Such an fantastic book on baking,. Yotam Ottolenghi has created a very interesting book on baking. The recipes look and sound amazing. The book has interesting twists on classic desserts. I strongly recommend this book to anyone interesting in baking to get this book.

This book was packed full of delicious and creative recipes. It did not disappoint and I enjoyed the new approach to ordinary ingredients.

I loved this book! These are phenomenal and one of a kind recipes. After getting an advanced review copy on NetGalley, I decided to buy my own copy.

I absolutely love and adore Yotam Ottolenghi so I was so incredibly excited to get this book!

It was everything that I thought it would be. I high recommend it!

Ottolenghi's cookbooks are always so inspiring and full of delicious-looking photos, but I rarely cook from them. The recipes are long and involved and call for ingredients that can be expensive and hard to find, and it hurts my feelings when I spend a lot of money on special ingredients for a recipe that doesn't work. For example, I made the Almond, Pistachio, and Sour Cherry Wafers and was disappointed with how crumbly they were. The recipe note said that at the restaurant they use a meat slicer to cut them. Were these recipes tested by home cooks? Because slicing them at home was not fun. They were tasty but not pretty. I'd definitely buy this book as a gift for a dedicated baker, and I'd love to try some of the recipes with olive oil or cardamom, two of my favorite dessert ingredients. Overall the recipes are worth a try, but complicated. This cookbook is beautiful and full of recipes that, like his other cookbooks, I wish someone else would cook for me!

I’ve never read a cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi, never mind cook from one; however, my sister-in-law’s rave reviews of Plenty almost made me feel like I was leading an incomplete life because I hadn’t. So when Sweet popped up in the NetGalley queue, I jumped at the chance to review it. Although I was shocked by its length of almost 400 pages, I soldiered on.

Right off the bat, I loved the philosophy of the book as stated in the Preface: “The Ottolenghi way has always been about abundance, inclusion, and celebration.” To be completely transparent, the authors clearly state that this book is full of sugar - despite the fact sugar is often maligned. The authors abide by the rule of “what you see is what you get” so that people can make responsible choices about the treats they choose to consume, without having to worry about hidden sugars, hidden salts, and so on. Additionally, the authors never purposefully endeavor to create recipes that “free from anything” just for the sake of it because that type of cooking doesn’t really excite them. Therefore, the recipes that are gluten-free or nut-free or dairy-free are happy accidents.

Naturally, the recipes are at the heart of the book. These are divided into seven discrete chapters: cookies, mini-cakes, cakes, cheesecakes, tarts and pies, desserts, confectionery. Each chapter begins with a two-page introduction that outlines some key points of advice for the upcoming chapter. Each recipe begins with a short headnote that describes the recipe and discusses any substitutions or special techniques that may be used in the recipe. The yield of the recipe is clearly stated. Ingredients are listed in the order of use, and are measured in both American and Metric measurements. The recipe steps are written in paragraph form, with a lot of additional detail about the look, feel, and timing of what is going on in that step. Along the side of the recipe are notes about advance preparation, storage, special equipment, dietary sensitivities, and other bright ideas. Each chapter is saturated with photographs; almost every recipe has at least one! There are even step-by-step photomontages for the recipes whose steps are difficult to follow in words.

My favorite chapter was the chapter on mini-cakes. Just looking at the Table of Contents, I thought it was odd that the authors spiked out mini-cakes from regular cakes. Can’t I just make a regular cake in smaller pans? But when I read the introduction to the mini-cakes section, it all made sense. Doughnuts, brownies, powder puffs, madelines, and all sorts of small cakey treats were covered in this chapter. It also helped that I already have a significant collection of NordicWare mini-cake pans (decorating almost an entire kitchen wall) that are just waiting for excuses to be used.

Despite my love for the chapter on the mini-cakes, I did adore the Girl Guide Trilogy in the cake chapter. This was a series of three cake recipes that were designed to be baked in (clean parchment-lined) 14 fluid ounce tin cans. I would have never thought that I would have found such homey recipes in a book with such a decadent cover and opening photo spread. And the chapter on cheesecakes, which broke down the cheesecake into its three component parts of the base, the filling, and the topping.

Following the recipes are approximately ten pages of bakers’ notes and tips. The author clearly states that these are not intended to be comprehensive and, in most cases, are repetitive of what has previously been included in the generously explained recipes. Still, some topics, such as butter and chocolate, were given more explanation as to why certain steps in the recipe are performed in a certain order. Even though I’m a fairly competent baker, I definitely learned some things from this section (e.g. why butter has to be at room temperature for some recipes and cold for other recipes).

