Substituting Ingredients – The A to Z Kitchen Reference
June 19, 2010 - Written by Diana
This book by Becky Sue Epstein is small in size, but so far I haven’t stumped it. It’s bigger than a pocket book, but much smaller than a big cook book or recipe book. It doesn’t really contain many recipes, or photos, but it does fit the handy dandy good to have category. If you have a missing ingredient, or need to figure out conversions between measurements this would be the go to book.
Becky Sue Epstein says that after dealing with not always having the proper ingredients on hand, or knowing what it was when given a recipe, she started keeping her own lists. This list grew into a collection, then a project. Let’s be thankful for Becky Sue’s lists, because I don’t have to be that organized now. Usually I hit up a bunch of different cookbooks in order to find the right combination of conversions and substitutions. Here they are in one book.
I’m not sure that the household cleaning formulas belong in a substitution book, but it’s here also. There are recipes for ketchup and garam marsala and garlic butter and some marinades. You get the more …
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Pan-Seared Salmon with Chipotle Honey-Lime Bourbon Glaze
June 9, 2010 - Written by DianaThis recipe was from The Kentucky Bourbon Cookbook by Albert W. A. Schmid. My family loves Salmon, though we usually have our dill dijonaise sauce on it instead of a glaze. This glaze was so tasty on the salmon, though a little on the sweet side but that was all the salmon needed. The recipe called for four fillets, but the glaze could easily have covered two or four more fillets. We served it with a side of veggies sauteed in olive oil, the perfect accompaniment.
Pan-Seared Salmon with Chipotle Honey-Lime Glaze
This recipe comes from Chef Jeremy Ryan, formerly of Kentucky, who has returned to his native Mississippi and works at the MGM Mirage at the Beau Rivage Resort and Casino in Biloxi. He suggests using bourbon in a glaze for pan-seared salmon.
Ingredients:
- Salt and pepper
- 4 salmon fillets
- 3 tbs butter
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/3 cup Kentucky bourbon
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1 tsp lime juice
- Candied lime zest
Salt and pepper the salmon. Melt the butter in a skillet. Place the salmon in the skillet skin-side-up and sear for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove it from the skillet …
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The Kentucky Bourbon Cookbook
June 9, 2010 - Written by Diana
Here’s a suggestion for Father’s Day – The Kentucky Bourbon Cookbook
You know it’s good when a recipe book based on alcohol starts out with a chapter on drinks. Some of the recipes come with explanations, like the Grog recipe. Yes, there really is a grog recipe, and sailors really drank grog, to help keep away scurvy. Classic bourbon drinks such as the Mint Julep, and twists on whiskey drinks such as the Kentucky Whiskey(Bourbon) Toddy and the Old Fashioned are right there for you. The rest of the book is divided up by seasons. I was disappointed in the way it was presented, because if you are going to do it by seasons, then it should be representative of all the major areas. Breakfast is only in Winter – what we skip …
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CanolaInfo.Org & The Heart Smart Diabetes Kitchen – Great Heart Healthy Cooking Oil Recipes
May 20, 2010 - Written by Diana
Canola Oil is on the list of oils that is good for cooking and preparing your recipes. The two oils I use most prevalently are Olive Oil and Canola Oil. Canola Oil though, has a higher heat tolerance and smoke point. I usually use Canola Oil in my cakes because it won’t change the flavor or take over the cake while being a healthier alternative to some of the other vegetable oils. Canola is great for sautéing, or in dressings, and in most recipes.
CanolaInfo.Org is a great website owned by the Canola Council of Canada. There is plenty of information about Canola, from what the plant is, to how it’s processed, how it’s used and recipes using Canola Oil. Canola Oil has the least amount of saturated fat of all the vegetable oils, which makes it a great culinary ingredient.
CanolaInfo.Org joined together with the American Diabetes Association to come up with The Heart Smart Diabetes Kitchen Recipe Book. These recipes all use canola oil, but they’re all very healthy, and delicious sounding. All of the proceeds from the sale of this book go to …
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Sauces by Michael Roux
March 29, 2010 - Written by Diana
If you are like me, not a trained chef and know only the basics about preparing a sauce, this book is for you. It is a fantastic book for giving you the basics and then helping you build using those basic sauces to create something more complex. The book starts out with broths and easier sauces and then builds. Some of these sauces will take hours to make building on one primary sauce to make a more in depth sauce. I made the veloute, which came out velvety, just as described and then the next week went to a college visit that served the same sauce only with a lemony take over chicken. Before making it myself, I wouldn’t have been able to identify the sauce never mind know that I could actually do it.
It isn’t a quick and easy book. Some of these sauces start out based on a broth, or another sauce that takes hours to cook down or thicken. Also, it can take ingredients that aren’t on your pantry shelf or in the fridge, so …
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Legends in the Kitchen – Compiled by Mrs. Howard Keel and Linda F. Radke
March 22, 2010 - Written by Diana
Legends in the Kitchen, Celebrity Recipes For A Cause – Compiled by Mrs. Howard Keel and Linda F. Radke with a forward by Stephanie Powers. Legends in the Kitchen is a book that is raising money for charity. The charity is the Motion Picture and Television Fund – a non- profit organization that serves the people in the entertainment industry. (Visit mptvfund.org for more info on the non-profit.)
Recipes in the book are provided by friends of the Keels that are in the entertainment industry. Quite a few are part of Judy Keel’s own family recipes, then there are recipes provided by the stars we know, and those who are new to us, but not to the industry. Recipes have been provided by James Arness, Stephanie Powers, John Hart and many of the Dallas (television show) Clan. Most have a little passage telling us where the recipe came from or what inspired it. Peppered through out are appropriate quotes from some famous people like Erma Bombeck (“I come from a family where …
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The Conscious Cook by Tal Ronnen
January 14, 2010 - Written by DianaNever one to be overly impressed with Vegan foods, Tal Ronnen has made an impact in my thinking. Tal Ronnen wrote the Conscious Cook – Delicious Meatless Recipes That Will Change The Way You Eat. Tal Ronnen’s book while talking about the benefits of veganism, also shows how to make delicious, and yet totally meat and dairy free. The book is filled with beautiful color photos, and recipes, Tal also interviews with vegan innovators, the discoverers of powerhouse foods and has guest chefs.
Tal Ronnen lists his larder, and throughout the book lets you in on all his favorite ingredients to work with, whether it be a grain, vegetable, herbs or greens. Plus you learn about the fake foods like Gardein chicken – it’s not real chicken. We actually bought a package of it when we were shopping, we’re going to try it out.
My favorite thing that I learned is about making cream out of nuts. Plus you can take it a step further and make cheese, or whipped cream. If you’re allergic to dairy, it’s amazing that you can still make a cool cheese cake without any cream cheese. I made some cashew …
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Book Suggestions for the Cookerati 2009 Holiday Gift Guide
December 19, 2009 - Written by DianaGadgets, and tools are great gifts, but cool ideas and inspiration come from great books too. I like to give books out, though sometimes I have a hard time parting with the ones I like best. I’ve got a few choice suggestions for you and I hope whatever books you choose – whether they’re from the list or not, they help to inspire you throughout the new year. Cooking should be an adventure, we should all step out of our comfort zones and tryout something new for us. First I want to admit, that I haven’t tried a recipe out of every book like I usually do, due to lack of time. I will however, try to get to that and let you know about how the recipe turned out at a later time. I will tell you honestly how I feel about the book as a gift though based on what I like in a cook book.
- My Picks. - My two top picks for books are The Seasons On Henry’s Farm, and New England Soup Factory Cookbook.
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Tequila is one of our favorite basics for our movie night cocktails. Recently we tried some Partida Tequila and we think it’s delicious (is that a good word for alcohol?). It really has a clean smooth taste, and has a waaarrrrmmmm in your belly, mmmmm. Partida also has an Blue Agave Nectar they produce that is 100 percent made from blue agave plants and is organic. …
Diane covers every category from appetizers all the way through dessert. There are no less than 5 whole turkey recipes , plus a turkey breast, a ham and for vegetarians, we have pumpkin lasagna. She describes all the steps involved in producing the perfect turkey, including several brining and gravy recipes, plus spatchcock, but no deep frying. Then when dinner is over, there is a whole section with leftover turkey recipes. This book has the recipes that takes Thanksgiving up a notch. It raises your regular appetizers, turkey, salads, side dishes and desserts …
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Put a Zing in Your Holiday Party Season with Partida Tequila and Spice & Ice
December 9, 2009 - Written by Diana
Partida Tequila is made from blue agave that it gets from one place, it’s very own Partida Estate in the heart of Mexico’s historic Tequila region. Partida Estate is a family plantation who have been growing blue agave for several generation. The heart of the agave plant – la pina is baked slowly and gently for 20 hours, then distilled twice – not steam blasted. These agaves are used to create four tequilas: Blanco (not aged), Reposado (aged 6 months), Anejo (aged 18 months) and Extra Anejo Elegante (aged 36 months). Tweet This Post Plurk This Post Buzz This Post Delicious Digg This Post Ping This Post Reddit This Post Stumble This Post
The New Thanksgiving Table By Diane Morgan
November 26, 2009 - Written by Diana
I love Diane Morgan’s Cookbooks. The New Thanksgiving Table An American Celebration of Family, Friends, and Food takes your holiday dinner and elevates it to a whole new level. We had our Thanksgiving dinner with the relatives this past weekend and I made one of the easiest dishes – Deviled Eggs with Capers and Wild Smoked Salmon and also one of the more difficult and time consuming – Pumpkin Lasagna. In both cases the directions were very clear and easy to follow. Tweet This Post Plurk This Post Buzz This Post Delicious Digg This Post Ping This Post Reddit This Post Stumble This Post
