Tastiest Book Posts

Six Seasons seems to be this summer's hit cookbook, widely praised for the author's "easy yet delicious and innovative ways with vegetables." So even though it wasn't on my cookbook shelf - I've been pretty good about not buying any since I moved - since this is a blog about the tastiest cookbooks, I felt like I should probably spend some time with it. Good thing the San Francisco public library is just down the hill!

Six Seasons is based on the concept that there are not four but rather six important seasons to follow for fresh, ripe vegetables. The four I've picked this week are from the mid-summer & late summer sections (2 from the first, 2 from the second). I couldn't stop myself from adding one sweet recipe to the list, and this oatmeal ice cream seemed like a possible winner, particularly because it doesn't call for using an ice cream machine.

Since this is my last week in sublet #1 and I don't have any pantry supplies here anymore, I'll be a week or two behind again, unless I break down and run out to the store because I can't help myself.

Thanks for voting!

A) Cauliflower Ragu from Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables

B) Squash and "Tuna Melt" Casserole from Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables

C) Roasted Pepper Panzanella from Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables

D) Risotto with Shell Beans, Sausage, and Bitter Greens from Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables

E) Caledonian Oatmeal Ice Cream with Berries from the British Table

 

 

 

I'm a couple days late to the recipe vote post again this week, but I'll be late with the actual recipe as well since I'm going out of town on Wednesday to give a talk and I haven't finished my talk yet. I've started it, there's a lot of coffee and a couple late nights between now and decent. This isn't really a new presentation schedule for me and I've made my peace with it. Mostly.

Anyways, back to food.... This week the choices are an odd collection of recipes, all of which I've tried and liked.

Vote by Thursday and I'll have the winner posted by Saturday! Thanks 😀

 

A) Cauliflower Risotto from Superfood Kitchen

B) Tamarind Chickpeas from Madhur Jaffrey (handwritten recipe source)

C) Hazelnut, Blue Cheese, and Date Scones from Sweet

D) Apricot-Basil Cream Galette from Sweet

E) Citrus, Honey, & Pistachio Drizzle Cake from Love Bake Nourish

 

 

This week's set of recipes mostly comes from another "cookbook of the month": My Paris Kitchen by David Leibovitz. It came out a while ago, but at the time I dismissed MPK as not having any especially inspiring recipes. I had David Leibovitz labeled in my head as more of a pastry expert rather than a French food at home guide, plus I already own a lot of cookbooks on French cuisine. Still, the nice thing about cookbook groups is they encourage trying recipes I wouldn't necessarily cook from otherwise.

I had to include a few options from Starry Kitchen too because I love jicama, especially in the summer, and spicy Korean noodles are a favorite of mine.

Please vote by Monday!

A) Soy bean jicama from Adventures in Starry Kitchen

B) Spicy Korean noodle from Adventures in Starry Kitchen

C) Buckwheat polenta with braised greens, sausage, and poached eggs (polenta au sarrasin, légumes braisés, saucisse, et oeufs pochés) from My Paris Kitchen

D) Chicken with mustard (poulet à la moutard) from My Paris Kitchen

E) Lemon pistachio Israeli couscous (couscous Israélien au citron et aux pistaches) from My Paris Kitchen

F) Chocolate-dulce de leche tart (tarte au chocolat et confiture de lait) from My Paris Kitchen

Thanks 🙂

I made it through Lion on the flight to Chicago, which I've been wanting to see for ages and is fantastic, but with about 30 interruptions during playback. At least it gave me a chance to work on my ideas post on my phone while I waited for my iPad to connect to United's terrible free wi-fi.

The list of recipes I want to make keeps growing, but I can only eat so much food in any given week. I think I need to have more dinner parties, or something. Five course meals every night would go a long way towards clearing off my to-cook list. In the meantime, I failed to limit myself to 4 choices this week. I did however limit myself to a single cookbook....Tartine All Day, because it's the cookbook of the month for the Tasting Table Cookbook Club and so I'd better start cooking through it.

I'm away for the week, and although I tried to constrain myself to recipes I've already made successfully, I wound up ignoring all those options and posting new choices. Depending on what you vote for seeing, it's possible there will be some lag time.

 

A) Kuku Sabzi (a Persian version of frittata, always stuffed with fresh herbs)

B) Cheese and Pepper Crackers

C) Corn, Green Beans, and Parmesan

D) Whole Loaf Cheesy Garlic Bread

E) Blueberry Cobbler with Cornmeal Buttermilk Biscuits

F) Lemon Pound Cake

All from Tartine All Day

This week is all about salads, apparently. I failed my "Salad May" concept, but I'm bringing it back for June. These salads are pretty diverse, so hopefully something strikes your fancy.