The glossary of ingredients at the end of the book provided extra explanation about some of the more finicky and unusual ingredients used in the recipes: what they are, why the authors like them, and what to use as an alternative. For example, although I already knew that almond paste and marzipan were different, I never knew why. I also didn’t know that an equal quantity of fennel seed could be used to replace aniseed. I also didn’t know that you could make your own self-rising flour by sifting baking powder into all purpose flour.

Both the black and white photography and the full color photography throughout the book were simply stunning. The book was saturated with photography. In addition to the photos that accompanied the recipes and the photomontages designed to illustrate complex recipes, there were photomontages that introduced each chapter.

Overall, I really loved this book. I loved it for the advice in the introduction to the cookie chapter, which encouraged the reader to bake and rebake the same cookie recipe enough times to make it your own. I loved it for the extra information that was baked into the recipe steps that helped give a good feel for exactly how the recipes should be executed. This book really felt like a timeless classic. I would definitely recommend it to friends – even those who have never heard of Ottolenghi.

I have yet to prepare anything from the recipes in this book. When I do, I will update this review.

Sweet by Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh promises 110 recipes for sweets and baked goods. This cookbook definitely delivers. I would not consider these everyday dessert recipes but many could be. Thanks to online shopping I was able to get the halva I needed to make the tahini and halva brownies. They are as addictive and delicious as described in the book. My mom could not stop talking about how good they are. I marked several other recipes to try and am expecting the same great results!

I must admit upfront that I was biased before I opened this book as Yotam Ottolenghi’s books are my favourites on my rather extensive cookbook shelves. And I was not disappointed! As he says in the introduction: these recipes are “conceived with love and a bit of flair and made with real ingredients and lots of attention to detail” A perfect description!

As with previous Yotam Ottolenghi recipe books, the book is beautifully presented. Superb photographs and clear instructions, with details of timing, storage details and useful hints. I also like the clear quantities given – so for example, ½ small banana = 50 g mashed.

There are so many interesting and exciting recipes to try. But also those that give pizazz to well known favourites. For example the Custard Yo-Yos – with roasted rhubarb icing. Absolutely gorgeous to look at and superb tasting. Also Banana Cakes - with rum caramel. What a delight! Other little details such as how to make the Chocolate Chip Cookies crispy or chewy are what set this book apart from so many other baking books I have.

So top marks to Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh for providing a wonderful selection of recipes and to the publishers for presenting a most glorious, readable and beautiful book.

My review: I'm a sucker for a cookbook about sugary treats, so I was like a moth to a flame with this gorgeous book by noted pastry chef Yotam Ottolenghi and his longtime collaborator Helen Goh. From the beginning, its chatty tone drew me in and made me feel like we were old friends who'd been discussing tips, tricks and ingredient substitutions for years. Any book that starts off with a recipe for yo-yos is a winner for me, and I loved the regular mentions of Helen's Antipodean influences, although it came as news to me that New Zealanders love Louise Cake so much (I've never, ever had it). I'm pretty sure sticky date pudding is commonplace here, too, but that's by the by.

As well as tasty recipes for all manner of sweet treat, this book is full of vibrant photos. I was particularly amazed by the vertical layers of the lemon and blackcurrant stripe cake. Although I doubt I'll ever make it, there are plenty of other things here I will definitely try. If you love sweet things, this book is for you!

Quotes to live by: "It's one of life's great pleasures, we think, to know that, whatever else is going on in your day, you're only ever about 14 minutes away from a perfectly baked chocolate chip cookie."

and

"Confectionary is for life, though, not just for Christmas."

***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***

Sweet has sections as to type of dessert, so if cheesecake is on your mind, there is a section for that! That goes for mini-cakes, cakes, tarts, and all sorts of confections. Beautifully photographed, this book makes me want to visit an Ottolenghi restaurant! I will definitely be trying some of these scrumptious desserts in the near future.

By now you probably know how I feel about Ottolenghi. But... I was skeptical about a dessert cookbook. I was absolutely wrong to be skeptical. The feel of a classic Ottolenghi savory recipe is maintained in these sweet treats, which highlight beautiful fruits, simple elegance, and delicious results. I feel confident I could handle the recipes in my home kitchen, which is not always the case with dessert cookbooks. I am so eager to start baking and find out for sure! I will most definitely buy a copy to add to my home library and I encourage you to consider doing the same.

Hot am Ottolenghi started out as a pastry chef. He always uses interesting flavored from rose petals, figs to saffron even in desserts. How about a flourless chocolate layer cake with coffee, walnut and rose water? Beautiful recipes and amazing photographs.

To be perfectly frank, writing a review for a book by Ottolenghi is perhaps only slightly less like writing a review for a book by Jamie Oliver or Tana French. It's just exceedingly unlikely that I'm going to find any work by any of them to falter much. It's difficult to be even-handed.

