Drink Books

From the organizer of the first and second annual Santa Barbara vegan bake off:

I like to try lots of different baking books--vegan and non-vegan alike.

I was sitting down tonight with my King Arthur Baker's Companion (amazing but each recipe has at least a stick of butter in it) and even leafed through How it All Vegan (their choc chip recipe is pretty good) before I remembered I had picked up this little book. The book is well written and fun to look through. Perfect for those nights when you just want to make something fun after dinner without having to prepare with a ton of ingredients in advance.

I chose a red velvet cupcake recipe and a vegan cream cheese frosting.

What can I say, my boyfriend has already eaten half the batch so I must say it was a success!

My daughter has an egg and dairy allergy. It finally dawned on me to look at vegan recipes to find a way to make an edible dessert for her. These cupcakes are very easy and taste wonderful. You would never know there is no egg or dairy. I have tried the vanilla, chocolate, and peanut butter ones. The peanut butter cupcakes were the best ones I have ever had, vegan or not. I highly recommend this book.

I've only tried some of the more simple recipes in the book so far. They came out delicious. I've brought them to work, and my co-workers raved. And the best part...they're vegan!

I am not a vegan, and am not easily excited about vegan baked goods. However I do have a best friend who is a committed vegan and who very much is excited by vegan baked goods. When I purchased this book for her as a birthday gift, she was beyond thrilled. I guess she had another vegan cookbook by this same author, and had already fallen in love with her recipes. (Who knew?)
She later made chocolate-strawberry-something cupcakes from this book, and when I tasted them, they really weren't half bad. If you didn't really think about it, you almost couldn't tell that they were vegan. If all vegan baked goods tasted like these cupcakes, maybe vegan cupcakes really could take over the world.
As she told me, "This book is as good as it gets!"

It's a lovely book and will be a useful guide in getting the dairy out of baked goods, but I have to say I'm a bit stunned that a vegan cookbook is so full of white flour and white sugar. There are just so many healthier sweeteners and flours to use that I can't imagine why the recipes weren't developed to be really healthy instead of simply dairy free.

"On Cooking and Food" is the tool to obtain the base knowledge nesessary to do food right. This book is a culinary couse unto it's self, you will go to the next level in your cooking with this book.

The book is wonderful. If you love to cook and wonder why and how foods taste wonderful--or horrible--this the book for you. It explains which methods work and which don't and why they do. Worth every penny. Harold McGee is a good writer which makes the book a pleasant, worthwhile read.

Don't buy this book expecting recipes. Instead, look forward to thousands of little hints on how to make your cooking better couched within the science of why it works. Advice on everything from how to best keep your hard boiled eggs from getting rubbery to how to make good creamy ice cream is in here. Whenever I start making a recipe with new techniques I come back to this book to get advice on how to do it best. Absolutely indispensable if you're teaching yourself how to cook and want to nail down your techniques.

Not available in bookshops here, it took me a while to track down this much praised book, now in a 2004 updated edition. It can be read at many levels: history, folk lore, chemistry and just marvellous explanations of the 'why' of cooking. It must hold great appeal for anyone with a curiosity about the food we eat and what we do to it, for better or worse.

I found it well written with an easy style, making it a genuine pleasure to read, to skim and to quote. And you will quote. It's that kind of book.

Despite its sober title and apparent depth of research, this is no dreary treatise. The explanations are generally easy to understand and often amusing. While some distant memory of high school chemistry may be useful, the author assumes no knowledge of food sciences on the part of the reader. The last section of the book further brushes up on all the chemistry you have chosen to forget.

Food industry professionals may find the book's format perhaps a bit wandering, making it somewhat clunky for rapid retrieval of specific technical information. As a lay person I can't vouch for its academic rigour, but it does include a long list of references and an extensive index.

A book with over 800 pages about food but with no real recipes does sound daunting, but not so. It's full of those "Wow. So that's why... listen to this!" moments that can get just a little trying for everyone else in the room. I realise how much food instruction I have taken at face value in the past. I will never view the humble egg quite the same way again.

