Book review of Cake Picnic by Elisa Sunga

 

From the founder of Cake Picnic—a series of joyful, diverse, and deliciously indulgent gatherings where every attendee brings a whole cake—this cookbook of 50 baking recipes includes a guide to hosting your own confectionery events and encourages bakers to lean into play, connection, community—and lots of cake!

It all started with a A few friends lounging in the park on a sunny day, eating cake. Elisa Sunga posted the invitation to that first-ever cake picnic and, to her surprise and delight, nearly 200 people showed up. And so, Cake Picnic, a joy-filled gathering where each attendee brings a whole cake to share with friends old and new, was born. Its immense, immediate popularity inspired Elisa to take her picnic series on the road, traveling from LA to New York and beyond. When she realized she couldn’t bring Cake Picnic to everyone, everywhere in the world, she did the next best She wrote this book.

Part how-to guide, part recipe collection, Cake Picnic provides everything you need to host your own delightfully decadent cake picnic. Here is practical advice for planning, hosting, and how to choose a theme, prepare your guests, set up the event, encourage connection, transport whole cakes, and more. But the icing on the—you guessed it—cake is the 50 recipes within.

Organized by theme, from an Autumn Harvest Cake Picnic to an Afternoon Tea Cake Picnic, a Beach Cake Picnic to a Salty-Sweet Cake Picnic, these imaginative recipes will inspire your creativity and tempt your sweet Cherry & Pistachio Buttermilk CakeTorched Rosemary Caramel CakeChocolate & Earl Grey Whipped Cream CakeGuava Cream Cheese Bundt CakeRoasted Apple & Sesame Upside-Down CakePretzel S’mores CakeAnd many more!
Let this book be your invitation to spread joy through baking and plan your own festive celebration. And never apologize for trying ten slices in one sitting—happiness often comes frosted, sprinkled, and cut into generous servings.

Can a cake be more than just a dessert? Yes, with the Cake Picnic cookbook, you'll find yourself transported to a new way to eat cake, and the illustrations will inspire you to get out there and have a cake picnic to ease your mind during these times. 

The instructions are easy to follow, and, as I stated, the illustrations make the end result easy to see. This book isn't just a cookbook; the author helps you create a picnic setup so you can take her ideas and twist them into something that will help you create your own picnic.  

The only downside to me was that some of the ingredients are not readily available in my area, so I'd definitely have to order online to get them.