Cookbook Reviews

150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches Cookbook

October 14, 2018 By Joi Sigers

Is anyone even half as ready for autumn and winter as I am? Don’t get me wrong, I love a lot of things about summer – baseball, fresh produce, songbirds at my bird feeders that aren’t there in cold weather, grilling out, and so on. Summer’s awesome in every way… but, having said that, autumn and winter are super special.

As a foodie, the cooler months make me think of soup, stew, chili, casseroles, chai tea lattes, and (of course) Halloween goodies, Thanksgiving dishes, and Christmas baking… how could a foodie NOT love this time of year???

I may be one of the biggest soup fanatics in the world, which is one of the reasons I’m excited about a new cookbook I was sent to review: 150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.

Naturally, grilled cheese sandwiches are perfect all year. We certainly eat them year-round in our house. In fact, we’ve been known to enjoy grilled cheese sandwiches at all times of the day and night. Talk about a delicious comfort food. Cheesy deliciousness that comes together pretty darn fast – sign me up.

150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches is a perfect guide to getting extra creative with this wonderful comfort food. Although the modern version of the grilled cheese sandwich dates back to 1920 (when it became popular during the great depression, for obvious reasons), these delicious and inexpensive delicacies are currently a popular trend in cooking. I think one of the reasons is the fact that they aren’t expensive to pull together. I think the popularity of food trucks has also helped revive this wonderful sandwich.

Some people are even calling the grilled cheese sandwich the “new burger.” The fact that so many people are eating less meat is another reason these sandwiches are so wildly popular.

From the Back Cover: A grilled cheese sandwich is classic comfort food and it’s enjoying an incredible resurgence in popularity. These fabulous recipes all begin with the grilled cheese we all know and love, and then from there, creative twists showcase just how incredibly versatile this sandwich can be. The recipes reflect an almost endless and delicious variety of choices that include simple and timeless as well as gourmet and artisanal. From breakfast to dessert, there’s something for everyone in this book.

Another reason grilled cheese sandwiches are so popular is, let’s face it, they’re fast and easy to make. You can have a warm, delicious, and comforting meal in a matter of minutes. This is one of the reasons they’re so popular with bachelors, college students, and beginner cooks.

Whether you enjoy your grilled cheese sandwiches with soup (one of my favorite meals), chips, or alone, nothing beats a great grilled cheese sandwich.

As I’ve probably mentioned on the food blog, when I had to totally give up wheat and gluten a number of years ago (health reasons), it threw my cooking persona into a tailspin. Imagine everything you are accustomed to cooking and baking for your family and yourself thrown out the door. Then finding yourself having to start over, pretty much, and discover a whole new way of both cooking and eating.

BUMMER!

It’s a hideous predicament for anyone but for an avid cook and food blogger who was extra keen on homemade breads, cornbread, cakes from scratch, pies, etc.. it knocked me on my backside for a bit. However, I (honestly) found out that many aspects of gluten-free food are actually as good as their gluten-y counterparts and some are even better in many ways.

For example, for whatever reasons, gluten-free fried catfish is actually better. Don’t ask me why (please), but the combo of rice flour and yellow cornmeal makes the best fried catfish in the world. Trust me, this is a personal favorite and something I’ve been cooking since I was allowed to touch the stove.

Grilled cheese sandwiches have been another pleasant surprise (along with French Toast, for that matter). Gluten-Free bread, in my opinion, makes them even better. I think it’s because they’re denser and, sometimes, thicker, than regular bread. Then again, Texas Toast is a great way to go with grilled cheese sandwiches.

150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches includes so many creative, fun, and delicious recipes you won’t stop until you’ve made them all. The cheese combinations, along with the additions of complimentary ingredients will boggle your mind. I cook every single day (and have for years) and consider myself to be really creative in the kitchen, but even I found myself saying, “Ooooh, I would’ve never thought of that...” One of the combinations that was wildly new to me was the one given in the recipe below. I wouldn’t have ever invited Muenster Cheese to a grilled cheese party, but this recipe has me slapping myself for the oversight.

The recipe below is from the cookbook and is outstanding. I love it alongside tomato soup or chili and have been known to have it simply with a large dill pickle and Funyons.

I know how to live, after all.

Classic Grilled Two Cheese

Author: Alison Lewis
Serves 4

8 slices white or whole-grain bread (1/2 inch/1 cm thick slices)
2 TBS butter or margarine, softened
4 oz Muenster cheese, thinly sliced
4 oz Cheddar cheese, thinly sliced

Instructions

Brush one side of each bread slice with butter.
Place on a work surface, buttered side down.
Top 4 bread slices equally with Muenster and Cheddar cheeses.
Cover with remaining bread slices, buttered side up, and press gently.
Place sandwiches on preheated panini grill or in a large skillet over medium heat and cook, turning once if using a skillet, for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown and cheese is melted.
Serve immediately.

When it comes to grilled cheese sandwiches, you have to really be careful with cheese combinations. Make the wrong move and the result will be thisclose to gross. You also have to be careful with what fillings you add and how you treat the bread. Again, the wrong move can leave your taste buds borderline depressed. In this wonderful and fun cookbook, Alison Lewis has done all of the hard work for us and taken all of the guess work out of our hands. We’re left with a ton of delicious recipes and combinations that’ll make us the Queen or King of Grilled Cheese. Whether you use a Panini or Sandwich Press or a favorite skillet, you WILL use these recipes again and again and again.