And of course, as an added bonus, the book makes a perfect weight to put on top of the Summer Pudding as it sets. It doesn't even show the stains. McGee really has thought of everything.

This is probably more than the home cook ever wants to know but what a great reference book! It dispels lots of myths that bedevil the kitchen and are still spouted by too many TV chefs. For factual information it can't be beaten and I keep it to hand for a quick check whenever I am unsure of what to do with a recipe.

This book is exactly what I was looking for: scientific information related to nutrition and health. It is clear, easy to read, and provides practical ideas for implementation. I have already changed my diet and feel great. I've even lost weight without trying. I really appreciate a book that takes all the research that has been done and boils it down into a readable text. This book has done that better than I expected.

With so much news constant inundating all of us on the most recent nutrition fads it's often difficult to decide what the right choices are when it comes to eating.

This book is an excellent source of advice citing which studies make sense to pay attention to and what sorts of dietary changes we can all be making to improve our lives. I purchased 2 copies, one for myself, and one for my parents.

This book does a wonderful job of taking the scientific information available regarding nutrition and puts it a format the lay public can easily understand. Very professional.

Glad to find a book that breaks down what I'm eating and what it does or doesn't do for me. Tired of wasting my time eating junk. I want more energy and food, sleep, and exercise are key!

The quality of the books are excellent. I had a problem receiving the books, though. When tracking them I was told they were delivered, but I had never received them. I got connected with customer service through the website and they helped make things right by re-sending my order. These books came in the same time I should have received my other books. I feel confident that I can order through Amazon again and they will make sure that I am satisfied. Thank you, Amazon!

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, the depth of her knowledge of Italian cookery is amazing, on the other, the lack of specifics and inaccurate cooking times can be quite frustrating. This caveat should suffice: when making use of these recipes, make constant use of your tasting spoon!

I made Pasta e fagioli with fresh cranberry beans according to Ms. Hazan's recipe, and, because of Ms. Hazan's widely-acknowledged eminence, I followed her recipe precisely, something I rarely do, as I am an experienced cook. Her time for cooking the beans (45 minutes), left me with undercooked beans; they should have cooked for at least an hour and fifteen minutes, if not an hour and a half. No big deal, except I added the pasta at the point Ms. Hazan recommended.

I am sure that this book will be an invaluable resource to anyone who wants to learn Italian cooking, just make sure to test and modify these recipes as necessary ahead of time; following them as is can result in flubbed meals.

I only received this book a couple weeks ago.
The 3 recipes I cooked were okay.
I had reservations about the two chicken breast filet recipes:
cooking times requested are very short and your filets can come out raw.
-She should've been more specific on to tell when its done by detailing the weight of the breast filets to use.

However, other recipes, especially the pasta ones, look really good!
Looking foward to using this book more.

This is a good book for technique and ingredients; belongs on every Italian cook's shelf. I agree it's a little limited re recipes. But, her recipe for Minestrone is the BEST I've ever tried! Excellent technique for prepping and cooking all the veggies. I've been making this soup for years and it's a true winner!

This is a hefty book - lots of detail, lots of instruction and pretty strict about how things need to be done. As someone who hasn't ventured outside of my comfort zone for cooking, this structure can be very helpful - but it can also complicate things as I have to prepare everything in advance and rarely can pull off a recipe in this book with a low stocked pantry.

Still, I can't fault the book for my need to prepare - overall it's great and when I do have the time to make a special trip for all the right ingredients I know I'll have everything spelled out for me. The thing is huge so it's not easy to move around a kitchen counter with a couple of fingers in the middle of cooking, but like my title indicates, it's like a text book. There's more than just recipes, there's reference information, instruction on preparation and history. A very well rounded book.

...I've referred to this book over the years for technique and authenticity of Italian cooking...it is a wonderful book. I agree that it is on par with Julia Child's French cookbook. I've made many of the recipes and they are fabulous....the poached shrimp, easy and delicious...the grilled shrimp with flavored breadcrumbs is another favorite, the Lemon, garlic & parsley chicken cutlets is marvelous...her focaccia recipe is the best...fried tomatoes......I can go on and on. Ms. Hazan has given us a remarkable gift.

