Posts Tagged ‘review’

I’m not too sure how many more reviews I’ll be doing. Partly because I’m busier now and don’t have as much time to test out more complicated recipes during a weeknight and partly because I don’t know if some books really need a review (e.g. Rachael Ray books).

Rose’s Heavenly Cakes is a follow up to The Cake Bible. This book is laid out much differently and I have to say I prefer The Cake Bible’s layout where cakes and frostings were separate because I could mix and match. Here, the frosting is with the cake that it’s supposed to go with. What I do like about this book is all the gorgeous pictures and this really brings the book alive. There’s also mini cakes and cupcakes section for those who love all things petite. Also missing from this book is the finished height measurements and storage/keep instructions that go with every recipe. Beranbaum decided to have the storage instructions near the front for the cakes instead. I prefer the instructions being with the recipe for easy reference.

I’m a big fan of measuring by weight which is another reason why I like this book. The recipes here are just as stellar as the original. The luxury lemon cake that I made for R’s 30th? It was a lot of work but turned out amazing.

The yellow butter cupcakes are some of the best cupcakes I have ever had and I highly recommend you try them.

If the original Cake Bible seemed intimidating, this is would be a better book. The approach is more simple and has a lot of visuals so you can see how the product is supposed to turn out.

If you’re looking to really get into complex cakes, buttercreams, and preserves, I would get The Cake Bible. Both books are good and they’re not really meant to replace the other.

I recently got the book Get It Ripe by Jae Steele. I’ve been looking forward to getting it from all the rave reviews I’ve read. This is more than just a cookbook as it goes into food choices (e.g. organic vs local), digestion, and even a cleansing and detox section.

As much as I like my refined sugars and other unhealthy treats, this book is a nice change from my usual habits and the recipes focus on whole grains and unrefined sugars. It also helps that the recipes taste good.

The banana chocolate chip muffins?

Definitely up there with the other muffins I make.

My 2 year old niece came over so we could bake cookies together. She’s allergic to eggs and dairy and I prefer feeding my niece treats that aren’t filled with unrefined sugar. This book is perfect for that. I chose the Flax Maple Cookies because there’s 6 ingredients and the instructions are so simple and straight forward.

I prepped all the ingredients beforehand so my niece could just pour everything into the bowl and I wouldn’t waste time measuring ingredients. She did well mixing the ingredients together, but once the batter came together she was too interested in tasting the dough to do the rest.

Verdict? She likes the cookies! My sister took home a bunch and the ones that were left here were eaten so quickly by R that I had to tell him to stop eating any more so I could take a picture of them.

Recipe here. There’s also a video for this recipe here.

Up for review is Martha Stewart’s Cookies. I like Martha Stewart and use her Baking Handbook frequently so I picked this one up. I love the way the way the book is laid out. Every recipe has a photo and the table of contents is broken into textures such as light and delicate, chunky and nutty, cakey and tender, etc. So whatever you’re in the mood for you can find a cookie (and photo) to match. Each recipe takes up a single page so there’s no need to flip pages with batter all over your hands.

I used this book to make some of my Christmas cookies. The sesame cookies are definitely repeat worthy.

The pecan bars that I thought tasted too much like honey and was going to write off forever ended up being a huge hit with my family. It goes to show what one person doesn’t like, another may love.

With 175 recipes, I’ll be looking to this book again for next Christmas.

A day late, but here is my next review: Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours.

I like that Dorie Greenspan wasn’t a perfect baker at first and was pretty clueless. While I’m still not a perfect baker, I was just as clueless. I always managed to set off the smoke detector with whatever I made.

There are enough pictures in this book to inspire anyone if they flip through it. This book is filled with her favourite recipes and this gives you extra assurance that anything you make will turn out. I like her “playing around” suggestions where she gives you variations on the recipes. I always like knowing the best way an item should be stored and for all the recipes she gives this info.

