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My rating: 3 of 5 spoons
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I’ve always been interested in international cuisines, and French cuisine fascinates me. I was definitely looking forward to a great book on life and food in France. The first “issue” came up just 4 pages into the book. The author is talking about technique and how it’s important to do things the way the French do them if you’re cooking French cuisine. In talking about different techniques used in “Fillets of Sole Provençale”, she states that tomatoes must be peeled and seeded. However, the actual recipe only tells you to core, seed and chop the tomatoes. If you’re an experienced cook, this won’t be an issue, but for many people, they may not have had the experience to just know what to do. If technique is so important, include it in the actual recipe!

The recipes in this book are great. It’s as much or more memoir than cookbook, but there are still some great, classic recipes here that are well worth your time. The memoir portion—well, you’ll have to decide for yourself. The author was very big on her privileged childhood, and lots of name-dropping as time went on. The writing came across as though the author feels very superior to whoever might be reading this book. That was a real down side for me. It all depends on what you’re looking for in a book.

I received a copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press through the Lisa Ekus Group for my honest opinion. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 4 of 5 spoons
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I am addicted to Italian cookbooks. I fell in love with the food on a visit Sicily, and have cooked more Italian than anything every since. “Franny’s Simple, Seasonal, Italian” sucked me in immediately. This book is a feast for the eyes as well as the palate. Lovely recipes such as “Warm Controne Bean Salad with Radicchio and Pancetta” (lets face it–if it has pancetta in it, it HAS to be good!!), “Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Almonds and Pecorino”, (my FAVORITE cheese of all time!), “Spaghetti with Herbs and Ricotta” (classic Italian simplicity) and “Pistachio Cake” fill this book. The photos are lovely, though I wish there were more of them, and just reading the recipes starts my gastric juices flowing! I highly recommend other Italian food lovers to try out this book.

My biggest issue was with the xantham gum in all the gelatos and sorbettos. I make gelato fairly regularly, and never have to resort to xanthum gum to get good results. I could have done without the chapter on cocktails, but that’s pretty easy to ignore.

Over all, this is a great cookbook to fill those Italian cravings, and would be a great addition to anyone’s collection of cookbooks.

I received a copy of this book from Artisan Books for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 5 of 5 spoons
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I was asked if I’d be interested in reviewing this cookbook and, while I had to laugh at the name, I was more than willing to give it a shot. I had never heard of “The Frog Commissary Cookbook”, though I see now that many consider it a classic. I have to say, I have really enjoyed it! I received it during the holiday season and since I couldn’t find my old stand-by pecan pie recipe, I decided to use the recipe from this book. Wow! I’m so glad I did!! I have to say, this is one of the best pecan pie recipes I’ve ever used. I HIGHLY recommend it along with the Phyllo Packets with Spinach, Feta & Pine Nuts. Yum!! Make sure to try out the Mixed Vegetable Slaw and Brussel Sprouts with Bacon, Roasted Peppers & Balsamic Vinegar as well. I have to admit, I have not yet tried the Carrot Cake recipe, which I’m told is the best there is, but it is definitely on my “to-cook” list.

This is a great cookbook. Many recipes are unique and the layout is pretty nice. There are line drawing illustrations scattered throughout the book that add to the vintage cookbook look. I have to admit, some photos would be really nice. All-in-all, this is a really nice cookbook with interesting recipes, and I would definitely recommend to anyone to check it out.

I received a copy of this cookbook from Cammino Books for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 3 of 5 spoons
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I couldn’t wait to get into this book, but the author turned me off before I ever got to the recipes. She comes across as very arrogant and boastful to the point I quit reading anything but the recipes. The recipes are varied and fascinating, but not enough for me to keep this book around.

UPDATE**  I first reviewed this book on my own just because I was interested in it.  A couple of months later I received an unsolicited copy from the publisher (which, I might say, I do not have an issue with receiving unsolicited cookbooks to review!), so I thought I’d go back and re-examine this book and see if I missed anything. 

On the positive side, because I was reviewing for a publisher, I did look at the actual recipes more, and found many great recipes.  The book is well laid out and the photos are great.

On the negative side, I still have several issues with this book.  I realize many would not be bothered by this and think I’m being picky, but I didn’t appreciate her referring to God as “She”.  The biggest thing that struck me going through the book this time was on page 47 in the section on cooking for kids she makes this statement: “Allow them (kids) to knead raw beef and stretch dough between their fingers–but be sure they don’t swallow uncooked dough.”  So, let me get this straight.  She’s very concerned about your child’s safety so doesn’t want them to eat raw dough, but has nothing to say about raw meat?!  I found that very strange.

The quality of many of the recipes and the actual quality of the book pushed my rating up slightly, but definitely not going on my favorites list. 

I received a copy of this book from Artisan for my honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 3 of 5 spoons
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I was excited to receive this book and dove right in only to come up with mixed feelings. I was looking for a cookbook filled with authentic street food from Mexico. There are definitely a lot of those recipes in this book, but some fell woefully short such as the Cornmeal Biscuits with Cheddar and Chipotle that the author clearly states were based on biscuits she loved growing up so she made a “Mexican” version. There are many dishes in here that are definitely NOT street food, and that made this book a little disappointing.

