Deprecated: Function WP_Dependencies->add_data() was called with an argument that is deprecated since version 6.9.0! IE conditional comments are ignored by all supported browsers. in /home1/tummytre/public_html/blog/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6131

Cookbook Review Day

Today I want to talk about some new cookbooks that I recently received.  I have become very particular about the cookbooks that grace my shelves these days, and that is for one reason really, room.  My coobook shelves are literally bursting, I have filled all the shelf space and have now started stacking them on top of the shelves. So when I really want a new cookbook, I really need to think about it and think about whether or not it is worthy of my precious space. I decided that both of these books today are worthy of my space, and I actually got rid of one little used book to make room.

This first one is simply one of the most beautiful cookbooks I have ever seen.  Spain And The World Table is a compilation of Spanish recipes from the most highly respected Spanish chefs. From the Culinary Institute of America, this book takes recipes created by such greats as Jose Andres and Norman Van Aken and presents them in a way which they can be recreated by the home cook.  Martha Rose Shulman, whose work I am very familiar with, provides the writing and commentary all throughout the book.  Yet it’s not just a cookbook. This is also a reference book.  Anything you ever wanted to know about Spanish cuisine is in this book.  After a recipe Mission Figs stuffed with blue cheese is a reference page full of details about Spanish cheeses, after a recipe for Consomme with Saffron, we get a tutorial on saffron and when and where we should use it- and is it worth its hefty price tag?  There are bits about the different regions of Spain, and I have to say, there is a lot of information in this book, but it’s presented in such an accessible way.  The book itself is beautiful enough- with a picture for almost every single recipe, that if I had a coffee table, this would be on it.

The caveat is that I haven’t cooked out of it yet, so I can’t attest to the nature of the specific recipes. However, reading through several of them that caught my eye, they don’t seem particularly difficult or too avant garde to give them a whirl in my home kitchen.  Every once in a while a recipe will mention a lengthy reduction or there is one recipe specifically that uses a foam- where did I put that foam-making device anyway?  But overall, they really seem geared toward the home cook, and give us an opportunity to try at home the dishes that the world is talking about.  Spanish cuisine is hot right now- but there are so few cookbooks devoted to the cuisine that this is a very welcome addition to my world parade of cookbooks.  With recipes like Hazelnut Passion Fruit Ice Cream, Lamb and Roasted Pepper Ragout, Sea Scallops with Green Raisin Salsa, and Mango, Scotch Bonnet, and Sesame Mojo, this is a book I could read through several times over and not get bored with it.  I can’t wait to give some of these recipes a whirl.

The second book I wanted to mention today is more fun and less intensive than the Spanish tome, but an equally wonderful addition to my cookbook collection.  Grilled Pizzas and Piadianas brings the art of grilled pizza back home where it belongs.  It wasn’t that long ago that Andy and I figured out just how to make a grilled pizza in the first place.  A careful ballet of flipping crust and adding toppings at just the right time elevates pizza to a whole new level.  This book shows us exactly what we could be doing to make it easier, as well as gives us a virtual parade of pizza topping ideas.  As an example, The New Orlean pizza has blackened crawfish, Andouille sausage, fontina cheese, and a spicy apricot sauce as it’s toppings.  I would have never thought of those toppings for pizza- but now that I’ve seen it, it sounds and looks amazing. The Moroccan pizza is topped with curried chicken, roasted garlic and kalamata olives, The Millenium is topped with ground lamb, feta and cucumber!  There are dozens of new pizza ideas here, and every turn of the page gives me a new mouth-watering picture, and the desire to make pizza!

Then there’s the piadinas. What exactly is a piadina? Well, it’s like a flatbread sandwich.  It’s sort of like making a pizza dough and then rolling it around toppings like a wrap, and apparently, they are very popular in Italy. These also look amazing!  Piadina Firenze is stuffed with grilled eggplant and peppers, and is one I’ll be trying when the eggplant comes up in the garden. There’s also a special chapter here for my husband, who is always wanting to make a dessert on the grill.  We have an Apple Tart- a pizza crust topped with cinnamon glazed apples and almonds, a Grilled Banana Split, and something called The S’more, a pizza topped with chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows!  There are also tips on throwing the ultimate grilled pizza party as well as suggestions for beverages that accompany some of the pizzas.  I have to say, as much as I love this book, this would have made a fantastic Father’s Day gift for Andy, since he’s always wanting to make grilled pizzas.  We’ll be taking this book for a spin this weekend if the weather cooperates.

Uncategorized - by Erika

397,615 thoughts on “Cookbook Review Day”

  2. naturally like your web-site but you need to take a look
    at the spelling on quite a few of your posts. A number of them are rife with
    spelling problems and I in finding it very troublesome to inform the reality
    nevertheless I’ll surely come again again.

    Feel free to visit my blog Larimar Jewelry

  3. What’s up, this weekend is nice in favor of me, since this occasion i am
    reading this enormous informative post here at my residence.

  6. Hello there! I could have sworn I’ve been to this site before but
    after going through some of the articles I realized it’s new to me.
    Regardless, I’m certainly delighted I discovered it and I’ll be book-marking it and checking back regularly!

  12. Greetings! I’ve been following your web site for a long time
    now and finally got the courage to go ahead and give you a shout out from Huffman Tx!

    Just wanted to tell you keep up the great job!

  13. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my
    blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates.
    I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping
    maybe you would have some experience with something like this.
    Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy
    reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.

    My blog … Larimar Jewelry

  17. I got this web page from my friend who shared with me
    about this site and at the moment this time I am visiting this web site and reading very informative articles here.

  23. With havin so much content and articles do you ever run into any
    issues of plagorism or copyright infringement?
    My website has a lot of completely unique content I’ve either created myself or outsourced but it seems a lot of it is popping it up all
    over the internet without my agreement. Do you know any techniques to help prevent
    content from being stolen? I’d certainly appreciate it.

  26. What’s up, always i used to check blog posts here early in the daylight, as i enjoy to gain knowledge of more and more.

  32. I like the valuable information you provide in your articles.
    I’ll bookmark your blog and take a look at once more right here frequently.
    I’m quite sure I will be told many new stuff right right here!
    Best of luck for the following!

  37. Quality posts is the important to attract the users to visit the web page,
    that’s what this web page is providing.

  39. Good day! This post could not be written any better!
    Reading through this post reminds me of my previous room mate!
    He always kept chatting about this. I will forward this post to
    him. Fairly certain he will have a good read. Many thanks for sharing!

  44. you are truly a just right webmaster. The web site loading speed is incredible.

    It seems that you are doing any unique trick.
    Moreover, The contents are masterpiece. you have done a fantastic process in this topic!

    Here is my blog post – Larimar Jewelry

  46. Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it.
    Look advanced to more added agreeable from you!
    By the way, how could we communicate?

  48. Hi there! I know this is kinda off topic however I’d figured I’d ask.
    Would you be interested in trading links or maybe guest authoring a blog post or vice-versa?
    My blog addresses a lot of the same subjects as yours and I believe we could greatly benefit from each other.
    If you might be interested feel free to shoot me an e-mail.
    I look forward to hearing from you! Great blog by the way!

  49. I absolutely love your blog and find the majority of your post’s to be exactly I’m
    looking for. Do you offer guest writers to write content
    for you? I wouldn’t mind producing a post or elaborating on a number of
    the subjects you write with regards to here. Again, awesome web site!

Comments are closed.