United Cakes of America: Recipes Celebrating Every State

by Warren Brown, Joshua Cogan (Photographer)

Loving cake is a natural part of Warren Brown’s constitution. Now, in order to form a more perfect union of flour, eggs, butter, and sugar, he’s offering his unique take on classic dessert recipes from all fifty states, plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.
 
Starting out with Baked Alaska (what else?), Brown tours the whole country, updating regional confections like King Cake (Louisiana), Lady Baltimore Cake (South Carolina), Mud Cake (Mississippi), and Key Lime Pie (Florida). There are official state desserts (Maryland’s Smith Island Cake; Massachusetts’ Boston Cream Pie) and unofficial favorites (New York–style Cheesecake; St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake), as well as an ovenful of brand-new baked treats that Brown has created to honor specific states’ agricultural bounty (Avocado Cupcakes for California; Huckleberry Cake for Idaho). Eye-catching photos, informative sidebars, and a separate section on buttercream frostings complete the mix.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food

224 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2010

About the author

Brown makes you want to run to the kitchen and start baking!"

Reviews

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest, I flipped through this cookbook more on the walk home then when I got it home. Nice coffee table book as several friends and family who visited in the past few weeks enjoyed flipping thought and looking at the recipes and photos. Most of the cakes seemed fairly easy to make and there were a few with some very interesting ingredients (sauerkraut, tomato juice). If you like cakes, you will enjoy this travelog through the US.

[Delanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, but there should have been more info about each cake, their state, and the relation between two. Historical context would add a lot.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good commentary on desserts for each state and some of the recipes are worth trying.

[Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite my 3 star rating, I love this cookbooks. I really like how he has split ingredients into stages. It's easy to read and most of the cakes are easy to make. The reason I am only giving it 3 stars (which it is really 3.5) is because I have noticed in a few recipes that they have left out ingredients. For example, I recently made the St. Lois Gooey Butter Cake. In the instructions for the topping they make a reference that you shouldn't be alarmed if there remains lumps of cream cheese and butter when you mix it up, but when you look at the ingredients there is no butter listed under the topping. I think for the Mississippi Mud Pie, I did everything according to the instructions, and when I finished with the Muddy Icing there wasn't enough liquid so it was just a clump (based on experience I knew that I should add a little milk or cream). For famous desserts I've just kind of made it a habit to compare the recipes to what I find online to make sure nothing is being left out. That being said, I would still recommend this book to people who like baking.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book, love Cake Love (in D.C. - get yourself there if you're in the area)! The photos and even the recipes aren't as elaborate as some other great cake/baking books, but that's part of what makes it a great, real, for real, book - a collection of cakes from across the U.S. The recipes are written in part: wet, dry, creaming ingredients, which is kind of interesting. Potato starch - not so easy to find the right stuff - and super fine sugar are used throughout, and when you bite into a morsel of UCoA creation you'll see why. YUM!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE this book! I return to it again and again. The caramel cake is fantastic - and without the caramel glaze, it makes for an excellent all-purpose cake. The chocolate chip cake was a big hit as well. Just made the Mississippi Mud cake tonight and it's delicious, but a little messy!

Like others, these frosting recipes weren't my favorites, but the cake recipes have all been wonderful. Looking forward to trying the Smith Island cake next!

[Just - The romance reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great design, gorgeous photos and tempting recipes. The concept is really cool, a cake recipe paired up with the US state that is famous for it. Each recipe includes a short history of the cake and why it is paired with its state.

This book would make an excellent gift for a baker.

[Orea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have only made one cake from the cookbook so far but it was actually quite good. Banana, apple walnut cake!
This is a cookbook that you can sit down and read from cover to cover because there is a ton of interesting information in it.

[tiffany]

although quite fun to read the various cakes matched from state to state, there are almost no pictures and for a book like this i really feel pictures were a must.

[Traci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome cake recipes from all over.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. He features a cake recipe from every state. There are a lot of fun facts to read about cakes and US history!

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of delicious looking and sounding recipes. Tried the Red Velvet Cake recipe. Yummy cake but didn't care for the frosting. Just a personal preference...I prefer CreaM Cheese Frosting.

[Abraham Ray]

great cookbook for those that like cake,I pu t2 of the recipies from this book on food.com.
the recipies that I pu ton that web site are coca-cola cake & pumpkin pancakes.

[Sunil Jawahir · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite baking cookbooks and always trustworthy for anything last minute.

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

lots of interesting recipes, tips, and histories behind state favorites/inspired cakes.