Beautiful Bundts: 100 Recipes for Delicious Cakes and More

I have several cookbooks that include bundt recipes but there were just never enough so I started looking for bundt specific cookbooks. The first one I bought was a real disappointment as it focused on using cake mixes rather than making the cakes from scratch. In Beautiful Bundts I have found a book that gives me what I was looking for.

In fact it goes farther than I could have hoped in that it doesn’t just offer sweet cakes, it also gives recipes for some savory offerings. Plus it shows some unconventional uses for a bundt pan like for spaghetti cassarole or baked stuffing. I am also quite intrigued by the bread pudding recipes baked in the bundts. They not only sound delicious but look beautiful.

I have so far only tried the Cherry, Vanilla and Chocolate Chunk Swirl Bundt Cake but that was a real winner. The recipe was easy to follow and the resulting cake was very tasty. I’ve got my eye on a couple of others to try and given my love of bundt cakes I’m sure I’ll be working my way through them in short order.

The book begins with some basics for beginners in the kitchen – a bundt cake is a brilliant cake for starting bakers as it presents beautifully and you don’t have to worry about fussy frostings. A little care with greasing the bundt pan and you don’t have to worry about release. I’m very pleased with the book and the only reason it is not a 5 star review is due to a couple of small recipe errors that aren’t going to bother an experienced baker but that might flummox a new one.

4.5

Just received the book and made the Chocolate latte bundt....just an ok recipe, too much nuance and too little actual flavor. Also an error in the recipe....it has you stir some instant espresso powder into some hot water and then never mentions it again. So at what point does it really go into the cake? I just guessed. Going to try the lemon bundt and perhaps will update my review. I thought there were too many non-bundt cake recipes, ie. savory bread recipes just made in a bundt pan.

UPDATE: Nov. 14th, 2017 Made Lemon Lover's Bundt cake on Nov. 5th. Although I baked it in a bundt pan, had some extra batter so made three cupcakes as well. The batter was lovely, fluffy and had a great taste. However, after an hour and 15 minutes, with a clean toothpick test, and the cake slightly leaving the sides of the pan, the cake fell. After it collapsed and cooled, I cut into it and it just was not anywhere near done. Neither were the cupcakes!! So I figured I must have done something wrong even though I made three other bundt cakes (from tried and true other recipes) that came out fine. (I have baked for 45 years and am considered a great baker by friends/family)
So decided to make it yet again. It is expensive to make with all the ingredients it calls for. But had high hopes. This time baked the batter in 2 81/2 x 4 inch pans thinking it would work out better. I do this frequently with other pound cakes recipes. So, after baking for an hour and half, with very browned tops, cake pulled away from sides of the pan, clean toothpick test took the cakes out. They fell AGAIN and after cutting into one of the loafs, same uncooked batter. So, giving the book to Goodwill with huge disappointment!!!

This is a beautiful book, Halfway through the book I was perusing the recipes and noticed in the ingredient list, that the author starts to use an abbreviation that is not explained. She uses as an example "6 to" or "2 to". What does the "to" stand for? This is quite strange!

this is one of the best cookbooks I own. I just ordered a bunch of bundt pans when we moved back into the house. The different size pans too.
the recipes are so delicious. I am a veteran baker for almost 5 decades and I really stayed away from cakes. I am more of a pie and pastry and breads. But this is so worth it. Oh my gosh the rum cake is the best. All the guys in the house ask for it every weekend. And all the recipes also work for the smaller bundt sizes too. Just lesson the time that the cake is baked. Otherwise everything is the same. A little tip, when the recipes call for real vanilla bean you can substitute vanilla paste in a jar (also bought on amazon) I use the paste instead of bean or extract and it works fabulous. It has lots of little vanilla specks which make it smell and taste the best.

