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Cake: A Cookbook
With great style, wit, and joy, Maira Kalman and Barbara Scott-Goodman celebrate their favorite dessert.
In Cake, renowned artist and author Maira Kalman and food writer Barbara Scott-Goodman bring us a beautifully illustrated book dedicated to their love of cakes. Filled with Kalman's inimitable illustrations and memories, from chocolate cake on a terrace in Tel Aviv as a child to a gorgeous pink cake enjoyed over Lucretius and Nietzsche in Rome, and sprinkled with seventeen mouthwatering recipes prepared by Scott-Goodman, Cake is a joyful and whimsical celebration of a timeless dessert.
In Cake, renowned artist and author Maira Kalman and food writer Barbara Scott-Goodman bring us a beautifully illustrated book dedicated to their love of cakes. Filled with Kalman's inimitable illustrations and memories, from chocolate cake on a terrace in Tel Aviv as a child to a gorgeous pink cake enjoyed over Lucretius and Nietzsche in Rome, and sprinkled with seventeen mouthwatering recipes prepared by Scott-Goodman, Cake is a joyful and whimsical celebration of a timeless dessert.
96 pages, Hardcover
First published April 10, 2018
24 people are currently reading
374 people want to read
About the author
Maira Kalman
84 books703 followersMaira Kalman was born in Tel Aviv and moved to New York with her family at the age of four. She has worked as a designer, author, illustrator and artist for more than thirty years without formal training. Her work is a narrative journal of her life and all its absurdities. She has written and illustrated twelve children's books including Ooh-la-la- Max in Love, What Pete Ate, and Swami on Rye. She often illustrates for The New Yorker magazine, and is well known for her collaboration with Rick Meyerowitz on the NewYorkistan cover in 2001. Recent projects include The Elements of Style (illustrated), and a monthly on-line column entitled Principles of Uncertainty for The New York Times.
She lives in New York and walks a lot.
(http://www.saulgallery.com)
She lives in New York and walks a lot.
(http://www.saulgallery.com)
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
November 3, 2018
Cake is a collaboration between artist Maira Kalman and cookbook author Barbara Scott-Goodman. Kalman contributes illustrations and vignettes about various cakes she has eaten in her life, and Scott-Goodman contributes 17 recipes and some baking tips. This could have been really great! Kalman's food illustrations are typically mouthwatering, and I even bought a piece of cake at the supermarket to have on hand while reading this, so sure was I that this book would cause intense cake cravings. But no. There are actually very few cake illustrations in this book; most of the illustrations are of people, and the cake plays a very small role in the pictures. The recipes seem good, but again there are only 17 of them, so this book seems destined to disappoint both fans of Maira Kalman's food illustrations and fans of cake. It was fun for the few minutes it took to read, but I'm quite glad I checked it out of the library rather than paying for it.
Final complaint: In her introduction, Barbara Scott-Goodman describes a luscious-sounding peach-cinnamon cake she made for her daughter, but then she doesn't include a recipe for it! That's so wrong.
Final complaint: In her introduction, Barbara Scott-Goodman describes a luscious-sounding peach-cinnamon cake she made for her daughter, but then she doesn't include a recipe for it! That's so wrong.
April 10, 2018
Cake is an illustrated cookbook which contains seventeen mouthwatering cake recipes and beautiful illustrations. Kalman tells us how cake has become an important part of her family’s life and how it can bring back wonderful and even painful memories. There are also baking tips and some cake-related facts in this book. Do you know that Pavlova, a meringue-based dessert, is named after the Russian prima ballerina Anna Pavlova? And that “mit schlag” means “with whipped cream“?
I’m not a professional baker but I can totally say that the recipes are simple and easy to follow. Plus, the colorful illustrations will make you crave for more than a slice of cake. I highly recommend this book especially if you love baking and/or eating cake. This can also be a perfect gift for someone special.
I’m not a professional baker but I can totally say that the recipes are simple and easy to follow. Plus, the colorful illustrations will make you crave for more than a slice of cake. I highly recommend this book especially if you love baking and/or eating cake. This can also be a perfect gift for someone special.
December 31, 2017
"What have I learned?
It is not a party without cake.
It is not a holiday without cake.
It is not an auspicious occasion without cake.
Things are much nicer with cake.
Bring on the cake.
We really want to live."
It is not a party without cake.
It is not a holiday without cake.
It is not an auspicious occasion without cake.
Things are much nicer with cake.
Bring on the cake.
We really want to live."
April 24, 2018
This book gave me such a desire for casual hospitality. I whipped up a cake for no reason and invited friends over to watch Steel Magnolias. They rushed over. I am excited to try the rest of the recipes in this whimsical cookbook. I love the drawings, and the stories.
June 11, 2018
While this is a great book, I was disappointed to find out it was a cookbook. I'd have preferred a larger format book just devoted to Kalman's musings and paintings on cake - but this is pretty nice.
February 5, 2025
Lovely, little cookbook with stories and illustrations. Yummy cake recipes!
June 3, 2025
A few cake memories, and some pictures of cake and cake scenes, but, honestly, this is a cake cookbook not a Maira Kalman book.
February 8, 2019
Just the best! Perfect for any cake lover who also delights in Kalman's art and writing. I can't wait to get myself a copy!
January 4, 2019
I picked this up because it was on a year-end list of recommended cookbooks. How did this ever get published? Folksy-style paintings of people with cakes, often looking as if painted from photographs. Shakily-written journal entries (the font is hard to read) of her own cake memories. I'd rather write and illustrate my own. The blurb said "witty," but I didn't find any wit. I did find a couple of useless "notes" that are infuriating to read as they are so basic and not note-worthy, like "you'll save a lot of time and effort if you grate carrots in a food processor with a grating attachment [talk about filler words!] instead of using a hand grater." She hired a recipe writer to write 16 cake recipes. Yes, that's all, and less than 100 pages total in the little book, which they charge $25 for.
October 17, 2018
Yum! This slim book, picked up on a whim whilst at the library, is the Cake that launched a thousand (okay, maybe not quite that many) cakes. I have loved baking since I was in pigtails but honestly, I stopped doing it a few years ago. I'm not sure why - nothing really sounded fun or appetizing to eat, I suppose. But Cake was able to pick me up, dust me off, and set me back on my flour-y feet.
It's a hybrid little treasure - part memoir, part wistful and lovely picture drawings, and part recipes (the recipes are supplied by Barbara Scott-Goodman). The front cover features, of course, a layered chocolate cake with a cherry on top; whether it's an entire cake, a healthy slice, or a petit four will depend upon your mood and level of yearning for the delicious magic that happens when chocolate, butter, salt, and flour come together and have a party in a bowl.
Perfect for a bridal shower, a housewarming, or a just treat for you that will result in treats for all, Cake is a sweet festive feast for the senses. So what are you doing sitting around reading this? Go get yourself some Cake. I've already ditched the library version for my very own copy to share with the kids. Yum!
It's a hybrid little treasure - part memoir, part wistful and lovely picture drawings, and part recipes (the recipes are supplied by Barbara Scott-Goodman). The front cover features, of course, a layered chocolate cake with a cherry on top; whether it's an entire cake, a healthy slice, or a petit four will depend upon your mood and level of yearning for the delicious magic that happens when chocolate, butter, salt, and flour come together and have a party in a bowl.
Perfect for a bridal shower, a housewarming, or a just treat for you that will result in treats for all, Cake is a sweet festive feast for the senses. So what are you doing sitting around reading this? Go get yourself some Cake. I've already ditched the library version for my very own copy to share with the kids. Yum!
December 24, 2018
So, I definitely thought this was a graphic novel when I picked it up and not a cookbook??? Oops! But it did some short little stories in there and some lovely art, so it was a sweet read, even though I had no idea it was gonna be 90% recipes, haha.
This would be a great gift for the baker in your life. It’s really pretty.
This would be a great gift for the baker in your life. It’s really pretty.
July 25, 2018
I loved the sweet stories, poems and illustrations. More cookbooks should follow this format.
May 21, 2022
These are the types of books that bring pure joy and make me want to celebrate alllll the little things.
October 25, 2023
This is a sweet book (pun intended). There are recipes (which look delicious) but I chose this book for Maira Kalman’s illustrations and words.
June 8, 2020
Chocolate layer cake with chocolate frosting? No, olive oil cake. Well, maybe the Pavlova. Or the Broken Heart Cake. My love of Maira Kalman's illustrations knows no bounds. Honey cake! Gingerbread cake! One of each, please and thank you. Maira Kalman plus cake is an unbelievable combination:)
August 16, 2021
This lil book is so cute and has a handmade quality w a simple message of “Cake is part of a good life. Eat more cake.” The recipes are basic and straightforward. Absolutely no bells and whistles. The illustrations are charming.
September 20, 2019
Best lemon pound cake and coconut cake recipes that I have ever found.
November 2, 2025
Contains cake.
May 26, 2018
This book is pure art. It reminded me of my love for cake and the memories I associate them with. There are moments where cake was a part of my life and i will never forget that.
Cakes. I adore them. I had them on my birthdays, on special occasions only as we can't afford them. Based on the photographs, i had my first cake when i turned one. It was Disney princess themed, a gift from my aunt. I can barely remember what it taste like but still it was a cake. When i turned seven, i had this gigantic chocolate cupcake cake where i didn't even got to try as all the guests ate it. But the most memorable cake i had was when i turned eleven. My aunt bought me this sweet marshmallow chocolate cake out of the blue. It made me really happy as it's the only time where i had a cake for my birthday that i actually got to savour with my family. Since then, as we got stable financially, cake came annually to our table. Baking is my aunt's passion and she experiments with it every time. We enjoy yema and ube cakes occasionally and it is lovely :-))
~*~
"A day spent without dancing is a wasted day."
"-then you can tell her your troubles and she will offer sage advice. Usually. But not always. She is human, after all."
Cakes. I adore them. I had them on my birthdays, on special occasions only as we can't afford them. Based on the photographs, i had my first cake when i turned one. It was Disney princess themed, a gift from my aunt. I can barely remember what it taste like but still it was a cake. When i turned seven, i had this gigantic chocolate cupcake cake where i didn't even got to try as all the guests ate it. But the most memorable cake i had was when i turned eleven. My aunt bought me this sweet marshmallow chocolate cake out of the blue. It made me really happy as it's the only time where i had a cake for my birthday that i actually got to savour with my family. Since then, as we got stable financially, cake came annually to our table. Baking is my aunt's passion and she experiments with it every time. We enjoy yema and ube cakes occasionally and it is lovely :-))
~*~
"A day spent without dancing is a wasted day."
"-then you can tell her your troubles and she will offer sage advice. Usually. But not always. She is human, after all."
May 18, 2018
If you're the type of person who think you will never read an entire book, have I got the book for you! This is a delightfully short, focused title with wonderful sounding recipes and gorgeous illustrations and recollections from the illustrator sprinkled throughout. This is a great book for giving too, in my opinion.
April 16, 2018
I adore Kalman's paintings and style. And maybe I'll try some of the recipes, especially the coconut cake!
December 7, 2019
it has luscious illustrations
it is a cookbook
it is an ode to cake
it is a cookbook
it is an ode to cake
August 22, 2018
Barbara Scott-Goodman, a food writer, observes in a forward:
“People think that cake is kind of a big deal, and it is. Serving cake for dessert can turn a simple dinner into an occasion, and nothing says ‘Let’s celebrate’ quite like it.”
For the most part this is a cookbook for cakes, interspersed with Kalman’s vibrant Matisse-like paintings and reminiscences from her childhood. Kalman points out that many of the big occasions in life are marked by cake, from happy times to mourning, to visiting, to when you need a “talking cure.”
