Cookbooks Books

When I was first diagnosed with diabetes type 2, I thought I would have to give up all sweets. I had to lose weight and dreaded a diet of no sweets. This book has changed all that. It has everything - cakes, cookies, pies, candies, etc. All with low calories per serving. I have only tried a few receipes so far but they are great. This is a must have book.

Over a hundred sweet treats for diabetics use no sugar or fructose, relying on recommended sugar substitutes instead. An introduction on the pros and cons of various 'sugar substitutes' would have been nice; many of the recipes call for this generic substitute without mentioning brand names - or the fact that sucrose turns bitter under heat. Still, the recipes provide a range of options and with a little extra research, diabetics will find them easy to work with.

This is an excellent diabetic dessert cookbook. The recipes use easy to find ingredients, and are easy to follow. It also gives exhcanges.

I acquired my first copy of this book when my dad was in the hospital and was placed on dialysis and we had to make sudden and radical changes to his diet. Critical to us was that his diet required we monitor all dietary content. We were impressed with this book because listed for each recipe is a detailed breakdown of nutritional values including such things salt, iron, potassium, vitamins, calories, fat, sugar, fiber and a lot of stuff I never knew existed, but is critically important for someone on a controlled diet.

Impressed with the variety and simplicity of the recipes and the extensive use of fruit, I later got a copy so I could try some of these delights for myself. Ms. Howard must have been psychic - I like apples, nuts, berries, chocolate (carob), and bananas and I need to keep an eye on my own diet. The recipes rarely take much time but are so tasty I need to exercise control.

Included are over 100 recipes for sweet goodies, cakes, cookies and pies. This book may be the best thing to happen to someone on a restricted diet. Especially if that someone has to monitor their diet.

But that's not all, it's really good for everyone, including someone like myself with a sweet tooth who simply needs to watch calories.

Ms. Howard shows us that a restricted diet doesn't mean everything you eat has to taste like boiled cardboard! Her recipes are easy to prepare and taste great!

I am currently writing my dissertation and this has been a great guidebook as I travel this process.

I'm working on my dissertation and needed some plain talk to give me a better understanding of the best way to complete it. Other books were too confusing but this was easy reading! New PhD on the way!!!!!!
D.Z., PA USA

This book has made a huge difference for me. I had been struggling to discover, define, and write my dissertation topic. Dr. Simon's insight and guidance made the difference. I learned the way the components fit. The book removed any doubt I had and informed me how to move forward. I'm now several months ahead in my program, all because of what I learned from reading this book. It is a MUST for every Ph.d student.

Having met the lady, I now understand the powerful message she has included in this book aimed at assisting the researcher and focusing our efforts on preparation and "F.I.S.H" ing....she calles it! "..finding it somewhere henceforth!". She truly takes you by the hand, leads you step by step, and helps those cognitive juices flow , while assisting you at arriving at your journeys end. An excellent book and a must for every beginner ( and experienced!) research orientated person or doctoral candidate!

This is a wonderful set of cookbooks, but I'm one short... Story of my life...

Please contact me if you have a Volume 11 to sell.

Thank you,
John M. Adams

I have 11 hardbound volumes of Encyclopedia of cooking that I got from an estate auction. I am looking for volume 10

I just read the note from the lady looking for Texas Barbeque sauce in this cookbook. Back in 1965 my mom bought this book (in sections at our local grocery store) for me. She gave it to me when I graduated from high school in 1965. I still have all of the sections of the book.It is a bit "used" but it still is my favorite cookbook of all times! The orginal cover has been replaced by 2 large spiral bound notebooks.If I had to choose between all my other cookbooks and this one, I'd choose this one. I love this cookbook!

In the early sixties, this cookbook was made available through supermarket chains, one section at a time, over the course of a year. I am not certain, but if memory serves me well - "Mayfair Markets" (now out of business) might have been one of them. This is why there are twelve sections altogether. My mother collected one of these, and the whole thing runs to over fifteen hundred pages on all sorts of topics. It is truly a blast from the past, and speaks to the customs and tastes of suburbia in the early nineteen sixties period.

The book was made 'collectable' at stores, due to it's very large finished size, and is a masterpiece for any cookbook library. In it somewhere is a recipe for "Texas Barbeque Sauce" that I have wanted to find a copy of ever since the book disappeared from my fathers estate. Each month typically covered a seperate area of cooking, and each of the sections are what would amount to an entire cookbook of one kind or another in themselves- IE: Meats, Breads, Desserts, Pastries, soups, etc...
(Or so I remember it)

Sadly, most available copies may be somewhat careworn from having been put to constant use in the kitchen as the ultimate resource for any sort of dish being made at the time. These are almost fifty year old volumes.