I have been anxiously awaiting the arrived of "Beautiful Bundts" and am so excited to try all of the recipes. I have Ms. Hession's other two cookbooks and always learn new tips and tricks for baking from her "make ahead" and "tips" sections. The recipes are easy to follow and understand with the cakes turning out delicious. The pictures in this cookbook are beautiful, which is one of the reason's I purchased the book, because all of the recipes looks so yummy and I like being able to choose my recipe based on how the pictures shows it turning out. I love that there are step by step pictures for several of the styles so I may actually give a filled bundt or pull apart bundt a try! Another reason why I purchased this book is because I loved the versatility of recipes in the book and all of the different ways that you can create bundts from traditional, sweet, healthy, gluten free, and savory. So far the Lemon Rosemary Olive Oil Bundt, Lemon Blueberry Streusel Bundt, and Healthy Start Bundt cakes are household favorites. Here is a picture of the Lemon Lover's bundt prior to frosting that came out of the pan perfectly This cake was devoured quickly!

This recipe book is incredible. I’m not normally moved to leave reviews, but I am so impressed with this book I just had to. I bought this book just after the world went into COVID-19 lockdown and started with the first couple of recipes. I very quickly realized that these cakes are utterly irresistible and I’d better start giving them away!! So, I’ve been baking my way through the book, one cake a week, and giving the cakes to local friends. Let’s just say I’m suddenly very popular. In all seriousness though, there is not a single “poor” recipe in this book. Every single cake is killer. And there’s a lot to choose from—a classic pound cake (with the most amazing crumb consistency) to a decadent peanut butter cup cake to a funfetti cake (which elevates a birthday cake to another realm) to blueberry streusel...the list is endless and delicious. Add to that impeccable instructions—these recipes have clearly been carefully kitchen tested—and you really cannot go wrong. I’ve already bought two more copies of this book as gifts for baking friends—and I know of a couple more friends who’ve bought it on my recommendation. I’m so impressed with this author that I’ve also just ordered her mini pie recipe book...

As a child I lived with 2 wonderful grandmothers. I continue to hold onto the original cook books and have searched for years for this remarkable book that is by far the best to provide information in a way that I raced to the market to obtain necessary ingredients. The information is clear,illustrations are not just beautiful but gives one a honest view of what to expect when baking any of the receipts described in this book. It is a joy to have. I am delighted with this book and extremely satisfied with my decision to purchase it. Many receipts have evolved from countries that created them./ This book is everything is claims to offer. Frankly I should begin baking 2 of each receipt *(*one to send to Amazon and one for a neighbor. I thank the people who created this book. I realize many receipts came from their families and a great deal of work and accuracy was used to make this available. When my partner observed my reaction as I opened the first page, well he announced the receipts I must create and the list is long. Good luck ladies and do not hesitate to enjoy your time baking and expect the rewards that will follow. My heartfelt thanks tp all and now to heat the oven. PJToday

Haven't tried the book, so I am going with 3 stars since the recipes could be goid, but noticed on the pictures that flour or butter are measured in mL (milliliters?). Probably they meant grams, still a consistent error in the book

This book has some very appealing recipes (all from scratch). I only just received this book and just tried my second recipe from it....page 202 “Chocolate Cherry Almond Gugelhupf”. What a fantastic recipe. Hubby said I could make this everyday and he would be a very happy man. The time spent on producing the cake is very long-winded but the result is worth the trouble for certain. My biggest complaint is that the dough is extremely sticky prior to rolling out. To solve this, I just threw an enormous quantity of additional flour at it until it was more manageable and could be rolled out per the directions. After that, all was plain sailing, so to speak. The finished product was glazed with 3 cups confectioner sugar, 5 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice and 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest, all blended together with a whisk. I am really looking forward to “playing” with the recipes in the book and can only hope that it will be a delightful culinary adventure. If you want to experiment with bundt cake recipes which stray from the usual, then I do recommend giving this book a try.

Bundt’s galore and more! My 10 year old daughter and I are having so much fun making all the creative recipes! They are so easy to follow and each one is yummy and different than the next!
Who knew bundts could be a meal? Obsessed with the monkey bread recipes too!
LOVE!!