Below are just some of the recipes included in 150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches:

Roast Beef with Asiago and Watercress
Grilled Steak and Blue Cheese
Italian Tomato-Basil Bread
Hot Bacon Swiss Crostini
Havarti and Cucumber Sandwich
Grilled Spinach, Pepper Jack, and Bacon
Warm Peanut Butter Power Wrap
Italian Salami Panini
Sweet Pepper Relish
Hummus
The Pilgrim
And many, many, many more.

See 150 Best Grilled Cheese Sandwiches for more information and to order your copy today… just in time for soup season!

Review: Eat a Little Better by Sam Kass

April 16, 2018 By Joi Sigers

Eat a Little Better: Great Flavor, Good Health, Better World by Sam Kass

The links in this post are affiliate links, meaning I earn a small amount when you click through and make a purchase. This (of course) costs you nothing extra – it simply allows me to support my cat in the lifestyle they’ve become accustomed to!

As I’ve mentioned on the food blog a number of times, I collect cookbooks and have since I was a teenager. I have candy cookbooks, vegetarian cookbooks, meat lovers cookbooks, Paleo cookbooks, Keto cookbooks, cookie cookbooks, Indian cuisine cookbooks…. okay, I have just about every conceivable kind of cookbook you can imagine.

You’re looking at the newest member of the cookbook family above: Eat a Little Better by Sam Kass. 3-4 years ago, I had to give up all gluten and wheat (health reasons). Around that time, a close family member had to have a stint put in and these back-to-back health upheavals shook up my world as well as my kitchen. The fact that the way we eat directly effects the way we live hit home and I totally changed the way I looked at food.

I hope to never see another person I love in recovery of a cardiac hospital and I am determined to do my part to keep it from happening again. I’m also committed to stay as healthy as I possibly can because, if we’re being honest, this crazy family of mine needs me more than they realize!

For this reason, the majority of my cookbooks now focus on eating healthy. NOT counting calories, NOT depriving yourself of delicious food, and NOT obsessing to the point of making people want to throw an entire cheesecake at you…. but simply eating healthier food and making smarter choices at the store as well as in the kitchen. You know, things that’ll help keep you playing horseshoes in the yard with your family as opposed to having them visit you in the hospital.

Books like Eat a Little Better make it easier because the food is DELICIOUS and… this is something we all appreciate… the recipes are completely doable, with ingredients we’ve heard of, can easily find, and very often already have on hand.

Did you know that fried potato consumption (hello, French fries) beats out even soft drinks as an indicator for obesity?

From the Back Cover: As a chef, and then as a senior food policy advisor to President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, Sam Kass became an expert on the ins and outs of deliciousness, nutrition, and sustainability.

Recipes in Eat a Little Better Include…

Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Maple-Cider Vinegar
Slow-Roasted Salmon
Barbecued Chicken
Roasted Chicken Stir-Fry
Dirty Brown Rice
White Bean Hummus
Canned Salad (fascinating!)
Mustard Green Salad
Celery-Radish Salad
Charred Zucchini
Grilled Cauliflower Steaks
Pork Chops with Tomato Corn Relish
Rigatoni with Pork Ragu
And many, many more…

While I do have to eat gluten-free and most of the recipes on Get Cooking are gluten-free…. this is not a gluten-free cookbook. However, as I always point out in all of my non-gluten-free cookbook reviews, all recipes are easy enough to tweak and twist in order to make them gluten-free. Simply substitute gluten-free options for the gluteny ones listed! For example, in the Rigatoni with Pork Ragu, it’s a cinch to substitute gluten-free pasta for the traditional rigatoni.

Sam Kass, former chef to the Obamas and White House food policy advisor, makes it easier to do a little better for your diet–and the environment–every day, through smart ways to think about shopping, setting up your kitchen so the healthy stuff comes to hand most naturally, and through 90 delicious, simple recipes.

This book lays out Kass’s plan to eat a little better. Knowing that sustainability and healthfulness come most, well, sustainably when new habits and choices seem appealing rather than drastic and punitive, Kass shares his philosophy and methods to help make it easy to choose, cook, and eat delicious foods without depriving yourself of agency or pleasure. He knows that going organic, local, and so forth all the time is just not realistic for most people, and that’s ok–it’s all about choosing and doing a little bett er, and how those choices add up to big change. It’s the philosophy he helped the Obamas instill in their home, both in Chicago and that big white one in Washington. – Amazon

I love everything about this beautiful cookbook. I love that it’s hardback (so much more durable!), I love the big gorgeous photographs, I love the creativity and the simplicity of the recipes (a rare combo), and I love the fact that the focus is on eating healthier.

But there’s something else I love… I love the peak we get inside President and Michelle Obama’s family – as in their efforts to eat healthier. This focus on health, of course, led Sam Kass and the First Lady to implement healthier meals in our public schools. Their efforts were incredibly commendable and I hope their hard work continues.

One thing that stands out the most from reading this book actually has to do with children. It’s up to us to provide them with better diets than French fries, soft

drinks, and hamburgers. Arming yourself with wonderful recipes is the single best way to provide healthier meals for your children, grandchildren, spouse… and, of course, yourself!

You will love Eat a Little Better – click through and read more about it (there’s even a recipe on the Amazon page for “Lucky Pasta!”).

Note: I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review. The opinions are entirely my own.

Food52 Mighty Salads: 60 Ways to Turn Salad Into Dinner

June 16, 2017 By Joi Sigers

I think I’ve finally figured out why I’m such a salad fanatic and the it turns out it isn’t much of a mystery at all… I’m all about vegetables. And, oddly enough, it doesn’t have anything to do with their nutritional value. That’s just a bonus. I love the taste, the crunch, and the visual appeal of vegetables and a salad is sort of a masterpiece where they all come together.

