Subjects:  1. Activities    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking & Food    5. Cooking / Wine    6. Family    7. Methods - General    8. Juvenile Nonfiction / Cooking   

Reviews (5)

Amazing Flavors!!
We have been plank cooking salmon for years.The Haugen's book on plank cooking has opened up a new world for us.WE have used recipes from every chapter both on the grill and in the oven and they are all wonderful!The easy to follow instructions and recipes will make it easy for anyone to become an expert at plank cooking!

An introduction to a Pacific Northwest Tradition
I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and have always enjoyed the flavor of salmon cooked over alder.After some friends treated us to alder "planked" salmon on a camping trip, we searched Amazon and discovered this book.We've tried a number of the basic recipes with great success.Perhaps more significantly, those recipes have encouraged me to experiment with a variety of woods for some of my more "traditional" recipes, every time with great success.(For example, spareribs, a Texas-style dry rub, and either an alder or hickory plank make a fantastic taste combination.)The recipes include a wide range of spice and flavor combinations, from simple to what I would call "nouveau cuisine," which should meet most people's taste preferences.And the range of possible combinations, based on wood types, additional spices, or flavors in the soaking process, leaves room for almost limitless experimentation.
Scott & Tiffany Haugen
In response to Cook Kazoo, we were surprised with the harsh review.Several thousand of our books have been sold and this response was the first negative one we or our publisher have received.The recipes in Plank Cooking were all kitchen testedmultiple times.We had at least 5 taste-testers per recipe and many of the recipes were cooked by other people prior to being published.There are however, things that can go wrong in plank cooking if instructions are not followed.To insure plank cooking success only use non-treated, non-resinous woods such as alder, cedar, oak, maple, hickory, apple or cherry.There are many great cooking planks on the market today.Planks need to be soaked prior to cooking to not only prolong their life but to impart moisture into the food.Planks on the grill need to be closely monitored to prevent excessive flare ups and to control the amount of smoke desired.Finally, good quality ingredients must be used to produce a high quality meal.If you haven't tried cooking on a plank, give it a try, the possibilities are endless! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Methods - Barbecue & Grilling    4. Methods - General    5. Methods - Special Appliances   

Reviews (1)

Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes 2005 (Martha Stewart Living Annual Recipes)
Great Book! Can't wait to finish baking all the wonderful receipes within the book! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. General    5. Methods - General   

Editorial Review

First published in 1954, Read more

Reviews (5)

Good recipes
I particularly recommend the Egg Nog of the Commonwealth Club of Richmond, VA.My husband made this for a party at a friend's house, and everybody loved it!This is the best egg nog I ever tasted, and I have tasted a few.

Highly recommended
I believe that this is one of the best French cookbooks of all time. Very old, traditional recipes explained in a way that makes even the more advanced ones seem doable. She also includes recipes from her youth in America and tells how she came across the recipe for Haschich Fudge. The stories interwoven are captivating, especially about the society she and Gertrude Stein kept, and their efforts during WWI as volunteers. In this respect it is a fascinating historical document. It is written as if she is speaking to you, and her speech is very blunt, to the point and quietly humorous. Very enjoyable to read.

Exquisite Recipes and Fun to read, too!
Ive been cooking with _Joy of Cooking_ for a long time now. _Joy_ makes reference to a chapter in this book, "Murder in the Kitchen," as a sort of primer on how to 'murder' a carp in the kitchen before cooking. Idecided, on a whim, to buy the book.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery, French    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Essays    5. French cooking    6. History    7. Methods - General    8. Methods - Gourmet    9. Regional & Ethnic - French    10. Cooking / General    11. General cookery   

Editorial Review

Fred Plotkin brings together passion and scholarship, poetry, history, and vivid images of Liguria in Read more

Reviews (4)

Cookbook from Paradise
This is an outstanding cookbook.The recipes are interesting with some being unusual. I have cooked many of the dishes in this book often for entertaining and everyone has been impressed. I'm constantly asked where the recipes come from and if I would share them. For the most part the recipes are fairly simple and always straightforward. Fred Plotkin has obviously put much thought and care into the recipes because they always turn out, not something that can be said for most cookbooks. I highly recommend this book for the novice cook as well as the more experienced.