I found this wonderful book at our library several years ago and I am so happy to finally own a copy. Unlike many cookbooks with recipes that have not been tested, it is obvious the labor of love this book must have been. The Arroz con Pollo Guatemalan style is a superb dish and so delicious (and was easy to prepare in quantity). I love the recipes, the food histories of the Central American countries and the "Ingredients and Cooking Methods" section. The author does a great job in recommending substitutions available in American markets. If you need cooking illustrations, this book is NOT for you. Recipes range from simple to more difficult, but the directions are well written. Excellente!

This is a fabulous, very authentic cookbook, covering Central America and the Yucatan. It is truely a wonder. The recipes bring back fond memories to my husband who is Salvadoran. Very traditional favorites. This book is out of print and extremely hard to find. I found mine at the public library. It appears I was the only one taking it out. In fact I took it out so many times that I asked the librarian if they would be willing to sell it to me. I think the book spent more time in my kitchen than in the library. The librarian gave it to me for almost nothing and in exchange I made a donation to the book fund. (There is one other copy in the South Central Wisconsin Library system so others can still check it out). If you love comida tipica, this book is for you. Don't hesitate to pick up a used copy here from Amazon... It is well worth the investment! Buen provecho. Saludos a Copeland Marks.

I found this book after I had moved to States from Guatemala in the 90's. It was a God's sent. At the time, I didn't know how to cook anything. I found the recipes easy to follow and the flavors were right on. Copeland Marks goes into great detail about different ingredients and how to get them here in the USA, this section is at the beginning of the book. I was sad that the book could not be found for a while since it was out of print. A lot of my friends wanted one... Now, I have been telling them that they can buy it. It is an absolutely treasure to me.

If you at all enjoy experimenting with new recipes, and learning of a new culture in the process, this is an excellent book. Each recipe is from the indigenous Mayan Indians of southern Mexico and Guatemala. Marks does an excellant job of bringing their culture into our world. These are recipes not previously ever recorded for the outside world, but passed from generation down. If ingredients are difficult to find, Marks experimented enough in his NY apartment, to find a useable, yet easy-to-find substitute, with similar results. Many of these dishes I have eaten in Guatemala, and the recipes result in that same familuar and culturally appropriate flavor. Great book!

Oh, I too am a rush hour cook so this cookbook is a great addition to my cookbooks. I love the fast easy way of cooking that Brook has given us.

The Rush Hour Cook series is a collection of small books that are designed to easily fit into a purse or briefcase without taking up much room. In the "Family Favorite" book you can expect the usual categories of soups, sides and starters, main meals, and desserts. One of the requirements for a recipe to make it into the Rush Hour Cook series is that the ingredients must be easy to find in just about any grocery store. So if you plan on preparing something from the book you can drop it into your purse or carry it along and pick up the ingredients on the spot.

Various tips are also scattered throughout the book. At the end there are five days of suggested meals as an example of meal planning and the shopping list that would be needed to prepare all of these meals. These are practical, easy to prepare, and quick recipes that include several I remember as a child. Some of the favorite recipes include popovers, chili, Dijon chicken, chicken and rice, chicken cordon bleu, pizza pockets, stuffed shells, apple crisp, and cinnamon streusel coffee cake. This is a great gift for the novice cook or the person who just wants to make a quick meal and get on to other things.

I heard about this book on the radio and can see why this book has gotten so much press coverage. I love it! You can fit it in your purse and it includes complete grocery lists so you can grab all the groceries you need for a week quickly and easily. I bought the set of 4 and also bought a bunch to use as Chrsitmas presents and they received rave reviews! I think this book is a relief from those huge cookbooks with tons of useless recipes. My family has loved everything I have made so far!

"My life is a zoo of insanity that allows very little time for cooking let alone making frequent trips to the grocery store." ~Brook Noel

Brook Noel has a busy lifestyle, and like most moms, she tries to find ways to nurture her family, while getting out of the kitchen fast. She enjoys jogging, writing, running her publishing house and coordinating a 24-7 support web site. She needs recipes that work.

In this cookbook, you will find:

Sides, Soups and Starters - Some of the recipes include chicken dumpling soup, quickslaw, potato and broccoli bake and sugar carrots.

