Five 5-Star Reviews for Another Taste of Gorgeous by Readers’ Favorite.

Reviewed By Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers’ Favorite

The only thing better than a great dessert is a spectacular cookbook that features many great dessert options, complete with gorgeous illustrations and thorough instructions. Imagine the signature piece and cover illustration of this fantastic cookbook, 70% Cacao Chocolate Cheesecake! And then there’s Eggnog Éclairs, Toasted Pistachio & Dark Chocolate Butter Crunch (just the title makes you want to bite right into it) and so many others. I have to admit, the chocolate recipes always capture my attention first, especially with such mouth-watering illustrations. My taste buds water just perusing the selection.

Craig and Johanna Harlen’s Another Taste of Gorgeous is a cookbook collector’s dream book – a must-have for the complete cookbook connoisseur collection. The book follows Craig’s career as a pastry chef extraordinaire. Beginning with this introduction, the book also documents the goal of this book, which follows an earlier publication, A Taste of Gorgeous. There is a wide selection of mouth-watering recipes in this book, each one clearly detailed with ingredients listed in order of use and very thorough instructions. Each recipe is also accompanied by a spectacular photograph of the final product, both simple and elegant, presented as one would expect it to be delivered to your table at a classy restaurant. Interspersed between recipes are some useful cooking guides, including lists of appropriate, good quality kitchen utensils which are a must in any finely tuned food preparation. The book is definitely a cookbook, but it is also a treasure to savor and enjoy, a classic coffee table picture book. Beautifully and artfully presented.

Reviewed By K.C. Finn for Readers’ Favorite

Another Taste of Gorgeous is a work of non-fiction in the cooking and food sub-genres and was penned by team creators author Johanna Harlen and photographer and chef Craig Harlen. The work is a follow up to their first foray into the world of cookbooks, A Taste of Gorgeous, and contains another fifty fantastic recipes for everyday cooks to aspire to, along with some really handy kitchen tips for tools, garnishes and finishing touches. Part cookbook and part visual coffee table journey, the work explores how standard recipes that many people can achieve can also be displayed artistically and shown off for their elegance, elevating any dessert situation.

Author team Craig and Johanna Harlen have once again delivered a visual feast that is sure to make others hungry and inspired whilst they flip through the pages of this very handy work. In terms of organization, the work is well-formatted and gorgeously presented to convey information in a logical manner, and it allows easy reference to find both the recipes and the essential tips and tricks again and again. I also love the fact that it’s not a cookbook you would want to shelve away, but one that can proudly sit on display for others to enjoy too. I also thought the wording of the actual recipes was concise, easy to follow and simple to execute even for newcomers to the cooking world. Overall, I would highly recommend Another Taste of Gorgeous to fans of mouth-watering photography, sumptuous home cooking and as an ideal gift for aspiring chefs everywhere.

Reviewed By Patricia Reding for Readers’ Favorite

Mother and son chefs, Johanna and Craig Harlen, team up to offer a series of dessert recipes in Another Taste of Gorgeous. At the outset, readers are greeted with proof that the authors intend to deliver exactly what their title suggests, namely recipes for gorgeous desserts. Indeed, so beautiful are some of the pictures that this book could easily move from the kitchen table to the coffee table. Following an opening that offers a personal glimpse into the lives of the Harlens—which I always look forward to in a work of this nature—100 dessert recipes follow. They range from those more traditional in form—if not in substance—such as types of brownies, cheesecakes, and tarts, to quite sophisticated offerings, including soufflés and tarts.

No matter how many cookbooks I have on my shelves, I am always ready to add another beautiful book, as is Another Taste of Gorgeous by Craig and Johanna Harlen. The recipes range from the fairly simple to those that seem quite complicated, although the authors do set the instructions out carefully, step by step, and in a manner that seems easy to understand. Those I would most like to begin with include Sweet Potato Pie, Pear and Cinnamon Skillet Cake, and Orange Cheesecake. In the meantime, I will enjoy the photos which are sure to tickle anyone’s taste buds—as well as their imagination (especially for those who, like me, use recipes as the means to trigger untold variations and to allow my own personal creativity to get moving). If you are looking for a dessert cookbook with beautiful photography, look no further than Another Taste of Gorgeous.

Reviewed By Peggy Jo Wipf for Readers’ Favorite

Another Taste of Gorgeous by the mother and son duo, Johanna and Craig Harlen, is a cookbook you will savor. You will find the recipes require basic pantry items, but they throw in an intriguing new ingredient periodically, like pomegranate molasses or mascarpone to challenge the baking guru. The authors discuss the fundamental utensils that are needed and what you should look for. It’s rarely the more expensive items out there. While the recipes are mostly simple ingredients, the authors focus on the technique of preparing the food. Since Johanna and Craig have both traveled extensively, you will find desserts from different cultures. This book is a work of art in the photographic presentation, personal tips from the chefs, and love for each other.

