Elizabeth Falkner's Demolition Desserts ─ Recipes from Citizen Cake

Over the past 10 years, Elizabeth Falkner has transformed her bakery from a tiny space in San Francisco's Mission district to the country's ultimate dessert destination. In DEMOLITION DESSERTS, she presents her favorite creations, from the cookies, brownies, and cupcakes beloved by Citizen Cake regulars to the plated desserts that have made her one of the most dynamic culinary talents of her generation. Beginning with a chapter devoted entirely to chocolate chip cookies, Elizabeth breaks down classic desserts and reconstructs them flavor by flavor, with stunning results. Even her most elaborate desserts have been adapted for the home kitchen, and each recipe is equipped with a detailed make-ahead timeline and a minimalist version for those pressed for time.

A debut collection of 65 signature dessert recipes from star pastry chef Elizabeth Falkner, owner of Citizen Cake, Citizen Cupcake, and Orson in San Francisco. 50 color photos accompany the main recipes in the book, while 50 location photos capture Elizabeth at work in her bakery. Includes 10 anime-style sequences-starring Elizabeth's alter ego, Caremi-that playfully illustrate key techniques and ingredient information throughout the book. Elizabeth was named Bon App?ctit's Pastry Chef of the Year in 2006 and was a finalist for the James Beard Foundation's pastry chef of the year in 2005.Reviews

International Association of Culinary Professionals 2008 Cookbook Awards: Finalist in the First Book: Julia Child Award category

Pastry Chef Breaks it Down for Home Bakers: a review of Elizabeth Falkner's Demolition Desserts

"Fantastic creations with even more fantastic names are par for the course."-KQED "Bay Area Bites""Elizabeth Falkner'??s new Demolition Desserts is rare among cookbooks. She avoids the reverent or fake folksy tone so common in the genre and manages to serve up some genuine fun-alonside recipes for the kinds of rocking desserts that put her San Francisco restaurant Citizen Cake on the map."-San Francisco ChronicleGift Books for Cooks: "This pastry chef's desserts are not only daring, hilarious, and spectacular to behold, they'??re downright delicious."-Bon AppetitOne of the Best Cookbooks of the Year-7 x 7 MagazineOne of the Best Cookbooks of the Year-Angeleno Magazine"Like Falkner, the book is inventive and transcendent of the norm, breaking down the classics and reconstructing them in a way that makes them fun, appealing, and delicious."-Atlanta Journal Constitution"For those who don'??t want to wait over an hour at her famed Hayes Valley restuarant/bakery Citizen Cake for her unique '?’dessert landscapes'?? and stunning parfaits, Falkner has penned home-kitchen versions of her edible masterpieces . . . Colorful photographs and anime-style drawings help capture the magic of Falkner'??s desserts, extravagant and emblematic of her commitment to '?’balance and restraint.'??"-Publishers Weekly

Read the full review in Library Journal

Read the full review in Publishers Weekly

ELIZABETH FALKNER has been profiled in every major American food magazine and has appeared numerous times on the Food Network, first as a featured destination on Rachael Ray's $40 a Day and more recently on Iron Chef. She lives in San Francisco.