I bought Betty Crocker Cooky Book for my daughters recently. My mother first used this book in the 1960s and I got a copy to use with my children. Now they are grown and will use the cook book for making all kinds of cookies with their children. It's a must have for anyone who likes to bake (and eat!) cookies.

Ginny

I have baked cookies from the recipes in this book for over 40 years and have given as gifts to friends and relatives at least 25 copies. The cookie recipes are classic and will tempt every cookie eater.

Betty Crocker's Cooky Book is wonderful. It is an exact replica of the same book I grew up on, making cookies with my mom at Christmas time. The recipes are great, and the pictures are all "vintage," reminiscent of the 60's. Some recipes are tried and true--absolutely wonderful and have been passed around at cookie exchanges for decades. The new one might have more updated pictures and a few new recipes, but this one from back when my mom was a new wife is a keepsake that you can share with your own kids when cookie baking time rolls around again in December.

This is the best cookie cookbook there is. I have about 200 cookbooks and this is the one that I always come back to when I am looking to bake cookies. It is my favorite, as I am a child of the 60's. I received a copy for a wedding gift over 30 years ago, and it is falling apart. I purchased one for my daughter-in-law, and I will buy a couple of extras for the future brides of my other two sons. The pictures and the recipes bring back so many memories, and someday, I will make the cookie cottage that is pictured in the book. If you only buy one cookie book, make sure it is this one!!!

In the 1960's this Betty Crocker Cookie Book was used weekly for my three children, guests, bringing baked goods, etc. Now, the children are grown, and my daughter longed for her mom's original Betty Crocker Cookie Book. Per her wish, I gave her the worn out copy with all the batter stains, and I bought the new one of this classic for myself. Regardless of what the internet can offer us on line, there's something special about this book with its full color illustrations of what each cookie should look like, its spiral bound pages , and its memories of my children's childhoods in the kitchen around momma! It's truly a generation to generation must have!

A marvelous book. Full of facts about food along with interesting related information. Truly a fun-to-read book as well as a valuable reference.

This is a great reference book for anyone who loves to cook or just has an interest in foods of the world. At date I have bought 12 of them and have given them as gifts to friends arouond the world.

I found this book in the bookstore and thought it would help me with a new job as a cook. Well, it did more then that because it discribes nearly every type of term you could come up with when you cook.

I like how it discribes a particular food item and it's best usage. For example apple: Which are better for baking, eating, and cooking.

There are charts for every conversion possible and tables galor to help you prepare better meals.

I think reading this book has made my cooking at home better because it make me less scared that I might not get the correct taste by using the wrong foods. They even go gover you meat seltion and where they come from. This great for desiding what and how to prepare it.

The good thing about this comprehensive guide, is that there are no recipes with some minor exceptions; like a rux. This is good because it is a guide, not a cookbook.

Enjoy

For the past 4-5 years I've been trying to learn how to cook and of all the cooking books I have, this is one that is ALWAYS stuck between my desk and my kitchen for easy grabbing. No other book as been as handy as this, with the exception of my substitution book that sits right next to it.

It's also a great idea to include this in start kits for new cooks. Anytime one of my friends asks me what books they should get as starters I recommend this.

As a professional working in the industry, my yearning for culinary information never subsides. It may very well be insanity that causes me to focus so strongly on my profession, but I'm always reading and watching culinary related books and TV shows. Very often, you'll find that books and television don't always explain certain bits of information as well as you'd like if at all. And even then, their information is sometimes flat out wrong. That's when I turn to this book. It took years of convincing for me to give this book a try, but now it's the only food reference book that has it's very own place on my desk at home.

The book is basically a food related dictionary that describes a bit about history or culinary uses of nearly every culinary item, ingredient, or term. It also has a very helpful appendix that lists ingredient equivalents such as 8oz dry pasta noodles equals 4 cups of cooked, 15 graham squares equals a cup of crumbs, or 1 cup of dried pinto beans equals 2 1/4 cups of cooked. The appendix also lists substitutes for both ingredients and volume, high altitude baking adjustments, boiling points, temperature and metric conversions, oil smoke points and food label terms as well as consumer information sources.

