Dessert Designer: Creations You Can Make and Eat!

Description

Design and decorate like a pro with no baking skills required! Using premade cupcakes, cookies, and cake, kids of all ages will learn tips and tricks for creating whimsical, inspiring, and utterly gorgeous desserts. It's deliciously fun!

Dana Meachen Rau writes about many topics, including food! When she's not writing, she's being creative in other ways--especially in the kitchen. Sometimes she follows recipes, but other times she experiments with new flavors. And she doesn't need a special occasion to whip up a special dessert for her friends and family in Burlington, Connecticut.

...a good book for beginners and more advanced bakers as well. Would make a good addition to middle school libraries.-- "NetGalley Review" ...a very creative dessert decorating book with loads of unique ideas.-- "Books For Kids blog" ...a very creative guide for making unique desserts. . . .The author had some wonderful ideas of which I cannot wait to try.-- "Pam Funke's Book Reviews blog" ...a wonderful collection of imaginative confections that would be a thrill for any child to create. I do feel that most of the creations will need adult guidance; however, there are enough items and/or components to items that most children can confidently do. I would most likely be recommending this book to parents yet I am sure many a budding pastry chef will find it on their own.-- "NetGalley Review" ...the book is well prepared with a good introduction illustrating the twenty-five essential tools and giving the recipes for the two essential icings (needing both in many recipes). The recipe steps are clear and the tips in sidebars are very good.-- "San Francisco Book Revew" ...this book runs the gamut of all levels of skill so any kid can pick and choose a dessert project just for them. The ingredients lists for all 51 recipes are short and mainly contain pantry items. With its colorful pictures and graphics, this was an enjoyable read for the kids at our home.-- "Kids Pastry Sampler" Adult cookie, cake, and cupcake decorating books might be fine to browse, but the execution of their designs is hard. Dana Rau has produced a book that will allow multiple skill levels to succeed at creating fun edibles. Listing required supplies and using such terminology as "generous blob," she guides the reader through the process of creating the fun and fantastic. . . .A well done, clever book that will attract adults as well as kids.-- "NetGalley Review" Children will have a blast making these desserts! . . .The designs are innovative and clever, with many that the reader will have never seen before.-- "NetGalley Review" Great photographs illustrate every creation in this book. The instructions are accessible to most ages, and clear without being too lengthy or complicated. Definitely a book I'll add to my k-5 library where cook books and cupcakes are still quite popular.-- "NetGalley Reveiw" I adore this book! I have a 3 year old daughter and many of these creations would be perfect for when she has her little friends over for tea parties. Excellent job with the instructions and the finished product pictures really make you want to try them out!-- "NetGalley Review" I enjoyed the photos in this book and thought the desserts were rather imaginative. Great treats to make for kids parties.-- "NetGalley Review" I have enjoyed looking at the mouth-watering photos in this book and our high school Foods teacher will be recommending it to those students in a food design competition later this year. The directions and photos are brilliant!-- "NetGalley Review" I love the gorgeous photography used to illustrate the book. I don't know that my own creations would ever look quite as good, but the pictures make you want to try your very best!-- "Andi's Middle Grade & Chapter Books blog" I recommend enjoying and buying this book to all the people who love dessert recipes because they will find new original desserts to surprise the whole family.-- "NetGalley Review" I was impressed. I'd definitely recommend this to mothers of young children. Especially if they are on a budget and don't mind putting in the extra time.-- "The Armchair Librarian blog" I was looking for fun activities for my little cousin to do when she visits and this book has a ton of them. I can not wait to make the bunny rabbits for Easter with her. This looks like so much fun and easy to do.-- "NetGalley Review" I will definitely purchase this book for our library!! I am sure the adults will be fighting the kids for this one!-- "NetGalley Review" If you like creating something unique and you want to dazzle or put little pizzazz in your next festivity then this book may be one you would want to pick up and read.-- "NetGalley Review" If you love making cool creations with deserts this is the book for you.-- "Love, Life, and Books blog" In Dessert Designer, you get to learn how to decorate cakes, cookies and cupcakes. These aren't your typical frosted swirls, though. We're talking animals, objects and the like. . . .READ IT IF: You've always wanted to learn how to create elaborate cupcake decorations. You like shows like DC Cupcakes and Cake Wars. Your kid wants to learn more about baking and decorating pastries.