This book was on my wishlist for a few years before it was gifted to me. Most of the recipes have turned out (I did have an unfortunate outcome with the maple tuilles) and almost all of them being repeat worthy. The flaky apple turnovers beat out the much more complicated turnovers I made from the Pie and Pastry Bible.

My overall favourite recipe? The caramel-peanut topped brownie cake. It’s one of those recipes I need to make when I’m taking it to a gathering, otherwise I will eat it all.

The recipes for the most part aren’t finicky, but still turn out great. I have many recipes bookmarked to try.

To get more of a feel for the book, be sure to check out the Tuesdays with Dorie group.

If there was one cookbook where I’d want to try all the recipes out of, this is the cookbook I would choose. Donna Hay’s No Time to Cook is such a great book that it’s a shame it’s not being sold on amazon.com.

I’ve made about a dozen things out of this book and I like how all the recipes have pictures so you know what to expect. The recipes are no fuss and many of them can be done quickly. Those that have longer cooking times have minimal hands on time.

Some favourites have been the balsamic chicken stack, the curry-crusted chicken is in regular rotation, and her marinades and sauces are a breeze to make and so versatile.

I find that I have to do a bit of adjustments with her recipes because she’ll call for too much of something that completely overwhelms the dish. An example is the squashed tomatoes and spaghetti that called for way too many tomatoes. It was easy to see that it was too much and it’s hardly an issue to not make that dish again. The final dish was excellent.

I made the Crunchy Parmesan-Crumbed Chicken with good results. The ingredient list is 6 items (including pepper) and was really easy to throw together. In the recipe, you make a large batch of breadcrumbs that you can portion off and freeze for future use.

This review is on one of the oldest books in my collection, Clueless in the Kitchen. When I was living on my own, this was one of the two books I bought. I bought this online just from the title alone.

The book claims it is a cookbook for teens, but it’s for everyone and it’s a book you can grow with. It’s aimed at individuals who are living on their own and goes over kitchen essentials, how to defrost a freezer, and how to shop for food. Throughout the book are icons to designate cheap eats, comfort food (“mom food”), vegetarian, cooking to impress, couch potato food, and quick food. I wish the index had a section for these icons so I wouldn’t have to flip through the book looking for an icon. There’s also suggested menus and a glossary at the back that is helpful.

I’ve made a ton of recipes in here and have dishes that make it into regular rotation. When my cooking skills increased and I had to figure out how to make a gravy, I turned to this book. The recipes here are simple but solid. My mom, who can make crazy good Filipino dishes, struggles with dishes that aren’t in her usual repertoire. She would use this book to make meals for when company came over and they always turned out tasty. If this book helped my mom and me out, it’s sure to help anybody else.

The book doesn’t have any photos at all. It has diagrams on how to cut up food, but no pictures of finished dishes. Please don’t let that deter you, the outcome is always turns out.

Here are a few of the (many) recipes I love:
- Curry glazed chicken
- Chocolate mocha torte (back when I couldn’t bake, I made this all the time)
- Mushrooms masquerading as escargots (mushrooms drenched in garlic and butter, instant winner)

I recently tried the stir fry recipe that’s in the book and it’s also repeat worthy. And guess what? This dish was more liked than the Cook’s Illustrated recipe I tried.

Stir fry is probably the quickest and easiest way of getting more vegetables into your diet. I used marinated tofu cubes that gave it a nice punch of flavour.

Stir-Fry (adapted from Clueless in the Kitchen)
Serves 3-4

1 bunch of broccoli, florets cut and stems thinly sliced
1 red pepper, sliced lengthwise
4 green onions cut into 1″ pieces
Marinated tofu cubes
1/4 cup vegetable broth
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil

Soy sauce mixture
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon sherry
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup broth

Prep everything beforehand as this is quick to cook. In a small bowl combine all the ingredients of the soy sauce mixture. Pour half the vegetable/peanut oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Stir-fry the tofu until it gets a bit crispy, remove and set aside.

