Lora Hates Spam

by Connie Weis

I love brownies and all sorts of variations on them, so this book had an obvious appeal right away.

The book starts out with the most amazingly tempting photographs of brownies, including a blondie variety, with peanut butter cups in them. Then as you would expect from most cookery books, there is an introduction by the author to explain why she created the book, followed by practical information about equipment and technique.

Tips for perfection are included as well as freezing and shipping advice. Emphasis on the detail in quality ingredients can make all the difference. I never knew that iodized salt would give a tinny flavor!

The bulk of the book, however, is filled with scrumptious recipes for every kind of brownie you can imagine. I counted thirteen recipes just in the Blondie section! The whole book is filled with full page color pictures of the treats you can make and is a visual delight that will make you anticipate the yummy brownies that you are about to make.

The recipes range from a deep, rich chocolate brownies to brownies with nuts or cookies in them, caramel stuffed, toffee, mint and marshmallow variations. The peanut butter varieties are definitely on my list of recipes to try! On the posh end of the spectrum is the Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake Brownie. The name says it all.

It finishes off with metric conversions and a few more tempting color photographs, then an extensive index. The book is well presented and has everything the aspiring baker needs to know to make an impressive array of brownies. I'll certainly be trying my hand at some!