weaponxgirl's Reviews
72 recipes reviewed. Showing 1 to 50Sort by: Book Title | Date | Rating | Recipe Title 
All Asian Cookbook
By Jacki Passmore
Spring Books - 1979
This tasted amazing! I live near a really good indian takeaway and this is as good if not better than theirs. The list of spices is quite long and the book could maybe have done with bracketing wich ones were for the marinade to be made into a paste and wich were to be fried in the curry, but its a small niggle. once you`ve got everthing together this was pretty easy to make, and it has the quality of the best indians of being flavourful and complex tasting without quite being able to tell exactly whats been used. also it seemed a pretty authentic recipe, using spices that must have been a bit of a chore to get in the 70s or 80s.
useful (1)
World Food Cafe
By Chris Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Chris Caldicott, James Merrell
Frances Lincoln Publishers Ltd - 1999
I really liked this, it had nice spicing to it. for non veggies it would go well with fish.
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Chocolate & Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen
By Clotilde Dusoulier
Broadway Books - 2007
Im gonna admit that i cheated and used tinned beans. this was so simple to make using those and a hand held blender. I served this alongside some chicken and it was a lovely little side dish, i did have to fiddle with the measures given though, using more oil to get a pesto consistency that i liked. Oh and more lemon juice too.
useful (1)
How It All Vegan! 10th Anniversary Edition: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet
By Tanya Barnard, Sarah Kramer
Arsenal Pulp Press - 2009
this is a nice easy breakfast dish. Its at its best if you have homemade salsa on hand. Not a fave but definatly worth a try.
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Cupboard Love: How to Get the Most Out of Your Kitchen
By Tom Norrington-Davies
Hodder & Stoughton Ltd - 2006
I made this for a small group of us, when i needed something quick easy and tastey. It really hit the spot. One thing that i loved about this was that when you bit into a tomato you got a nice taste of the wine, but without the alcohol, so make sure you buy a nice bit of plonk.
useful (1)
Jamie's Dinners
By Jamie Oliver
Michael Joseph - 2004
my bloke and i have a obbsession with bangers and mash, and are therefore willing to try a new variation on the theme. This was nice, but not spectacular. my boyfriend wasnt blown away by the addition of the horseradich sauce. i liked it but to be honest i think the strongly flavoured components of this meal should be good sausages and gravy. Ill stick to the bill granger recipe for gravy from everyday for now i think.
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Real Food
By Nigel Slater
Fourth Estate Ltd - 2000
This was gorgeous. salty pancetta and cream is such a winning combination. I made this for a couple of hungry boys and they loved it, nuff said really.
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Rachel's Favourite Food for Living
By Rachel Allen
HarperCollins UK - 2007
great recipe that can be made with things that are mostly from the store cupboard. Wonderfully filling, a lovely winter warmer wich was loved by my bloke and my landlord.
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Cupboard Love: How to Get the Most Out of Your Kitchen
By Tom Norrington-Davies
Hodder & Stoughton Ltd - 2006
this is hes basic recipe that you can add variations to, wich is why it works so well. Its my new fave spartan tomato sauce for pasta, very quick to make. I added feta to the sauce recently as i had some that needed using up. lovely.
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Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast
By Nigella Lawson
Hyperion - 2007
this was super quick and has real zing to it. just serve with nice bread and youve got a great snack or starter.
useful (1)
I have mixed feelings about this dish, my boyf loved it wheres i thought it was a bit bland. If like my man you like subtle comforting food, you`ll love it. If however your like me and can eat spicy and strong tasting foods till they come out of your ears try something else. Super easy to make and a nice enough meal.
useful (1)
Real Food
By Nigel Slater
Fourth Estate Ltd - 2000
This is one of those things that you cook when your on your own and its cold and dark outside. This was pure moreish comfort food, easy to make and easy to consume great amounts of.
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Every Day
By Bill Granger
Murdoch Books - 2009
This was a brilliant meal, although I will admit to a few changes. My balsamic vinegar started to burn in the corners of my roasting dish, so the whole lot (minus the burnt bits) got poured into the pan with the sausages. Then I added a stock cube and enough water to come halfway up the sausages and shoved the lid on. What I ended up with was the best gravy ever right there in the pan. All the flavours were the same, and the chili made the gravy pop. Also with the flavour of the gravy you don't need to add parmesan to the mash. I'll make this again in the same way to save putting the oven on. Lush!
useful (2)
The Afternoon Tea Book
By Michael Smith, Michael R. P. Bartlett
John Wiley & Sons - 1989
these were so nice it was almost unbelievable, i did use less flour than specified though. Im assuming that because i did mine all by hand rather than with a blender that i couldnt incorporate it as thougherly. they turned out really well . watch them carefully though as i burnt the second batch, all my own fault for getting distracted by the news.
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The Alice B.Toklas Cookbook
By Alice B. Toklas, Sir Francis Rose
Serif - 2004
This was a wonderful dish, but it does need a bit of fiddling with. This book was published in 1954 and like quite a few cookbook from this time explanations are a bit sparse. what i did was use chicken legs, brown in a pan then, and shove the whole lot in the oven with the onions. i then deglazed the pan with wine and lemon juice and added just enough cream to make a lovely sauce using all the chicken juices. The sparse instructions are the only reason this didnt get a five star rating, i like fiddling with recipes but it can put some people off.
useful (2)
Real Food
By Nigel Slater
Fourth Estate Ltd - 2000
this was so much easier to make than i thought it would be, and it turned out of my oven looking like the picture in the book. The only thing i would say about this recipe is that it needs to be eaten straight away as it was horrible cold.
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First of all this recipe uses double cream, so be warned. this dish is amazing and uses one of my fave cheap ingredients wich is good for you, smoked mackeral. If youve got a good fishmonger near you, use them as from my experience their mackeral tends to be subtler and more melt in the mouth wich works perfectly in here.
This is very easy and undemanding for the cook to make, pretty much consisting of mixing all the ingredients together and then bunging in the oven till its creamy and soothing.
I would serve this with a good green salad without a dressing to wipe the plate with and keep telling myself that the oily fish is good for me.
useful (1)
Rachel's Favourite Food for Living
By Rachel Allen
HarperCollins UK - 2007
a really nice midweek meal, with big flavours. This is the sort of easy going meal that youl never need to look at the recipe for ever again.
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Rachel's Favourite Food at Home
By Rachel Allen
Collins - 2008
this was great for being made with things i normaly have in the house somewhere. yummy and quick, nothing spectacular. but not every meal can be. Id say it would benifit from a splash of lemon juice.
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Afternoon Tea Parties
By Susannah Blake, Martin Brigdale
Ryland Peters & Small - 2008
this was an interesting way of making a cake, but it turned out beautiful and moist. i loved this cake.
useful (2)
Chocolate & Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen
By Clotilde Dusoulier
Broadway Books - 2007
ok, i once again cheated and used ready made pastry as im a scardey cat when it comes to making it myself. this was a really nice flavoured quiche, lovely with salad as suggested. my quiche however had no chance to go "wobbly in the middle" as it promtly shot up like a souffle in the middle. it did however sink again to look more like a quiche, but definatly no wobble. also not quite enough filling but that could be due to me not rolling out the pastry thin enough.
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All-American Cook Book
By Charlotte Turgeon, Frederic A. Birmingham
Arrow Bks. - 1979
ok, for us brits muffins are sweet like cakes all the time and these arnt. This however i was expecting after reading the recipe and as far as i can tell they should be treated like we treat a scone. warm from the oven with butter these were delicious, and im going to be eating these over the next few days with jam, cream , butter and whatever else i can get my hands on. theyre like a softer mini loaf of bread. lush! im also hankering towards adding apple next time as i think the added flavour add softness are the only things that can make these taste better.
useful (1)
How to be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking
By Nigella Lawson
Chatto & Windus - 2003
this is a proper homestyle cake, it comes out all cracley on top and is great with a cup of tea. The only problem i have with it is that its a bit too buttery for my taste which is why it got 4 instead of 5 stars.
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Nigella Express: Good Food, Fast
By Nigella Lawson
Hyperion - 2007
this was great, and i couldnt beleive how easy it was. As nigella suggests gnocci is lovely with this, but i would add a green veg or salad on the side as otherwise its too rich.
useful (2)
How It All Vegan! 10th Anniversary Edition: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet
By Tanya Barnard, Sarah Kramer
Arsenal Pulp Press - 2009
I loved this! Its got a really good savory meaty taste. I used brown rice miso to get that savoryness but experimenting with the misos would make it suitable for all types of dishes.
useful (0)
Amaretto, Apple Cake and Artichokes: The Best of Anna Del Conte
another recipe that looked nice with techniques that id never tried. this was mainly the fact that the beef and pork are stewed in red wine and milk. the flavours are really deep and probably more suited to winter, the only reason that i didnt give this 5 stars is that the meat was still a bit chewy. this though could be down to my oven and hobs being great for high heats but rubbish for a simmer. Im planning to buy a simmer matt and put it on earlier in the day to see if i can get a melt in your mouth meat. if i do i may re review this in the winter.
useful (1)
World Food Cafe
By Chris Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Chris Caldicott, James Merrell
Frances Lincoln Publishers Ltd - 1999
This is one of those recipes that you make once and never stop making. This dish has a great kick to it from the black pepper, it also survives substitutions very well. Always retaining the origional feel of the dish. I just cant recommend this enough, and your veggy friends will be chuffed that you made the effort to serve them something different.
useful (0)
The Credit Crunch Cookbook
By Hamlyn
Hamlyn - 2009
the base didnt come out too well, a bit too doughey even though i followed the recipe to the letter. the tomatoes were lovely though, i used a mixture of tinned and fresh. very nice overal.
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Cupcakes: Over 80 Delicious Recipes for All Occasions and Tastes
By Sue McMahon
New Holland Publishers Ltd - 2007
super easy and super tastey. it took about 30min to do from start to finish and they were all devoured there and then. try these!
useful (1)
Rachel's Favourite Food for Living
By Rachel Allen
HarperCollins UK - 2007
this was a great idea that i just had to try. Leek and potato soup generaly needs quite a bit of salt to taste really good anyway, just do away with that step and add blue cheese instead.
The result is a salty savory taste wich comes through the soup mellowed with a bit of cream. mmmmm, a perfect variation to a staple cheap and easy soup.
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Real Fast Food
By Nigel Slater
Penguin UK - 1993
My lamb didnt cook properly but ill blaim that on me rather than him. I used a griddle pan to cook the lamb and i just ended up with the sauce separating on the lamb. IT still tasted good but it didnt look very pretty at all. The leftover sauce was tastey on a baked potato the next day, just like he suggested.
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The 20-minute Cookbook: 200 Fuss Free Recipes - Quick and Easy Cooking for Every Kind of Occasion, with Over 800 Photographs and Step by Step Instructions to Guarantee Success
By Jenni Fleetwood
Lorenz Books - 2006
these were so simple and tastey that ill deffo make these again. I served these with chips, salads and pitta bread. It was like having a homemade takeaway.
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The 30-minute Cook
By Nigel Slater
Penguin Books Ltd - 2006
this was a great easy recipe that i cooked for a friend with extreme dietry needs who loved it. If you ever have an aubergine sitting about i would highly recommend this. the book calls for fresh tomatoes but ive used tinned before to great success. It also works with additions such as peppers or courgettes to make a spicy style ratatoulli.
useful (1)
Forgotten Skills of Cooking: The time-honoured ways are the best - over 700 recipes show you why
By Darina Allen
Kyle Cathie - 2009
i couldnt find buttermilk anywhere, when looking for some for making muffins. This was both a lifesaver and easy to make.
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How It All Vegan! 10th Anniversary Edition: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet
By Tanya Barnard, Sarah Kramer
Arsenal Pulp Press - 2009
Nothing like a commercial hash brown, but incredibly tasty none the less. I adored this with ketchup and veggy sausages.
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World Food Cafe
By Chris Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Carolyn Caldicott, Chris Caldicott, James Merrell
Frances Lincoln Publishers Ltd - 1999
this was another winner, thi is used in a few of the other recipes in the book. Keeps well in the fridge and is well worth the effort. You do need at least a handblender to make this.
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The 30-minute Cook
By Nigel Slater
Penguin Books Ltd - 2006
A lovely and simple way of cooking asparagus, which is a nice change from boiling. It gives the asparagus a chewy tecture.
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Rachel's Favourite Food for Living
By Rachel Allen
HarperCollins UK - 2007
this was another winner from this book for me. These biscuits turned out gooey in the middle but lovely and crunchy on the outside. My only gripe was that the dough is very stickey and hard to shape and handle. Apart from that they were great and good keepers in the biscuit tin.
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Website: Nigel Slater Columns, The Observer
www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/series/nigelslaterrecipes
ok, mine didnt set properly but i changed the quantitys to half, so ill blame it on that. A really good flavour if you like grapefruit. id serve with icecream as its quite tart, but in a grapefruity way. If not up the sugar a little maybe.
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The 30-minute Cook
By Nigel Slater
Penguin Books Ltd - 2006
Too salty for me and it tasted horrid cold the next day.
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Delia's Complete How to Cook: Both a Guide for Beginners and a Tried and Tested Recipe Collection for Life
By Delia Smith
BBC Books - 2009
this was far too sour for my personal taste. easy to make.
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How It All Vegan! 10th Anniversary Edition: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet
By Tanya Barnard, Sarah Kramer
Arsenal Pulp Press - 2009
i made this for a friend who cant eat the cheese stuff, and made a cauliflower cheese with it. It actually works quite well. Not the same but a very good substitute. The mustard is essential, as i found out by forgetting it once.
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The 30-minute Cook
By Nigel Slater
Penguin Books Ltd - 2006
What can be better than eggs and asparagus.
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The Kitchen Diaries: A Year in the Kitchen
By Nigel Slater
Fourth Estate Ltd - 2007
this is a lovely soup for the winter. Inexspensive to make with a nice kick to it. I served mine with yoghurt to negate the kick a bit when it got too hot.
useful (1)
125 Best Vegan Recipes
By Beth Gurney, Maxine Chuck
Robert Rose Inc - 2005
horrid! dont try.
useful (0)
Roast Chicken and Other Stories (Ebury Paperback Cookery)
By Simon Hopkinson, Lindsey Bareham
Ebury Press - 1999
this was a good side dish but i did have a couple of niggles. the first being that if id left the aubergines in the oven to roast for as long as i was told i would have been left with ash. My oven is a brute though so it might work for others. the second thing i might change is that if you want to eat the aubergines on the same day id roast the garlic before adding as it was just too imposing a flavour on the first day although a night in the fridge did wonders for the flavour. It was very nice with lamb like he suggested.
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Delia's Complete How to Cook: Both a Guide for Beginners and a Tried and Tested Recipe Collection for Life
By Delia Smith
BBC Books - 2009
This is exactly how a hash should taste, just pure comfort food.
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125 Best Vegan Recipes
By Beth Gurney, Maxine Chuck
Robert Rose Inc - 2005
Quite a nice recipe apart from the addition of dry mash potato flakes. Why you would use this in a soup recipe is a mystery to me as you hardley need to do much to a fresh potato in soup for it to naturaly thicken it. I also found that you need to bump up the seasoning a bit for my palate personaly.
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How to be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking
By Nigella Lawson
Chatto & Windus - 2003
these turned out exactly how i thought they would. I did stray from her advice about using shredded instead of dessicated as i could only find the latter and they were still lovely. An absolute pain to make by hand though.
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Delia's Complete How to Cook: Both a Guide for Beginners and a Tried and Tested Recipe Collection for Life
By Delia Smith
BBC Books - 2009
This is a lovely easy dish to make. Its a great lunch dish with strong flavours, perfect for when you need something quick to eat.
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