Main Meals in Minutes - Tantalizing Taco Salad, Must-Have Meatloaf, Mexi-Casserole and many more.

A Sweet & Happy Ending - Banana Cream Pie, Baked Cinnamon Apples, Fanciful Fruit Dream.

Etcetera - Making edible finger paints, timesavers, click to save, etc.

This cookbook might help you save money after you look for coupons online, make your own finger paints and teach you how to throw ingredients together and make casseroles like a pro.

Most of the recipes in this book have a short list of ingredients and the instructions are easy to follow. I liked reading the fun facts. Who knew Americans eat an average of 51 pounds of chocolate a year.

You might also like:

Effortless Entertaining
Presto Pasta

~The Rebecca Review

THIS IS A GREAT COOKBOOK AND THE SECOND ONE I HAVE ORDERED FOR MY GRANDCHILDREN. IT HAS ARRIVED IN EXCELLENT CONDITION AND IN A TIMELY MANNER.

After 16 years of maritial blitz I have not learned to cook a decent meal. My husband has bought me dozens of cookbooks as gifts and I resent everyone of them ( I am working on this issue)! I bought this cookbook after seeing it at my friend's home. It is worth twice the price I paid for it! There are dozens of recipes that even I can't ruin and I can almost guarantee my family a home cooked meal that isn't frozen pizza.

We were given this cookbook as a wedding gift, and I'm so glad it was given to us. The recipes in it are very simple and I always get compliments on them. I don't think anything in the book takes longer than 30 minutes to make, and nothing uses overly exotic ingredients that you'll never use again. I get requests for recipes from this cookbook all the time. It is definitely a must have!

I have had this cookbook for years and it has become the only one I really use. I brought in a dish to work that I had made from this cookbook. Everyone loved it and asked for the recipe (cherry dump cake). I brought in the cookbook and passed it around. That same day 5 co-workers ordered the book because they were so impressed with it. Every recipe is easy with minimal ingredients that you are likely to have in your cupboard already.

I got this as a gift a few years ago. Looking at the publication date, I would have to say I recieved it when it was fairly new. When I saw the title I was a bit put off...there a quite a few books that use *feng shui* as buzz words to rope in suckers looking to change their...well...chi...and inprove their lives...

But this many years down the road, I have to say, grudgingly, that there are many plusses to this book. The recipes are nutritious, delicious and *solid* in a culinary sense and the directions are clear and easy to understand. The recipes are decidedly Asian in nature. In my area most are easily available with the possible exception of dashi soup stock and tamarind paste which would require more of a hunt...

Several recipes stand out as ..well...outstanding. Berry balsamic parfaits (try it over vanilla ice cream with mint sprigs, unbeleivablely good)Seared salmon with horseradish butter (actually the horseradish butter is a winner all by its lonesome) easy and delicious. Chicken soup for a cold is a very good asian soup soup stock with the addition fo ginger and chilies. Adding your own touches makes it a whole soup meal for company... just pass around accompiments...

There is a lot of feng shui information in the beginning. Some I found interesting. Where is the best place in my home for the kitchen? What if it wasnt there? How to set up the kitchen so I didn't eat too much? (okay, i liked that part)...The yin and yang of eating...

There are different options on changing the recipes thru out the book, I like that. And how to serve the dishes. The book is more square than rectangle and is a hardcover that lies flat (yay!) The binding is in very good shape after all these years. It does tend to open to the recipes i have used more frequently at this point tho.... the paper isnt wipable unfortuantely...soy sauce stains from earier dishes are here and there. The color of the paper is a nice off white, very easy on the eyes... the pages are a bit thin, you can see shadows of the other pages through them. Ah well, you cant have everything...

There is a removeable and cleanable attractive book jacket and the artwrk inside is tastful with and asian flair... no bok choy running away from dancing knives thankfully!

Thinking back to my original objection, I was wrong. This was an excellent gift and an excellent cookbook. It's smaller size would make it an excellent addition to a themed gift basket with an asian flair (like some dried noodles, soy sauce, dried mushrooms, dashi stock, mirin...all inside a big wok!)

I'm not sure what I expected when my wife brought home this cookbook (not much though). We must have 30 cookbooks... but we keep coming back to this book for quick and easy recipes that are quite wholesome. I can't vouch for the Feng Shui aspects--I guess it's cool that the dishes have a purpose. But every recipe we've tried has been great. We also like the Moosewood series of books--but find those recipes often take way longer than estimated (the ones in this book are very fast).