Okay, so that’s a little flowery, but you get the idea.

Food 52 Mighty Salads: 60 Ways to Turn Salad Into Dinner is, understandably, my latest cookbook obsession. Here’s the thing about cookbooks – you can (and should) try out the recipes, as instructed… only substituting where necessary – like for allergies or intolerances or for ingredients you either can’t find or have zero intention of paying for (I’m looking at you $saffron). However, you can (and most definitely SHOULD) also use recipes in cookbooks as “guides” and “inspiration.” Mighty Salads is a beautiful example of the latter, in particular.

Granted, when it comes to salads, I am a pro. If salad making were a sport, I’d be LeBron James, Serena Williams, Peyton Manning, and Albert Pujols rolled into one. Sorry, I just don’t have time for modesty today. However, even I found innumerable ideas and creative inspirations in Mighty Salads. There were techniques I’d never thought of and even ingredients I’d never considered.

While salads are beautiful and delicious, they can also be next level nutritious, especially when you can add a variety of vegetables or fruits to your creation. So, a cookbook that gives you countless ideas for doing so is… in my opinion… priceless.

From the Inside Cover:

A collection of 60 recipes for turning ordinary salads into one-dish worthy meals.

Does anybody need a recipe to make a salad? Of course not. But if you want your salad to hold strong in your lunch bag or carry the day as a one-bowl dinner, dressing on lettuce isn’t going to cut it.

Make way for Mighty Salads, in which the editors of Food52 present sixty salads hefty with vegetables, meats, grains, beans, fish, seafood, pasta, and bread. Think shrimp and radicchio tossed in a bacon vinaigrette, a make-ahead jumble of white beans with charred lemon and fennel, slow-roasted duck and apples scattered across spicy greens. It’s comforting food made captivating by simply charring one ingredient or marinating another—shaving some, or roasting a bunch.

But because we don’t always follow recipes, there are also loose formulas for confident off-roading, as well as back-pocket tips and genius tricks for improving any old salad. Because once you know how to fix too-salty dressing, wash greens once and for all, keep an avocado from browning, and even sprout your own grains, the humble salad starts looking a lot more interesting—and a whole lot more like dinner.

Salad recipes, tips, and ideas cover lettuce-based salads, pasta salads, and potato salads. While this is not a “gluten-free” cookbook, each recipe can be easily adapted to fit those of us who have to or choose to eat gluten-free. Also, while there are a lot of recipes that call for meat, vegetarians will find them equally easy to tweak. In fact, I think this cookbook is IDEAL for vegetarians (as well as anyone looking for ways to add more vegetables to their diet.

I just can’t tell you how many innovative ideas and creative tips are included in this one very handsome cookbook. It’s packed with them!

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Recipes Include:

Fresh Corn Cakes With Crab-Tomato Salad
Roasted Potato Salad with Mustard-Walnut Vinaigrette
Wilted Escarole with Feta and Honey
Grilled Bread, Broccoli Rabe & Summer Squash Salad
Lemony Greek Pasta Salad
Thai Pork Salad with Crisped Rice
Charred Broccoli & Lentil Salad
Shaved Brussels Sprouts, Endive & Apple Salad
And many, many more great salad recipes and ideas.

“While Emily’s and the other recipes in this book are mighty, they are just the beginning. Even if you never make a single recipe in the book to completion but instead create a mash-up you like better or that serves as a happy home for your leftover vegetables, we’ve done our job.” – From the Introduction

Food52 Mighty Salads: 60 New Ways to Turn Salad into DinnerWhen doing cookbook reviews, I detest the idea of giving away any of the recipes or tips the author(s) work so hard to compile. However, sometimes a “tease” helps give the reader an idea of what they can expect – as well as a hint as to why I’m so excited about the book. One of the coolest ideas I take away from this book of beautiful and innovative recipes is the idea of “shaving” unexpected vegetables into salads. Brussels Sprouts, asparagus, and beets to name a few. The “shaving” technique makes them easier to incorporate into a salad, easier to eat, and… let’s face it… beautiful to behold (and photograph, if you’re a food blogger and/or foodie).

I also (as an experienced salad pro… still zero hint of modesty) found myself saying, “I agree!” or “Preach on!” again and again. For example, when making your salad’s dressing, they tout the importance of taste-testing the dressing, not on a spoon or finger, but on one of the salad’s stars. A great dressing is meant to be a co-star – it isn’t meant to be the star attraction. It should compliment the diva of the salad and the best way to see if it’s worthy of sharing the spotlight is to test it on a cast member.

I completely and whole-heartedly recommend Food52 Mighty Salads: 60 New Ways to Turn Salad into Dinner. It’s a great-looking cookbook that’ll make your kitchen healthier, more colorful, more creative, and (perhaps most importantly) more delicious. If you click through any of the links above, you’ll find a recipe from the book: Cobb Salad with Hard-Boiled Egg Dressing!

Note: I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review. The opinions are entirely my own.

No Excuses Detox by Megan Gilmore (Review)

April 18, 2017 By Joi Sigers

No Excuses DetoxYou may have heard of Megan Gilmore’s first book, Everyday Detox (you can read my Everyday Detox review here). I was beyond excited when I heard she had another cookbook out and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. Her recipes are creative, easy, and feature foods you have most certainly heard of and probably even have on hand.

