Cooksbakesbooks' Reviews
Cookbook Reviews
12 books reviewed. Showing 1 to 12Sort by: Rating | Title 
25 Ways to Cook a Mouse for the Gourmet Cat
By Orson Bean, Susannah Bean
Carol Publishing Corporation - 1994
This is a cute, funny little book with 25 fake mouse recipes "for the gourmet cat," by Orson Bean. Roast Leg of Spring Mouse, perhaps? Why, of course:
"Buy an entire mouse leg (butt and shank). Don't be afraid to select a large one, as mousemeat is almost invariably tender. A good butcher in a feline gourmet shop will help you with this. You may also choose to have the butcher butterfly your leg of mouse ... Rub the mouse leg with cut garlic and catnip. Place the mouse leg fat side up (if there is any fat--mousemeat is usually quite lean) on a rack ..."
The Alice B. Toklas Cook Book
By Alice B. Toklas, M. F. K. Fisher, Sir Francis Rose
Harpercollins - 1984
For reading perhaps more than cooking from, this edition is introduced by none other than M.F.K. Fisher herself, who declares that: "I know now as well as I did thirty years ago that Alice B. Toklas' Cook Book would feed my soul abundantly if I could find no other nourishment, just as it would make me smile in the midst of sadness, and feel braver if I risked faltering. It is a good book, 'abundantly satisfying, imagination being as lively as it is....'" The lady has spoken.
The Cake Bible
By Rose Levy Beranbaum
William Morrow Cookbooks - 1988
Before I had this book, I could not bake a cake from scratch. Now I can use recipes other than in this book, and use Rose Levy Beranbaum's techniques to make excellent cakes. That said, I do use cake recipes from other books, but The Cake Bible is my standby.
My son's classmates invariably have birthday parties where the parents buy cakes from the grocery store. I do not have the nerve to rush up to them and say, "You could have had an actually -good- cake for the party if you had taken a few minutes to bake one yourself--it's not hard!" It really isn't difficult, and that's in large part to Ms. Beranbaum's applying the results of her painstaking research, and her excellent way of explaining how to combine everything.
I would recommend every single recipe I have tried, though I have three favorites that I would recommend especially: the Buttermilk Country Cake, the Cordon Rose Banana Cake and the Cordon Rose Cream Cheesecake. I can't bestow enough superlatives on those, and you can see separate recipe reviews for each of those.
One nice touch is that you can correspond with the author, who is on both Twitter (@flourrose) and Facebook.
Chez Panisse Desserts
By Lindsey Remolif Shere
Random House - 1985
Lindsey Remolif Shere is one of those rare cooks who has perfect pitch. She has a keen sense of what flavors and textures are most pleasing. She has a sense of what to pare away so that you are not inundated by detail but, still, you are left with an outstanding dessert.
Shere was the pastry chef at Chez Panisse years ago. In my mind, Alice Waters' greatest contribution and perhaps her greatest talent is choosing the best cooks to work with her. Shere is among her best finds of a very impressive crew of Chez Panisse alums.
Chez Panisse Desserts is full of recipes you would actually want to make. It is arranged by ingredient type and includes chapters such as "Flowers, Herbs, and Spices," "Berries," "Nuts and Dried Fruits" and "Wine and Spirits." The recipes are French-inspired but, ultimately, they are Californian, relying on locally-grown, fresh produce to create lots of fruit- and nut-based desserts.
The first chapter contains recipes for many basics like puff pastry, ladyfingers, vanilla Bavarian cream, pie crust and so on. The following chapters have recipes such as:
Pears poached in raspberry syrup
Pink grapefruit and champagne sherbet
Coconut ice cream
Jasmine ice cream
Coffee caramel ice cream
Wild blackberry curd
Apricot and cherry pie
Rhubarb tart
Butterscotch-pecan pie
White chocolate truffles
Kirsch parfait
There's also a thoughtfully put together bibliography, for anyone doing dessert research, and a good index.
The drawback to the book is that there are no pictures of the finished dishes, and sometimes not even a description of an item. So if you don't know of Ossi dei morti, for example, you won't know whether you would want to make them or not. But most of the recipes are of items that are easy-to-make, delicious, familiar, and expertly formulated, French- and American-style desserts.
