I'm a pretty good cook by all accounts, but however much I try, mastering desserts seems to be beyond me. This has previously frustrated me no end, not least when a friend of mine who needs step-by-step instructions to produce a bowl of pasta whipped up a chocolate mousse to die for without batting an eyelid.
Anyway, I decided that a book dedicated to desserts would be the way forward and, having successfully tried a few James Martin recipes in the past that I found on the BBC website, his was my book of choice. I was not disappointed. His writing is very clear, without the patronising tone of Mary Berry and Delia Smith (apologies to the British institution) or the overly informal chatty tone of Jamie Oliver which irritates me no end. He is particularly clear about how to prepare the various utensils and dishes, and is very descriptive of what the various stages should look like. This meant that if anything went wrong, I knew straightaway, rather than previous experiences of blissfully plodding forward and being left with a soggy mess.
Hence, I can now produce a sticky toffee pudding that looks and tastes how it should as well as a few other staples that previous recipes have failed me on. My only gripe is that he sometimes is a little on the technical side with his terminology and the recipes never become as adventurous as they could be. Having said that, there is more than enough to keep anyone busy. Though it may not do the waistline much good!!