No Excuses Detox is just as exciting as her first cookbook and the recipes are just as creative and delicious. Megan proves that creating healthy meals for yourself and your family doesn’t have to be difficult. She offers tons of great recipe to make sure your family doesn’t keep eating the same things over and over – a trap that’s easy to fall into when you’re trying to eat healthy.

But let’s be honest – you can only eat so many grilled chicken salads and vegetable soup before you start to lose your inspiration. That’s when fried potatoes, greasy “head-sized” cheeseburgers, and pizzas topped with everything in the refrigerator start to look good. This collection of recipes keeps you from getting to this point and (this part I really love) the results are far more delicious than the less-healthy options.

The book includes Megan’s great advice on substitutions, time-saving tips, meal plans, and even a “Beginner Five-Day Shopping List.”

Do you feel all of those excuses slipping away???

From Everyday Detox author Megan Gilmore, powerhouse blogger behind Detoxinista.com, here are 100 quick-to-prepare, affordable, and delicious whole-food recipes that make it easy to follow a healthy lifestyle for you and your family every day.

In No Excuses Detox, Megan Gilmore presents a collection of satisfying, family-friendly recipes developed with speed, convenience, and optimum digestion in mind. Because enjoying what you eat on a daily basis is crucial to maintaining health goals, these recipes for comfort food favorites–from Freezer Oat Waffles, Butternut Mac n’ Cheese, Quinoa Pizza, Loaded Nacho Dip, and Avocado Caesar Salad to Frosty Chocolate Shakes, No-Bake Brownie Bites, and Carrot Cake Cupcakes—taste just as good as their traditional counterparts, but are healthier versions packed with nutrients. Megan Gilmore sharply identifies many of the reasons people fail to stick to a healthy diet—too busy, budget conscious, cooking for picky eaters, concerns about taste or fullness, and more—addressing them head on and offering simple solutions. This beautifully packaged and artfully photographed book gives readers no excuse to not eat well year-round.

No Excuses Detox Cookbook Black Bean Burgers

About the Author

Megan Gilmore is the creator and recipe developer behind Detoxinista.com, a website that makes healthy living easier and more accessible, and the author of eEveryday Detox. A certified health coach and certified nutritionist consultant, she trained at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and NHI College.

Recipes Include

Fresh Pico de Gallo
Mushroom and Black Bean Tacos
Sloppy Joe-Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Loaded Nacho Dip
White Bean & Rosemary Dip (AMAZING!)
Zucchini Hummus
Creamy Cauliflower “Potato” Salad (perfect for this summer)
Knock-Off Italian Dressing
Frosty Chocolate Shake
TONS more!

The average person gives the following excuses for not cooking and eating healthier meals:

“The food doesn’t taste as good.”
“My family won’t eat it!”
“I’m too busy to cook.”
“It’s too expensive to eat healthy food.”

Basically, this cookbook addresses (and obliterates) these concerns and leaves us all with… you guessed it No More Excuses! Each excuse is taken, individually, and the author offers great advice… from someone who knows because she has been there.

You can find No Excuses Detox on Amazon. The paperback version (the one I was sent in exchange for telling you all about it) is actually available right now for nearly $10 off the list price! It’s even cheaper than the Kindle version.

350 Best Vegan Recipes: Great Cookbook for ANYONE, Vegan or Not

February 20, 2017 By Joi Sigers

One of the cookbooks I’m currently getting the most use out of is Deb Roussou’s 350 Best Vegan Recipes.

Am I a vegan? No.

Am I a vegetarian? No.

Am I a vegan half the time? No.

Am I vegetarian half the time? Not so much.

And yet… this is a cookbook that I use regularly for recipes, ideas, and inspiration for my own recipes.

The last part of that, “inspiration for my own recipes” is probably the number one way I use cookbooks. While I almost always make it the way the recipe states first, I do love to take a great recipe for a joy ride and see what wonderful other sights we can see.

I’ll be posting a recipe in a few minutes that’s actually based on one of the smoothie recipes in 350 Best Vegan Recipes. The original “Desert Sunrise” is delicious, as are the other variations I’ve tried. Adding aloe vera juice and sparkling water makes for some out-of-this-world smoothies. As soon as I post the recipe, I’ll come back here and link to it right about here.

Some of the recipes in this cookbook:

Pan-Fried Onion and Potato Hash Browns
Basic Pizza Dough
Quick Cherry Tomato and Pesto Pizza
Manicotti Florentine
Orecchiette Pasta with Eggplant Garlic Sauce
Roasted Red Pepper and Chipotle Dip
Ranch Dressing
Fragrant Rice-Stuffed Peppers
French Onion Soup with Croutons
Lemon Cucumber Tabbouleh
Stacked Green Chile Enchiladas
An a lot more – 350 in all.. and more when you “tinker” with the recipes and create new ones.

While this is not a “gluten-free” cookbook, substitutions are always possible and it’s usually as simple as replacing a regular pasta with a gluten-free pasta. Easy peasy.

350 Best Vegan Recipes is perfect for anyone’s cookbook collection, because even if you aren’t a vegan or vegetarian and even if you (like me) have zero intention of becoming one (my love for burgers and fish are simply too strong), the healthy, creative, and delicious recipes will add both flavor and nutrition to your meals.

If you ARE a vegan or vegetarian… you’d better go ahead and order this book today because you will love it with all your vegetarian heart.

300 Best Potato Recipes: Cookbook Review from a Potato Fanatic….

January 24, 2017 By Joi Sigers

300 Best Potato RecipesI love potatoes so much you’d think I came from Idaho instead of Kentucky… up until I opened my mouth that is. The y’alls would give me away. Sweet potatoes, Russet potatoes, new potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes… if it’s a potato, I’m a fan.