The other issue I had with this book is some of the ingredients it calls for. Sea urchin roe, epazote (I had to look this one up. It’s a hard to find spice.), huitlacoche (a corn fungus–seriously!) and goat meat are definitely not readily available in most of the United States, so that dropped my rating a bit, too.

There are some lovely recipes in here that are great. I’m a sucker for the Mexico City-Style Street Corn and I love the Jicama, Orange and Apple Salad and Roasted Chicken Flautas.

Go into this book with your eyes open, and I’ll think you’ll find lots to enjoy. This book is full of lovely photographs and interesting information and some great recipes–just not all of them are actually “Mexican Street Food”.

I received a copy of this book from Skyhorse Publishing for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 5 of 5 spoons
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This is such a great resource for cooks!! From bare beginners to confident cooks, all can glean from this reference book for cooks. From chopping onions, to cleaning mussels, corning beef, poaching an egg, making homemade ricotta cheese (something I LOVE to do, but I know many cooks who didn’t even realize you could easily make your own at home), carving a turkey or cooking in parchment paper, this book covers it all. It’s not just a “how-to” book, but after teaching you the technique then gives you at least one recipe to use that technique. While most cooks can glean something from this book, I especially recommend it to beginner cooks. There is so much they can learn out of this book. I highly recommend it!

I received a copy of this book from Agate Publishing for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 4 of 5 spoons
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Bread is one of my biggest weaknesses. Other than a cheese shop, a bakery can draw me in quicker than anything. I love baking my own bread and filling the house with the wonderful smells and then sitting down to the amazing flavors. I expected this book to be right up my alley. Make no mistake; there are some great recipes in this book. I was very disappointed with the number of errors. I actually received the second edition, so I expected the errors to be fixed. There’s only half a dozen or so on the errata page, but those were noted to be mistakes in the first edition so I was really surprised that ALL the mistakes weren’t corrected for the second edition. I also had to laugh out loud at the recipe for Bakery Challah which calls for 7 1/2 egg yolks. Really?! I’ve never seen a recipe call for you to split an egg yolk before!

This book is filled with wonderful recipes that call you in and cry out to be made. I can imagine that this would be a jewel for someone who grew up in New York or somewhere with Jewish bakeries and now has moved away and can’t get all the lovely baked goods they grew up with. I hear people talk about the different breads, rolls or pastries that were their favorites, and chances are they’re in this book! I just have to caution you to print out the errata page for any corrections first.

I received a copy of this book from Camino Books for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 5 of 5 spoons
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I have a guilty pleasure: I love cooking shows! It was while watching one of my favorite ones that I first saw someone use a salt block to cook and I was immediately fascinated. I was very excited to get this book and check it out. I did NOT realize how expensive the salt blocks can be!  Definitely be ready to make an investment if you want a good salt block of a decent size.

The recipes in here range from super simple to slightly more complicated, but definitely intriguing. You have to try the “Salt Brick Grilled Chicken”!! There’s a great section in the beginning filled with history, how to shop for a salt block, sizing guide, handling and more. This is definitely the quintessential book on salt block cooking, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to foray into this area of cooking.

I received a copy of this book from Andrews McMeel Publishing through the Lisa Ekus Group for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 4 of 5 spoons
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I’m not a fan of the hard pretzels you buy in bags, but I love a good soft pretzel every now and then, so I was really interested in getting into this book and trying my hand at it.

The book itself is a nice layout. More photos would have been nice, but the photos they have used are great. There is lots of good information in the front of the book with history, whys and wherefores. I haven’t really gotten to cook much out of this book, though. As a Christian and non-drinker, I will not buy beer–even to cook with and a good portion of the recipes call for beer. I also have a tiny kitchen and 4 little kids, so I don’t really have a good set up to use the lye solution. However, there is some great information in this book, lovely dips/toppings and a few recipes I can cook now and with some more research maybe I can find a good substitute for the beer and cook some more of these recipes.

I did drop the rating to a four due to the beer and lye as not everyone can/will use these, but for someone with no problems with beer and a good setup to be able to use the lye, this is definitely the book to go for!

I received a copy of this book from Chronicle Books through the Lisa Ekus Group for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My rating: 3 of 5 spoons
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“Small, Sweet and Italian-ish” might be a better title for this cookbook. A good portion of the recipes seem to be more derivative than actual Italian recipes, which made it somewhat of a disappointment to me. I can create Italian-ish recipes on my own. I was looking for authentic Italian desserts, and so this cookbook didn’t quite cut it for me.

On the other hand, if you just want some delicious dessert recipes, or if you are a die-hard Sweet Maria’s Bakery fan, this would definitely be a great cookbook for you! There are some amazing recipes in here (including some that are authentic Italian desserts) that would make a perfect finishing touch for any meal. Definitely try out the Godfather Cupcakes, Chocolate Cookie Cannoli with Whipped Cream and Pistachio Chocolate Cupcakes to name a few.

The only other issue with this cookbook is that the author assumes you have a stand mixer, so most if not all of the instructions are for a stand mixer. If you don’t have one, you just have to figure out the best way to do it yourself.

I received a copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.