Recipes From Paradise, Fred Plotkin
I bought this book and was very disappointed by the recipes.It is beautifully presented but the recipes were, in my opinion, probably not tested by the author for either flavor or correct proportion of ingredients. Good stuff
I found this book while searching Amazon for something on Genoa/Liguria, in hopes of learning more about my ancestral home. Mr. Plotkin's book did not disappoint. While it is mostly a cookbook (and the recipes I've made from it so far have been delisioso) I enjoy it mainly for his fond descriptions of Genoa/Liguria and its people. While there are plenty of travel books about Venice, Rome, Florence, etc., there seems to have been very little (at least that is still in print) about "La Superba." Although Twain, Dickens, and others who Plotkin quotes extensively wrote lovingly of Genoa, most modern writers have ignored her. This book helps to restore this oversight by giving this fascinating city her due. I recommend it to anyone who would like to vist Genoa/Liguria or who wants to know more about this stunning unsung region. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cookery, Italian    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Food habits    6. Italy    7. Methods - General    8. Regional & Ethnic - Italian    9. Riviera    10. Cooking / General    11. National & regional cuisine   

Reviews (4)

Excellent Cookbook!
I love this cookbook.There is a great mix of traditional with a twist and new recipes.It is great if you want to expand on your cast iron cooking.Most cookbooks offer just the basics that most people who have any cooking experience already know how to fix.If you are looking for standard recipes for fried chicken, corn bread or biscuits and gravy only, you might not appreciate the span of this book.

Useful, not exceptional
I absolutely adore cast iron and I have purchased a few books on the subject as well as experimenting on my own. I found most of therecipes in this book to be just fine but a little "out there" for your average chef with a big black pan and a pile of burning wood. "Souffleed Bittersweet Chocolate Omelet with Hot Fudge Sauce" and "Sauce Remoulade" are great and all, but where's the "Biscuits and Sausage Gravy?" In all fairness, there is a recipe for biscuits which I haven't tried yet. Overall there seems to be a plethora of recipes which are cute and interesting but likely won't be used very often and a there is a dearth of down-home cookin'. I liked "Cast Iron Cooking: from Johnnycakes to Blackened Redfish by A.D. Livingston" much better.

Good Intro, Good recipes, clearly written
As a fan of cast iron and dutch oven cooking, I enjoyed the history and the "color" she gave in the beginning of the book. Read more

Subjects:  1. Cast-iron    2. Cookery, American    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Cookware    6. Methods - General    7. Methods - Special Appliances    8. Fiction / Romance / Historical    9. General cookery   

Editorial Review

Cocoa Cobweb Cupcakes, Black Cat Cookies, and Stained-Glass Spooks are just a few of the spirited tastes you'll encounter in Donata Maggipinto's delightful Read more

Reviews (3)

Great Pictures, Good Recipes, Fun Ideas
I have had this book for sometime now, and I always break it out for for my halloween parties. The pumpkin curry soup recipe is sooo yummy, and the pictures and crafts are inpiring! If you are in the 20-35 year old set, I would reccomend this book!

great photos, inspiring ideas
It was so hot here in AZ this fall, I needed a jumpstart to get into the Halloween spirit. This was just the book. Great photos and seasonal recipes made me run out to buy sweet potatoes for making the baked chips! Ienvisioned keeping them on hand for lunches and snacks, but they were gonein a day. The black cats were cute, too, but we all suffered with blacktongues after the fact. Plenty of other cute ideas for little ones. Beautiful pictures, some good ideas but not much substance
I enjoyed the wonderfully festive pictures and I was able to glean some ideas from her book as a starting point for my own Hallowe'en projects. However, I'm not so sure there is enough substance nor wholly originalideas to make it a worthwhile purchase. It is a fun book to thumb throughbut most of the "magic" is to be found in the photographs.Itried some of the recipies: the cocoa cobweb cupcakes were not"chocolatey" enough and the pumpkin soup was okay but notspectacular. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Halloween    4. Halloween cookery    5. Halloween decorations    6. Holiday - General    7. Holiday decorations    8. Methods - General    9. Cooking / Holiday    10. Customs    11. Decorative arts & crafts    12. General cookery   