From the Feng Shui book we regularly make the peanut noodle vegetables; the chickpea curry (mentioned in another review), and the grape gazpacho. There are a couple other stand-bys... but we're also up to try new ones all the time.

There are some pretty goofy "theme" cookbooks out there... and, on the surface, this may seem like one too. But don't be left out--it really is good.

I've heartily recommended this book to friends who are interested in Taoism and those who love to cook, and both groups seem pleased. I've cooked a dozen or so of the main dish recipes; none required cooking skills beyond the average meal-a-day home cook, and all the ingredients have been readily available at a well-stocked grocery. And every one has been a hit!

Having never been a person to play close attention to my yin, let alone my yang, I was understandably frazzled when my wife announced that our day guest had turned into a dinner guest. With two young children, dinner is on a set time-table. Now I pride myself on having dinner guests. Cooking is my hobby. (My wife told me I needed a hobby and her genius suggested cooking.)

So there I was with a few cans and a little over a pound of ground turkey meat. I rifled through my recipe books and came across one that I wasn't even aware of: Elizabeth Miles' The Feng Shui Cookbook. And there on pg. 167 was a recipe for Quick Chickpea Curry (containing the ground turkey). While the recipe promised to warm my qi and creative energy, I was glued to word quick.

Well in less than 20 minutes I had achieved both. The curry was fab, sprinkled with yogurt and cilantro. Our dinner guest went back for seconds and then thirds. And the conversation was robust. The Feng Shui part achieved its goal in spite of my cynicism.

Since I have enjoyed a number of the other dishes with other guests. Miles' text is as strong as her recipes. She has carefully crafted a book which tells you how certain food can feed certain moods and inspire different reactions. And this makes for immensely edible thoughts and results and of course, food.

This is the first uniquely American Cookbook. Earlier colonial cookbooks were simply American publications of English cookbooks. Amelia Simmons described herself as an orphan and was apparently illiterate. She disowned some of the content of this cookbook in later editions as added by her unidentified scribe. The cookbook was widely plagiarized and pirated which serves as a further testimony to its importance. The scholarly introduction to this Dover edition, by Mary Tolford Wilson (written circa 1959) notes the importance of Simmon's work as the first publication of the American colonial invention of baking soda (pearl ash) and several uniquely American recipes such as those for Indian (corn) bread, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie.

The facsimile text is somewhat difficult to read due to the age of the original and the archaic use of f for s; In addition, modern readers will find it difficult to impossible to follow the recipes due to the archaic ingredients and(to us)vague oven setting descriptions. If one is interested in actually preparing some of Simmons recipes the following alternate edition will be more usefull: American Cookery 1796 (hard cover) This edition (also in paperback) has an easy to read modern text and added illustrations not present in the original.

For those interested in the history of cooking this is an historical gem, especially as a facsimile and with the Wilson essay as an introduction. Text and page images of this original edition (without the introduction) are also available at the Michigan State University Digital Library "Feeding America" site.

fun to read or try to decypher written in old English

Amelia Simmons created the first cookbook printed in America, by an American, using truly American ingredients. Up until her publication there were no printed recipes telling cooks how to prepare pumpkin, cranberries, turkey, sweet potatoes, etc. People adapted the recipes in their English (or other) cookbooks, but I'm sure were delighted to have this guide to newer culinary items. The Oxford University Press reprint edition has a very useful introduction by Mary Tolford Wilson, presenting historical and cookery contexts for a better appreciation of Simmons' text. An added glossary is helpful too. I recommend this book for all scholars of foodways and culinary history. Lastly, let me say that it is a fun read. The conversational, although often brief recipes, which assume all readers know a great deal already about cooking, tell us a lot about eighteenth century assumptions about women and their domestic work.

In 1796, a young lady named Amelia Simmons published her cookbook. While other cookbooks had been printed, they were just reprints of European works. All had been written by men for men. At the time, no cookbook dealt so well with the unique food ingredients available in America.

So, this was the first cookbook slanted towards female cooks and is the first book to show corn meal as a primary ingredient. Here you will find the first recipes for "Indian Slapjacks: or "Johnny Cake" which became staples during the following centuries.