If I'm looking for extremely in depth information on an ingredient or foodstuff, I may open up Larousse Gastronomic. But if I need the quick down and dirty on a cooking term or a conversion of some sort, which is more often than not the case, I grab this book.

This cookbook is so much more than recipes. It's an approach to food that's gentle, kind, thoughtful and practical. The recipes are great, nothing to out there, just good food my family will love. The ideology behind this book is nothing less than inspirational. Highly recommended for those interested in taking care of our bodies, our families and the entire planet.

When I visited a friend she recommended this cookbook to me. She told me that no matter her circumstances, she feels like she always can come up with a meal with this book. Since we are feeling the pinch of rising prices and less money, I bought the book. What she said is correct. You can make some tasty, substantial meals with pretty much what you have on hand.

The author compiled recipes from frugal people, many of whom were missionaries that had to learn to "make do" what local fare. The recipes are simple, easy to understand and fix, and satisfying.

Over the last 10 years as the global food market has opened up, I've enjoyed access to international ingredients and new cooking styles but have sometimes forgotten that a meal doesn't have to be unusual to be good. More with Less is simple without being pedestrian. It includes international recipes that don't require running to a specialty market. More with Less touches on nutritional and environmental issues as well as eating as a spiritual act. The author calls for "low-cost, low-fat, low-sugar and less expensive proteins." There are eye-opening dietary tables, cost breakdowns and equivalents. It's a very handy and comforting book. I'll be reaching for it again and again.

I am reading the best cookbook I have ever read. It is called The More-With-Less Cookbook, by Doris Jantzen Longacre. The first fifty pages are about food politics, how the food industry developed into its current state, and why what North Americans eat effects the entire world and causes other people to go hungry. This book cuts to the core of these issues better than any book I've ever read, even Fast Food Nation or Diet for a Small Planet. So even if you don't read any of the recipes, it still is worth reading the first fifty pages.
this book has helped me to look at food in a new way. It has reiterated what both of my nutrition teachers have preached, as well, which is: Don't trust the government and certainly don't trust health claims by food manufacturers. They don't have your best interests at heart.

The author of this book was a Mennonite missionary, and wrote this as a church cookbook in the '70's. It became so wildly popular that a publisher picked it up, but even still it is obviously written with a Mennonite community in mind. However, I found the ethics that the author espoused to be absolutely universal- all Golden Rule type stuff. Also, she quotes a Muslim, expresses admiration for Southeast Asian Buddhists, and advocates on behalf of birth control, so I think she must have been a pretty hip lady.

Plus it has spiral binding! All cookbooks should be bound this way. So it shall be when I am in charge.

Anyway, if you stumble across this book in the library, snap it up. It's awesome.

I have just ordered my second copy of this excellent book as mine (that I have bought back in 1991) is torn, stained and well-used and loved. This book is full of recipes that are simple, delicious, filling and can be adjusted according to the size of your family (I have five children and have to adjust my recipes accordingly). The author writes about being more frugal and how today's diet is high in sugar and wasteful things. I have learned much about re-using leftovers and planning my weekly menus with the ideas in this book. With today's rising food and fuel prices, this book would be an invaluable resource if you're looking to save money and seek more recipes using leftovers.

Alton Brown is a genius. His forward in the book explains that a recipe is analogous to a set of directions to a house, but what if there's a detour? Or what if you want to go somewhere else after? You're stuck. But now, what if you knew the whole map of the area, not just rote directions. That's what Alton teaches. He organizes by chapters centered on methods of cooking, not types of food. He explains things in software (food) and hardware (pans, utensils, etc).

It's more of a science angle at food, and probably won't help expert cooks, but for someone like me it's great.

If you like Good Eats, then buy this book. Immediately. If you want to learn about the science of cooking and use it as a springboard to improve your cooking technique across the board (and seriously, who wouldn't), then buy this book. Immediately. Through Good Eats and his books, Alton Brown has been become my culinary inspiration and hero. Just get it people. You won't regret it. :-)

Get this, and read it as if it is a novel or some non-fiction.