Kalman recounts:
“If you go to visit an elderly aunt in a crisp dress (who earlier hauled the wet laundry up to the roof to hang and dry), she will serve you cake that she made at dawn. No doubt about that. Cheesecake or honey cake or fruitcake. Then you can tell her your troubles and she will offer sage advice. Usually. But not always. She is human, after all.”
The recipes are simple and classic - arguably what one should have for a basic cake repertoire (if there is such a thing). They all sound delicious, from “Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze” (2 sticks of butter in that one - what could be bad?) to sour cream coffee cake and chocolate cakes - both with and without flour. And since I bake cakes more than I do any other activity in the kitchen (aside from eating) I have tried most of these (or very similar) recipes at some time or other and can vouch for them.
Some of Kalman's comments are whimsical, like her art. She shows a cake iced with the quote “A day without dancing is a wasted day,” explaining:
“When we lived in Rome we had a party and we made a gorgeous pink cake. Lucretius was on our mind. And Spinoza. His search for happiness. And someone mentioned Nietzsche’s quote. He said a day without dancing is a wasted day. You don’t think of philosophers dancing, especially Nietzsche. But apparently they do.”
Evaluation: This homage to cake is also a paean to relationships and shared celebrations and the comfort that can come from the little things. But most of all, it is a collection of recipes worth having. I would call this an “enhanced” cookbook, highly recommended!
“People think that cake is kind of a big deal, and it is. Serving cake for dessert can turn a simple dinner into an occasion, and nothing says ‘Let’s celebrate’ quite like it.”
For the most part this is a cookbook for cakes, interspersed with Kalman’s vibrant Matisse-like paintings and reminiscences from her childhood. Kalman points out that many of the big occasions in life are marked by cake, from happy times to mourning, to visiting, to when you need a “talking cure.”
Kalman recounts:
“If you go to visit an elderly aunt in a crisp dress (who earlier hauled the wet laundry up to the roof to hang and dry), she will serve you cake that she made at dawn. No doubt about that. Cheesecake or honey cake or fruitcake. Then you can tell her your troubles and she will offer sage advice. Usually. But not always. She is human, after all.”
The recipes are simple and classic - arguably what one should have for a basic cake repertoire (if there is such a thing). They all sound delicious, from “Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze” (2 sticks of butter in that one - what could be bad?) to sour cream coffee cake and chocolate cakes - both with and without flour. And since I bake cakes more than I do any other activity in the kitchen (aside from eating) I have tried most of these (or very similar) recipes at some time or other and can vouch for them.
Some of Kalman's comments are whimsical, like her art. She shows a cake iced with the quote “A day without dancing is a wasted day,” explaining:
“When we lived in Rome we had a party and we made a gorgeous pink cake. Lucretius was on our mind. And Spinoza. His search for happiness. And someone mentioned Nietzsche’s quote. He said a day without dancing is a wasted day. You don’t think of philosophers dancing, especially Nietzsche. But apparently they do.”
Evaluation: This homage to cake is also a paean to relationships and shared celebrations and the comfort that can come from the little things. But most of all, it is a collection of recipes worth having. I would call this an “enhanced” cookbook, highly recommended!
November 19, 2018
Full disclosure, I'm not a cake lover. I really can take it or leave it, and most often choose the latter. However, my "Literate Foodie" bookclub is discussing this one, along with sampling cakes made from the recipes, so I read it.
I found it charming. The illustrations are adorable, and the musings about cake give the reader something to think about. Cake is seen as not just a food, but really more of a centerpiece for gatherings with the bonus of also being delicious.
There are only 17 recipes, and the majority of those seem to be nothing special. If you are a baker, though, perhaps you will see them as innovative in a way the I can't perceive. Each of the recipes comes with a few notes, and those provide a bit of information the reader may not already know. The illustrations have little to do with the specific recipes provided, and the personal narrative included with the illustrations references cakes for which there is no recipe included.
It was a quick read (about 15 minutes if you spend some time looking at the pictures and you're not reading the recipes), so just a bit of a diversion. It might work well as a bookclub book, though, since everyone will have their stories of important personal events that included cake, I imagine.