Health Benefits of Potatoes

No fat, sodium or cholesterol.
Excellent source of Vitamin C -one potato gives you nearly half of your daily requirement of this all-important vitamin.
One potato has more potassium than a banana.
Potatoes are good sources of vitamin B6.
Potatoes also provide you with fiber, magnesium and healthy antioxidants.
I’ve often read potatoes mentioned in beauty magazines as being a great vegetable to add to your regular rotation. Apparently they’re great for both skin and hair when it comes to anti-aging. For one thing, collagen requires Vitamin C to protect our skin from the aging effects of the sun. It also promotes collagen’s ability to smooth wrinkles and improve overall skin texture. Boom!

Read more health benefits of potatoes.

In addition to the fact that potatoes taste fantastic, they’re also budget-friendly and I’m always on board for that.

I was sent a copy of 300 Best Potato Recipes in exchange for telling you about the book and, given my history with potatoes, I’m only too happy to do so. This beautiful cookbook is packed with recipes you’ll use again and again. The author takes potatoes in a fun and sometimes even funky new direction and her creativity is nothing short of a joy ride.

The humble potato is a culinary powerhouse and inspires adventurous and tantalizing fare.

A “desert island” vegetable if ever there was one, the potato appeals to all of us, whether in the form of traditional comfort dishes or in the guise of the new and exotic. Versatile, nutritious, inexpensive and unfailingly delicious, no other vegetable, and few foods in general, can make those claims.

These are just some of the delicious possibilities that the humble potato offers in this wide and varied assortment of recipes:

Classic mash de luxe
Garlic roasties with rosemary
Real English chips
Gnocchi-roni and cheese
Saffron potato cakes
All-American potato pancakes
Sweet potato-crusted shrimp
East Coast chowder
Creole potato salad
French potato galette
Fennel, potato and white bean stew
Potato lasagna
Oyster pie with top mash
Sweet potato gnocchi
Mennonite country potato doughnuts
Potato fudge.

Appetizers and snacks, soups and salads, side dishes, main courses, hearty vegetarian main dishes, baked goods and desserts make up this vast and colorful collection of recipes. The author also includes a complete history and origins of potatoes as well as a comprehensive chapter that covers hundreds of potato varieties.

This is a wonderful cookbook and a must have for fellow potato lovers everywhere. See 300 Best Potato Recipes for ordering information.

300 Best Potato Recipes Cookbook Pictures

Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion

December 2, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Inevitably, after months of shopping and planning, my best-received gifts are the cookies and candies I’ve made for my loved ones. That’s why, in the days leading up to Christmas, you can only find me if you look in my kitchen. I’m the one covered in powdered sugar, chocolate, and corn syrup – dancing around to Christmas music.

Man, I love this time of year!

If you love giving gifts you’ve made in your own kitchen, too, here’s a cookbook you’ll want to add to your library right away. Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion, by Annie Rigg, is an uncommonly beautiful book. As a cookbook collector, one of the first things I notice about a cookbook is how good it feels about itself – the cover, artwork, and photographs let you know, right off the bat, if the cookbook feels really good about itself or if its heart is only half in it.

Gifts from the Kitchen feels amazingly good about itself – we’re talking “supermodel” confidence, here.

Naturally, for a book to be a great book – there has to be more than just great looks going for it. Thankfully, Gifts from the Kitchen comes through in the personality department, too – it’s not just a pretty face.

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While I’m telling you about Gifts from the Kitchen a few weeks before Christmas (timing is everything, guys), this book is actually off the charts useful throughout the year. Why? Because people LOVE homemade gifts all year long! The book covers all celebrations and all seasons. Not only can you use the beautiful delicacies for gift-giving, you can also use them to celebrate special occasions.

Special Occasion Recipes Include

Fortune Cookies (Chinese New Year)
Chocolate Valentine’s Cakes (Valentine’s Day or Anniversaries)
Love Heart Sugar Cubes (Valentine’s Day)
Double Dark Chocolate, Pecan and Ginger Cookies (Father’s Day)
Easter Nest Cupcakes (Easter)
Rugelach (Jewish Celebrations)
Baby Shower Cakes
Wedding Cake
Raspberry, Lemon, and Almond Friands (Mother’s Day)
Stained Glass Snowflake Cookies (Christmas)
And More…

Recipes for Gifts That Fit Any Occasion Include

Chocolate Truffles
Peanut or Madadamia Brittle
Creamy Vanilla Fudge with Chocolate and Nuts
Pickled Beets
Pickled Shallots
Spiced Cranberry Jelly
Florentines
Chocolate-Coated Candied Almonds
Mango Chutney with Chili Pepper and Ginger
English Muffins
Cherry Jam
Strawberry and Vanilla Preserves
Chocolate and Hazelnut Spread
Honeycomb (look especially perfect for Halloween)
Pesto
And Many more….

In addition to the clear and simple recipes, Gifts from the Kitchen provides beautiful examples of ways to present many of these food gifts to your lucky foodie.

This is not a “gluten free” cookbook, but many of the candies and other recipes are, in and of themselves, gluten free. I have not tested any of the other recipes with gluten free flours, so I can’t say how well they’d take to substitutions. It is, however, in my opinion, more than worth having in your collection. The candies, spreads, jellies, etc. outnumber the cakes and cupcakes… and even they provide inspiration and ideas for the gluten free cook.