Chez Panisse Desserts
By Lindsey R. Shere
Random House - 1994
Lindsey Remolif Shere is one of those rare cooks who has perfect pitch. She has a keen sense of what flavors and textures are most pleasing. She has a sense of what to pare away so that you are not inundated by detail but, still, you are left with an outstanding dessert.
Shere was the pastry chef at Chez Panisse years ago. In my mind, Alice Waters' greatest contribution and perhaps her greatest talent is choosing the best cooks to work with her. Shere is among her best finds of a very impressive crew of Chez Panisse alums.
Chez Panisse Desserts is full of recipes you would actually want to make. It is arranged by ingredient type and includes chapters such as "Flowers, Herbs, and Spices," "Berries," "Nuts and Dried Fruits" and "Wine and Spirits." The recipes are French-inspired but, ultimately, they are Californian, relying on locally-grown, fresh produce to create lots of fruit- and nut-based desserts.
The first chapter contains recipes for many basics like puff pastry, ladyfingers, vanilla Bavarian cream, pie crust and so on. The following chapters have recipes such as:
Pears poached in raspberry syrup
Pink grapefruit and champagne sherbet
Coconut ice cream
Jasmine ice cream
Coffee caramel ice cream
Wild blackberry curd
Apricot and cherry pie
Rhubarb tart
Butterscotch-pecan pie
White chocolate truffles
Kirsch parfait
There's also a thoughtfully put together bibliography, for anyone doing dessert research, and a good index.
The drawback to the book is that there are no pictures of the finished dishes, and sometimes not even a description of an item. So if you don't know of Ossi dei morti, for example, you won't know whether you would want to make them or not. But most of the recipes are of items that are easy-to-make, delicious, familiar, and expertly formulated, French- and American-style desserts.
Clementine in the Kitchen
By Samuel Chamberlain
Hastings House - 1943
This is a romp, such a good read. It is food-oriented, and contains recipes, but it is more the story of a US-born family and their French-born cook as they live together on two continents in the mid-20th Century. It is a paean to eating excellently, and with joy and love.
CUPCAKES
By Ceri Hadda
Simon & Schuster - 1995
This is an excellent book to get always-reliable recipes from. There are no decorating suggestions--this was published before the big cupcake craze of the mid-Aughts. I have tried many recipes from this book, and they are all stellar: Dutch apple crunch cakes, Blueberry crumb cakes, Maple-walnut cupcakes, Gold cupcakes, Blackberry jam cupcakes, Mocha cupcakes, Zucchini cupcakes, Orange-banana cupcakes, Banana-nut cupcakes, Marzipan cupcakes, Peanut butter cupcakes, etc. There is a large selection of frostings and fillings, and all I have tried have been very good.
I have many fabulous cake books, but when I want to make cupcakes, I often turn to this book. The small format is convenient to use, and the recipes have never failed me.
Fresh Fruit Desserts: Classic and Contemporary
By Sheryl London, Mel London
Prentice Hall Trade - 1990
This is a book of fancy desserts. Some take a few steps to prepare and some are more straightforward, but all of the recipes look like they're worth trying. The authors, the Londons, have a fine palette and a keen sense for constructing excellent recipes. The desserts draw often from the French repertoire, but there are representative recipes from Turkey, Morocco, Scotland, Austria, and others.
Of course, all of the recipes include fruit. From the simple Blackberry Cobbler with Cinnamon, to the more complex Vacherin Heart with Blueberry Curd and Fraises des Bois, every recipe has its charms. This could be a book to work your way through, one recipe after the next.