Yes, of course, there are recipes. But, the most interesting parts are the narrative sections and not the "put 12 oz of something, and 10 cans of something else" you'd find other books - perfection through preciseness don't work in cooking (well, there is a place for it, but not all the time).

Enjoy the book, and enjoy the food!

Like most people here, I bought this book because I enjoy Good Eats on TV.
I am, however, a very experienced cook...so while I enjoyed this book a great deal, I can't say I learned anything or even picked up any new recipes. (Plus, it's just not the same without Alton's voice.)
However...
I am going to give this as an XMas gift to two young gentlemen I know who are fresh out of college & who will be cooking for themselves for the first time ever come September. I have no doubt it will come in handy for them.

I bought this book based on the reviews on Amazon and also from watching Good Eats and really enjoying the series. My husband and I have learned so much from reading this book (in addition to many laughs from his writing style). We tried Alton's suggestions and they worked. Highly recommended.

For those of you who love to collect great cookbooks, this is an awesome Cuban cookbook. All the recipes invoke memories of Mama and Abuela cooking in the kitchen. They are authentic recipes and the stories are worth reading. Many of them will bring sweet memories to Cuban refugees who have adopted the U.S.A as our new home. This is a must-have book in the kitchen!

This book has great recipes and they are very well written. The instructions are very easy to follow. Very much the same ingredients my Cuban Mother has used all my life.

This cookbook comes the closest to the real recipes that I have tasted, except they love to use oregano and lots of green pepper which should be ignored. Red peppers should be substituted and cumin is the favorite spice of the cubans. Once the recipes are doctored the food is outstanding. My favorites are vaca frita, oxtails, black beans (remember, do not use the oregano or the green pepper), the garbanzo bean dish with chorizo. Also remember that the type of chorizo you use will influence the dish and their are several different kinds. The Colombian type is excellent or I would stick to Goya's brand. The Colorado Bean Soup is awesome, especially if you puree it - though it is labor intensive. Remember that many of these recipes can be cooked in a pressure cooker, which is how many real cuban households make these meat dishes quickly and they come out the most tender. It would have been great if they included that method in this book but you can guesstamate the times. This works particularly well with the oxtails. You must remember also that each cuban family makes the dishes their way, so that is why you have to adjust the ingredients.

My husband is from Miami and when i was pregnant he took me to Miami and got me addicted to cuban food. We both really missed the food and this book brings back so many good memories. It really satisfies your taste buds.

After sitting in the bookstore, going over about 10-20 so called Cuban recipe cookbooks, this is the ONE in my kitchen. Both my parents are from Cuba, I was born there as well, so naturally my siblings and I grew up on traditional Cuban recipes. This book is the closest to Mom's cooking I have ever found, and with some help from Mom, these recipes are just like being home. Easy to follow, simple, traditional recipes. Once you get the hang of "sofrito", which is base for most of our dishes, you won't be disappointed. LOVE this cookbook, and its wonderful, savory Cuban dishes!

Along with most of the reviewers here, my wine-knowledgeable friends, to whom I gave this book as a wedding anniversary present, were extraordinarily pleased. They tell me that they learn something new from it every day, and that it has "everything about wine" within its covers.

I have been working in the wine industry for many years and I have never come across a more complete reference book. It is worth every cent.The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition

The Oxford Companion to Wine is one of the best books about wine that I have seen.

Having a healthy interest in wine (don't drink too much most of the time) this answers so many of the questions that I've had over the years. It gives many of the expected details of different wine regions and wine classifications throughout the world in great detail. It also gives information on the winemaking process, the different varieties, how to consume wine (storage, tasting), qualities and faults in wine, famous personalities/labels in wine and wine history. All this with some beautiful fullpage photographs, maps and diagrams. Makes a great present and should be a mandatory accessory for anyone with a substantial wine collection.

While I've found the book book very informative and helpful, pages 601-624 are missing. I guess I shouldn't complain though, since I have pages 625-648 twice. Has anyone else noticed this in their 3rd edition? I can't believe mine is the only copy where this mistake has occurred.