I’m especially excited about a recipe for “Wholegrain Honey Mustard.” Wholegrain mustard is an obsession of mine – I add it to more recipes than you can imagine (potato salad, BBQ sauce, deviled eggs, egg salad sandwiches, salad dressings…). I can only imagine how amazing this homemade Wholegrain Honey Mustard will be!

See Gifts from the Kitchen for more information.

While you’re on Amazon, check out the other beautiful cookbooks by Annie Rigg.

Review: Gluten-Free Small Bites by Nicole Hunn

November 29, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Before I get to my raving-licious review of Nicole Hunn’s newest MUST HAVE gluten-free cookbook, Gluten-Free Small Bites, I just want to publicly thank her for the time and effort she puts into her gluten-free blog (Gluten-Free on a Shoestring), her gluten-free cookbooks, and even her social media accounts.

Before I had to give up gluten/wheat nearly four years ago, I had always been known in my family as an avid baker and cook – and (*tosses modesty aside for just a second) and a darn good one. As compliments poured in, I was always thinking of the next bread or cake from scratch I’d make. I was known for my sourdough breads, buttermilk biscuits, cakes, pies, cookies, cornbreads, pastries, etc.

If we’re being honest, my sourdough bread was legendary.

Baking was a major part of my identity.

Then… it wasn’t. My body decided gluten/wheat were poison and they had to be permanently removed from my kitchen. I’m not exaggerating when I say that (as a food blogger, restaurant reviewer, and avid cook/baker), my world was rocked and I was in a daze for about a week. If it had not been for blogs like Gluten-Free on a Shoestring, and cookbooks such as the ones Nicole Hunn writes, I might still be in that daze with a ridiculously stupid look on my face.

Thank God for these lifelines because I don’t wear stupid well. It wasn’t long before I was, once again, baking bread, making pancakes, cakes, cookies, and even pies. I could make fried chicken again and, trust me, for a Kentuckian, that is huge. The work is sometimes more difficult and, let’s not fool ourselves, it’s usually more expensive to make gluten free recipes than traditional recipes – BUT you can’t really put a price on getting a major part of your identity back.

While I don’t have all of them yet, I am in the process of collecting Nicole Hunn’s gluten-free cookbooks. My husband gave me an early Christmas present about a week ago – Nicole Hunn’s newest cookbook, Gluten-Free Small Bites. He handed it to me in the middle of the day and that was that. Not a single thing got done the rest of the day. I escaped to my favorite den chair with iced tea in one hand and my new cookbook in the other.

{Cookbook Review Continued Below the Corn Muffins…}

Corn Muffins - A Gluten-Free Recipe from Gluten-Free Small Bites by Nicole Hunn

As I gawked at the recipes that were once again a possibility for me, I felt like Disney’s Pocahontas must have felt when she sang, “A Whole New World… Shining, Shimmering, Splendid.”

Side note: when you raise three daughters, songs from Disney Princesses become firmly planted inside your brain and they play at pretty random times – at least this time, the song choice was appropriate.

From the Back Cover:

100 irresistible one-bite recipes—for everything from parties to portable meals

You know those days where dinner is grab-and-go, but you’re not sure what to grab? The older kids have a soccer game, a ballet lesson, the little one has a kazoo party, and they all need to be fed? Or maybe you’ve been volunteered to bring the mini quiches to the office potluck. Well you’re in luck: with Nicole Hunn at the helm, you can choose from 100 recipes for small bites—from party-pleasers like jalapeño poppers and pigs-in-blankets to easy meals like hand pies and chalupas. Have one of those special occasions when you can sit down for a meal? Nearly every recipe has instructions for how to make a bigger bite.

Recipes Include:

Pretzel Dough
Phyllo Dough
Flour Tortillas
Corn Tortillas
Naan Bread
Pizza Dough
Miniature Mac and Cheese Cups
Garlic Pizza Breadsticks
Pizza Bites
Cheesy Potato Pierogi
Miniature Chicken and Waffles
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Empanada Dough
Shrimp Pot Stickers
Sopapillas
Glazed Donut Holes (!!!)
Pretzel Dogs
Pigs in Blankets
Fish Sticks
Samosas
Egg Rolls (YES, egg rolls!)
Fried Wontons
Cheddar Hush Puppies
Mozzarella Sticks
Onion Rings
Truffles
Chalupas
Wraps
And many, many more…

Basically, all the things you thought you had to do without eating and live without making are right here in one beautiful book, ready to bring new life back into your cooking and baking.

{Cookbook Review Continued Below}

The first recipe from the book that I made were the ridiculously adorable Corn Muffin Bites (page 73). I did not have any corn in my kitchen and since it was pouring down outside, running to the store wasn’t in my game plan. So, I decided to just add a little jalapeno and chopped green onion in place of the corn. These corn muffins weren’t just beautiful to look at, they were out of this world delicious. I can’t wait to try them with corn next time (although, I’m not lying, the jalapeno and onions were knock outs).

I also made them in a traditional muffin pan instead of a mini-muffin pan. Why? Total accident. In my defense, I was under the influence of my allergy meds (Benadryl) and by the time I realized I was greasing the wrong muffin tin, I’d already committed to it. In my state, the thought of re-greasing another pan was out of the question.

The second recipe I made from Gluten-Free Small Bites were the Asparagus Fries (page 67). I made a ridiculously simple dip for them (Ranch Dressing with Prepared Horseradish and Kosher Salt) and they were unspeakably delicious. Crunchy, fun to eat (and make), and full of flavor.