-- "Second Bookshelf on the Right blog" Kids like to create and they like a challenge. This is the kind of book for them. Some crafts are harder than others, but there is something for everyone. . . .So how does this work for the classroom? Teaching a student how to tackle procedural text is a valuable lesson. These kind of passages are forever showing up on standardized tests and how many times are we required to read a set of instructions and follow them? This is an important life skill to have. Dessert Designer also requires readers to have some math skills. There's plenty of measuring and computing to go around, so readers will have to apply those skills to create.-- "NC Teacher Stuff blog" Loved this book. Unlike others that I've seen the recipes were very easy to follow, no exotic recipes or materials needed. Felt like a kid could pretty closely replicate most of the designs on their own. There were quite a few unique ideas, so many of these books are just recycles of old ideas. We have ordered a copy to have in our library and anticipate it becoming one of our popular titles next school year.-- "NetGalley Review" Probably the coolest kid's cookbook I've seen in a long time. This is a book I will definitely be purchasing for the library I work at. Kids and teens are going to love this book with the many ideas for cool creations they can make with food items they have easy access to. The illustrations are beautiful and the instructions are easy to follow.-- "NetGalley Review" Targeted toward kids, this book is no less fun for adults. Author Dana Meachen Rau has put together 51 cake-related projects that reflect lots of whimsy and creativity. As you browse through the book -- filled with beautiful photographs of each design -- it becomes clear that edible artistry may be in your future. None of the projects appear all that difficult, although some definitely require more time and patience than others. . . .We all know cake is good stuff. But in Dessert Designer, Dana Meachen Rau helps us make it more fun.-- "Jolly Reindeer blog" The best part is that this book is not about baking. It's all about the decorating (the fun part), and in fact all these desserts are made using store bought cupcakes, cookies, and more, perfect for kids (and moms who don't like to bake or don't have time)!-- "Double Duty Divas blog" The book has 51 creations that are easy enough for even kids! The hardest part of the 51 yummy creations is figuring which one to try first. Each creation is edible, adorable, easy, fun, creative, and includes an ingredient list, page size color photograph, and directions.-- "Maria's Space blog" The cover of this book alone invites creativity ensured to result in a tasty bite - just in time for Valentine's Day treats. . . .Opening with ideas for decorators and an itemized photograph for the decorator's toolkit, photographs of beautifully decorated delectable desserts with step-by-step recipes await! Though most of these decorated beauties require an adult hand, there are a few that children could manage with adult help.-- "Reading Today Online blog" The ideas are interesting and creative and the photographs are beautiful (in the same vein as Hello, Cupcake).-- "NetGalley Review" The ideas in this book are simply put... genius. The author, Dana Meachen Rau, has magically transformed everyday foods and ingredients into edible works of art.-- "About a Mom blog" This cookbook is chock full of the most creative, unique baking ideas you've ever seen! From ladybug oreos to a jewelry box formed entirely out of chocolate, you'll find fabulous ideas to quench all your baking desires. . . .The pictures in this book will make your mouth water. Grab an adult and get ready to create a masterpiece.-- "Colorado Kids/Denver Post" This creative book has lots of fun projects that kids can either do themselves or with help from a grown-up. They are ideas for parties or just an edible craft time.-- "What's Carol Reading? blog" This is a bright, cheery book - designed for younger people but older folk can surely enjoy it too - that provides 51 "fun creations" of different desserts that can be made and eaten. . . .when you look at what you get in this great little book, which is very reasonably priced, you should strongly give this a purchase consideration if you are prone to making cakes and other sweet treats. If nothing else, you'll get a lot of design inspiration and maybe pick up a few hints and tips along the way. Swallow your pride. You won't regret it.-- "Yum.Fi" This is like one of the "coffee table" adult cookbooks I have at home. Wonderful to look at and contemplate making. . . .The author has done a good job explaining the tools and the steps for those serious cake decorators.-- "NetGalley Review" Wonderful photographs highlight what each creation looks like, and much of the fun of this cookbook is simply seeing all the creative edible decorations. I shared this book with my fifth grade daughter and ninth grade son, both of whom frequently enjoy cooking with me. Both found recipes they immediately wanted to try out. . . .Highly recommended for elementary, middle, high school, and public libraries, as well as for any home kitchen where fun, simple desserts are in demand.-- "Mountain Library Reviews blog" Worth buying if only for the armadillo cupcakes made with Nutter Butter cookies. Very pretty pictures, and longer than some. Definitely doable designs.-- "Ms. Yingling Reads blog"