Subjects:  1. Clay pot cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Low-fat diet    5. Methods - Baking    6. Methods - General    7. Recipes   

Subjects:  1. Cooking / Wine    2. Health & Healing - General    3. Life Stages - Infants & Toddlers/General    4. Cooking / General    5. Methods - General    6. Cookery    7. Cooking   

Reviews (34)

Good Food and Two Great Causes
I've tried many of the recipes and they have come out very well so far.My favorites are the shepherd's pie, watermelon salad with fennel and the Mandarin Star martini.The proceeds from this book benefit ovarian and breast cancer research and that alone makes this cook book one of my all time favorites.Add that to the ease and great taste of the recipes and you have a true gem.
I'm disappointed
I am truly disappointed in this book. I bought it because of all the positive reviews. However, after paging through, I see no conenction to the celebrities. The food was so-so and I was wondering if the authors really tested the recipes. I am most disappointed that there are so many bad reviews of this cookbook.

Gold Stars
Very well done.Quite a variety.Look delicious. Nice of the stars to contribute to this worthy cause. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Courses & Dishes - General    5. Methods - General   

Editorial Review

You know to first consult Read more

Reviews (3)

Highly Recommended
I highly recommend this book. The book has 8 chapters dedicated to different kinds of salads and they're:
Fab Salads
This book has a great variety of classical and new salads. They all are not only delicious, but the recipies are well-written and thorough. The book also contains other cooking tips that help make your salads better. What a great resource for summer cooking.

You can prepare a different salad every night
Cooking in the summer is drag. It can make your whole house hot.I recently found a great new book I fell in love with.This book on salads and dressing is produced by the Joy of Cooking folks.So you know they will provide excellent recipes. I have always had a hard time creating salad dressings, and original salads.Guess what?This book does it will ease. This book is well organized, and easy to read. I love all of the extra tips and extra material that they add to the book. I hope you will enjoy this book as much as I have. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Courses & Dishes - Salads    4. Courses & Dishes - Sauces & Dressings    5. General    6. Methods - General    7. Salad dressing    8. Salads    9. Cooking / Salads   

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cookery (Relishes)    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Courses & Dishes - Sauces & Dressings    6. Methods - General    7. Salsas (Cookery)    8. Sauces    9. Cooking / Courses & Dishes / Sauces & Dressings   

Reviews (10)

Must Have!
This book is a life saver!!!
A must have for throwing the best cocktail parties!
Leslie Brenner's book is a terrific reference book for anyone who enjoys entertaining.The book starts off with an outstanding recap of the history of cocktail parties.The author includes tidbits like the most popular drinks from certain eras.Who would have thought that the `cocktail dress' deserves it's own discussion? Excellent entertaining ideas
I don't know about any of you, but my social inadequacies come up when I have people over to entertain.This book was very helpful to me and humorously written. The recipes are varied and good. I especially loved the "Mango Lime Dipping Sauce" and the "Coconut Shrimp" combo. I have recommended this to friends as well as presenting it as a housewarming gift on many occasions.Enjoy ! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Appetizers    2. Beverages    3. Cocktail parties    4. Cocktails    5. Cooking    6. Cooking / Wine    7. Entertaining - Party Planning    8. Methods - General    9. Parties    10. Tablesetting    11. Cooking / Entertaining    12. Food & Drink / Cookery   

Editorial Review

Where can twentysomethings learn to cook? Read more

Reviews (10)

Ah the pretty people.......
Write a book on Basic Cooking. There are much better basic cooking books out there. In the beginning of the book instead of focusing on their own book they attempt to disparage well known classics by saying it's no "Joy of" or other types of books. And I've notice on how the people featured don't looked like they've actually cooked anything. Just posed with food that has been cooked or in the process of being cooked by unseen REAL COOKS. Check out Cooks Illustrated Series or How to cook everything for real cooking. This is fluff.