I can’t wait to make both of these recipes again – and to use the Asparagus Fries as inspiration for Green Bean Fries. That’s a classic example of what separates good cookbook authors from great ones – good cookbook authors provide you with recipes, period. Great ones provide you with recipes, as well as techniques, that inspire confidence and creativity. They encourage you to branch out and try new things and they remind you that cooking isn’t just fun, it’s an adventure!

{Cookbook Review Concludes Below the Asparagus Fries!}

Asparagus Fries - A Gluten-Free Recipe from Gluten-Free Small Bites by Nicole Hunn

I 110 percent recommend you skip right over to Amazon and grab a copy of Gluten-Free Small Bites for yourself and anyone on your life who is gluten-free. If you need a little more inspiration, go back to the section above that lists some of the recipes included in this cookbook. Then remind yourself that these are just SOME of the recipes in this cookbook. Recipes and experiences that I, for one, thought were gone forever.

Reunions are a beautiful, beautiful thing.

Find Gluten-Free Small Bites on Amazon.
Find Nicole Hunn at Gluten-Free on a Shoestring!

Cast Iron Paleo Makes a Perfect Gift Idea for the Gluten-Free or Paleo Foodie in Your Life

November 15, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Cast Iron Paleo by Pamela Ellgen

A recent cookbook I was sent (in exchange for telling you about it) has become an instant classic in my kitchen. How could it not? It fits perfectly in my wheelhouse:

I have to eat gluten free and aim for three “Paleo” days a week. Paleo is inherently gluten-free, but it also eliminates sugar and dairy – making it one of the healthiest ways to eat. Why, then, do I not commit fully to the Paleo diet? Because potatoes. Because Pasta. Because Cereal. Mostly… Because Potatoes.
My cast iron skillets are the cornerstone of my kitchen. My main cast iron skillet sits on the stove at all times – ready for duty at a moment’s notice. My Cast Iron Grill Pan and smaller Cast Iron Skillets are perched on a nearby shelf, also ready for their “calls to action.”

It’s almost as though this cookbook were created for me personally.

Anyone who follows a gluten-free diet knows it can be a bit of a challenge to find recipes that address our personal needs. Can you imagine how much tougher it is, then, to find recipes for a Paleo diet?! That’s like taking our needs and doubling them.

Thankfully, there are great cookbooks (just like this one) that take the stress out of the equation and simplify cooking. Come on, life’s stressful enough – we don’t need extra hassles in the kitchen, right?

Here’s the think, fellow foodies, you don’t even have to follow a Paleo diet religiously or even “part-time” to enjoy… make that love.... Cast Iron Paleo. Think about it, we ALL should be cooking more healthy meals and less unhealthy ones, right?

Cookbooks like this are golden on two fronts:

They inspire us to cook healthier meals for our family.
They’re filled with so many flavorful and delicious recipes that we’ll keep on pulling from them for more meals – and our family will love us for it.

{Review Continued Below….}

Just a Few of the Flavorful and Creative Recipes

The first recipe I made from Cast Iron Paleo was the Meatloaf on page 133. I normally make my meatloaf with gluten-free breadcrumbs but this particular recipe didn’t even call for them! It uses ground beef, pork, eggs, a few seasonings, and vegetables…. mixed and placed in an iron skillet, then topped with 6 slices of bacon.

I went with a basket-weave pattern with my bacon because it was Monday and I was feeling artsy. Yes, that qualifies as artsy for me.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect. The entire time the meatloaf was cooking, I kept thinking, “But no breadcrumbs?…. But no breadcrumbs?… but.. but…” My meatloaf anxiety was through the roof. But frequent peeks into the oven showed me (again and again) that all was well and the meatloaf was coming together beautifully.

I will say this, if you buy this cookbook (and you really, really should), this particular recipe does not mention an oven temperature. I simply went with the one I use for my regular meatloaf recipe, 350 degrees for the specified time (1 to 1-1/2 hours) and it did beautifully. All the other recipes gave specified temperatures. Perhaps the cookbook printer was sidetracked like me – “But no breadcrumbs?…. But no breadcrumbs?… but.. but…”

{Review Continued Below….}

Gluten Free and Paleo Cast Iron Skillet Meatloaf from Cast Iron Paleo

Gluten-Free and Paleo Meatloaf – Look, Ma, No Breadcrumbs!

Chapter One gives a beautiful primer on cast iron skillets: benefits, history, seasoning, care, etc. Basically, anything you need to know about owning cast iron skillets is right there in one brief chapter.

Chapter Two lays out for the reader the dos and dont’s of the Paleo lifestyle. What to eat (and why) and what not to eat (and why).

After the first two chapters, you get to the meat of the matter (sorry, couldn’t help myself), the wonderful recipes. It’s been my experience that Paleo cookbooks (for whatever reasons) are always just filled with creatively flavorful recipes. Perhaps, since the Paleo cook’s resources are a little different that other’s, they look at food a bit differently. I can’t put my finger on it, but Paleo cookbooks are flat out packed with flavor and I’m loving every second of it.

Recipes Include:

Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash
Green Beans with Caramelized Shallots (would be amazing for Thanksgiving and Christmas!)
Pan-Roasted Carrots and Onions
Sauteed Mushrooms
Sesame-Crusted Tuna
Pan-Seared Salmon Over Mixed Greens
Lemon Garlic Aioli
Rustic Chicken Pot Pie
Maple Almond Pork Chops
Swedish Meatballs
Kale Carbonara
Marinated Steak Fajitas
Guacamole
Flat Iron Steaks with Mushrooms
Tomato Rosemary Burgers
Bacon-Wrapped Filet Mignon with Vegetables
Braised Short Ribs
Berry Cobbler
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Cast Iron Apple Pie
Black-Bottom Chocolate Cake
And more!