But I'll do my best. :)

For over four years, I've been absolutely resolute on my follow-through with reading and posting any reviews for advanced reader's copies that I accept. Whether my review is a positive one, it only seems fair and appropriate that I give a response to the publisher's kindness in providing me a copy.

However, it's all completely disintegrated in the last six months or so. I have about a dozen books that I have utterly failed to read and review and are now long past their publication. There are multiple reasons for this, but the two most overwhelming are an incredibly long and incredibly hot summer, which was energy sapping and demoralizing (and hasn't this year in general been, anyway?), and second is that I accepted a new job.

But I return! I return for Ottolenghi. I was so incredibly excited to receive an advanced copy of his new book, Sweet. I'd be excited for any Ottolenghi, but this one is particularly in my wheelhouse, given that it is all about sweet things.

This book doesn't disappoint.

I have, in fact, already baked something from it, but it was in the midst of an already busy week and made for guests for a Wednesday (!) night dinner party, so I have no photographs of the cake or the guest who took one bite and instantly said, "Oh! Now tell me about THIS."

In classic Ottolenghi style, he and Goh are excellent at overwhelming the reader with gorgeous photography and equally if not more enticing recipes that marry often unique combinations of flavours (but don't read unique to be questionable or difficult-to-source).

It should be noted, however, that some of the recipes may both seem and be daunting to less experienced bakers. I'd categorize the Roma's Doughnuts with Saffron Custard Cream or the Mont Blanc Tarts here, for example. There are multiple steps including more fiddly things like frying or tempering chocolate, but it's a minor complaint because it is a book centered around sweets and baking so of course there's going to be some of this. One can be reassured that even in these more daunting recipes, they are excellent at providing details and specifications and even alternative ingredients or methods to guide and support. For example, they clearly LOVE mini-cakes, which frequently require speciality bakeware that can often be more difficult to source, require spending more money, and take up room in one's kitchen that be difficult to justify, being that they exist for ONE sort of creation. It makes sense that they like them because that's the sort of thing to sell in their bakeries/restaurants in London. However, in (almost) every single instance, they acknowledge all the above limitations and tell you how to adjust the recipe, as needed, if you choose to just make a full cake in your one regular cake pan or a muffin tin.

But the recipes that are more approachable certainly outweigh any that might give a moment of hesitation....

Orange and Star Anise Shortbread

Soft Gingerbread Tiles with Rum Butter Glaze

Lemon and Raspberry Cupcakes

Beet, Ginger, and Sour Cream Cake

Apple and Olive Oil Cake with Maple Frosting

Almond Butter Cake with Cardamom and Baked Plums

Rhubarb and Blueberry Galette

Walnut and Black Treacle Tarts with Crystallized Sage

Sticky Fig Pudding with Salted Caramel and Coconut Topping

Campari and Grapefruit Sorbet

If you love cheesecakes (not really my thing), you are going to be so happy with this. A disappointment for me is no chapter on yeasted things. I can certainly understand their decision not to court a Pandora's box by trying to restrict such a broad category to one chapter (and he mentions this briefly), but still.

Ottolenghi and Goh both have sections where they write about their partnership and what brought them to this point in their careers and in both instances, they mostly write about one another.

There's an extensive section of Baker's Tips & Notes, information that is often easy to gloss over in cookbooks but they keep the writing engaging and informative enough that it makes it easy to keep reading because of how many interesting tidbits and techniques one can learn.

Ottolenghi's section of writing, which opens the book, begins with a Sugar Manifesto. I was sorely tempted to recount almost all of it here but in the interest of brevity, here's just part of it:

"In the fickle world of food fads and fashions, Public Enemy No. 1 is constantly changing: eggs, fats, carbs - we are told to restrict our intake of them one year, and then to make them a major part of our diet the next. To those who do as they're told, it's all very confusing.

In the midst of this confusion, we try to stick with the simple rule of what you see is what you get. People will make responsible choices about what and how much to eat so long as they are not consuming things without realizing it - hidden sugars, hidden salts, hidden elements with names we can't even pronounce, let alone understand what they are. There is nothing wrong with treats, as long as we know what they are and enjoy them as such."

While I hesitate to concur with the statement that "people will make responsible choices about what and how much they eat so long as they are not consuming things without realizing it...", I do agree that there is nothing hidden here - everything is clearly a treat, and clearly meant to be moderated as one. I'm reminded of a Michael Pollan statement that I am certainly going to butcher so much that it's not even a quote, but it was about how we can eat things like french fries.... so long as it's something that we make ourselves. The effort that it takes to peel and prepare the fries and to fry them up is one that both reminds us of precisely what is in such a treat and also prohibits (most of) us from making and eating them every day (also, the act of making it at home gives us the opportunity to control what's going into the dish). It's precisely the same situation here, with all these astounding sweets.

