted time reading this inefficiently written waste of a review that fails to inform me exactly what kind of desserts are even in that book. oh, except cupcakes.
you're selling it to the public for the wrong reasons. you're criticizing it for even worst reasons.
this ridiculous excuse of a review has only succeeded in giving me the following information: 1. tribune needs to step its game up 2. this review sucks 3. there are cupcakes in the book 4. this review sucks
This is a rather bizarre review. Lazily written with no authentic descriptions. Instead of perhaps actually trying out the recipes and writing about it from that perspective, all the reader gets is a description of the glossy pictures and the quality of publication?? How is finding something 'off' a valid reason for disliking a dessert? This should be in the blog section and not the magazine.