Book review: Bakes That Break the Internet by Kat Buckley
Grey seems to have been the mood these past few rain-specked weeks, but Kat Buckley's first cookbook, Bakes That Break the Internet, can bake some colour into the season. This joyful, sugar-infused colour bomb of a recipe book by baking blogger Buckley makes you want to try your hand at every creation.
Forty fun recipes are broken into five sections: cakes and cupcakes; cookies; no-bake treats; traybakes; and desserts. While each recipe produces wonderful end products, there are also lessons to be learned in adding value to bakes without breaking the bank.
Buckley's rainbow cake jar is a case in point. Instead of double or triple-layered golden sponge cake, she adds intense food colouring to each of the six layers. But the pièce de résistance is in the presentation: by piping snow white buttercream and decorating it with sprinkles, edible glitter and a fondant icing star dipped in gold lustre, it elevates an otherwise plain sponge to a colour-popping creation.
The section on traybakes might also be of particular interest to caterers and operators. Easy to cut and serve in varying sizes, traybakes offer smaller enterprises (which may look more carefully at ingredient costs and margins) the option to reduce portion sizes to deliver the product at an affordable price point.
In addition, Buckley's trend awareness is strong; the influence of American flavours, which continue to be popular among consumers, are brought to the fore, such as in her cookies and cream blondies.
She also taps into the ongoing trend for nostalgic treats. Her cherry Bakewell pop tarts – that rare breakfast treat beloved by schoolchildren of the 1990s and 2000s – are a case in point, or her school dinner cake, served in a small pond of comforting custard.
As ideas go, most of her recipes and techniques are simple to follow and will be more than enough to impress customers and satisfy their sweet tooth and social media's desire for continual eye candy.
Bakes That Break the Internet by Kat Buckley (Ebury, £12.99)
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