Regional & International Books - Page 13

Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health

Nancy Harmon Jenkins

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Great reading but the recipes will bog you down 3 out of 5 stars.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.

I have a lot of heart trouble and I bought this cookbook specifically to look into The Mediterranean Diet as a means to benefit my precarious health. I cook a lot, every day, as I'm retired and it's my job to prepare a balanced suppertime meal for my wife and me each day -- she's still working full-time and, of course, she's pretty hungry when she comes through the door each evening. (If you want to see what my own chefing skill-level is, go to "Recipezaar" and look up "Bone Man" -- that's me and I have about 300 recipes posted there that you can view and/or print for free).

This cookbook is intelligently written, bulging with great and useful advice, and details of The Mediterranean Diet are clearly stated therein; however, one would be very hard-pressed to complete all the tasks which go with owning a home and raising a family, and balancing that burden with cooking the dishes found in here.

These are, in fact, fine recipes (I've made several of them), but my point is, they're too complex and ingredient-diverse to pull off every day and that objective is sort of the purpose of any particular diet. An example of the problem is that sometimes, one recipe refers you to yet another recipe, on a different page, for preparation. Another evaluation is that one would need to go to the grocery at least every other day as this author uses a LOT of different ingredients -- while conforming nicely to The Mediterranean Diet requirements, these recipes are very diverse in regard to ingredients. A final comment is that these dishes are not largely all that cheap to make and, over time, this becomes a problem for many of us.

One other criticism I have is that, while the book is nicely bound, it's inappropriately bound for a cookbook. It's fairly large and it doesn't lie flat. The paper is not of a "slick" variety and it's of a type of paper that seems to absorb every splash and stain that gets near it. All this is really just a minor complaint but I think that this was a huge oversight on the part of the publisher and certainly represents an inconvenience for the home cook.

So, my summary is this: if you have a helper in the kitchen who can also go to the grocery for you on short notice, this cookbook might be okay. I would also say that the recipes are quite worthwhile for folks (even non-dieters) who wish to prepare one of these dishes just once in awhile -- but to stick to the recipes herein, day after day, would be notably difficult and costly.

Editorial Review:

Discussing the nutritional and health benefits of Mediterranean culinary practices, this delectable cookbook presents two hundred recipes for simple traditional dishes from all over the region, all adapted for the modern American kitchen.

II Viaggio Di Vetri: A Culinary Journey

Marc Vetri, David Joachim

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

FINALLY! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I have been a fan of Marc Vetri for years. I'm so excited that he has a book finally. The thing I like most is it's not just a recipe book, it is a story about what it took to get where he is. I applaud him including everyone from Italy and making them integral parts of the book. It is really a special book.

Editorial Review:

Philadelphia enjoys one of the country's most dynamic food scenes, and Marc Vetri is its top culinary talent. Mario Batali called Vetri Ristorante "possibly the best Italian restaurant on the East Coast." A parade of prominent national food critics followed and all came to the same conclusion. Vetri's refined rustic-Italian cuisine is on brilliant display in Vetri. The recipes showcase the chef's soulful renditions of Italian classics, and accompanying notes by sommelier Jeff Benjamin offer lively lessons on the classic and lesser-known wines of the region. Throughout, Vetri shares tales of his cooking apprenticeship in northern Italy and shows how to bring the lessons he learned there into the home kitchen.

New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies

Najmieh Batmanglij

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 55 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

This is a treasury of 240 classical and regional Iranian recipes. 120 colour photographs intertwined with descriptions of ancient and modern ceremonies, poetry, folk tales, travelogue excerpts, and anecdotes make "New Food of Life" not just a collection of recipes but also an introduction to Persian art and culture. Each recipe is presented in a format that is brilliantly logical and marvellously easy-to-follow. You will learn how to cook rice, the jewel of Persian cooking, simply yet deliciously. And by combining it with a little meat, fowl, or fish, vegetables, fruits, and herbs, you'll have a balanced diet - colourful, yet healthy, simple yet exotic.Iranian festivals, ceremonies, and celebrations, together with the menus and recipes associated with them are described in detail: from the ancient winter solstice celebration, Yalda, or the 'sun's birthday', which is the origin of such Western holidays as Christmas and Halloween, to the rituals and symbolism involved in a modern Iranian marriage. Like a magnificent Persian carpet, 1,000 years of Persian literature and art have been woven into the book. Food-related pieces from such classics as the "10th century Book of Kings", and "1,001 Nights" to the miniatures of Mir Mussavar and Aq Mirak, from the poetry of Omar Khayyam to the humour of Mulla Nasruddin are all included. Now with the ingredients for Iranian food available in most US cities, "New Food of Life" makes accessible one of the world's oldest - yet least known - culinary traditions where the first recipes were written 4,000 years ago in a cuneiform script on clay tablets.

The Best Recipes in the World

Mark Bittman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 31 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

With his million-copy bestseller How to Cook Everything, Mark Bittman made the difficult doable. Now he makes the exotic accessible.

In this highly ambitious, accomplished, globe-spanning work, Bittman gathers the best recipes that people from dozens of countries around the world cook every day. And when he brings his distinctive no-frills approach to dishes that were once considered esoteric, America's home cooks will eagerly follow where they once feared to tread.

In more than a thousand recipes, Bittman compellingly demonstrates that there are many places besides Italy and France to which cooks can turn for inspiration. In addition to these favorites, he covers Spain, Portugal, Greece, Russia, Scandinavia, the Balkans, Germany, and other European destinations, giving us easy ways to make dishes like Spanish Mushroom and Chicken Paella, Greek Roast Leg of Lamb with Thyme and Orange, Russian Borscht, and Swedish Äppletorte.

Asian food now rivals European cuisine’s popularity, and this book reflects that: It’s the first to emphasize European and Asian cuisines equally, with easy-to-follow recipes for favorites like Vietnamese Stir-Fried Vegetables with Nam Pla, Pad Thai, Japanese Salmon Teriyaki, Chinese Black Bean and Garlic Spareribs, and Indian Tandoori Chicken. Nor is the rest of the world ignored: there are hundreds of recipes from North Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South America, too. All will be hits with home cooks looking to add exciting new tastes and cosmopolitan flair to their everyday repertoire.

Shop locally, cook globally–Mark Bittman makes it so easy:

• Hundreds of recipes that can be made ahead or prepared in under 30 minutes

• Informative sidebars and instructional drawings explain unfamiliar techniques and ingredients

• Fifty-two international menus, an extensive International Pantry section, and much more make this an essential addition to any cook’s shelf

The Best Recipes in the World is destined to be a classic that will change the way Americans think about everyday food. It’s simply like no other cookbook in the world.

Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously

Julie Powell

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 63 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Yummy, then not 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

This blog/book is like a bag of Cheetos. It's so yummy and cheesy and you just can't stop and you really should stop and you kind of slow down and then you feel full and then you have another handful and then you fold up the bag and start to put it where you can't reach it and then you eat another handful and feel kind of yucky and then you wish you'd never seen those Cheetos ever because they weren't really that good to begin with. You don't eat Cheetos again for a long time. This book is a tidbit, not worth the money.

Love Julie! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This lady is funny, quick witted, especially insightful and brutally honest. And I'm not talking about Julia Childs. I found this book belly-laugh funny. Even if you don't like to cook, it's a good read.

Editorial Review:

Nearing 30 and trapped in a dead-end secretarial job, Julie Powell resolved to reclaim her life by cooking, in the span of a single year, every one of the 524 recipes in Julia Child's legendary Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her unexpected reward: not just a newfound respect for calves' livers and aspic, but a new life--lived with gusto.

The All New Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook (Southern Living (Hardcover Oxmoor))

Southern Living Magazine

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Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Whether you’re a pro in the kitchen or a beginner cook—everything you need to cook for a lifetime is in this invaluable cookbook from the experts at Southern Living magazine. The heart of this book is the recipe collection. Turn to any of the 19 chapters to find recipes that fit your every need.

• Discover more than 1,250 recipes that focus on flavor, convenience, taste, and good health. • Keep an eye on your family’s health with the complete nutritional analysis that comes with each recipe. • Pick recipes that fit the demands of your day by checking the prep and cook times at a glance. • Find favorites faster with recipe labels such as Quick, Make Ahead, Freeze It, Family Favorite, and 10 more tags that showcase recipe merits. • Get great results with over 500 color photographs that feature everything from step-by-step photos to finished dishes plus ingredient and equipment photos. • Check out new chapters including From the Grill, Breakfast & Brunch, Meatless Main Dishes, and Healthy Favorites. • Indulge in traditional Southern favorites with a twist like Cheesy Grits Bread, Mac and Texas Cheeses with Roasted Chiles, Smoked Turkey Tetrazzini, and Fresh Orange Italian Cream Cake. • Celebrate special occasions with recipes such as Holiday Beef Tenderloin, Molasses-Coffee Glazed Ham, Chocolate Truffle Cake, Caramel-Coconut-Pecan Cheesecake Bars, and Bistro Grilled Chicken Pizza. • Find how easy cooking can be with our simplified ingredient lists designed for how you shop and cook.

It's More than Just Recipes

• Each chapter begins with the basics. We share helpful tips and suggest the equipment you’ll need to get started. • Flip through the chapters to find colorful photo dictionaries that define herbs, spices, sugars and salts, knives, and much more. • Turn to the expanded Kitchen Basics chapter for pointers for stocking your kitchen and pantry, a cooking glossary, tips for healthy living, and entertaining advice. • Use and reuse the timetables and charts for cooking fish, roasting meat and poultry, and handy substitutions. They take the guesswork out of cooking for you. • Entertain in style with inspiring ideas for setting a pretty table. • Perfect your cooking with step-by-step technique photographs. • Plan your next gathering—whether it’s an intimate party for 4 or dinner for a dozen––with our selection of 50 sure-to-please menus. Strategic use of convenience products makes meal preparation a snap. • Grill your way to greatness with this sizzling chapter called From the Grill. Recipes include our best Baby Back Ribs, Smoked Turkey Breast, and Grilled Tomatoes.

Chef Jeff Cooks: In the Kitchen with America's Inspirational New Culinary Star

Jeff Henderson

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The author of the New York Times bestselling Cooked, award-winning chef, and star of his own Food Network docu-reality show dishes up his first cookbook, Chef Jeff Cooks.

Jeff Henderson's story is familiar: Raised in South Central Los Angeles, he became a successful drug dealer. He made a lot of money. He got caught.

But what happened next wasn't the same old story: Jeff changed. He found a passion in prison kitchens and taught himself to cook. Once released, he talked his way into a series of professional kitchens -- almost always having to prove himself by starting as a dishwasher or line cook. His talent was obvious; his work ethic even more so. After rising to the top of the kitchen in some of Los Angeles's best restaurants, he became the first African American Chef de Cuisine in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace and then executive chef at Café Bellagio in the prestigious Bellagio Resort.

Now Jeff shows theworld his food and it is delicious. What inspires him? Foods he ate as a child -- Half-pound "Back-in-the-Day" Chili Cheeseburger, Turkey Smoked Collard Greens, Friendly Fried Chicken, Macaroni and Smoked Cheddar Cheese, Cakelike Cornbread with Maple Butter, and Chocolate S'more Bread Pudding -- are here as well as the more elegant, celebratory cuisine he developed as a chef -- Sweet Potato Soup, Barbecued Shrimp Scampi, and slow-cookedMolasses Braised Beef Short Ribs. Cooks will also find lots of great recipes for the grill and plenty of party foods, satisfying salads, quick breads, sides, soups, sweet endings, and more.

Featuring over 150 recipes, stunning full-color photographs, tips and techniques, as well as personal outtakes and anecdotes from Chef Jeff's life on the streets, the prison kitchen, and hiswork as a chef andmotivational speaker, this is much more than a cookbook -- it is a larger-than-life American success story and the recipe for how Chef Jeff fulfilled his dream.

The New Book of Middle Eastern Food

Claudia Roden

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 36 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In this updated and greatly enlarged edition of her Book of Middle Eastern Food, Claudia Roden re-creates a classic. The book was originally published here in 1972 and was hailed by James Beard as "a landmark in the field of cookery"; this new version represents the accumulation of the author's thirty years of further extensive travel throughout the ever-changing landscape of the Middle East, gathering recipes and stories.

Now Ms. Roden gives us more than 800 recipes, including the aromatic variations that accent a dish and define the country of origin: fried garlic and cumin and coriander from Egypt, cinnamon and allspice from Turkey, sumac and tamarind from Syria and Lebanon, pomegranate syrup from Iran, preserved lemon and harissa from North Africa. She has worked out simpler approaches to traditional dishes, using healthier ingredients and time-saving methods without ever sacrificing any of the extraordinary flavor, freshness, and texture that distinguish the cooking of this part of the world.

Throughout these pages she draws on all four of the region's major cooking styles:
        -        The refined haute cuisine of Iran, based on rice exquisitely prepared and embellished with a range of meats, vegetables, fruits, and nuts
        -        Arab cooking from Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan--at its finest today, and a good source for vegetable and bulgur wheat dishes
        -        The legendary Turkish cuisine, with its kebabs, wheat and rice dishes, yogurt salads, savory pies, and syrupy pastries
        -        North African cooking, particularly the splendid fare of Morocco, with its heady mix of hot and sweet, orchestrated to perfection in its couscous dishes and tagines

From the tantalizing mezze--those succulent bites of filled fillo crescents and cigars, chopped salads, and stuffed morsels, as well as tahina, chickpeas, and eggplant in their many guises--to the skewered meats and savory stews and hearty grain and vegetable dishes, here is a rich array of the cooking that Americans embrace today. No longer considered exotic--all the essential ingredients are now available in supermarkets, and the more rare can be obtained through mail order sources (readily available on the Internet)--the foods of the Middle East are a boon to the home cook looking for healthy, inexpensive, flavorful, and wonderfully satisfying dishes, both for everyday eating and for special occasions.

I'm Just Here for the Food: Food + Heat = Cooking

Alton Brown

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 174 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Understanding how it works, not just recipes 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I love this book. This is not a typical cookbook. This book teaches you the principles of successful cooking. Rather than hashing out ingredient lists and blind processes to follow, Alton Brown actually explains why you sometimes use Baking Powder Vs. Baking Soda, why you should leave batter lumpy or mix it to death, and how higher heat doesn't always mean faster cooking - especially with success.

In some ways, this is a geek book. If you love cooking and want to know why, then this is the PERFECT book for you.

Editorial Review:

As host of Food Network's Good Eats, Alton Brown entertains and informs viewers with a lively mix of wit blended with wisdom, history with pop culture, and science with the kind of common cooking sense that our grandmothers took for granted. In this, his first cookbook, Brown presents readers with an instruction manual for the kitchen, combining 60 wide-ranging recipes with a wealth of culinary information that allows anyone--at any level of expertise--to understand the whys and wherefores of cooking.

Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors

Andrea Quynhgiao Nguyen

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Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

amazing book- even for a non vietnamese 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

When I got this book I had very limited knowledge on Vietnamese food. There is a striking difference in ingredients, spices and herbs used in the Vietnamese cuisine compared to western cooking and the author takes the time to explain all the different ingredients used, how and where to purchase them and how to store them. I found that very helpful! All the recipes in the book are explained in detail and often take more than one page. The ingredients are also very well listed and the dishes are very well organized in chapters.The recipes are very easy to follow and I have been really satisfied from everything I have cooked until now! The author also tells a few words about each dish and its origin and characteristics making the book a true journey into the Vietnamese kitchen (and culinary culture) rather than a mere cookbook. I have a much better understanding and appreciation of Vietnamese food now and a lot of it is due to Andrea Nguen's book.

Editorial Review:

When author Andrea Nguyen's family was airlifted out of Saigon in 1975, one of the few belongings that her mother hurriedly packed for the journey was her small orange notebook of recipes. Thirty years later, Nguyen has written her own intimate collection of recipes, "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen", an ambitious debut cookbook that chronicles the food traditions of her native country. Robustly flavoured yet delicate, sophisticated yet simple, the recipes include steamy phonoodle soups infused with the aromas of fresh herbs and lime; rich clay-pot preparations of catfish, chicken, and pork; classic banh mi sandwiches; and an array of Vietnamese charcuterie. Nguyen helps readers shop for essential ingredients, master core cooking techniques, and prepare and serve satisfying meals, whether for two on a weeknight or 12 on a weekend.