While friends are reading gossip magazines, I am reading cookbooks. Another Taste of Gorgeous is much more than a cookbook – it is the epitome of what food is about; people you love and showing that love through fabulous desserts. Craig Harlen is a prestigious chef in Tel Aviv, while Johanna Harlen adds the charm of recipes passed down for generations and those she developed. If you are looking for a cookbook to cut corners by adding extras to a box mix, this is not it. They make each recipe “from scratch”, which adds richness to the desserts. What I loved the most is the versatility of the recipes. I can adjust one or two ingredients to meet our dietary needs without giving up the flair of some of these flashy treats. The story behind the authors and the secret touches give this book a personal touch. I can’t wait to get baking.

Reviewed By Asher Syed for Readers’ Favorite

Another Taste of Gorgeous by Craig and Johanna Harlen is an artistic cookbook that homes in on a beautiful combination of gourmet desserts and creative photography. Chef Craig, who is also the photographer, delivers over a hundred recipes with each accompanied by a stunning, full color photograph of the plated, styled, and garnished dessert. These range from delicious twists on traditional fare such as Sweet Potato Pie and Deconstructed Key Lime, to innovative new flavor combinations like the Cinnamon and Lemon Tart, Berry Matcha Tart, and the Beet and Brownie Cheesecake, straight on through to delights that are likely to be completely new to a casual reader’s radar. These include the sublime Pink Peppercorn Chocolate Mousse and Turkish Delight Pavlova. Between the recipes, Johanna Harlen provides written guidance on kitchen tools, tips, tricks, and really informative commentary.

When I imagine what people eat in heaven, it is something akin to what Craig and Johanna Harlen bring together in Another Taste of Gorgeous. These are the treats anybody with even the slightest sweet tooth dreams about and readers should be aware: you might get a cavity just from looking. But it will be worth it. I appreciate that the recipes themselves aren’t terribly difficult, although my attempt at the Eggnogg Eclairs didn’t look like Chef Craig’s. Thankfully they sat on there for less than 30 minutes before my tribe consumed them. They were next-level delicious. It will take some practice to work some of the visuals out but the instructions are really clear and even the garnishes are accounted for, which is an extra special treat. This is, from cover to cover, a cookbook that delivers and deserves a spot on your countertop.

Below follows the five 5-star reviews for our first award winning book, A Taste of Gorgeous:

“A Taste of Gorgeous is a sumptuous cookbook by authors Craig and Johanna Harlen. The book contains a selection of photographs which accompany fifty recipes for home-style cooking, which are derived from the executive sous chef of the Shila restaurant in Israel. A Taste of Gorgeous specializes in dessert recipes, with a mixture of traditional and exotic desserts presented in interesting ways. As author Johanna Harlen explains, desserts have to be simple to put together in order to motivate her to want to create them, so this collection presents a strong theme of simplicity in construction, whilst also producing something delicious and beautifully presented for your audience. I’m just dying to try these recipes out after looking at the array of highly professional photographs, which really celebrate color and flavor at the same time. Craig and Johanna Harlen have done their best to create single-page recipes which are simple to follow, and I found the little Chef’s Tip sections very useful and informative. I’ve got my eye on the Chocolate Hazelnut Pate especially, which looks great on the plate and is actually ‘cooked’ in the refrigerator! Overall, A Taste of Gorgeous should be a great starter book for anyone who wants to make a wow-factor dessert, but doesn’t yet have the skills and experience for complex cooking.”

“Any cookbook that has “gorgeous” in its title had better deliver great photography. A Taste of Gorgeous by mother and son team Craig Harlen and Johanna Harlen has, if anything, a title that is too modest. Part cookbook and part coffee table photography book, A Taste of Gorgeous is a collection of 50 dessert recipes, many of which are common in their simplicity, but these recipes are plated and photographed to perfection. Johanna Harlen is the author of the recipes, which range from Easy Cherry Cobbler to White Chocolate Crème Brûlée. She describes the recipes as simple, and, for the most part, they use ingredients and techniques that should be accessible to almost any home cook. But the way executive sous chef Craig Harlen plates and photographs these simple desserts is spectacular! He makes even Carrot Cake and Pineapple Upside Down Cake look like they belong in a Michelin Star restaurant. And what he does with the S’more is extraordinary! I can’t gush enough about the wonderful photography, but the recipes in A Taste of Gorgeous also sound so good it was hard to choose a favorite. The standout for me was the recipe for Key Lime Pie Deconstructed. Johanna Harlen not only describes how to make the dessert, but she lists step-by-step how to plate so it looks like the photograph. This is the only recipe in which the plating is explained as the other recipes simply tell how to make the dish. The photos are so inspiring that I might have to try it. Highly recommended as a dessert cookbook, and even more highly recommended as gorgeous food photography. I’m not sure which is the best part of A Taste of Gorgeous – the recipes or the photographs! Really impressive job!” -Donna Gielow McFarland for Readers’ Favorite