I made the Gingerbread with Brandy Apples and Créme Fraîche. This is one of those recipes that lies within the realm of There's a Bit of Effort Required But It's Really Not All That Much and Its Returns are Well Worth It. If you actually decide to get the book (I actually had my physical copy pre-ordered back in February and despite that Penguin Random House provided an advanced digital copy, I retained my pre-order because the book is too amazing in print to not have) and to make this recipe, my only suggestions would be not to run out of molasses and partially substitute with golden syrup like I did (and I am, in fact, going to try it with the treacle syrup next time) and to probably make at least half as much more of the brandied apples and their sauce.

Once again Yotam Ottelenghi has created a cookbook that makes me want to cook every single recipe in it. I've made the tahini and halva brownies about 5 times already because they are pretty much the best thing I've ever eaten. All in all, Sweet is exactly what I need to curb any sugar cravings.

Wonderful sweet recipes to try...... each recipe are explained clearly with the wonderful picture........

I have all of Yotam Ottolenghi's other books, and I was thrilled to hear about this one. Beautiful photographs, extravagant desserts, but enough step by step detail to make you confident you too can pull it off. I cannot wait to make the hazelnut and Nutella cake.

I have never had the pleasure of visiting an Ottolenghi restaurant, however it is definitely one thing on my travel to-do list. When I saw this recipe book was available for request, I was instantly excited to give it a try. The images are stunning, the layout is simple, and the instructions are easy to follow. That being said, depending on where you live, some of the interesting ingredients required to create these unique treats may be hard to find.

Admittedly, I have quite a large sweet tooth, so a collection of yummy new desserts to make is something that brings me joy. Sweet is a collection of cookies, cakes, and more that can be made at any time of the year. Although the instructions are clear and concise, these recipes are geared towards experienced bakers. The techniques and tools that are required do involve some prior training, and while the recipes could be made with the assistance of children, it may be a bit overwhelming to tackle.

I do enjoy creating interesting and new treats. One thing that I discovered about my own habits, however, is that simplicity is something I strive for. I found myself drooling over all of the recipes included in Sweet, but just didn’t have the desire to put in the effort required to create most of the desserts.

I did opt to make the Orange and Star Anise Shortbread cookies. Sourcing most of the ingredients was fairly simple. The Italian and rice flours, vanilla beans, and star anise took me to 2 different stores to find. As the instructions are laid out quite well, these cookies turned out as expected and were absolutely an explosion of flavours in your mouth. The star anise is a very unique addition to a shortbread cookie and gives a flavour of liquorice to the cookie. Also, my entire house was filled with a wonderful aroma that was so enjoyable.

The citrus and spice combinations that can be found within the pages of Sweet are incredible. The book is a gorgeous addition to any baker’s collection. For those who enjoy a challenge in the kitchen, I highly recommend giving these recipes a try.

For me this was more of a coffe table book. It was a beautiful cookbook, but many of the recipes seemed far too labor intense for me.

Apparently I need to go back to London. Immediately. I made a pilgrimage to Nopi this summer to enjoy a long dreamed of lunch at an Ottolenghi restaurant. I was not disappointed. I sat at the bar, a solo diner, and watched the bar and restaurant staff serve fabulous meals to a restaurant full of diners. It was a real delight to see what I *hadn’t* ordered being served up, as I enjoyed what I *had* ordered. What I didn’t save room for was dessert. So I’ll have to go back. But in the meantime, my California kitchen will be testing out a few of the seriously beautiful recipes in this new cookbook.

The first order of business is to work my way through the Cookies section; Almond, Pistachio and Dried Fig Wafers or the beautiful Soft Gingerbread Tiles anyone? The hints and tricks are substantial in this section, and give detailed freezer tips directed to the home cook.

I’m not so much of a cake eater, but the mini-cakes in the second section have some temptations that may not be resisted. (Note to self: check out those flourless chocolate teacakes and lemon semolina syrup cakes.)

I particularly appreciate the attention given by the authors to equipment. While they specify the *best* tool for a job, they don’t expect the home pastry maker to buy one of each tool, and offer lots of alternatives. In the same way they encourage the baker to make the recipes her own, baking and remaking recipes to our taste.

I love the look of the galettes, and may get over my fear of pie crust to make the pineapple tartlets.

And then there are “Desserts”. Epic Desserts. Desserts that will call for high-risk dinner parties with close friends who will praise success but tolerate failure. Looking at you, Pavlova.

This is a beautiful cookbook filled with recipes for foods I would love to eat. However, I feel that the recipes are labor-intensive and require skills I don't possess. I will be buying this for my academic library because we have a culinary program.