The Gastrokid Cookbook: Feeding a Foodie Family in a Fast-Food World
By Hugh Garvey, Matthew Yeomans
Wiley - 2009
At first, I thought this book might be too trendy to be very helpful, but it has lots of very simple recipes that yield tasty and nutritious foods that kids might actually eat. It does not take the hide-the-vegetable tack of some other books. It has a grilled zucchini recipe with haloumi cheese that, if you can get a kid to try it, would appeal to them: smoky, salty, cheesy, but, really, it's mostly vegetable. Many of the dishes rely on this technique. Pair a very healthy item with a little bit of bacon, a little bit of cheese, garlic & parsley, smoked paprika, etc. Give the food some savoriness, without being over the top, and the kids will like probably it after you serve it to them two or three times. Other recipe examples from the book: watermelon & feta salad; cauliflower puree; Parmesan chicken cutlets; seared scallops; pancetta & sage pizza; make-ahead French toast.
Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special: More Than 275 Recipes for Soups, Stews, Salads and Extras
By Moosewood Collective
Clarkson Potter - 1999
This is one of the Moosewood Collective's better books. It is focused on soups, salads and accompaniments, and those are where they really excel. There are over 200 recipes in the book, and it's very diverse, ranging from a chilled cherry-almond milk soup (vegan) to a Portuguese mussel stew, with lots of vegetarian soups in between, such as Choklay's Tibetan lentil soup (which is a favorite of mine). They had the seasons in mind when compiling this collection of recipes, so you'll find ideas for what to do with your produce year-round.
Some of the recipes have not turned out 100% well for me (such as Baked bean soup--too sour), but, overall, if you have good ingredients, and you're sure to add the optional ingredients whenever possible, you will likely be happy with the results.
Menu ideas are included for every recipe, and nutritional information is given. The layout and look of the book are appealing, with matte, off-white paper and occasional hand drawn images. The ingredients list is offset well from the instructions, and relevant commentary accompanies every recipe.
Other recipes in the book:
Golden summer soup (with yellow squash and sage)
French roasted onion soup
Mock chicken noodle soup (try this, vegetarians--delicious!!)
Fassoulada (a Greek bean and vegetable soup)
Tomato & kale soup with barley
Creamy potato cabbage soup
Strawberry soup (chilled, of course, and with Cointreau)
Catfish gumbo
Asparagus & fennel pasta salad
Fattoush (a bread salad)
Orzo & pesto-stuffed tomatoes
Wilted spinach & portabella mushrooms (no bacon required!)
Five-herb salad
Spicy cucumber salad
Luscious lemon-tahini dressing
Herbed cheese quick bread
Our special gluten-free bread
Curried croutons
Goat cheese toasts
Jalapeño cream
Scallion pancakes
Spiced paneer
A Sweet Quartet: Sugar, Almonds, Eggs, and Butter
By Fran Gage
North Point Press - 2002
This is a book about sugar, almonds, eggs and butter, and includes some excellent recipes by Fran Gage, San Francisco baker and former pâtisserie owner. It is a pleasure to read and the recipes are well selected and geared toward home baking.
SUGAR:
Poppy Seed Cake with Chocolate Swirl
Ginger Scones
Popcorn Balls with Cashews
Peppermint Lollipops
ALMONDS:
Almond Butter Cookies
Marzipan Ruffle Cake
Dates Filled with Chocolate Cream and Almonds
Chocolate Balls with Caramelized Almonds
EGGS:
Provencal Easter Bread
Coconut Souffle
Snow Eggs
Licorice Ice Cream
Saffron Orange Crème Brûlée
BUTTER:
Apricot Tarte Tatin
Cardamom Coins
Galette Bretonne
Fig Flans
Vegetarian Epicure Book Two (Book 2)
By Anna Thomas
Knopf - 1978
This was my first cookbook. When you only own one or a few cookbooks, you can really get to know the recipes. I tried maybe 1/4 of the recipes over the years, and several were just so-so, probably as much due to my lack of cooking experience as anything, many were very good, and a couple have become standbys for me (cranberry bread, split pea soup). But, for an inexperienced cook, I found that Thomas gave clear instructions and offered lots of variety.
The recipes are interpretations of the author, based on food that she sampled on her travels, as well as from her Polish heritage and from residing in California. They are written with a North American audience in mind, based on the ingredients lists and the measurements used.
The spicing can be a bit harsh in some cases, or the sweets too sweet occasionally, but all in all, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in cooking a wide variety of vegetarian foods. Thomas really covers a lot, and it's worth exploring.