Amelia also presented the first recipe for pumpkin pie, Indian pudding, rice pudding and gingerbread. Here you can find the words "cookie" and "slaw" which come from the Dutch in America. Many of the recipes show you how to cook classic recipes for dumplins, biscuits and fruit pies.

The most recent printing of this cookbook seems to be by Tresco Publishers and it was reprinted in 2001. This Ohio publisher obtained special permission to reprint a limited facsimile copy (all forty-seven octavo pages) of this American Classic.

The book I found has a facsimile copy of American Cookery from 1796 that is definately showing it was used often, complete with grease stains. Then, there is a translation into a modern printing font that is much easier to read. In the facsimile copy with Early American print fonts in which the letter "s" appeared as "f"... this makes the original harder to read. For example:

"By having an opinion and determination, I would not be underftood to mean an obftinate perfeverance in trifles, which borders on obftinacy - by no means, but only an adherence to thofe rules and mazims which have ftood the teft of ages, and will forever eftablifh the female character, a virtuous character -altho' they conform to the ruling tafte of the age in cookery, drefs, language, manners, &c." ~Preface

The dated language is amusing to read and you can glimpse a picture of America through Amelias eyes. The "spellings" of many words were of course different so they are not typographical errors. There is a glossary that explains terms like bullace (small plum), gallipot (earthen pot) and pannikin (small metal vessel).

This book therefore "contains" the first cookbook published in America by an American author and the translation of the work into modern English. It is a first in cookbook literature and therefore is an historic document you will want to collect if you are a cookbook collector.

Only two First Edition copies are known to exist. One is in the Bitting Collection of the Library of Congress, the other in the Whitney Collection of the New York Public Library. The book I have contains the dog-eared and stained copy from the Bitting Collection and includes a forward by Mary Tolford Wilson.

By reading her cookbook, you can imagine a young colonial woman cooking over a hot cook fire, taking care of her children and using this cookbook to prepare her evening meal. It almost evokes a sense of nostalgia for when things were simpler, or were they?

Diet Bread

One pound sugar, 9 eggs, beat for an hour. Add to 14 ounces flour, spoonful rose water, one spoonful cinnamon or coriander. Bake quick.

An hour? Who would have the time these days. It is amazing! And I thought kneading bread was work.

You will also find recipes for:

Minced Pie
Bread Pudding
Puff Pastry
Roast Mutton
Indian Pudding
Meats
Poultry
Fish

My heart did beat a little faster just because it is so overwhelming how far cookbooks has come since this first American cookbook written by a woman and I was delighted to finally own a copy. This is not really a cookbook you would use as the recipes are not exactly easy to follow and don't always contain exact quantities of ingredients. It is more to amuse!

This cookbook will produce in you a similar excitement that you might feel if you had happened upon this book in a musty library or in an attic. But then again, I read cookbooks in bed! ;)

~The Rebecca Review

I bought this as a gift for my brother in law. He loves Elvis and loves to cook. This was perfect! Lots of recipes, easy to follow, nicely put together.

It's a complete cookbook with rare pictures and words of
Elvis. I love it some much. In this way we know what kind of food Elvis liked. The friends that he had and a lot of things.
WONDERFUL!!!

It's probably not the best idea to eat like Elvis all the time, but nothing beats his recipes for peanut butter and banana
sandwiches or fried okra. Elvis sure loved his fried foods. Learn how to make Southern cuisine and mouth-watering desserts fit
for dinner at your own Graceland, but don't over do it. After all, Elvis didn't end up a skinny-minny from eating all that fried
chicken cooked in pancake batter. (...)

My mother in law is an Elvis fanatic, so I thought this would be cute to add to her Elvis things. Since recipes come from his cook and plenty of pictures alot have never seen. She actually uses the recipes too. She loves it.

I enjoyed the familiarity of knowing Florence Henderson. The books was as interesting about her life as the simple, down home recipes.

What a delicious feast of recipes! I've dined on Chicken Piccata. It was great! Now to try her Chocolate Mousse...I can't wait!

Florence Henderson is a multi-talented woman...and one of the nicest people there is!

"Florence Henderson's Short Cut Cooking" includes the most flavorful dishes I have ever tasted! Every dish from this cookbook that I have prepared has gotten rave reviews from my family and friends. The Beef Stroganoff (p172) is out of this world!

Florence Henderson has cooked up a bounty of delicious recipes. The recipes are easy to follow, the ones I've tried are delicious. In addition, Florence provides hints and ideas that will making cooking easier! Thanks to America's favorite mom!