Design Idea of the Week: Modern Art for Dessert

You still can’t have your modern art and eat it too, but at least you can make it into dessert with Modern Art Desserts by Caitlin Freeman of Blue Bottle Coffee Company.

In Modern Art Desserts: Recipes for Cakes, Cookies, Confections, and Frozen Treats Based on Iconic Works of Art, pastry chef Caitlin Freeman of Miette Bakery and Blue Bottle Coffee Company recreates art by the likes of Roy Lichtenstein, Jeff Koons, and Henri Matisse. With help from local Bay Area chef Tara Duggan and San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art curator Janet Bishop, Freeman breaks down the recipes to help readers recreate complicated designs at home. 

Modern Art Desserts will be on sale April 16th from Random House Books, $25All images reprinted with permission from Modern Art Desserts: Recipes for Cakes, Cookies, Confections, and Frozen Treats Based on Iconic Works of Art, by Caitlin Freeman, copyright (c) 2013. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.

Modern Art Desserts will be on sale April 16th from Random House Books, $25

All images reprinted with permission from Modern Art Desserts: Recipes for Cakes, Cookies, Confections, and Frozen Treats Based on Iconic Works of Art, by Caitlin Freeman, copyright (c) 2013. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.

Here are five desserts sure to impress the modern dinner guest:  

Mondrian Cake 

 Freeman’s white velvet cake and a chocolate ganache are carefully cut and arranged to resemble Piet Mondrian’s graphic works. 
Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

 Fuller’s Hot Chocolate  Homemade marshmallows float in rich cocoa and are topped with sea salt for a delicious rendition of Buckminster Fuller’s Tetrahedral City. 
Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

 Lichtenstein Cake  Red Velvet cake gets even fancier in Freeman’s polka dotted homage to pop art icon Roy Lichtenstein. 
Design Idea of the Week: Modern Art for Dessert - Photo 4 of 6 -
 Bradford Cheese Plate  For beginner bakers, the simple cheese plate gets an upgrade with homemade buttermilk crackers, apricot butter, and savory slices of cheese arranged according to Mark Bradford’s layered, abstract paintings. 
Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

 Dijkstra Icebox Cake  Inspired by a swimsuit in Rineke Dijkstra’s photographs, chocolate sable cookies and homemade whipped cream make for a graphic and classic combination. 
Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

Photo by: Clay McLachlan (c) 2013

 Need more help throwing a sophisticated soiree? Rico Galiano and Brendan Newman of NPR’s Dinner Party Download share their perfect party tips
Olivia Martin
Olivia is the Managing Editor @archpaper and former Managing Editor of Dwell.

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