Add the rest of the oil and when hot fry garlic until fragrant (about 10 seconds) then add the broccoli and pepper and stir-fry for 1-2 mins. Add green onions, the rest of the broth and cover the pan to steam the veggies (about 2 mins). The broccoli should be lightly cooked. Put the tofu back in, add the soy sauce mixture and stir constantly. When the sauce thickens and becomes glossy, it’s done.

While my cookbook collection isn’t as big as others, it is pretty darn big. What started out as 2 very basic (how to make a grilled cheese sandwich anyone?) cookbooks to help me not eat frozen dinners twice a day has grown to about 50 cookbooks. With that many cookbooks I could review one a week for almost the whole year. It’d also force me to try out more recipes and review ones that I made a long time ago.

First book is Jaden Hair’s The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook. I first came across her site looking for a fish recipe. Since then I’ve made her German oven pancakes and her baby back ribs with orange glaze and have many more recipes bookmarked. So when her cookbook came out I was very excited to get it.

The book is in-depth going into tools, ingredient, and basic recipes for sauces, stock, and salts. If you’re a visual learner, there are pictures for almost every single recipe in the book. It’s always nice to know if the dish you made looks similar to the one in the book. For some of the recipes how to photos are provided in case you don’t know how to make rolls or wrap wontons. And the photos? Jaden has done a fabulous job of food styling and photographing the dishes. Stunning!

Recipes are simple and quick to make. I’ve started to make my way through the book and have made the Pad Thai, Garlic Butter Noodles, and Quick Omelette with Shrimp and Peas all with excellent results. There’s many more I’d like to try.

One of my favourites in the book (so far) is the Baked Crispy Chicken with Citrus Teriyaki Sauce. It is crazy delicious and so simple to make. The temperature of the oven needs to be at 475F. My oven runs a lot cooler on higher temperatures so my oven thermometer was a big help. The timing was perfect and the chicken came out incredibly moist.

You must try this recipe.

Baked Crispy Chicken with Citrus Teriyaki Sauce (reprinted with permission from Jaden Hair)
Serves 4 as part of a multicourse meal

1/2 cup (50 g) all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1 cup (120 g) panko breadcrumbs
1 lb (500 g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Nonstick cooking spray

Citrus Teriyaki Dipping Sauce
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons orange juice
3 tablespoons sake
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons mirin

1. In a saucepot, bring all ingredients for the Citrus Teriyaki Dipping Sauce to a boil. Turn the heat to low and let simmer for 6 minutes until slightly thickened.
2. Preheat the oven to 475F(245C).
3. Line up 3 shallow bowls. Put the flour in the first bowl, the eggs in the second (and beat with fork), and the panko in the third bowl. Also have nearby a sheet pan with a baking rack placed in it (Note: I used a broiler pan that worked fine)
4. Pound each chicken breast to 1/4 to 1/2 inch (6mm-12mm) thickness. Season each piece of chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.
5. You’ll work with one piece of chicken at a time. Lightly dredge a piece in the flour on both sides. Then dip in the beaten eggs, making sure that you coat the entire piece. Then, pat in the panko, pressing gently to adhere the crumbs. While the chicken is still in the shallow bowl with the panko, spray the topside with cooking spray. Place the chicken piece onto the baking rack with the side you’ve just sprayed facing down. Then spray the other side with cooking spray. Repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
6. Bake for 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes, then cut into several pieces. To serve, lay a bed of shredded lettuce on a plate, top with the sliced chicken pieces and serve with the Citrus Teriyaki Dipping Sauce.

I’ve been meaning to write a review about this place when I tried it out a year ago. Seeing as R’s birthday dinner was here, I should resurrect this post.

Rodney’s Oyster House is a great place to go if you’re a seafood lover. Specifically oysters and lobsters (they also have an awesome steamed mussels dish). The knowledge the staff has about the wines and food here is incredible. The server we had was so informative and helpful. He went over the taste of different oysters, the traditional way of eating them, and even chose a few beginner oysters for those who have never tried them before. Next time I’m back there I’ll have them pick out what’s best that day. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of them.

