Notes about Recipes in this book

• Red wine doughnut cookies (Ciambelline al vino rosso)

  • dprostrollo on April 06, 2018

    Really interesting little cookie, not overly sweet - my boyfriend suggested a simple confectioner's sugar drizzle next time.

  • dprostrollo on June 09, 2018

    Used up some mulled wine and subbed in cinnamon. This dough is not the easiest to handle and are definitely best fresh. They go soft on day 2

• Italian carrot cake (Torta di carote Italiana)

  • lou_weez on July 25, 2018

    Disappointing. There are better carrot cake recipes out there. Do yourself a favour and give this one a miss.

• Semolina and ricotta cake (Torta di semolino e ricotta)

  • Astrid5555 on April 08, 2017

    I made only 2/3 of the recipe and baked it in an 8-inch instead of a 9-inch pan. Very rich and dense cake, which did not look at all like the picture in the book due to a lack of browning. I baked the cake 10 minutes longer than specified in the recipe and it was fine. I will probably not make it again, but it was quite well received by my guests who found the cake pleasantly reminiscent of the childhood semolina porridge served by their grandmothers when they were sick.

• Chocolate whisky bundt cake (Bundt cake al whiskey e cioccolato)

  • dprostrollo on April 06, 2018

    This cake was phenomenal. I used Jack Daniels instead of scotch, so it had a bit of a spicier flavor to it.

• Tiramisù cake my way (Torta tiramisù a modo mio)

  • Astrid5555 on May 07, 2017

    I was lucky enough to attend a workshop with Melissa herself yesterday where we baked this cake. This is an easy and forgiving recipe which produces a cake reminiscent of Tiramisu with lots of coffee and an easy mascarpone filling. The cake can even be taken on a plane, as experienced first-hand last night. Disappeared within an hour this afternoon, can't wait to make again.

  • chawkins on January 21, 2021

    The cake batter was very thick, so I had trouble folding the egg whites in, did not really get a smooth batter in fear of deflating all the air in the whites. But the cake turned out good. Should have used espresso instead of coffee, as there was only a slight hint of coffee. Won’t be making this again, even though it was a perfectly fine tasting cake, it just did not remind me of tiramisu at all.

• Jumbo orange, cardamom and poppy seed muffins (Jumbo muffins arancia cardamomo e semi di papavero)

  • Lepa on February 13, 2017

    These weren't very sweet. My husband asked if I had forgotten the sugar but I liked them and the kids did, too. The flavors were lovely.

• Lemon and pine nut drizzle loaf (Loaf al limone pinoli e mandorle)

  • Lepa on February 14, 2017

    Something is seriously wrong with this recipe and I'm annoyed at all the expensive ingredients (pine nuts!) I just wasted (and my time!) After cooking the cake for 45 minutes, a skewer came out clean. I followed the directions and attempted to invert the cake to drizzle it with lemon syrup and the entire cake spilled out as a completely uncooked puddle. The cake cooked on the edges but wasn't solidified at all in the center. In years of baking, I have never experienced more of a baking disaster. This is the third recipe I have tried in the book. One was fine, one lacked flavor and this was an unmitigated disaster. None of the recipes, which sound so enticing in the book, have lived up to my expectations. I am tempted to get rid of the book. Okay, rant over.

• Rose and frangipane loaf (Loaf alla rosa e frangipane)

  • Lepa on February 13, 2017

    I love the idea of this loaf but the flavors didn't come through enough for my taste and it was a bit plain. Next time I might add a bit more rose and a 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract.