I was just listening to the end of Marcus Samuelsson’s Yes, Chef
Who’s this book for? I’d recommend it to anyone that wants nice healthy, nourishing food without cutting anything out. The recipes are on the easy end of the spectrum, and my kids love them, so I think it’s a good fit for anything from someone’s first apartment to the experienced cook.
[It comes out next week! I was trying to hold out on my review in hopes that I’d get permission to share one recipe with you to try. I haven’t heard back yet, so I’ll just put this little placeholder here in case they do…..]
My thoughts and pics on some of the dishes I’ve tried…
1) Fried Brown Rice with Turnip, Avocado, and Sprouts – p 233. Everyone loved this fried rice, and it’s easy enough that my kids could make some for lunch. Total keeper. This was the spring version. He has summer, fall, and winter versions as well.
2) Roasted Kale with Tomatoes and Garlic – p 58. We love kale chips, but the tomatoes and garlic really make them pop. This was gone before I even had dinner on the table.
3) Lucky Pasta – p 189. Spinach and basil pesto-y goodness with chicken.
4) Barbecued Chicken – p 177. Fabulous and easy barbecued chicken.
5) Beer-Braised Pork Shoulder – p 201. This is what I call a mother recipe. You make one big flavorful roast when you have oven time, and eat it as a roast the first night, then use the leftovers in a few recipes he has just for this pork recipe for the next few nights. The roast is delicious. If you’re a baker, you’ll laugh, because the fragrance is so familiar. The caraway, onion, and garlic in the braising liquid smell just like everything bagels. My kids walked in and thought I’d made bagels for dinner.
6-7) Apple and Leek Sauteed Sweet Potatoes – p 129. Okay, Sam’s pic is way cuter than mine because he used red apples and left the peel on them. I’ll probably do that next time. I used a peeled granny smith like the recipe called for, and it was delicious, and easy, but not half as photogenic. 🙂
8) White Bean, Pork, and Greens Soup – p 204 (with leftover braised pork). Yummy, uber nourishing, and ready in 15 minutes.
9) Rigatoni with Pork Ragu – p 202 (with leftover braised pork). Really easy and good!
Some others I have flagged to try: Charred Cabbage with Spicy Aioli – p 61 * Balsamic Roasted Eggplant – p 69 * Chile-Roasted Corn with Scallions and Lime – p 70 * Charred Broccoli with Lime, Fish Sauce, Basil, and Peanuts – p 77 * Grilled Cauliflower Steaks with Grapefruit, Watercress, and Pecans – p 80 * Herbaganoush – p 99 * Mustard Green Salad with Pecans and Honey-Lemon Dressing – p 112 * Spinach, Currants, Pine Nuts and Balsamic Sauteed Sweet Potatoes – p 126 * Shallow-Fried Catfish with Collards, Poblano Salsa, and Red Beans and Rice – p 143 * Grilled Clams with Shishito Peppers and Lemon – p 152 * Slow-Roasted Salmon with Barbecue Sauce and Swiss Chard – p 155 * Grilled Ribeye with 4 Sauces – p 217 * Quinoa for all the seasons – p 238 * Farro for all the seasons – p 243, and the same for wild rice, bulgur, and couscous.
*I received a copy to explore and share my thoughts.
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I’ve always been more of a smoothie fan, and my juicer never got much love. Smoothies leave you feeling nice and full. Then I found Ziggy Marley’s cookbook, 
, and everything was delicious and super nutritious, so I decided to give his juices a try. I loved them! They’re filled with interesting flavor. Fantastic. When you want a nice vitamin punch, there’s nothing like juice. They leave me feeling extra alive. It’s not a juice book. There are only 9 juice recipes in it, but they’re special.
by Jenné Claiborne is a neat book. It ranges from the foodie to healthy end of the vegan cookbook spectrum. She’s a very strong flavorist. There’s not a boring or apologetically seasoned bite to be had in this book. There are some ingredients that will likely require a little extra effort to find, but most of it readily available. The recipes are easy, and her instructions are clear.
, about 6 months ago, and loved it. It requires you to go on an ingredient hunting adventure, but once you’ve got it all home, it’s beyond worth it! The flavors are off the charts! They just came out with their second book, 
, and it’s fantastic!
is everything a Bob’s Burger disciple hopes and dreams it might be. I tried to get a hold of someone over at Universe publishing to get permission to share a recipe with you. No response. So, I started scanning the Burger of the Day board this season for possibilities that hadn’t made the book. The Blanc Canvas. <snore> Topless o’ the Mornin’ to You Burger. Okay, Irish flavor profile without the top bun. Trying to lift and convey a burger to your face with a burger precariously perched on just a bottom bun. Who does that?! Awkward, at best. It’s the stuff of horror movies, really. How about nestling that burger on a bed of salty oven roasted fries? Yeah… Since we’re going to have to 
bring a knife and fork into this, we can take advantage of that and make an oozier sauce. A béchamel with Irish cheddar. I want more flavor. Let’s blast that burger with horseradish, and top it all with sweet, Guinness-glazed onions. Mmmmm. Yeah, I’m in.
Cook book clubs popped up in my feed. Cook book clubs?! I loved book club, and dinner club, so I was intrigued. The basic idea is that you get together with a group of friends each month. You all get the same cook book. You each pick a different recipe, and bring it to share. Everything is served at room temperature, and there’s no doubling of recipes, so it’s stress free. You rotate houses each month and the host gets to pick the title. Okay, that’s too awesome! The first month at my house. Jacques Pépin Heart & Soul in the Kitchen. I’ll make two recipes so my non-cooking foodie husband can join in on the fun. 