About a month ago, I received an email from Beth Lipton asking me if I would be interested in reviewing her newly published cookbook. Beth Lipton? Do I know a Beth Lipton? And then, I remembered. Beth Lipton is one of our very own sweet and talented food bloggers, CookiePie ^[1], and as you’ve probably already guessed, has just released a brand new cookbook called “You Made That Dessert? ^[2]”. Many of us food bloggers write using various noms de plume or pseudonyms, if you will. So, when I realized that Beth and CookiePie were one and the same, I was excited to have the opportunity to check out her book and am delighted to now share it with you!

In addition to being a successful food blogger and a trained pastry chef, Beth is also the food editor of All You magazine, which reaches approximately 3.5 million readers per month. You Made That Dessert? ^[3] is a really lovely baking book containing over 100 simple-yet-sophisticated desserts for the undomestic diva. It’s aimed at the savvy, modern woman who wants to learn how to make fabulous desserts for any occasion without driving herself crazy in the process. With straightforward, easy to follow recipes, clear and concise instructions and of course, beautiful photographs, Beth has achieved just that! There are sections on cakes, cookies and bars, custards and puddings, pies, candies and even one on “Emergency Desserts”, as well as detailed narratives on tools, ingredients and the “How Tos” of putting them all together. Though the book is primarily geared towards beginning bakers, there is much there to inspire the more experienced baker as well.

I had a difficult time deciding which of Beth’s recipes to try first, but I finally settled on her Lime-Glazed Citrus Tea Cakes. They are light, bright, citrusy loaf cakes drizzled with a zesty, sweet-tart glaze made with fresh lime juice. Anyone who follows this blog knows that I’m a sucker for fruity desserts, especially those made with lemons, limes or oranges. These tea cakes combine all three! Instant citrus heaven! The recipe makes two cakes so you can keep one for yourself and share the other. Or, you can be like me and keep them both for yourself, because believe it or not, these cakes taste even better the second day you make them!

Since I was doing a review, I followed the recipe exactly. The only tweak I made was to bake half the batter in a muffin pan, (in case I did later decide to share). Both the muffin and loaf versions turned out beautifully. I can tell you for certain that I will definitely be trying out some more of the recipes in this book and I hope that you will too!

Enjoy!

Here is some more buzz about You Made That Dessert?:

Cookie and Cream Cheesecake Bars at The Recipe Girl ^[4]

Sour Cream Coffee Cake at Two Peas and Their Pod ^[5]

Cappuccino Biscotti at The Life and Loves of Grumpy’s Honeybunch ^[6]

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cupcakes at Culinary Concoctions by Peabody ^[7]

You Made That Dessert? at Baking Bites ^[8]

Coconut Rice Pudding at Eat Me, Delicious ^[9]

Banana Snack Cake with Rich Caramel Frosting at Cookie Baker Lynn ^[10]