Finally, something simple
I recently moved out into my own apartment, and I've been looking all over for a book like this. Finally a cookbook that's unpretentious, extremely simple, and has nice big pictures. I'm just as literate as the next cat at my university (actually, probably more so), but I really like to have pictures with recipes - it's the easiest way to tell whether or not I'm going to like something before cooking it. I respect that there are classic cookbooks which probably have better recipes, but since I never got basic kitchen 101, I'm not at that level yet, and this book is a great stepping stone. Hopefully, after a few years of cooking with this, I can actually understand the Joy of Cooking!

Basic Cookbook and Not Basic Cooking
I mistakenly thought this book would teach me the basics of cooking, not really.Like every other cookbook I read through it without understanding the meaning of the technical cooking terms.Plus you gain little insight into the fundamentals of proper cooking technique.
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Subjects:  1. Cookery, International    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Methods - General    5. Methods - Quick & Easy    6. Reference    7. Health   

Subjects:  1. Cereals, Prepared    2. Cookery (Cereals)    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Courses & Dishes - General    6. Methods - General    7. Specific Ingredients - Rice & Grains    8. Food & drink / cookery: general interest    9. Juvenile Nonfiction / Cooking   

Reviews (6)

Take this to the farmers' market!
We bought a copy of this for our beach house hosts and liked it so much I had to get one for home, too. As another (more negative) reviewer noted, none of the recipes is earth-shatteringly new, but rather natural combinations of ingredients that you might not come up with on your own and want to try. In this way, the book reminds me of Cucina Fresca or Cucina Rustica, which are similar in sort of simply preparing good, fresh food. The author has a nice, casual writing style. Beautiful pictures, nicely laid out. I use this book a lot along with Italian Vegetarian (Jack Bishop) when I have some produce or a seasonal veg and am wondering how best to use it. Highly recommended.

Recipes which are quickly and easily prepared
There are numerous theme cookbooks on the market, so what makes Barbara Scott-Goodman's The Beach House Cookbook a winner? For one thing, it uses the theme of seaside freshness to create feasts based on seafood and fresh vegetables. So readers should have an affection for fresh seafood in order to appreciate The Beach House Cookbook. From an Oyster and Vegetable Bisque to Grilled Swordfish with Mango Salsa, emphasis is on recipes which are quickly and easily prepared, lending to beach picnics and vacation cooking.

Already well splattered. I keep it next to the salt.
This is a great cookbook! Made the lobster and roasted veg salad last night and got raves.
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Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Methods - General    5. Regional & Ethnic - American - General    6. Seasonal    7. Specific Ingredients - General    8. Cooking / Seafood   

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. General    5. Methods - General    6. Fiction / Romance / Contemporary   

Editorial Review

In Read more

Reviews (11)

Cook like a master
After purchasing his other books I was relieved to finally have an opportunity to actually cook something of his without improvising on some key ingredient. The book is short onepictures which makes it tough to visualize the end result but that is only a minor flaw. Every cook should have this book in their library.

Excellent introduction to Trotter-style cooking
There is no question that this book, and any of chef Trotter's books, are for the medium to advanced cook. I found these recipes to be fairly easy to follow, but require preparation. My advice is to read the recipe fully first. I have prepared at least a dozen of these recipes and never once has the dish turned out wrong. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to create advanced dishes.

