Reviews (7)

A Must-Have for People Who Like to Have Company
This is the book I turn to for help in what to fix for what occasion.At the end of every recipe is a chart answering When to Fix It, How Far Ahead Can I Make This?
Excellent Source for Easy Entertaining for Experienced Cooks
`Perfect Recipes for Having People Over' by notable culinary writer, Pam Anderson is a sequel to her earlier `Perfect Recipes' and continues her somewhat revisionist approach to recipe writing I saw in `How to Cook Without a Recipe'.
A highly recommended pick for any regular hostess
When entertaining, it's important to have a cache of tried-and-tested dishes which are simple yet foolproof: Pam Anderson shares nearly 200 convenient dishes in Perfect Recipes For Having People Over, filled with dishes which lend to both make-ahead preparation and crowd-pleasers. From Easy Savory Strata to Perfect Roast Chicken with Several Sauces and Quesadillas for a Crowd, this is a highly recommended pick for any regular hostess.
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Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Entertaining    5. Entertaining - General    6. Cooking / Entertaining   

Reviews (22)

Where has this Bread Cookbook been all my Life?
I've been a home baker for many years and have owned ALL of the bread cookbooks that have been touted as 'the definitive' one to have.However, NONE of them ever helped me to achieve the type of perfect artisanal bread that this one did on my first attempt after reading it.
AT LAST! The Definitive Artisan Bread Guide We Wanted
THIS is the definitive guide for professional and serious home bakers; it is precisely the caliber of detailed information serious bakers have demanded in order to reach their next plateau of bread baking excellence.This is unmistakably the most comprehensive bread book of its type on the market. I am so delighted with the results it has shown my own baking.
Best book for in-depth knowledge
I just began baking a month ago, and this was the first of several books I read on the subject. I found this book to be the most comprehensive, straight-forward explanation of the process of bread making. The book has a fairly technical slant that is aimed somewhere between the commercial and home baker. I loved that approach because it gave me a better understanding of what is going on inside the loaf. Of the half dozen recipes I have tried so far, all have been very successful. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Baking - Confectionery    2. Bread    3. Cookery (Bread)    4. Cooking    5. Cooking / Wine    6. Courses & Dishes - Bread    7. Methods - Baking    8. Cooking / Baking    9. Food & Drink / Cookery   

Editorial Review

"Gourmet raw cuisine"--if that sounds like an oxymoron, you'll be amazed by the creativity of the recipes in this book. Every food is "live" (uncooked) in these vegetarian recipes from Juliano, the raw-food guru of Los Angeles. Juliano believes that fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, beans, and seeds in their rawest and purest form are the most nourishing foods. If your imagination stops at alfalfa sprouts and grated carrots, hold onto your cutting board. Juliano's recipes include Butternut Squash Soup, New Moon Fruit Stew, Thai Green Papaya Salad, Living Buckwheat Pizza Crust, Mango Essene Bread, Mock Salmon Sushi, Raw Spring Rolls, seven varieties of burritos, nine varieties of pizza, and nine unusual smoothies. Desserts? Try EZ Pudding (made with maple syrup, avocados, and carob powder) or Cashew Gelato (cashew butter, maple syrup, and almonds, served frozen). There are also condiments, dressings, and sauces, and plenty of information about preparing raw foods, including how to soak and sprout beans, grains, seeds, and nuts. Read more

Reviews (91)

Fun, flashy, but difficult
I am relatively new at being (mostly) "raw." For the past couple of months I've been exploring raw foods, trying out different books, online sources, etc (and feeling quite healthy, by the way). Juliano certainly has his niche in this raw world, but he's not for everyone. He is a colorful, flamboyant personality with a passion for raw foods, and his enthusiasm is infectious. I love his writing style, and I think he'd be a blast at a party. BUT this "uncook book" is not for beginners, nor "real" people who want fast, simple, do-able recipes. He's a restauranteur, hence the foods he makes need to be flashy. They take MANY ingredients (many of them are exotic, hard to find, hard to pronounce!), lots of prep time, and while I have certainly enjoyed reading this gorgeous, glossy book (which I got from the library), I am not finding myself making too many of these recipes. Just too difficult. When I look at a recipe that takes 14 ingredients (and serves 2) I'm just not gonna make it... I would, however, love to visit his restaurant next time I'm in California!

