The Best Cookbooks List

COOKBOOK REVIEW: Salad For Dinner

  Salad for Dinner by Jeanne Kelley

    The word salad has been undergoing a transformation in the past year or so. Rather than being presented as a side, or an afterthought, salads are taking the stage as the main dish---and I have to say I like that idea.

     When I lived in England and France, lunch was often a salad. In English pubs they do smashing salad plates where they pile together an assortment of salads. In France, the cruditee plate is a favorite of mine for lunch, again, a piling on of assorted vegetable salads on a plate. Although I don't remember having one for dinner when eating out in those countries, they were quite normal for lunch. Here in America, we already have an appreciation for enjoying a large salad for dinner in a restaurant or at home.

    Jeanne Kelley is extending the salad as a main course idea in her new book, Salad for Dinner. 

     This is an organized book, which makes it easy to learn from. Recipes for salads are divided into salads made from vegetables, salads with meat, salads with chicken, and salads with fish. Before you get to the recipes, there are complete instructions on how to clean greens, how to forage for salad, and how to grow greens for salads. And there is a lot to learn. I had never heard of mizuna, tatsoi, puntarelle, or miner's lettuce. And many ingredients in the recipes are ones that I have never come accross, so it was fascinating to read through this cookbook.

    Once I dug in and tried a few recipes, I was very content. The roasted acorn squash and brussels sprouts salad was superb and beautiful to look at with deep yellows, greens and deep reds---and it was absolutely delicious. 

    It's the flavor combinations Jeanne blends together that are so compelling. Beets and Blood Oranges and Goat Cheese and Almonds. Smoked Turkey and Port Figs and Blue Cheese and Whole Wheat Croutons. Mixed Greens with Farro and Bacon and Dates and Walnuts and Pears and Parmesan. See what I mean? Crunch and silk and salt and sweet all on one plate.

    She really won me over when she didn't leave us hanging at the end of the cookbook full of salads. She gave us a desset to finish with, a luscious chocolate cream pie. This was her reasoning:

    "I wanted to include one fantastic sweet in this book because, when you eat salad for lunch or dinner, shouldn't you be rewarded with dessert?"

    Exactly! 

 Salad for Dinner by Jeanne Kelley (Rizzoli, 2012)

 

COOKBOOK REVIEW: Big Vegan

 

  

Big Vegan: More than 350 Recipes, No Meat/No Dairy All Delicious by Robin Asbell

It has taken me a long while to get around to writing a review of this new cookbook because I have been cooking from it! There are just so many recipes that are tempting that I have been integrating them into my daily cooking and thoroughly enjoying them.

And you literally could cook all of them and take a year to do it! This is a big, big 544 page book that weighs over three pounds---an everything book---a go-to book along the lines of the Joy Of Cooking---only it is all vegetarian and plant based.

"I believe that the best way to convince people to eat their veggies is to seduce, to tempt with an alluring plate that delights the senses. I hope you will agree that Big Vegan does that and more." --- Robin Asbell

What I love about the recipes are that they are NOT bland lentil soup and cashew meatloaf kind of vegetarian recipes, the kind that send me running when I see them on the menu in a vegetarian restaurant. These are vibrant, delicious, robust, gourmet vegetarian recipes that are as beautiful to look at as they are delicious to eat. 

I made the Spanish Chickpea Fritters with Romesco Sauce and it was to die for. Simply wonderful. I also made the Wild Rice and Blueberry Salad which was filled with jewel like colors and deep flavors. And the Savory Eggplant Walnut Strudels were so good I plan to make them to pass around with cocktails during the holidays.

In addition to the recipes there is a large section devoted to explaining what vegan eating means and what pantry staples you will need to have on hand, an ingredient glossary and a resources page. Along the way the dialog is friendly and filled with tips and tricks for bringing out the best from your non-meat non-dairy ingredients.

This is the first book I have come across in this genre that is exciting. It sparks the imagination, reads beautifully, inspires me in that it makes it so easy to eat "healthy", and it excites me because I keep reaching for it and immediately finding something I really want to cook.

So besides being a great vegan cookbook, it is undeniably a great cookbook for anyone in love with food and cooking.

I am taking the liberty of sharing with you a recipe from Big Vegan for a yummy quick dessert I know you will enjoy!

Ginger Mango Rice Pudding

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup short grain brown rice

2 cups water

1 1/2 cups coconut milk

1/2 cup palm or brown sugar

3 oz. dried mangoes, chopped

1/2 cup crystallized ginger, chopped

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 pinch salt

1 tablespoon cornstarch

 Method:

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the rice and 2 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, then cover tightly and cook for 40 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the coconut milk, the sugar, mangoes, ginger, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Cover and cook until most of the liquids are absorbed, about 10 minutes.

2. In a cup, whisk the remaining 1/2 cup coconut milk with the cornstarch. Stir into the pot of rice and keep stirring until it is thick, about 5 minutes or more. Transfer the rice pudding to a serving bowl or individual bowls and let it cool, or refrigerate if desired, before serving.

Big Vegan: More than 350 Recipes, No Meat/No Dairy All Delicious by Robin Asbell

 

SALAD AS A MEAL by Patricia Wells

Hi Everyone!

I am presently participating in a Food Challenge on my other blog, Marche Dimanche. For one month, I and eight other bloggers are cooking from recipes in Salad as a Meal: Healthy Main-Dish Salads for Every Season by Patricia Wells. So much fun! So I thought this would be a great time, while I have my apron on and am in the midst of testing twelve recipes, to review this new cookbook.

Let's just say that I am enjoying every recipe immensely. Why? Well, it is not a diet book, but I have now lost three pounds cooking from this new cook book. I am able to tumble together eye-catching ingredients into meals that look like it took a much longer time to make. And I know that I am treating my body very well by dining on the freshest and lightest foods.

Here are some pictures of the meals I have made so far. This first one is an egg crepe stuffed with spinach and mushrooms. How healthy is that?!! (OK, I cheated a little by making mini muffins to side it, but they are mini!) I made it for breakfast yesterday. 

This next one is a Cobb Salad that tasted better than any Cobb Salad I have ever had. It is going in my Keeper Recipe Box.

The following luscious salad made a hearty lunch. It was from the recipe: Turkey Breast With Lemon, Capers, Cornichons, and Mint. Bonus: I got two quarts of lovely turkey broth from cooking the turkey that I used the next day as a base for soup. And I had enough turkey leftovers for another day's meal. Perfect!

The next was a star attraction. A Crab Salad that was so moist and flavorful it transported me to the tropics for a day. I sided it with a chilly goblet of Riesling.

Now that I have tested these recipes and have a line-up of others to make this month, I can very confidently say to you that this is one cook book you will want to have on your shelf this Spring and Summer. These dishes are the kind of food you want to eat when it is warm out, when you are dining under the stars on a hot summer night, or when you want to pack a meal and take it with you as a picnic.

Come follow me on my food blog, Marche Dimanche, to see the other recipes I am cooking all month from Salad as a Meal: Healthy Main-Dish Salads for Every Season. Come get healthy with me! 

Salad as a Meal: Healthy Main-Dish Salads for Every Season by Patricia Wells