Presents an array of easy-to-prepare desserts, including selections for children.

Master the building blocks of dessert making and you can create anything. That is the simple philosophy of Jacques Torres, host of the public television series Dessert Circus and executive pastry chef at the world-renowned Le Cirque 2000 restaurant. In Dessert Circus he stays true to his principles. Learn how to temper chocolate (simply bringing melted chocolate to the right temperature) and you can make Chocolate-Covered Almonds. Learn to make sorbet (no harder than buying an ice cream machine) and you can make a Palette of Sorbets, a chocolate palette artfully topped with five different fruit sorbets. Master the recipe for Classic Genoise cake and you have the starting point for everything from Banana Moon Cakes to a raspberry mousse-filled ladybug. Jacques explains it all in clear, plain language, like a teacher at your side. He doesn't just tell you what to do, he tells you why you are doing it that way. Dessert Circus isn't just a stunning collection of a hundred astonishing desserts, it is a primer in the basics of dessert chemistry. You will learn about ingredients and how they react when mixed, kneaded, chilled, or heated and be taught the red flags of warning--the signs that something is not going right--and what you might be able to do to save the situation. Dessert Circus satisfies your every craving. Chocoholic? Revel in homemade Peanut Butter Cups. Want something simple and homey? How about Decorative Shortbread Cookies or Old-fashioned Macaroons? If you think creaminess is the hallmark of a dessert to die for, open up to classic Creme Brulee and soon-to-be-classic Tiramisu. There are fruit desserts (try Roosted Whole Peaches with Fresh Almonds and Pistachios), pastries, (Napoleons, Baba au Rhum), and frozen finales. But that's not all. Jacques has included recipes for all his signature desserts. Appreciate the architecture of New York City without ever leaving your kitchen by making The Manhattan, chocolate cake layered with a bittersweet chocolate cream constructed in the shape of a skyscraper. Enjoy winter any time of year with The Snowman, a little man made not out of snow but snowy white meringue and filled with tart lemon curd. If you're really feeling your baking oats, there is the final chapter, For the Truly Adventurous. Make a Cookie Tree, a Croquembouche (a pyramid of small cream puffs), or a wedding cake for sixty. Each recipe is rated for its level of difficulty so you can start with desserts that match your level of experience and work your way up to those more challenging. Every recipe is accompanied by a color photograph of the finished dessert and step-by-step photographs where appropriate. If you love dessert, you'll love Dessert Circus.

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!

#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Two starcrossed magicians engage in a deadly game of cunning in the spellbinding novel that captured the world's imagination. • "Part love story, part fable ... defies both genres and expectations." —The Boston Globe The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

When it comes to food, there has never been another city quite like New York. The Big Apple--a telling nickname--is the city of 50,000 eateries, of fish wriggling in Chinatown baskets, huge pastrami sandwiches on rye, fizzy egg creams, and frosted black and whites. It is home to possibly the densest concentration of ethnic and regional food establishments in the world, from German and Jewish delis to Greek diners, Brazilian steakhouses, Puerto Rican and Dominican bodegas, halal food carts, Irish pubs, Little Italy, and two Koreatowns (Flushing and Manhattan). This is the city where, if you choose to have Thai for dinner, you might also choose exactly which region of Thailand you wish to dine in. Savoring Gotham weaves the full tapestry of the city's rich gastronomy in nearly 570 accessible, informative A-to-Z entries. Written by nearly 180 of the most notable food experts-most of them New Yorkers--Savoring Gotham addresses the food, people, places, and institutions that have made New York cuisine so wildly diverse and immensely appealing. Reach only a little ways back into the city's ever-changing culinary kaleidoscope and discover automats, the precursor to fast food restaurants, where diners in a hurry dropped nickels into slots to unlock their premade meal of choice. Or travel to the nineteenth century, when oysters cost a few cents and were pulled by the bucketful from the Hudson River. Back then the city was one of the major centers of sugar refining, and of brewing, too--48 breweries once existed in Brooklyn alone, accounting for roughly 10% of all the beer brewed in the United States. Travel further back still and learn of the Native Americans who arrived in the area 5,000 years before New York was New York, and who planted the maize, squash, and beans that European and other settlers to the New World embraced centuries later. Savoring Gotham covers New York's culinary history, but also some of the most recognizable restaurants, eateries, and culinary personalities today. And it delves into more esoteric culinary realities, such as urban farming, beekeeping, the Three Martini Lunch and the Power Lunch, and novels, movies, and paintings that memorably depict Gotham's foodscapes. From hot dog stands to haute cuisine, each borough is represented. A foreword by Brooklyn Brewery Brewmaster Garrett Oliver and an extensive bibliography round out this sweeping new collection.

A cookbook offering more than forty recipes from famous Los Angeles restaurants, chefs, and caterers, with photographs, history, and personal stories. Glamorous and glitzy, historic and classy, fast and flavorful, Los Angeles has it all. This collection of fifty favorite dessert recipes from the city’s most iconic restaurants past and present showcases all the sweetness and sparkle that makes the LA restaurant scene one of the finest in the world. Now home chefs and world-class gourmands alike can enjoy the Tres Leches Cake from Ciudad, Frozen Key Lime Soufflé from Xiomara, Red Velvet Cake Pudding from Water Grille, and dozens more. The diverse and vibrant spirit of Los Angeles is reflected in its flavorful food. From Brioche Bread Pudding from Comme Ca and Melisse’s Fruit Crepe with Mousse to Loteria’s Flan de Cajeta and Mandarin Bread Pudding from Big Sugar, each dish presents a different aspect of fine after-dinner dining in the Entertainment Capital. Accompanied by a bit of history, gorgeous photographs, and a little insider culinary lore, the entries include selections from legendary establishments of the past, such as the Brown Derby and its Grapefruit Cake, to the newest, freshest flavors including Panna Cotta with Rose Petals from Il Cielo and Briquats from Dar Maghreb.

A collection of eighty recipes from Jacques Torres for delicious chocolate creations that can be enjoyed throughout the year.