Revising my review
On January 7, 2000, I reviewed this book and wrote that I had trouble with two of the recipes that I tried.I decided to give this book another try, and had great success with the following recipes, since they were more straightforward and didn't require flipping to the back of the book for sub recipes.The grilled swordfish and somen noodle salad was delicious, mussels and linguini in garlic-mussel broth was excellent, roasted pork tenderloin with red cabbage-- yummy, and poached salmon with noodles, fennel and apple outstanding!I'm giving this book a revised rating of four stars and am trotting offto my bookstore to check out some of Charlie Trotter's other cookbooks. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cookery, International    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. International cooking    6. Kitchen sessions (Television p    7. Methods - General    8. General cookery   

Reviews (3)

A must have for the new chef
If you are planning on joining the "Chef Ranks", then this is a must have book for you.I have been a Chef for 40 years and I have used this book as a training tool for new Chef that I have training.You will find it up-to-day and comprehensive in content.

Awesome book for culinary students
This book gives great information on preparing and handling food properly and of course the most important is how to store food before and after cooking.This book was a requirement for class but another book I purchase was not a requirement but I thought was extremely helpful was The Study Guide for the National Servsafe Exam.This book had very similar questions to what's in class and on the exam and it help me pass with high grades.Thank you Dr. Leonardi and Ms. Heilman

If you want to know the hows and whys, this is a good book
This book is required for the Culinary school that I attend and I have found it extremely helpful.As its title implies, it is for the serious student and a good reference book to keep because it identifies foods,explains proper handling, storage, and preparation tecnique, and alsoincludes recipes.If you just want to throw together a recipe, buy a BettyCrocker cookbook.If you want to do it the professional way, buy thisbook. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Methods - General    4. Methods - Professional    5. Quantity cookery    6. Reference    7. Cooking / Professional    8. Hotel & catering trades   

Reviews (10)

Ugly--But Delicious and Worth Their Weight in Gold
This book is a bit of a heartbreaker in these tight economic times: The best truffles--the revered white truffles of Alba, in Northern Italy--were going for about [ninety dollars] an ounce the last time I looked, or dared to look. Still, it's a good read. If you (like most of us) can't afford truffles but (like some of us) are still entranced by them, this books counts as 'armchair dining.' And if you can afford these gems, this book will help you buy intelligently. Not only are there many different kinds of truffle but these days 'counterfeit' truffles--second- or third-raters dragged in from Hungary and China--have been sneaked onto the market. The lore you need to to tell them apart (and what to do with them when you buy) is here presented by Rosario Safina, president of Urbani USA, the world's largest truffle importer. Safina and his co-auther, Judith Sutton, do a good job of presenting both information and recipes. Apart from genuinely useful information, they also impart some truly strange facts. Considering what truffles fetch on the market today, is it not strange for example that not so many years ago people were ashamed to eat them? They were poor folks' food--ugly, strong-smelling fungi hunted out by dogs and dug up from underground. Well, there was a time when New Englanders felt the same way about another poverty dish--lobster.

Accessible Luxury
I love truffles but I've always thought of them as something you order in restaurants, not use in home cooking. They're expensive and I didn't really know how to buy them, store them, how much to use, and all that. This very well-written book tells all--and now that there's no mystery and I'm not afraid of making an costly mistake, I will buy truffles and truffle products. Truffle butter, honey, oil, cheese, and flour are all simple to use and will be great fun to play around with. To me they are the best kind of convenience foods--they add alot of flavor and luxury without a lot of cooking or prep time. I don't spend lots of time cooking--I think you can prepare great food without it--and this book seems to have that same philosopy. The recipes are simple and enticing. They often focus on humble foods--like potatoes, eggs, pasta, rice, lentils, and vinaigrettes--which give you a great way to flavor all your favorite foods and make any meal special with very little effort.

Another great cookery book by Judith Sutton
For years, Chef/Writer Sutton has guided my choice of cookery books through her book reviews and articles.Now her latest work--I often turn to her previous piece on champagne and chocolate--is a joy to behold. Beautiful, well-conceived.And the recipes, etc. are also great.Good reading. Good eating. Great gift.The best cookery book of the year. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery (Truffles)    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Methods - General    5. Reference    6. Specific Ingredients - Vegetables    7. Truffles    8. Cookery by ingredient    9. Cooking / Culinary Arts & Techniques