Julia M. Usher's Ultimate Cookies

This is a wonderful book for all levels of expertise. There are lots of examples of decorating techniques, including fondant, royal icing, chocolate clay, stenciling, painting, using frosting transfer sheets, etc. All techniques are easy to follow with detailed photos. The numerous photos of the decorated cookies are literally breathtaking!!! The 3D Peacocks are amazing and templates are provided for making these, as well as other 3D cookies. There are a handful of cookie recipes, including Sugar Cookie, Shortbread, Tuiles, "GoofProof" Macarons, Meringues,Gingerbread, etc. There also is a recipe for Royal Icing with detailed instructions on how to achieve the "right" piping consistency. Several other useful recipes are included(chocolate clay, chocolate ganache,Italian Buttercream,etc). The extensive Resource List is helpful for locating decorating necessities. This is a BEAUTIFUL, informative book. The author REALLY takes Cookie Decorating to the next level!!! She is extremely creative in her decorating. It's worth purchasing this book just for the photos of her beautiful cookies!!! I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone who enjoys decorating cookies. Her cleaver decorating ideas are very impressive!!!!

I absolutely love this book. It is the best cookie decorating book I have ever seen. I am an experienced decorator and yet I learned so much. All of the ideas are so creatively clever. The photography is beautiful and the detailed instructions, with pictures, are so easy to follow. I love the book so much that I am going to order one for each of my 3 daughters as Christmas gifts. This book is perfect even though my girls have varying degrees of experience ranging from very little to quite a lot. It is a book they can also use for baking and decorating with their own children. I love the variety of using royal icing, fondant, wafer paper, stencils templates and the list of ideas goes on and on. This book is for everyone who wants to decorate beautiful cookies. The recipes are perfect, too. I highly recommend Ultimate Cookies. I would give it 10 stars if I could.

For those just venturing into the craft and art of cookie decorating, this book is a must. The book starts by covering all the basic tools (and where to get them), tools to avoid, and tools to put on your wish list. Next, Julia explains the how-to's of doughs (rolling, cutting, baking), how to make a pastry cone, and the various "bedazzlers" (extras you can put on your cookies in addition to royal icing). Then comes the tour-de-force section--"15 bottom-to-top decorating techniques"--all the different methods to ice a cookie. Everything is illustrated, step by step, with clear photos, so you know exactly what to do. Even marbling, stenciling, and using decorative wafer papers are covered. These are followed by a section on decorative borders, including beadwork. At the end of the book are recipes and tips for making the perfect consistencies of icing for piping, flooding, and "topcoating" -- even tips on how to make sure your icing makes a perfect, rounded bead. No more pointy dots for anyone! The next 150+ pages are dedicated to various cookie projects, which are explained in minute detail with accompanying photos of each stage. The end of the book is dedicated to various recipes for doughs, icings, and modelling media. A really lovely book; clear, well-written, and well-illustrated. Julia takes the fear and mystery out of cookie decorating, and makes the reader feel that anything is possible with practice. Highly recommended!

Much TLCs, dedications and labor of love has Pastry Chef Julia put into her 1 of her many other outstanding extraordinary beautiful books. A MUST buy for everyone who appreciates the art of pastry, especially cookie making, to up their ordinary baking skills. Will continue to collect and practice Chef Julia M. Usher's "Cookie Gem Series":) Thank you, Chef Julia. Another treasure you've "baked" for us:) P.S. Have you approached DK Publisher to make your loved work even more stunning?

The book is complete in all directions, has recipes for the cookies and is very thorough in how to use royal icing. I would recommend it.

This book is truly amazing, as an international customer I often buy the books and hope they are good as returning them is quite hard and expensive... Well... I was certainly not disapointed by this book, every single idea contains the perfect number of images so everyone can clearly get the idea on what to do to achieve it. It is a very well organized book as it contains different signs of the difficulty you are facing while decorating the cookies with each idea, which is quite compelling. Certainly a keeper!!

This book is for the more experienced cookie decorator, with lots of time on their hands. I am fairly new to cookie decorating with royal icing. I started with making cookies for my grandsons fireman themed party. It was fun, and they turned out pretty good. I bought this book in hopes for more instructions and inspiration, was disappointed in all the less practical things presented. November 2015.... After making many more cookies, this books rates a 5 star review. Many good tips .Julia is a tre artist. Very inspiring!

Very detailed information on exactly how to bake, ice, and keep designed cookies. I can't do what she does yet, as I'm not used to parchment cones and royal icing--her favorite. I don't know if I'll ever make any of these designs, but they are great ideas that I may adapt. I have made cookies with her Signature Sugar Cookie recipe and royal icing and got rave reviews.and requests for the recipes.

Obviously written by someone extremely experienced and who wants to share their knowledge as much as possible. Very satisfied with this purchase and the kindle edition is very good.

great book

Molto dettagliato e ricco di informazioni. Lo consiglio a chi vuole avvicinarsi al magico mondo dei biscotti decorati! Unica pecca: manca la ricetta della pasta frolla più adatta.

llibre que compleix les espectatives, bona edició i molt ampli, bones fotografies, enviament molt ràpid i preu molt raonable .

Beautifully presented book with clear directions and explanations throughout. Enormous range of designs from the very basic to the most exquisite and highly sophisticated examples. All important occasions/celebrations covered. Compared with other similar books I have seen or purchased, this author has the very best cookie books on the market.