Book review: Moosewood Restaurant Favorites

Title:  Moosewood Restaurant Favorites: The 250 Most-Requested, Naturally Delicious Recipes from One of America's Best-Loved Restaurants

Author:  Moosewood Collective
Publication Date:  Sep 3, 2013

Price at time of review:
Kindle edition:  $12.74
Hardcover:  $17.99

Book Description   Moosewood Restaurant, founded in 1973, revolutionized vegetarian cooking by introducing delicious soups, satisfying sandwiches, warming casseroles, zesty entrees, spiffy salads, and divine desserts. Moosewood Restaurant Favorites contains 250 of their most requested recipes completely updated and revised to reflect the way they're cooked now—increasingly vegan and gluten-free, benefitting from fresh herbs, new varieties of vegetables, and the wholesome goodness of newly-rediscovered grains.
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My Rating:

5 out of 5 stars!

My Review:

I don't even know where to begin.  Without a doubt, this will become one of my most used and loved cookbooks.  There are so many excellent recipes in here.  I was lucky enough to go to college near Moosewood Restaurant, so I have been a fan for years and I have a couple of their recipe books, but this is definitely my new favorite.  I love how they have updated the recipes and how detailed the instructions are.  Also, the serving suggestions, food pairings, and alternative prep comments are so helpful.  Cannot say enough good stuff about this one--a rare 5-star cookbook!

*ARC courtesy of St. Martin's Press, provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!*

Book Review: The Fresh Honey Cookbook by Laurey Masterton

Title:  The Fresh Honey Cookbook:  84 Recipes from a Beekeeper's Kitchen

Author:  Laurey Masterton

Publication Date:  Sept 11, 2013

Price at time of review (Amazon):
Kindle edition:  $9.99
Paperback:  $8.97, List price $14.95

     

Book description from Amazon:  Indulge in these 84 luscious recipes inspired by honey bees, the food they pollinate, and the wonderful range of honey they produce. Highlighting a different honey varietal each month (tupelo, orange blossom, acacia, avocado, raspberry, tulip poplar, sourwood, blueberry, cranberry, eucalyptus, chestnut, and sage), beekeeper and chef Laurey Masterton offers amazing dishes made from simple, fresh ingredients. You'll love Avocado and Mango Salad, Candy Roaster Squash Soup, Pork Tenderloin with Orange Blossom Honey-Mustard, Turkey Roulade in Puffed Pastry with Cranberry Chutney, Wild Salmon with a Smoky Onion Crust, Sweet Potato Salad with Sourwood Honey, Strawberry-Rhubarb Cream, Elsie's Cranberry Pie, and Coconut Macaroons with Dried Cherries. You'll also find honey-tasting tips and fascinating glimpses into the life of a beehive.

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My Rating:

3 out of 5 stars

My Review:

Let me start by saying this book deserves to be a 4 star rating.  I truly enjoyed it from cover to cover.  So why did I only rate it 3 stars?  I think the title is unintentionally misleading.  This was not really a honey cookbook, in fact some of the recipes do not even contain honey.  This book is more a mix of recipes and beekeeping facts.  Ms. Masterton does state in the intro that not all of the recipes contain honey, but rather they all include ingredients that would not exist without bees as pollinators.  This is not evident from the cover or title.

The book is organized into chapters by the season and months of the year.  Each season lists the chores of the beekeeper and then is divided into individual months with recipes.  There is a variety of recipes from appetizers through desserts and even some drinks.

Here's what I liked:  Beautiful color pictures of beekeeping throughout the year and of some of the recipes.  I also enjoyed reading about Ms. Masterton's adventures in beekeeping and all of the fun bee facts throughout the book.

What I think could have been improved:  not all of the recipes have pictures.  I always find it more difficult to get excited about a recipe without a pretty picture.  I also would have liked more recipes with honey.

As a novice beekeeper, I really enjoyed this book for it's beekeeping tips and recipes.  Perhaps it should have been titled simply "Recipes from a Beekeeper's Kitchen".

*ARC courtesy of Storey Publishing, provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you!*

Book Review: Year-Round Slow Cooker by Dina Cheney

Title:  Year-Round Slow Cooker

Author:  Dina Cheney

Publication Date:  Jun 17, 2013

Price at time of review:
Kindle edition:  $13.73
Paperback:  $14.45

     

Book description from Amazon:  Slow cookers are popular for good reason: They're the ultimate kitchen problem solvers. If you're watching your budget, they're well worth the $30 they cost since they can turn the cheapest cuts of meat into unctuous, mouth-watering results worthy of a five-star restaurant. Slow cookers also do the hard work, cooking for hours while you're out of the house only to come home to a meal just about ready to eat. And since slow cookers keep food warm, they allow different family members to eat at different times: a practical option in a world of staggered schedules.

Yet, slow cookers have an image problem. Most home cooks use them for cold weather meals only, while others think slow cookers can only produce food that's mushy, bland, and watery or rely solely on shortcut ingredients like spice packets, bouillon cubes, and bottled sauces.

No longer does this must-have kitchen tool deserve to be stored away when spring months hit. In Year-Round Slow Cooker, home cooks will find 100 delicious, modern, practical slow cooker recipes featuring seasonal produce. Recipes speak to the home cook whose palate is more sophisticated and who wants to incorporate seasonal produce into all of her meals.

Organized by season, Year-Round Slow Cooker features notes about the featured seasonal ingredients as well as invaluable tips throughout to help cooks maximize the power of the slow cooker.

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My Rating:

4 out of 5 stars

My Review:
I really liked this cookbook.  With my busy family, I am a huge fan of crock pot cooking.  The recipes in this book do not focus on quick and easy slow cooker meals, instead the author put a lot of thought into emphasizing seasonal fresh produce and flavor.  Even though the recipes are more "gourmet" than quick, the ingredients are not hard to come by.  There are so many recipes I have highlighted to try!

The book is loaded with tips on meat selection and how to buy and choose fresh vegetables and fruits.  Also tips about substitutions for vegan, vegetarian, or lower fat options.  Each recipe starts with an estimated prep time, slow cook time, misc cooking time, and number of servings.  The book is divide into four seasons and each season has loads of recipes, including some slow cooker breakfasts and desserts.  With 100 recipes, there is something in each season you will want to try.