Showing posts with label cuisine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cuisine. Show all posts

Monday, January 23, 2012

Weight Watchers Make It in Minutes: Easy Recipes in 15, 20, and 30 Minutes Review

Weight Watchers Make It in Minutes: Easy Recipes in 15, 20, and 30 Minutes
Average Reviews:

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First, I do enjoy this cookbook. Everything I have made from it has been wonderful, and if you like the recipes in "Simply the Best: 250 Prizewinning Family Recipes" then I think you will like the recipes in this book. They are slightly more gourmet and less homey than the recipes in "Simply the Best," so if "Simply the Best" was pushing the edge of the exotic envelope for you, then you might prefer a different WW cookbook than this one for your next purchase.
The book is organized into three color-coded sections (15 minute, 20 minute, and 30 minutes) and each section is organized into breakfast, lunch, and dinner recipes. Many of the lunch recipes would also work well for dinner or as part of dinner. This is the sort of cookbook that you will enjoy sitting down with and sticking post-it notes to promising recipes.
However, I give this book 4 stars instead of 5 because the preparation times for the recipes are frequently deceptive. They are not the times for fixing these recipes from start to finish, they assume that you have already performed your preps. So, a 30 minute recipe might not include the time for pulling all of the ingredients out of the pantry and refrigerator, and tasks such as slicing raw chicken breasts or steak into strips, chopping onions, mincing garlic, chopping parsley, or peeling, deseeding, and slicing cucumbers. The cookbook "Desperation Dinners" by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross (not a lowfat cookbook), for example, is truly a 20 minute start-to-finish recipe cookbook; this one is not, although in most cases the actual time will not be too much more than the stated time. One exception is the Apricot Glazed Pork Skewers with Mango Quinoa, which is supposed to be ready in 30 minutes. Even if your preps are all ready ahead of time I think you'd be hard-pressed to prepare this dish in under 45 minutes. The 30 minutes includes thinly slicing 1-1/2 pounds of pork tenderloin and threading it onto 12 skewers, which alone took me a good 15 minutes.
One thing I like about this cookbook is that it finally got me to try cooking with Fat-Free Half-and-Half, and I have been very pleased with the recipes that use this, such as a Creamy Cauliflower Soup (saute leeks in a little olive oil, add frozen cauliflower and canned chicken broth, simmer, puree, then finish with FF Half-and-Half, nutmeg, and S&P). My favorites recipes in this book, so far, are the Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes, Greek Chicken Pasta Toss, Chicken with Spicy Marmalade Glaze, Chicken Tacos with Salsa Verde Cream, and Sesame Glazed Shrimp with Snow Peas and Baby Corn.

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The most trusted name in weight loss makes healthy eating fast and delicious. Perfect for everyone who thought they were too busy" to cook healthy food, these meals are ready in 15, 20, or 30 minutes -- just pick the time frame that fits your schedule. The wide range of recipes will please everyone, from fussy kids to gourmets. Sample Pierogies with Creamy Mushroom and Sherry Sauce, Berries and Cream Blintzes, Pepper-Crusted Flank Steak with Cucumber Relish, Cuban Sandwiches, Easy Paella, Tuna Panzanella and Wild Mushroom Risotto."

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Thursday, November 24, 2011

Mario Batali Holiday Food Review

Mario Batali Holiday Food
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preordered this book when I saw it listed, knowing anything Mario had published would have to be great. I was however a little surprised when it arrived and I saw just how small it actually was. After reading it through from cover to cover, I overcame my disappointment however, realizing that Mario had chosen only the best recipes for the holidays. As the Italian food host at BellaOnline, I am always on the lookout for Italian cookbooks that offer more than simply everyday recipes. Anyone buying this cookbook that is familiar with Mario Batali's work, will not be sorry. If you are interested in Italian recipes specific for the holidays, buy this book!

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Monday, June 27, 2011

Pace Picante Sauce: 40th Anniversary Recipe Collection; a Treasury of Tex-mex Cooking Review

Pace Picante Sauce: 40th Anniversary Recipe Collection; a Treasury of Tex-mex Cooking
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My book was destroyed in house fire. This edition does not have the same recipes and illustrations as mine. I did not realize there are different editions of "40th Anniversary" book; wish that info had been available.

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Throw a Great Party: Inspired by evenings in Paris with Jim Haynes Review

Throw a Great Party: Inspired by evenings in Paris with Jim Haynes
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First of all, Mary Bartlett's Throw a Great Party makes for a terrific read. The utter romance of an ongoing Salon party in a tiny artist's apartment in Paris is undeniable!
I had this book on my coffee table for a couple of weeks, imagining the incredible parties OTHER people plan, shop for and host. Then something happened: after reading through the book, I no longer had the feeling that having a terrific party was something that only arty A-listers in Paris do...
Bartlett's huge strength lies in demystifying the process of cooking for a crowd. In a calm and engaging fashion, she lays out the steps one needs to take and, Voila! YOU'VE managed to invite and cook for 50 people without losing your mind... And everyone loves the food!
I speak from experience: I have used Throw a Great Party as a sort of star map to party cooking and it hasn't steered me wrong yet. Kudos to the cook!

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What do Chloë Sevigny, Molly Ivins, Allen Ginsberg, R. Crumb, Xaviera Hollander (the Happy Hooker), Yoko Ono, and Germaine Greer all have in common? They have all been guests at Jim Haynes's studio in Paris. A dynamic and loveable American ex-pat, Jim Haynes welcomes anywhere fifty to a hundred people for food, fun, and conversation every Sunday in his home. These informal parties, now approaching their thirty-year mark, are the inspiration for Throw a Great Party and illustrate how to entertain a crowd at home without being overwhelmed. Do you want to give a party that's fun and relaxed but also affordable? Throw a Great Party will show you how to give exciting parties that your friends will rave about. Inspired by Paris' best underground dining experience, the Jim Haynes dinners, this book celebrates the whole concept of hospitality and entertaining. From start to finish, this practical easy-to-follow guide offers complete planning, budgeting, shopping, storage, cooking, and serving tips. The collection of tasty international recipes and menus, range from traditional to exotic and are proven crowd pleasers. Tested many times, these recipes will work in any size home kitchen. Throw a Great Party will convince you that entertaining can be a joyful exuberant experience.

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