Also, if you're wondering why Ottolenghi's recipe have been showing up a lot this month, it's because his cookbooks are the featured "cookbook of the month" for the Tasting Table Cookbook Club. [Plus, his recipes are pretty magical. That seared tuna was great.]

Please vote by Monday evening!

 

A) Soba Salad with Miso Dressing from Family Table

B) Wild Rice and Nectarine Salad from Salad in a Jar

C) Spring Salad from Plenty More

D) Seaweed, Ginger, and Carrot Salad from Plenty More

Did you watch the Top Chef season with Fabio? He was so charming and irresistibly likeable. Sadly, I wasn't impressed at all with his first cookbook. I didn't find it very compelling or well-styled, so I'd sort of written him off. Maybe it was a case of moving too quickly from show to cookbook pitch?  Anyhow, he recently released this new cookbook, Fabio's 30-Minute Italian, that does actually contain recipes for things I'd happily eat. And if they really taste delicious after only 30 minutes, that's even better. I guess I should point out that none of the dessert offerings captured my interest, so this is another week of savory-only options.

Please vote by Monday 🙂

A) Garlic and Honey-Marinated Avocado, Mango, Roasted Chicken Salad from Fabio's 30-Minute Italian

B) Broiled Balsamic-Glazed Sea Bass with Celery and Fennel Salad from Fabio's 30-Minute Italian

C) Pan-Seared Sole with Roasted Garlic, Spinach, and Chilies from Fabio's 30-Minute Italian

D) Lemon-Roasted Chicken with Avocado and Warm Artichoke Hearts from Fabio's 30-Minute Italian

The kitchen in my current sublet is no match for my previous kitchen (or pantry) and the lighting is pretty suboptimal for food photography at night. So, with these constraints in my temporary kitchen, plus the fact that it's summer, the next couple of months are going to be filled with quick, easy, minimal ingredient recipes.

Caleb is a big Seinfield fan. Obviously then, I need to try some recipes from Jerry's wife's latest cookbook: Food Swings. All the ones I've listed here are from the "virtue" half, as in, good-for-you recipes. Her virtuous recipes sounded a lot more appealing and summer-y than her "vice" offerings.

 

A) Ginger Salmon with Sesame Cucumbers from Food Swings

B) Chard-wrapped Cod from Food Swings

C) Chicken Salad with Cream Basil Dressing from Food Swings

D) Seared Tuna with Pistachio Crust and Papaya Salsa from Ottolenghi

 

It wasn't intentionally, but apparently I am all about the fish recipes this week...

Please vote for a favorite by Tuesday, and I'll have the recipe verdict posted Wednesday!

 

I've been falling behind with my scheduled posts, which is exactly the opposite of the point of having scheduled posts...

This week's selection of recipes mostly comes from the glamorously healthy new cookbook: Green Kitchen at Home. There's one outlier though, the chocolate Persian love cake I made last week, which was so delicious (and gluten-free and fun to photograph) that it deserves your attention too.

I got a new camera! Almost one year after buying an expensive phone to take better photos of food, I dragged my friend Jon into a long conversation about the merits of DSLRs versus Mirrorless and a week later found myself in possession of a brand new Fujifilm X-T20 (the only one Adorama had in stock!) You'll have to tell me if you notice a difference...

A) Middle Eastern Sweet Potato Wraps from Green Kitchen at Home

B) Banana and Spinach Pancakes from Green Kitchen at Home

C) Mushroom, Goat's Cheese, Pear and Walnut Fettuccine from Green Kitchen at Home

D) Chermoula Baked Aubergine with Spiced Chickpeas from Green Kitchen at Home

E) Chocolate Persian Love Cake {GF} with Raspberry Mascarpone Cream adapted from Butter Baking

For this weekend's selection of recipes for ideas post 42, I'm circling back to Melissa Clark's Dinner: Changing the Game. Her multitude of recipes that involve shredding tofu intrigue me....shredded tofu with spicy ground chicken and edamame, Thai-style shredded tofu with Brussels sprouts, shredded tofu spaetzle,... all aimed at creating a fluffy mound of tofu that is richly flavored and doesn't taste like tofu.

A) Shredded tofu with spicy ground chicken and edamame

B) Red curry & coconut tofu

C) Thai-style shredded tofu with Brussels sprouts

D) Sweet potato dhal with coconut

E) Greek avgolemono soup with greens

F) Roasted cauliflower salad with chickpeas, tahini, avocado (and watercress)

all from Dinner: Changing the Game