I found it charming. The illustrations are adorable, and the musings about cake give the reader something to think about. Cake is seen as not just a food, but really more of a centerpiece for gatherings with the bonus of also being delicious.
There are only 17 recipes, and the majority of those seem to be nothing special. If you are a baker, though, perhaps you will see them as innovative in a way the I can't perceive. Each of the recipes comes with a few notes, and those provide a bit of information the reader may not already know. The illustrations have little to do with the specific recipes provided, and the personal narrative included with the illustrations references cakes for which there is no recipe included.
It was a quick read (about 15 minutes if you spend some time looking at the pictures and you're not reading the recipes), so just a bit of a diversion. It might work well as a bookclub book, though, since everyone will have their stories of important personal events that included cake, I imagine.
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September 3, 202477: Cake: A Cookbook by Maira Kalman
This author was recommended by a fellow book club member, and ohhhhhhhhh, was this one delicious!
I ended up making both the fluffy cheesecake and the honey cake whose recipes are included, and I will make both of those again, as well as make some of the others included, as they all sound amazing. And also: the illustrations are delightful!
This book is only "good" if you're wishing to read cake recipes (I think one gains a little weight doing only that!) and/or bake a cake yourself OR if you're looking for a fun and special gift for someone else who does.
This author was recommended by a fellow book club member, and ohhhhhhhhh, was this one delicious!
I ended up making both the fluffy cheesecake and the honey cake whose recipes are included, and I will make both of those again, as well as make some of the others included, as they all sound amazing. And also: the illustrations are delightful!
This book is only "good" if you're wishing to read cake recipes (I think one gains a little weight doing only that!) and/or bake a cake yourself OR if you're looking for a fun and special gift for someone else who does.
May 19, 2018
This short illustrated memory/recipe book was a delight. I love Maira Kalman's paintings, and I was happy to read through the different cake recipes by Barbara Scott-Goodman. Though I'm not much of a baker, this book made me want to try some of the "simpler" cakes just because, and BSG's tips for cake-baking made success seem possible. Also, I would like to try my hand at watercolor, thanks to Kalman. Her colors and simple-yet-profound figures always blow me away--and I LOVE illustrations that feature food!
May 23, 2018
A great little book celebrating cake. Written and illustrated by Maira Kalman, it will take the reader back to their own reminiscenses, as Kalman evokes her own memories involving cake, family and good times. Short and sweet, like a single layer strawberry shortcake (sorry, I couldn't resist), it is a very quick and very good read. I have not tried the recipes that are included in the book, created by Barbara Scott-Goodman, but they all seem like they will be delicious. A worthy addition to anybody's cookbook collection.
June 13, 2018
This is pretty much perfect. I want to immediately bake and eat every cake featured in this book, especially the plum tarte that I already know I'm going to make with cranberries. The art is exquisite and the stories touching - I especially love the multiple appearances by Aunt Shoshanah who takes all of the kids to the beach each morning and serves them chocolate cake while they are lolling about on the cool tiles of a Tel Aviv terrace after, not even thanking her for the cake as kids are wont to do. And especially her offer to make heart break cake. I wish I'd had some of that.
July 14, 2018
I can't bring myself to give it a lower rating then 3 stars, but I am definitely disappointed by this. I feel like it tried to be both a few musings on cake their importance to the author's life/family, while throwing in some recipes. I feel like it should have been one or the other. I think in trying to be both, it didn't quite deliver on either for me.
I should admit though to my bias of preferring cookbooks with lots of pictures so I know what something is supposed to look like when making it.
I should admit though to my bias of preferring cookbooks with lots of pictures so I know what something is supposed to look like when making it.
November 6, 2018
This was a very easy read and a nice break between my long slog through Dickens last month. I needed something bright and airy to contrast the gloomy fall skies here in Minnesota, and this was just the thing. As usual, Kalman manages to find a thread of profundity that adds unexpected depth to her otherwise simple subject - and overall the illustrations are just really fun and cheery. There's nothing in here that will change your life, but Cake was a nice break from seriousness for an hour or two.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews