Seasonal Books - Page 5

Alfred Portale's Twelve Seasons Cookbook: A Month-by-Month Guide to the Best There is to Eat

Alfred Portale, Andrew Friedman

List Price: $45.00 By: Broadway Amazon Marketplace: 50 new & used starting at $5.18

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Baking -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Seasonal

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Alfred Portale is one of our foremost chefs. His cooking at Manhattan's Gotham Bar and Grill is widely acclaimed for its refined yet down-to-earth deliciousness. "When it comes to cooking," Portale says, "there are 12 seasons," a truth his 12 Seasons Cookbook explores in bountiful detail. Reflecting that each month embodies its own seasonal and psychological moment, and therefore makes its own demands in the kitchen, he presents more than 100 recipes matched to the culinary calendar. Though many of these require a cooking workout, a sufficient number are simple enough for most cooks to try when the mood strikes.

Portale characterizes the months. November means Thanksgiving and December Christmas, and for these he provides recipes like Pumpkin and Sweet Garlic Custards and Lamb Chops and Truffled Mashed Potatoes. The depths of February require a little "culinary sunshine" in the form of Lemon Risotto with Spot Prawns, among other dishes, while May is "the big bang of the culinary year," a rebirth celebrated with dishes including Grilled Soft-Shell Crabs with Asparagus, New Potatoes, and a Lemon-Caper Vinaigrette. July is "birthdays and barbecues"--Montauk Chowder salutes this height of summer--while September signals a return to school and work, demanding "recipes for busy times" such as Orichette with Chicken, Swiss Chard, and Reggiano Parmigiano. A wide range of dessert recipes, such as Coconut Panna Cotta, are also included. Throughout, Portale offers "flavor building" ideas for dressing up recipes, "thinking ahead" notes for staggering preparation, and dish variation suggestions. With 150 illustrations, thematic menus, what-to-drink advice, and a section on basics like stocks, the book presents a culinary calendar that works for year-round dining enjoyment. --Arthur Boehm

From a Monastery Kitchen

Victor D'Avila-Latourrette

Amazon Price: $8.99 List Price: $8.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Gramercy Amazon Marketplace: 33 new & used starting at $4.46

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Regional & International -> U.S. Regional -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Diet -> Healthy

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

Delicious recipes for a simple life 5 out of 5 stars.
41 of 42 people found this review helpful.

From a Monastery Kitchen is a cookbook of natural foods, "natural foods" in the sense of simple, vegetarian foods. The cookbook is divided into the four seasons with recipes assigned to the season their ingrediants are most available. Within each season, there are four sections: (1) Soups and appetizers (2) Main dishes (3) Salads and (4) Desserts. The volume is peppered with quotations, line drawings and other delightful tidbits.

To give you a flavor of the variety of recipes presented: for Autumn we have Escarole Soup, Vegetable Fritters, Saint Hubert Fish Stew, Risotto, Eggplant Omelette, Kasha Salad, Bessarian Avocado Salad, Saint Bruno's Coffee Cream, Cold Spring Rice Pudding, Quick Apple Cake. The recipes are simple to follow, simple to make, and simply wonderful to eat.

Editorial Review:

When first published over twenty years ago, FROM A MONASTERY KITCHEN became an instant classic of monastic cookery, admired over the centuries for its emphasis on simplicity, wholesomeness, good taste, and its use of Nature's seasons as a source for many ingredients.
Now newly revised and expanded, Brother Victor-Antoine d'Avila-Latourrette, author of the best seller, Twelve Months of Monastery Soups, has developed more outstanding recipes that will appeal to all those who desire a healthy, all-natural, and always delicious diet.
Enhancing the pleasure of the recipes themselves are charming words and quotes that make this book a treasure for both palate and spirit.
"For this monk, preparing food is prayer."
-GOURMET Magazine

The Lobster Roll: {and other pleasures of summer by the beach}

Andrea Terry, Jodi della Femina

Amazon Price: $14.96 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Clarkson Potter Amazon Marketplace: 28 new & used starting at $5.65

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Baking -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Cooking by Ingredient -> Meat, Poultry & Seafood -> Seafood
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Just east of the village of Amagansett, toward Montauk, the towns fall away, the trees disappear, the sky opens up, and the lush farmland gives way to sand and reeds and scrub in an area called Napeague. On the ocean side of this lonely stretch of Route 27, nestled in front of dunes, a sign announces “Lunch” at a shingle-style diner. As New York magazine explained, “Anyone who’s ever been to a Hampton has seen the Lobster Roll, better known as Lunch—a weather-beaten roadside clam bar, no-frills seafood restaurant, and geographic point of reference that’s as much a part of the South Fork as the Montauk lighthouse.”

The Lobster Roll is indeed an institution, evocative of carefree, casual summer eating—exactly the type of food in this book:

• Soups and appetizers such as New England Clam Chowder, Lobster Bisque, and Steamers and Broth
• Rolls and sandwiches that include Lobster Rolls and the Perfect Hamburger
• Perfect summer entrées like Lavender-and-Buttermilk Fried Chicken, Barbecued Ribs, and Grilled Leg of Lamb with Garlic and Rosemary
• Refreshing sides such as Creamy Coleslaw, Pickled Squash and Mint Salad, and simple recipes for summertime treasures like corn, tomatoes, and new potatoes
• Desserts like Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie and Raspberry-Peach Cobbler as well as drinks such as Homemade Berry-Citrus Iced Tea and Fresh Strawberry-Mint Lemonade

The Lobster Roll has been dishing up this food for three decades to locals, tourists, and summer residents alike. This book is a celebration of that cuisine, with the restaurant’s preparations adapted for home cooks, plus non-restaurant recipes for quick, simple dishes that take advantage of summer’s fresh bounty. And the beautiful color photographs perfectly capture both the food and the region—this book is what summer looks like, and this food is what summer tastes like.

The Backyard Bartender: 55 Cool Summer Cocktails

Nicole Aloni

Amazon Price: $11.53 List Price: $16.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Clarkson Potter Amazon Marketplace: 34 new & used starting at $9.99

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Drinks & Beverages -> Bartending
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Drinks & Beverages -> Spirits
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General

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

Editorial Review:

Muggy afternoons spent poolside, picnics at the beach, parties under a starry sky; summer is all about relaxation and fun.

And when the mercury climbs, there’s no better way to unwind than with an ice-cold cocktail. With more than fifty recipes for stylish martinis and fizzy libations that celebrate summer’s laid-back attitude, The Backyard Bartender brings out your inner mixologist and turns your yard into summer’s coolest hangout. Frozen, on the rocks, or shaken, The Backyard Bartender offers an array of must-try concoctions that celebrate the season. Nicole Aloni includes creative recipes based on summer’s freshest ingredients, refined interpretations of classics like martinis and sidecars, plus nonalcoholic quaffs with plenty of zing.

Why not try a:
Spicy Ginger Blush Martini
Aromatic Lavender Lush
Dessert-inspired Key Lime Pie
Swimming Pool-blue The Deep End

From cocktail lingo to the tools of the trade, you’ll find everything you need to transform your backyard into a summer retreat.

A Continual Feast: A Cookbook to Celebrate the Joys of Family and Faith Throughout the Christian Year

Evelyn Birge Vitz

Amazon Price: $14.96 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Ignatius Press Amazon Marketplace: 26 new & used starting at $8.39

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Reference
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Reference

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

incomplete at best 2 out of 5 stars.
8 of 10 people found this review helpful.

There are too many gaps in this book and I find myself looking for something else to replace or complement it. For example,today is the feast day of Saint Therese the Little Flower and there is no mention of her, which is dissappointing,especially for my homeschooled daughter for whom this book was purchased. She does however very much enjoy the information in this book and would appreciate any recomendations to fill in the gaps.

A great introduction into cooking for the Church year! 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 8 people found this review helpful.

This is a really helpful cookbook, especially if you didn't come out of a liturgical tradition orginally. Evelyn Vitz has laid the book out in a calendar fashion for the most part, but has sections on days of fasting and abstinence and saints days. I really love her recipe for plum pudding and use it every year now. I had tried several other recipes before hers, but hers is definitely the best. We have also included a lot of her other suggestions in our family celebrations. This is a cookbook that I refer to frequently (especially during Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter).

This book is great for any Christian family that wants to add a bit more traditional Christian emphasis to their lives. You don't have to be Catholic or Orthodox to enjoy it and use it. You may find yourself understanding Catholic and Orthodox traditions once you've read it, however.

This book passes on traditions that some families failed to get from Great Grandmother before she died. If you are from a Christian family, it will help you get in touch with your roots (as well as give you a lot of delicious recipes to try).

Farmhouse Christmas: A Collection of Well-Loved Recipes, Holiday Trimmings, Heart-Felt Memories & Homespun Gifts to Give

Gooseberry Patch

Amazon Price: $16.95 List Price: $16.95 In stock soon. Order now to get in line. First come, first served. By: Gooseberry Patch Amazon Marketplace: 20 new & used starting at $7.40

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Christmas & Hanukkah
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Holidays

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

Great Ideas to Make a Christmas You'll Remember 5 out of 5 stars.
27 of 30 people found this review helpful.

This book is wonderful....reading it is like talking to a good friend about holiday traditions. There are ideas for homemade gifts such as pancake mix, cookies in a jar, ornaments, and keepsakes. The recipes sound delicious and include items like an edible cookie bowl, Granny's Pot Roast, Caramel Apple Crisp, and Snickerdoodles. Build a fire, grab some hot cocoa, make some homemade gifts, and cook up some warm food for your family....this one is a hit!

