Here’s a look at the cookbooks we’re the most excited about for the upcoming week of December 1-7!
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The Everything Mediterranean Cookbook, by Peter Minaki (December 3, 2019). Mediterranean food is my favorite, and quite adaptable to my vegetarian lifestyle. I can never own too many Mediterranean cookbooks. This one begins with the usual how-to-stock-your-pantry and kitchen essentials chapter; then moves into recipes for breakfast, appetizers and dips, salads, pasta and rice, vegetable main dishes, beef pork and lamb, poultry, fish and seafood, then sides sauces and accompaniments. Of course, the final chapter presents desserts, sweets and beverages. I already have cookbooks that teach me how to make spanakopeta, ratatouille, pita, Greek salads, etc; so I’ll be using this cookbook to learn more unusual recipes like Strapatsatha, baked feta, cauliflower stifado, and spetsofai.
The New City of London Cookbook: From Treacle Toffee to the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, by Peter Gladwin (GMC Publications; December 3, 2019). London based chef Peter Gladwin shares recipes from his forty year career catering for high end banquets and for the royal family. Besides the recipes, he shares stories from “behind the green baize door” and anecdotes about the great kitchens of London. Chapters include Canapés; Larder; Starters; Salads and Sides; Vegetarian and Vegan (yay!); Fish; Meat; Emulsions, Infusions, Essences and Good Gravy; Desserts; Cheese and Savouries; Chocolates and Sweetmeats. There are small photos of food and dishes, lots of pictures of London, but every dish doesn’t have its own photo.
Look Cook Eat, by Harper Design International (December 3, 2019). Here’s an unusual concept for a cookbook – A visual cookbook “without words.” Love this idea! However, they’re cheating – each recipe includes words when providing instructions on how to make the dish (“Twist each strip of dough” and “blend for 15 seconds”). Each recipe features a few simple ingredients meant to cook in one pot, that only take fifteen minutes to prepare. (That sounds miraculous!) The chapters include Mains, Meats, Fish, Veggies, Desserts and Drinks. I’m going to look at the Chocolate Pear Loaf first, then explore the recipes for Cherry Tomato Clafoutis and Leek and Emmental Gratin. I do like the visual approach to this, and the nice photographs of the finished dishes, but I feel like they are cheating when claiming the recipes are “without words.”
The Ultimate Cooking for One Cookbook, by Joanie Zisk (Abrams Media; December 3, 2019) features “175 super easy recipes.” I cook for more than one – I cook for my boyfriend and myself on weeknights and throw dinner parties and cocktail parties on weekends. But this book would have been great back when I was single and before I started being an overactive hostess! The author is the blogger behind One Dish Kitchen. The chapters are divided into Breakfast; Side Dishes; Chicken Main Dishes; Beef and Pork Main Dishes; Fish and Seafood Main Dishes; Vegetarian Main Dishes; and Desserts. I’m most intrigued by the recipe for Small Batch Cinnamon Doughnuts (I’d make doughnuts on weekends if I wasn’t making more than we could and should eat); by the recipe for Quiche Stuffed Peppers; and by the Sweet Potato Casserole sized for one person. (I don’t care for sweet potatoes, so that way I could make the dish for my boyfriend and not have to eat any myself!)
Weeknight One-Pot Vegan Cooking, by Nicole Malik (Page Street Publishing; December 3, 2019) promises “75 Effortless Recipes with Maximum Flavor and Minimal Cleanup.” I’m a vegetarian, not a vegan, but she had me at “effortless” and “minimal cleanup.” She has separated her chapters into “Eat Your Veggies,” “Eat With Your Hands,” “Crowd-Pleasing Comfort Food,” “Incredible Grains,” “Bowls of Deliciousness,” “Rise and Shine,” and finally “Simply Sweet One-Pot Treats.” I definitely need to up my one-pot cooking game, and I’m eager to check out her recipes for vegan Cajun Jambalaya, savory vegan mushroom congee, and Stovetop Lasagna Skillet sounds fabulous!
Power Spicing, by Rachel Beller, offers sixty recipes for “anti-oxidant fueled meals.” I don’t know much about cooking with spices (I cook with a lot of herbs, but not many spices yet) so I want to check this cookbook out. Chapters include DIY Spice Blends; Daily Power Beverages; Spicy and Sweet Breakfasts; Mains that Pack a Punch; Sizzling Up Your Sides; Dressings and Dips; and Snacks and Sweets. I’d probably try making the Turmeric Tahini dip first, then move on to trying the Israeli Breakfast Sampler; then finish by making one of the desserts. The book includes a helpful chart of spices and their health benefits towards the end.
Easy Cake Cookbook, by Miranda Couse (Rockridge Press; December 3, 2019) tempts me with its “75 sinfully simple recipes for bake-and-eat cakes.” I must confess to mixing up far too many Betty Crocker mix cakes, and I really want to make more cakes from scratch. The cakes are separated into chapters including Coffee Cakes; Bundt Cakes; Snacking Cakes; Skillet Cakes; Little Cakes; and the book finishes with a chapter on Toppings. A section contains baking tips and tips on using the right pans. I’ve never made a Skillet Cake before, so I might start with the Lemon Olive Oil Skillet Cake or the Strawberry Skillet Cake.
Enjoy your cookbook browsing!
-Carrie
Copyright 2019 Cookbook Divas
