"Kitty" wrote in message
om...

I think the $50 books focused more on how
to make each kind of squiggly, crosshatch, etc.
designs wrapped around the outside or laid on
the top of various cakes. I'm not that far yet.
I'd be happy with learning how to properly assemble
these things. I'm a little tired of "layers" and "assembly"
meaning that I spread buttercream or jelly between
pan-cake layers.

Well, buttercream (or some filling/frosting/icing equivalent) is very
often what holds desserts together. I have two suggestions, one
general and one specific: First, go to your largest local public
library and browse through the cookbook section. You'll more than
likely find something which will meet your needs. Second, I highly
recommend Bo Friberg's book "The Professional Pastry Chef." Yes, it's
another "$50" book, but it's a very valuable reference tool -- look
for it on sale, join a cookbook club and get it free as a dividend (I
think that's how I got my copy), or borrow it at the library, but
browse through it. It's a good one.

Other books which may be helpful are the "New Professional Chef" from
the Culinary Institute of America and "La Varenne Pratique" -- both
big, expensive, and very useful tools. Smaller books which are
interesting are Alice Medrich's "Cocolate" and Robert Lambert's
"Fantasy Chocolate Desserts."

-j