Even Better Brownies, the debut cookbook by attorney and baking blogger Mike Johnson, boasts delicious, diet-busting dessert recipes, smart baking advice and mouth-watering photographs (also by Johnson). That's right, Johnson is an attorney, baker, blogger and photographer. It's no wonder that he says these appealing recipes were chosen for both their taste and their ease. Johnson designed the cookbook for those with active lives. He picked ingredients that are affordable and easy to find, and recipes with short prep-times.
"Brownies don't require a lot of ingredients," Johnson writes, "so, the ones you use should be really great." He advises nixing baking chocolate and using higher-end chocolate bars you'd eat on their own. His upbeat solution to overbaked brownies is to slather them with frosting. If they're beyond eating, just crumble them into ice cream. The most tempting brownie recipes include peanut butter cornflake crunch, peppermint mocha, malted chocolate, dulce de leche, bourbon-pecan and his Kitchen Sink Brownies with pretzels, potato chips, peanut butter cups and Oreos. For those in need of moderation, he has a recipe for Small-Batch Brownies, made in a loaf pan. Johnson also strays from the confines of brownies to include recipes for blondies (made with brown sugar instead of cocoa), cookies that can be turned into bars, cheesecake bars, no-bake bars and fruit bars. "Everyone knows a dessert with fruit in it basically makes it a healthy treat," he writes.
Even Better Brownies is a tasty indulgence for bakers at all levels of experience and written with a jaunty sense of humor. --Kevin Howell, independent reviewer and marketing consultant