Another Great Book wtih all the Holiday Trimmings! 5 out of 5 stars.
9 of 14 people found this review helpful.

Farmhouse Christmas is another great Gooseberry Patch Book filled with charming memories and excellent recipes sure to warm your heart and feed your tummy!

Learn how to make Oatmeal Molasses Bread, Sugar Cream Pie, and Country-Style Ribs or Mom's Chicken & Dressing!

Those of you who are not familiar with Gooseberry Patch, will be charmed by the stories, illustrations and suggestions for healthy and happy living put together by country friends, Vickie and Joann!

Farmhouse Christmas is another excellent volume in the Gooseberry Patch collection.

Editorial Review:

Enjoy the simple pleasures of a country Christmas. Brimming with fresh ideas, Farmhouse Christmas Cookbook has old-fashioned recipes like country chicken pie, golden mashed potatoes, hearty beef brisket and sugar cream pie. Learn to make Grandma's hug quilt, share yummy gift mixes from your pantry and create homespun giftwrap. Filled with charming illustrations...it's a classic.

Fresh from the Garden Cookbook: Recipes Inspired by Kitchen Gardens

Ann Lovejoy

Amazon Price: $15.61 List Price: $22.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Sasquatch Books Amazon Marketplace: 21 new & used starting at $5.55

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Regional & International -> U.S. Regional -> Northwest
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Seasonal

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Great for Northwest eaters 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Ann Lovejoy, better known as a gardening writer, writes a weekly food column for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and this cookbook draws from her columns. The cookbook is organized by season, and recipes rely on foods that can be grown or bought in the west-of-Cascades Pacific Northwest (both vegetarian and not). She believes in local, organic food where possible; she is careful about sodium and fat (but maybe carbohydrate-heavy for diabetics); most recipes are for 4 servings (2 adults and 2 teenage boys) and many are vegetarian. Flesh recipes usually rely on chicken and seafood rather than beef and pork. She encourages experimentation.

The book provides seasonal recipes and menus and includes growing tips for home gardeners. Recipes we like include Asparagus with Shallot, Thyme, Parsley and Lemon Sauce (spring) and Hot Chicken Noodle Salad (also spring). Page numbers are in the outer page margins, which makes recipes easy to find, but the index gives them under main ingredients rather than recipe titles.

We have tried dozens of Ann's recipes, both from the book and her columns since she wrote the book. (She is one of the few food writers I collect every week.) I like some of her recipes and don't like others, but I recommend the book in spite of personal reservations about specific recipes--there is probably something here you will like or can adapt. Our typical complaint when we don't like a recipe is that it isn't highly seasoned. This book might not help someone in Minnesota, but it does work well anywhere with a Mediterranean-type climate, and ideas can be adapted to local foods.

The book is in print in Sept. 2007. It is worthwhile if you can get fresh ingredients and are willing to experiment with seasoning.

Editorial Review:

Featuring the very best recipes from her weekly Seattle-Post Intelligencer column “Fresh from the Garden,” Ann Lovejoy's newest book consolidates her passion for gardening and cooking into a year-round celebration of fresh, organic ingredients. Organized by season, her simple, uncluttered recipes emphasize bright flavors, aromatic herbs, and an abundance of fresh produce — from familiar favorites like raspberries and zucchini to more exotic items such as garlic tips and dandelion greens. Recipes include Lavender Lemonade, Grilled Prawns with Pumpkin Seed Salsa, Garlic Turkey with Green Peppercorn Gravy, Cress and Fennel Soup, Ginger-Berry Shortcake, and many more. Lovejoy offers a wealth of advice on selecting and growing specific varieties of produce, and her time-tested organic gardening tips are designed to help readers make the most of their growing year.

Martha Stewart's Healthy Quick Cook

Martha Stewart

Amazon Price: $23.73 List Price: $32.50 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Clarkson Potter Amazon Marketplace: 171 new & used starting at $0.01

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Baking -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Quick & Easy -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Martha's "healthy pleasures" 5 out of 5 stars.
14 of 15 people found this review helpful.

This 1997 book grew out of what Martha Stewart calls her "ever-growing search for the new and different", and it has many interesting ideas and recipes for fresh, healthy eating, and menu planning. As one would expect from Martha, the appearance is almost as important as the contents, with marvelous photography, and great use of vintage plates and Depression glassware
It is divided into seasons, and as I live in California, and primarily eat fruits and vegetables, the Spring and Summer sections are of most interest to me; they have novelties like "Cool Jicama Slaw" (pg. 77), which consists of julliened jicama, minced jalapeño peppers and chopped cilantro, in a orange and lime juice dressing, and a fabulous "Corn, Fava Bean and Cucumber Succotash" which includes red bell pepper and white onion to make up this colorful and wholesome recipe.

For the colder climates, there are wonderful hearty soups and stews, roasted vegetables, and rice, quinoa, and couscous dishes. There is a lot of what Martha calls "clean food", where "the flavors are clear and straightforward" and come from the "quality of the ingredients rather than elaborate techniques".
There are some unique desserts, like "Frozen Chai" (pg. 126), which can be made without an ice cream maker, using a food processor instead, and a "Rosé Gelatin with Blackberries", which I have not tried but looks lovely. Some of the desserts, like the rich chocolate sorbet pictured on page 193, are served in teacups with saucers, making an attractive table setting.
This is a beautiful book to look at, and it is full of ideas on how to add interest to a health-conscious diet, with simplicity, and a lot of flavor.

Editorial Review:

Our favorite Doyenne of the Dainty serves a delicate and oh-so-tasty blend of low-fat elegance in this handsomely designed cookbook. No calorie counter, Martha proves how a lush variety of grains, fruits, and veggies can be a delicious alternative to fatty dishes. She offers more than 170 recipes, showing how to transform the freshest seasonal ingredients into scrumptious treats guaranteed to delight both the palate and the eye. From Grilled Portobello Pizza to a luscious Lime Soufflé, Martha will change the way you think about healthy eating.

Savor the Seasons (Junior League of Tampa Culinary Collection)

Junior League of Tampa, Volume 3 of the Junior League of Tampa C

Amazon Price: $13.46 List Price: $17.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: The Junior League of Tampa, Inc. Amazon Marketplace: 7 new & used starting at $8.49

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Regional & International -> U.S. Regional -> South
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Seasonal

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

The third volume in a truly outstanding series of cookbooks 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

The third volume in a truly outstanding series of cookbooks created by the members of The Junior League of Tampa, "Savor The Seasons" offers year-round seasonal menus, festive dishes, and dining traditions with a twist. Very nicely illustrated with occasional full color photography, the menus with their component recipes are organized into five major sections: 'Celebrations'; 'Openers', 'Complements', 'Centerpieces'; and 'Finished Touches'. Of special note are the concluding appendices: 'The Perfect Setting'; 'Community Projects'; 'Recipe Contributors and Testers'. "Savor The Seasons" concludes with an Index and 'Order Information'. From Crab and Brie Dip with Artichokes; Sherried Mushroom Soup; Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Brand Cream Sauce; and Skirt Steak with Chimichurri; to Bacon and Leek Quiche; Snapper on Fava Bean Puree with Fig Marsala Reduction; Stacked Turkey with Cranberry Cream Cheese, and Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake with Raspberry Amaretto Sauce, "Savor The Seasons" offers 'kitchen cook friendly' recipes and menus appropriate for any dining occasion and that will please any palate while satisfying any appetite.

Editorial Review:

Savor the Seasons, Volume 3 of the Junior League of Tampa Culinary Collection, invites you to join us on a year-round tour of seasonal menus, festive flavors and traditions with a twist. Join us for a celebration of holidays that span the calendar, from New Year's and Valentine's Day to Halloween and Thanksgiving. Our collection of holiday recipes offeres countless menu combinations to help you Savor the Seasons.

Flavors of Fall (Gooseberry Patch) (Goose Berry Patch)

Gooseberry Patch

Amazon Price: $16.95 List Price: $16.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Gooseberry Patch Amazon Marketplace: 20 new & used starting at $11.21

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> General
Subjects -> Cooking, Food & Wine -> Special Occasions -> Seasonal

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Absolutely a great book! 5 out of 5 stars.
15 of 15 people found this review helpful.

I got this in time for Halloween and fall and have made many of the recipes in here. And they have all been big hits!

There is a whole section for apple recipes, breakfast, dinner, thanksgiving and Halloween. Its organized in a great way so you can find what you need with lots of advice and tips.

The BEST BEST BEST recipe in this entire book is the Apple Brie Bread Braid. I have made this 3 times in the past two months and I keep getting requests for it again. It is the yummiest recipe I have made from one of the books yet. And its not hard either!

You wont be dissapointed in this book if your a GP fan.

Editorial Review:

Colorful leaves, fresh-picked apples, roasting marshmallows over a campfire...we're celebrating the best of fall in this delightful book! We've gathered a cream-of-the-crop collection of irresistible recipes and clever tips to help you enjoy the season. Try making halftime cheese ball, autumn apple pork chops, cranberry meatballs, caramelized acorn squash, homemade applesauce, buttery cinnamon biscuits, spooky cookies and lots more. Our Flavors of Fall Cookbook is the perfect book for anyone who loves crisp, sunny days, hayrides and cool nights.