“The sentence, “This is a collection of favorite recipes and not necessarily originals,” introduces this unique cookbook. The authors are a mother and her son/chef, and they have collected a number of dessert recipes. Some of the desserts are from the kitchens of Johanna and Craig; others are from Johanna’s mother, and other sources. Happily, some of the recipes have been revised in innovative and delightful ways. For example, Chef Craig deconstructed s’mores and presented an artistic masterpiece – from the ingredients of a favorite, simple campsite dessert – a s’mores. Additionally, each recipe is adorned with a beautiful photograph of the dish. The creativity found in the plating of each dessert is inspirational and could be used with other desserts. A Taste of Gorgeous, composed by Craig Harlen and Johanna Harlen, is a treasure for anyone who loves ending a meal with a sumptuous treat. At the top of each page is an equally-sized photograph of a delectable dessert. This cookbook would be a great addition to the cookbook collection of any dessert-loving home chef. Craig Harlen and Johanna Harlen have cleverly titled their dessert cookbook A Taste of Gorgeous and it is, without a doubt, a gorgeous cookbook!” -Deborah Lloyd for Readers’ Favorite

“A Taste of Gorgeous by Craig and Johanna Harlen is a beautiful cook book, featuring great recipes for those who want to prepare some of the tastiest desserts and pastries out there. From the executive sous chef for one of the reputable restaurants, Shila restaurant in Tel Aviv, Israel, comes a wide selection of recipes, each clearly written and explained with a simplicity of language that gives the reader exactly what they need to know. But there is more to this book than recipes; the photography features images of succulent, delectable and mouthwatering treats that will make readers want to get into the kitchen and try the recipes. As one moves from one recipe to the next, there is a feeling of talking with experts who know a lot about food and the kitchen. The book is beautiful because of the simplicity and elegance in the layout. The authors tease you with an image of the dessert before moving on to share the recipe. Every recipe comes with a brief description of the dessert, what makes it different from the others, and the ingredients required in preparing it. You’ll find recipes for a wide selection of desserts, including the Citrus Soufflé, the easy Cherry Cobbler, the Lemon Cream pie, the Chocolate Hazelnut Pate, Paint Pot Tarts, and a lot more. The authors write with clarity and the instructions are very clear for readers. A Taste of Gorgeous is a wonderful cook book that is particularly designed to instill the love of cooking desserts in the reader. Just the images will make you want to taste the final products of these recipes. I can’t wait to try some of them.”       -Romuald Dzemo for Readers’ Favorite

“A Taste of Gorgeous is a nonfiction cooking and food book written by Craig Harlen and Johanna Harlen with photographs by Craig Harlen. Craig Harlen is the executive sous chef at Shila Restaurant in Israel. Johanna, his mother, has adapted many of her mother’s traditional African desserts for inclusion in this collection and provided the narrative for this book. She generally does not enjoy spending inordinate amounts of time preparing desserts and has chosen recipes with ease and relative simplicity in mind. While she and her son are geographically separated, they worked together to compile this collection of recipes which offers classic as well as artistically deconstructed versions of favorites such as their S’Mores Torte. Many recipes include fruit, citrus and berry juices and fresh cream. Most have a minimal amount of ingredients and have clear and easy to follow instructions. Craig Harlen and Johanna Harlen’s A Taste of Gorgeous is not for dieters or the weak of heart. The gorgeous illustrations alone will have you figuring out what you can whip up right now with what you have in your pantry, and constructing mental shopping lists for the next delicious treat to try. I was particularly impressed by the wholesome and natural ingredients I found listed in each recipe and the relatively judicious use of butters and fats necessary for even the most decadent offerings. Johanna says in her introduction that she hopes readers will work through each of the recipes in the book, and I can see how that would be a most tempting and doable feat. I loved the simplicity of her Easy Cherry Cobbler and Lemon Cream Pie (which is first on my to-do list), and appreciated her version of an all-time favorite, Berry Clafoutis. Other impossible to pass up goodies? Dark Chocolate Cherry Pie, Caramel Vanilla Custard Tarts and Chocolate Toffee Swirl Cheesecakes come to mind. The recipes are a breeze to follow, require a reasonable amount of ingredients and sound and look simply heavenly. A Taste of Gorgeous is most highly recommended.” -Jack Magnus for Reader’s Favorite