Modern Classics by Con Poulos, Donna Hay (2003, Paperback)

For fans of Australian Donna Hay's magazine, this is a must-have.

"Modern Classics: Cookies, biscuits and slices, small cakes, cakes, desserts, hot puddings, pies, and tarts."

If you have never seen her gorgeous magazine or her comprehensive cookbooks, this is definitely one of the best dessert books in the industry right now.

Ingredients are given in both British/UK/Australian weights and measures, and US style. So you get ingreidents listed in both grams and ounces; dry measures are done in cups. I don't see anything here with milliliters.

There's a gorgeous picture for every recipe; showing how you might present the dessert attractively to your guests.

Most of the recipes are easy-to-medium hard, not too complicated.

The recipes include some weird things like "oaty anzac biscuits" and "orange and Campari jelly" but otherwise cover staples including chocolate-filled biscuits, maple syrup cakes, madeira cake, poached pears, chocolate mousse, tiramisu, creme brulee, berries and figs in vanilla syrup, chocolate truffles, raspberry fool, cinnamon baked apples, baked custard, almond tartlets, coconut macaroons, chocolate tart, peach tart.

If anything, the recipes are too short, I would have liked more details in the steps. For a chocolate mousse recipe to be less than 45 words is a bit disturbing, I need a bit more help than that.

Definitely if you make dessert more than once a week, or host dinner parties, this book should be on your shelf.