What I really like about this place is that half sharing is ok so you don’t need to mow down a whole lobster to yourself (although I’m sure I could be persuaded to). This can make dining here relatively affordable. At $34.50 for a pound and a half of lobster, that’s $17.25 per dish which also comes with a side of fries. With the oysters we ordered, it was a satisfying meal.

I wish I took pictures, but I forgot to bring a camera which would have gotten dirty anyway as eating lobster is a messy job.

I had been holding off on writing a review until I tried more recipes. Looking at my notes, I’ve made 8 recipes out of the 150 in The Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum which doesn’t seem like a lot at all. However, I’ve made 7 in the last 4 months which by my standards makes me a bit carb crazy.

I received this book as a Christmas present. Even though I asked for the book, I knew it would be daunting. Having bought Rose’s Christmas Cookies it prepared me for her preferred method of baking (going by weight instead of volume) and her detailed instructions. It’s true, if you follow the directions exactly, it’s almost guaranteed to turn out wonderfully. Do remember to check out her errata, it’ll save you heartache from the recipe not turning out after all that work. I think it’s great that she has a blog to update corrections regularly.

While I learned how to make bread from this book, I don’t know if I’d recommend it for other beginners learning to bake bread. It’s a bit intimidating for someone who is uninitiated in bread baking to read through all of the information, tips, and the recipes that usually take 2 days to prepare and bake. If you don’t mind Beranbaum’s thoroughness, then this is a fabulous book. It’s also great for people who already bake bread and are looking to delve deeper.

I like how the recipes have alternate mixing methods so if you don’t have a mixer, you can do it by hand. The pointers for success provides very helpful information and gives understanding to the method. The recipes that I have tried have all been repeat worthy and sensational. The brioche is to die and the pizza dough is something that will be made often in my household. If you’re looking for whole grain recipes, you’ll want to find another book. Few of the recipes in here include only small amounts of rye or whole wheat flour, for the most part it’s all white flour.

I love this book and it’s started me on the path to not buying store-bought bread as often.

When I found out that Movie Man’s brother wanted to learn how to cook I got excited. I have a weird obsession with beginner cook books and even though I have 3 absolute beginner cook books in my possession I must have more. I think it’s because there’s always some sort of tip or trick that I always learn. Plus I dig the super easy dishes. I’ve had the discussion with my co-volunteer and he believes that beginner books titled “Cooking for dummies” is insulting. I find them not as intimidating.

The Guy Can’t Cook by Cinda Chavich (who also wrote The Girl Can’t Cook — a book I secretly covet) is the book I picked up for him as a Christmas present. The biggest drawback to the book is that there are no photos. This is a pet peeve of mine for cook books in general as I like to see what the food is supposed to look like before I make it. The tone of the book is very conversational. The author talks about the dish a bit and gives tips if needed. There are illustrations that are helpful like where to touch on the palm of your hand to determine when your steak is done.

The book is split up in three sections: Sustenance, Decadence, and Observance. There’s even a section for meals catered to two people and of course a section on grilling (this is a guy’s book after all). You can still refer back to even when you’ve accomplished the basics. It is not all about basic pastas.  With over 350 recipes, you’re bound to find a recipe (or thirty) that appeals to you.  Recipes that have caught my eye: a section on how to make different aiolis, Nut-Crusted Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Goat Cheese, Hot Crab and Artichoke Dip, Chocolate Lava Cakes with Crème Anglaise, and Mahogany-Glazed Short Ribs. The Lava Cakes are even made with frozen chocolate in the middle to prevent that disappointing cut into the cake to find that the gooey chocolate centre that was promised is non-existant.

I hope that Movie Man’s brother puts this book to good use and it helps expand his current repertoire of the same chicken dish he only knows how to make.