{Review Concludes Below….}

Cast Iron Paleo and a Few Stars in My Own Kitchen

Why I Have This Cookbook Listed in the Christmas Gift Guide:

First of all, Cast Iron Paleo, alone, would be a great gift any foodie would appreciate – especially a foodie who eats gluten-free or Paleo. However, if you wanted to “step up your game,” you could gift this cookbook along with a great cast iron skillet. My own personal preference is Lodge Cast Iron Skillets. Come to think of it, every cast iron skillet (I have an obsession, guys, I’m not lying) and grill pan I have is Lodge.

Read more about Cast Iron Paleo on Amazon today.

Field Peas to Foie Gras: Southern Recipes with a French Accent (Cookbook Review)

November 7, 2016 By Joi Sigers

As I mentioned in my last cookbook review, I know they’re coming hot and heavy, but there are just so many to tell you about right now! I’m quickening my pace simply because these cookbooks would make excellent (and much-appreciated) gift ideas for the cooks in your life.

What’s more, cookbooks like the beauty pictured here (Field Peas to Foie Gras) will serve you beautifully with the upcoming holidays. The Southern recipes in this cookbook will make Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, New Years… and the entire year that follows even more delicious. I’ve already bookmarked the Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie (page 159) and Cranberry Orange Relish (page 20) for Thanksgiving and the Black-Eyed Pea Salad will be a fresh and delicious way to ensure good luck on New Year’s Day!

I also bookmarked the Blackberry Cobbler to make as soon as absolutely possible!

Field Peas to Foie Gras by Chef Jennifer Hill Booker features delicious recipes that are simple to make, with clear instructions and everyday ingredients. It is not, obviously, a “Gluten Free” cookbook, per se. I only point this out because I do a lot of gluten free cookbook reviews. Some of the recipes are, by nature, already gluten free, but

It is, however, perfectly easy to substitute the non-gluten-free ingredients with gluten-free ingredients. With all of the gluten free flours on the market today, it’s simply not the issue it once was!

Thank goodness because I can’t wait to try ALL of these recipes!

Some of the recipes Include:

Frost Plum Jelly
Peaches in Syrup
Spiced Pear Preserves
Red Hot Pepper Relish
Pickled Tarragon Eggs
Green Tomato Cha Cha
Gram’s Coleslaw
Baked Tomatoes
Pan-Fried ‘Taters & Spring Onions
Buttermilk Cornbread
Applesauce & Fried Ham Steak
Barbecue Spareribs
Dry-Rubbed Smoked Pork Shoulder
Fried Grizzards
Pan-Fried Round Steaks & Brown Gravy
Roasted Chicken & Dumplings
Deep-Fried Mississippi Catfish
Roasted Turkey – With everything you need to know to cook the perfect Thanksgiving turkey.
Sage & Cornbread Stuffing
Giblet Gravy
Meringue Cookies
Coconut Christmas Cake
Many, many more!

The awesome recipes are accompanied by absolutely gorgeous pictures. The food makes you want to dive right it and I absolutely love the pictures of the author and her 2 beautiful daughters and 1 beautiful niece. Being a mom to daughters makes me, “Awwww” anytime I see other people’s daughters.

You’re going to love Jennifer Hill Booker and her amazing recipes. You’ll be like me and find yourself wanting more from her! When I finished reading through the cookbook, my first thought was, “Why don’t you have your own cooking show on the Cooking Channel or Food Network?!”

I guarantee you’ll love everything about this beautiful cookbook. It’s a perfect salute to Southern cooking and what makes is so unforgettable.

{Review Continued Below….}

Field Peas to Foie Gras

About the Author
Chef Jennifer Hill Booker Le Cordon Blue-certified chef, cookbook author, reality TV personality, culinary educator, business owner and GA Grown Executive Chef for the GA Department of Tourism and Travel discovered her passion for food early in life. As a little girl cooking beside her mother, grandmother and aunts she learned that through food she could touch people’s hearts and bring smiles of happiness.

Weaving her love of traditional Southern cuisine with her belief in incorporating healthy, seasonal foods and her classic French training Chef Jennifer created a unique style of cooking that she termed Modern Southern Healthy Cuisine with a French Accent. Her first cookbook, Field Peas to Foie Gras: Southern Recipes with a French Accent. (Pelican Publishing, 2014) includes original recipes that the home cook can easily prepare for the family.

Chef Jennifer is fearless in her dedication to bring the best in cooking to her audience from creating recipes, to teaching culinary arts, presenting at live cooking demonstration, keynote-speaking engagements and in the digital world where she engages with her online community. Competing on Food Network’s Cutthroat Kitchen with host Chef Alton Brown, Chef Jennifer demonstrated her creativity and tenacity to the Food TV world when she made it to the final round.

She is a member of James Beard Foundation, the Atlanta chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International, the Georgia Restaurant Association, Slow Foods, and Georgia Organics. Chef Jennifer contributes original recipes to such publications as Garden & Gun, Atlanta Magazine, Essence Magazine, Jezebel, Southern Seasons, Urban Socialites and Basil Magazine.

Chef Jennifer spends her free time in her kitchen, garden, or the local farmer’s market. She currently resides in Lilburn, Georgia with her two daughters Jenelle and Regine along with their KorgieJack, Pudge.

See Field Peas to Foie Gras for more information. This one is a perfect 10.

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