Excellent gourmet raw diet book
Although I do not strictly practice a raw food regmimen at all times, this book helps tremendously by providing tasty ways to make the diet more rich and palatable over time.
Terrific Book
I am going more raw in my cooking.This book provides me exactly what I am looking for. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery (Natural foods)    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Health & Healing - General    5. Natural foods    6. Raw food    7. Raw foods    8. Specific Ingredients - Natural Foods    9. Vegetarian - General    10. Cooking / Vegetarian    11. General cookery   

Reviews (40)

The only one you will need!!
This is an absolutely fabulous book - I use it all the time, I never knew one cook rice in so many varied and interesting ways!
Great collection of authentic Persian food.........
Ms. Batmanglij presents a thorough listing of Persian cuisine with beautiful pictures accompaning most dishes.Her style of cooking almost represents the Western orientation of Iran which is truly the most tasteful and decorative collection of the Persian cuisine.

Excellent food in easy to follow recipes!
This is an excellent cookbook with authentic Iranian cuisine. All the recipes I've tried so far, came out great, just as I remember my Iranian grandma making them. Some of the ingredients are difficult to find in areas without Iranian specialty food stores, but Batmanglij usually gives alternatives that are readily available anywhere. The directions for each recipe are clear and easy to follow. The beautiful pictures are mouth-watering, and it's sometimes difficult to decide what to cook first.
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Subjects:  1. Cookery, Iranian    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Iran    5. Reference    6. Regional & Ethnic - Middle Eastern    7. Social life and customs    8. Cookery, Middle Eastern    9. National & regional cuisine   

Editorial Review

Does the thought of cooking from scratch make you panic? Do you stand in front of your supermarket's canned vegetables display frozen with indecision? Is your fridge filled with takeout containers, and your oven used for storage? If you answered these questions with an emphatic "Yes," Sandra Lee'sRead more

Reviews (58)

Because "White Trash Cuisine" was already taken...it's "Semi-Homemade Cooking"
I admit that my review title was unfair and harsh.As was the opening remark I was going to borrow from P.J. O'Rourke: "...the only reason you would cook this would be to convince your ex-wife (or parole officer) that you were trying to live like a human being."
Try some of these, they're good, they're fast!
After reading a few of the reviews of this cookbook, I was a little confused. I bought Semi-Homemade Cooking without reading any reviews, and I'm glad I did. I'm a regular old mom and housewife, and one of my main goals every day is to make a delicious, hearty meal for my hard-working husband to appreciate when he gets home. I can't make a from-scratch masterpiece every day (especially with a one-year-old running around), so that is where this cookbook comes in handy!
Advertising
This book really isn't about eating on a budget or nutritious food.The way I see it, it is all about advertising.While this may have changed with the 2nd release of the book, the first release is just pages of her brand loyalties. Do we really need to use her brand recommendations for butter?Or saltines?Come on!
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Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Methods - General    4. Reference    5. Cooking / Quick & Easy   

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Decorating - General    3. Entertaining - General    4. House & Home   

Reviews (2)

A wonderful book to read, even if you never try the recipes
I read a lot, have far more cookbooks than anyone would ever need, and have purchased books from Amazon for years, but I have never before felt so moved by a book that I just had to write a review.So, here is my first review.
Real Food!
I am tired of recipes that call for no sugar, no butter, no cream. They taste like nothing.I'd rather eat a little, or even a lot, just less often, and have something that doesn't taste like cardboard with chemicals added.
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Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Courses & Dishes - Bread    4. Methods - Baking    5. Cooking / Baking   

Reviews (27)

The good, without the ugly!
I bought this book because my husband's best friend is diabetic. Every time I had them over for dinner he'd never be able to have dessert. We'd all eat and he'd watch. I felt really bad and needed a plan B, and this book was it. Now we can all have dessert the healthy way. I no longer use my other dessert books that are loaded with sugars. Great book, I absolutely love and recommend it!!!!

Simply Splendid
The title says it all. This is one of the most fantastic cookbooks out there. Written by a nutritionist, it features over 75 low-sugar, low-fat recipes with satisfying portion sizes and a delicious taste. The book has recipes for hot and cold beverages, breakfast treats, pies and cobblers, cookies, cakes, puddings, and more. Furthermore, the author explains how she came up with the recipes, so you can easily adapt your own. Splenda and simple lower-fat substitutions let you satisfy your sweet tooth without sacrificing yourself. Each recipe includes nutritional information, including the diabetic exchange plan. However, while this book is great for anyone watching their sugar and calorie intake, including diabetics, the recipes are not necessarily low carb and some sugar is occasionally called for (perhaps a couple of tablespoons or sugar, or in the form of chocolate). If you are already baking desserts with Splenda, then this cookbook, with its emphasis on healthy twists to traditional recipes, might not be so helpful. But if you are looking for melt-in-your-mouth inspiration, then check it out.

Low-cal American classics that really work!
I've had this book for several years, and I reach for it all the time. Every single recipe I've ever made from it has turned out well, and most have been spectacular. Favorites: Pumpkin Pie, Banana Cake, and Bran Muffins. I think the author really knows her baking science, and clearly has tested and retested every recipe.
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Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Courses & Dishes - Desserts    4. General    5. Health & Healing - General    6. Desserts    7. Health & Healing - Diabetic & Sugar-Free   

Reviews (6)

Great WW Recipes
If you're a fan of WW, you should love this book.It was written before any of the POINTS systems, so you have to do some calculations on your own.The nutrition info is provided for each recipe.This book is an especially good value because as another reviewer noted, for each main recipe, you get additional recipes provide a day's worth of meals.
Not the book for my family
Way too many of the recipes in this book have ingredients I have never heard of!Also, the ingredient lists are often very long.I am donating my copy to the public library and will use "The Moms' Guide to Meal Makeovers" and "Quick Meals for Healthy Kids and Busy Parents" to help me provide sensible meals for my family.

Great book but...
I just recieved this the other day and have yet to make any recipes from this cookbook.But I have now tried several of the WW cookbooks and they always have great recipes, so there is no doubt that I will find some more healthy ones in this book.Read more

Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. General    4. Health & Healing - Weight Control    5. Recipes    6. Reducing    7. Reducing diets    8. Diets & dieting    9. Health & wholefood cookery   

Reviews (1)

Small cakes - big fun!
I'm a big fan of Dede Wilson's Wedding Cake book and was happy to find her latest. Each clever cupcake is shown in a photo, and the recipes are easy, yummy and fun. There's a cupcake here for every occasion - I can't wait to try them all out! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cake    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Courses & Dishes - Cakes    6. Courses & Dishes - Desserts    7. Holiday cookery    8. Methods - Baking    9. Cooking / General    10. General cookery   

Reviews (55)

You've got to read this book!
I received this book as a gift. There are quite a few books on this subject on the market and this one is the best. I too could not put it down and finished it in 3 days. It's a huge book, a great resource that is well researched and written.. I have a few friends who've purchased this book and really loved it too. I can highly recommend this book.
Favorite Cookbook, Diet or Regular
This is my family's favorite cookbook.The recipes are fun and I haven't hit a dud yet.When I cook from it my family doesn't know I am cooking "light", they just think it is delicious. I have shared more recipies from this cookbook than any other I own.I would highly recommend this cookbook to anyone, not just those who are on the Weight Watcher's plan.We are eating yet another recipe from this tonight.I can hardly wait!

Restaurant Meals at home
I love the book.How many times do you wish you could cook something at home, that you had at a restaurant?
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Subjects:  1. Convenience foods    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Health & Healing - General    6. Health & Healing - Weight Control    7. Recipes    8. Reducing diets    9. Weight loss    10. Cooking / Health   

Reviews (4)

Great Little Wine Book
This is a wonderful little wine book. It contains at least 101 little tips to make you more knowledgable about wine. This is the perfect starter book for anyone looking to learn about wine and be able to carry on an intelligent conversation about wine.

Cute and Useful Wine Book!
The information in this book is not too dense but helpful in quickly understanding the process of wine making and many extras. It is decorated with pictures relating to the respective subjects covered. This book tells you easily how wine works - without the manuscripts you find in other books. It is organized in understandable sections. The diagrams are in color and are specific. If you have absolutely no knowledge on wine (like how I was), I recommended this book to anyone who wants to get a better understanding of wine.

Excellent source for beginners
I checked this book out of the library, and liked it so much I had to get a copy for myself! I am organizing a wine tasting group, and my hope is to educate as well as learn along with everyone else. We range from novice toexperience wine tasters in our group. This little guidebook is one that Iwill bring to every tasting as a quick reference for those who want tolearn an overview.Read more

Subjects:  1. Beverages - Wine & Spirits    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Reference    5. Wine and wine making    6. Cooking / Wine & Spirits   

Reviews (79)

great ideas not so great tasting
While I enjoyed the book's concepts and found the recipes and preperation easy to follow I found that the recipes are not so tasty.Several of them were just too repetitive and not something I would enjoy eating day in and day out.

Excellent book
I have read other Once a Month Cooking books and this is by far the best that I have encountered. Each recipe is on its own page, andthe ingredients and amounts are clearly listed in a grid format (for 6, 12, on up, servings) with cooking instructions, packaging suggestions and ways to cut the fat content. The website has even more recipes in this same format that you can download. If you wanted to, you could have the book's spine removed, have it 3-hole punched and create your own recipe binder, inserting whatever downloaded recipes you desire.
Good techniques, less than stellar recipes
First the good- I like the format, the technique works well, and I enjoyed making a lot of recipes for my small family that I could serve and store. I liked being able to grab additional recipes off the internet site.
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Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. General    4. Methods - Canning & Preserving    5. Methods - Quantity    6. Methods - Quick & Easy    7. Cooking / General   

Reviews (20)

Early 90's version- A+
I also have the early 90's version and it is great. All of the recipes are kid-friendly and family-friendly. I can whip up any of these recipes in a hurry or allow my 6 year old or 2 year old help out. I haven't seen the new version with the colors but this one has mormal font and pictures of each recipe. It is like a grown up cookbook but with the kids favorite foods!

Where did they hide the batteries to power the colors???
The classic easy-to-use and pantry-friendly Better Homes and Garden Cookbook is pretty much in every kitchen in America and chances are, it's already in yours too.If so, then then there's nothing in this obnoxiously-colored cookbook for kids that you couldn't find in either the adult BH & H cookbook or a back issue of Family Circle.With a few exceptions, (most notably the breakfast pizza and the Hula Stir Fry) it's all extremly standard fare.The only thing that sets it apart is the crazy fonts and colors so obnoxious that I had to wait ten minutes between reading it and writing this review so I could see straight again.I mean, are you really in need of another chicken nugget recipe?Isn't there anything more interesting they could come up with?And it isn't written to make the cooking any easier for kids--they might as well grab your adult copy and save their vision.
Greatest book I have in my kitchen.
First things first this review refers to the early 90's New Junior Cookbook. Second of all I am not a kid I'm just a 23 year old who lives in an assisted living Duplex who is learning how to cook to become more independent.
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Subjects:  1. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    2. Cookery    3. Cooking    4. Cooking & Food    5. Cooking / Wine    6. Courses & Dishes - General    7. Juvenile Nonfiction    8. Juvenile literature    9. Juvenile Nonfiction / Cooking   

Reviews (9)

D I E T....D O C T O R....I N....A....S M A L L...,B O O K.....!!!!
ANN LOUISE GITTLEMAN, M.S., C.N.S, has written several books on nutrition
Wow!
This book is fascinating. I find myself consulting it time and time again and trying to use these foods and spices more in my diet. The format is simple and easy to understand. I don't see why anyone wouldn't enjoy and learn from this book!

Another Winner
The FF Plan book told you what you needed to know to start really losing weight and begining a healthy lifestyle. FF Foods tells you what you need to know to continue. A great book for making up those shopping lists and perparing healthy, good tatsing meals. There islots information not only about what you really need to be eating but why. This book is a great companion to the FF cookbook. Highly recomemnded!
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Subjects:  1. Consumer Health    2. Diet/Nutrition    3. Diets - General    4. Diets - Weight Loss    5. Functional foods    6. Health & Fitness    7. Reducing diets    8. Diets & dieting    9. Food & Drink / Cookery    10. Health & Fitness / Diets   

Editorial Review

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Reviews (8)

Great Recipes, impossible ingredients
I can't make most of the recipes in this book without resorting to mailorder from La Tienda.I'm not living in the complete middle of nowhere, but a town of 100,000 is not large enough to stock things like monkfish or spanish chorizo or any of the other dozen essential ingredients Andres uses.He doesn't acknowledge that any of his essentials might be rare, and so never indicates alternative ingredients.
Tasting Tapas
I bought this book because a friend of mine took me to Andres' restaurant in DC while on vacation. I loved the food and wanted to recreate it when I got home.
Great Tapas!
This is a beautiful book and would make a wonderful gift for anyone who likes Tapas or enjoys looking a great cookbooks. Beautifully photographed, you get hungry just looking at it. Everything that I have made is wonderful. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery, Spanish    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Courses & Dishes - Appetizers    5. Regional & Ethnic - Spanish    6. Spanish Cookery    7. Tapas    8. United States    9. Cooking / Spanish   

Reviews (57)

Fantastic Cookbook!
I absolutely LOVE this book!! Buy-it-a-ring-march-it-down-the-aisle love it!!I'm one of those people with more cookbooks than I shake a whisk at and I go to this one over and over and over! It has everything! I've never had a loaf go wrong and every recipe I've tried is just delicious.
awesome book for beginner bakers!
i was just lucky - i didn't know anything about baking bread and i decided this looked like a good book.i had just received a bread machine as a gift and didn't know the first thing about making bread.this book helped explain it all and turned out DELICIOUS loafs of bread.now, mostly b/c of this book, i am an avid home baker and love to bake.this book still surprises me with the great variety of recipes you just don't find anywhere else.

I use this book more than any other cookbook on my shelf
I am a working mom but I love to cook and I love good food. My husband is European and won't eat American store-bought bread, so I got my first bread maker shortly after we were married almost 16 years ago. I got this book quite a few years ago and I've opened it about once a week since (about how often I make bread). I've made more than half of the recipes in the book, and they are all wonderful. I really couldn't live without it.
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Subjects:  1. Automatic bread machines    2. Bread    3. Cooking    4. Cooking / Wine    5. Courses & Dishes - Bread    6. Methods - Special Appliances    7. Cookery dishes & courses    8. Cooking / General    9. Cooking, Wine & Spirits   

Reviews (6)

Good recipes but needs more pics
I bought this cookbook because I have "The Best of Cooking Light" and that one is fabulous. This cookbook has some great recipes, but not near enough pictures. This book also includes lots of additional information that I'm not too interested in but that might help other cooks.

A year's worth of the best light dishes
COOKING LIGHT ANNUAL RECIPES 2006gathers a year's worth of Cooking Light Magazine dishes, from Spicy Pickled Beans and Breakfast Sausage Casserole to a Chicken Broccoli Casserole. A centerfold of color photos enhances sidebars of information and a appealing primer on dishes which have been 'lightened' for the new year. Both are outstanding recommendations.
An Excellent Healthy Source
While this is a summary of the magazine's recipes it is well organized and easy to reference.Easy to follow instructions are a definite plus.For once, cooking without a degree in rocket science being required. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Health & Healing - General    5. Health & Healing - Low Fat    6. Low-calorie diet    7. Menus    8. Methods - Lite    9. Recipes   

Reviews (8)

Remarkable... both a pragmatic AND scientific treatment
I have to admit, I did not know Paul Stamets was this generation's premier mycologist.After reading this volume, there is no doubt of it.He is objective, a true mycologist of the highest order, and a down-to-earth pragmatic steward of the environment.I have learned a lifetime of valuable information...both scientific as well as practical know-how from this book, (a rare feat).Not only does Stamets enthuse the reader with the miracle of possibilities in cultivating mushrooms for the environment, nutrition, (yes nutrition), and health benefits of Reishi and other mushrooms, he details how it is to be done, (by individual cultivators and/or commercial operations alike).