I've been getting great cookbooks from the Parachute Branch Library for some time now. When I saw these three were available via interlibrary loan I jumped on them. They'd come to my attention via the Leite's Culinaria blog I read. They were giveaways and though I didn't win, I did get to see them, yeah libraries!
1.
Title: Hot & Cheesy
Author: Clifford A. Wright
Grade: B
Description from back: A comforting collection of cheese dishes from the James Beard Award-Wining Author.
Review: I love cheese. I grew up in Western New York where if something isn't deep fried it comes with cheese. Sometimes it is deep fried cheese. There are two reasons this cookbook did not receive an A rating from me. One, there were no pictures. No cookbook, no matter how good should be without pictures. Not hand-drawn hokey, homey ones either. We're talking full color photographs. Two, a lot of the recipes were for things WITH cheese and not OF cheese. If you look at the sections below you can see just how many of them mention "with cheese." Disappointing, that. Some of the tips about cheese in general that peppered the recipes were awesome and useful. I'll be making or trying over 50 of the recipes in this book and it is well worth it to get it if you like cheese.
Sections:
Soups. Sauces & Dips
Fritters with Cheese
Savory Crepes & Pancakes with Cheese
Pies, Tarts, and Quiches with Cheese
Pizzas, Calzones, and Breads with Cheese
Sandwiches with Cheese
Quesadillas, Enchiladas, and Burritos with Cheese
Eggs and Cheese
Cheese and more cheese
Pasta with Cheese
Rice and Polenta with Cheese
Vegetables with Cheese
Meat and Seafood with Cheese
Sweets with Cheese
2.
Title: Bean by Bean: A Cookbook
Author: Crescent Dragonwagon
Grade: C
Description from back matter: The bountiful bean - humble yet haute, soulfully satisfying - knows no borders, belongs in all seasons, and revels in a world's worth of flavors, seasonings, and combinations. In more than 175 recipes, from down-home to elegant, beans become soups, tews, chilies and curries, slathers and salads, burgers - even dessert. Amazingly versatile, deeply delectable, those supermarket staples, exotic heirlooms, tofus, and tempehs make a bite-by-bite, bean-by-bean celebration.
Review: Again, what's with NO PICTURES. Admittedly, pictures of beans aren't exactly amazing fodder but it's a COOKBOOK! Preparing for the zombie apocalypse my family has been changing our eating habits to include more beans and less meat. I was expecting a bit more. I guess even James Beard award winners have a hard time finding exciting things (description above notwithstanding) to do with beans. I liked the "Beginners Beanery" as before I married Mark I'd only had canned green beans, Bush's baked beans and kidney beans. Now that I've tried others there were a few recipes that I'll probably try. Think three.
Sections:
Bean Basics
Hummus, Where the Heart Is
Soulful Simmer
Cool Beans
Chili Weather
Superior Stews, Companionable Curries
Bountiful Bean Bakes, Comforting Caseroles
Home on the Range
Beans and Grains
Sweet Beans
3.
Title: Crazy Sexy Kitchen: 150 plant-empowered recipes to ignite a mouthwatering revolution
Author: Kris Carr with Chef Chad Sarno
Grade: DNF
Description from flap: In Crazy Sexy Kitchen , the woman who made prevention hot is now making it delicious!
Review: Loved the pictures. This is the only cookbook of the three that included them and they were beautiful. But...my food and eating philosophy is simple. I eat what I want that tastes good. When the zombie apocalypse comes I may have to eat roots and dirt and tree bark or insects but I don't have to right now and I'm not going to. If I'd seen the subtitle I probably wouldn't have picked the book. I'm not a revolutionary especially when it comes to food. The pictures drew me but the philosophy kind of ticked me off. So, no recipes from this book.
Sections:
Wecome to the Wellness Revolution
Crazy Sexy Diet & Lifestyle Philosophy
Preparation
Kitchen Know-How
Crazy Sexy Recipes
Magnificent Menus
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