Category Archives: Cookbook Review

Perfect for Pesach Cookbook {Review and Giveaway}

Cakes, Cookbook Review, Passover

Perfect for Pesach

Naomi Nachman aka “The Aussie Gourmet” is out with her debut cookbook “Perfect for Pesach”. This cookbook is geared toward Passover cooking and baking, but according to Naomi, the recipes are so good, you’ll want to make them all year. 120 of the recipes are gluten free which makes this cookbook perfect for those with gluten dietary restrictions. When I asked Naomi why she chose to write this specific book she noted that she really wanted to break the mold of Passover cooking. It doesn’t have to be all meat and potatoes.

Not only does this cookbook contain 125 recipes, it is also a great Passover kitchen resource. It starts off with an entire page breaking down 6 cooking oils you may come across at the supermarket and why certain oils are chosen for certain recipes. Naomi includes a breakdown of her essential kitchen tools which is a perfect checklist for anyone cooking for Passover. She also includes tons of freezer tips because nobody wants to spend the entire holiday cooking in the kitchen.

The book is then broken up into classic categories: appetizers, dips ad salads, soups, fish, poultry, meat, dairy, sides, and desserts. Each recipe has a little note from Naomi, as well as a clear list of ingredients and a step by step method for preparing the dish. There are also cooks tips such as ingredient substitutions or different cooking methods that can be used. Many of the recipes also include ways to prep the recipe in advance. This sets you up for success in the kitchen. And although these recipes can be prepared as is for year round use, there is a page of non-Passover substitutions that can be used in place of Passover specific ingredients.

The best part of any cookbook, in my opinion, is the pictures. And this cookbook has a gorgeous full page color photo of every recipe. Miriam Pascal the Overtime Cook did all the photography for this book. She really knows how to make the food pop off the page.

So many of the recipes look amazing, but the recipes I really want to try first are southwestern chicken egg rolls, hush puppy potato knishes, quionoa “hummus”, charoset salad, goat cheese salad with raspberry vinaigrette, flanken butternut squash soup, meat and cabbage soup, pistachio crusted salmon, braised chicken with apples and sweet potatoes, citrus glazed duck breast, cranberry glazed turkey and spinach meatloaf, maple glazed rack of ribs, veal roast with mushroom sauce, pastrami meatballs, almond butter banana pancakes, cheesy hash browns, apple kugel muffins, blueberry cobbler, and fudgy chocolate bundt cake with coffee glaze. Lucky for us, with permission from Artscroll/Shaar Press/ March 2017 I am able to share Naomi Nachmans Passover recipe for fudgy chocolate bundt cake with coffee glaze!

fudgy chocolate bundt cake with coffee glaze

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Fudgy Chocolate Bundt Cake with Coffee Glaze
Author: 
 
Ingredients
Cake
  • 2½ cups almond flour
  • 1 cup cocoa powder
  • ½ cup potato starch
  • 1 Tbs. instant coffee granules
  • 1½ tsp. baking powder
  • ½ tsp. kosher salt
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • ½ cup oil
  • 1 Tbs. imitation vanilla extract
  • 6 eggs
Coffee Glaze
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 Tbs. brewed coffee
  • 1 tsp. oil
Instructions
Cake
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a Bundt pan well; set aside.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together almond flour, coca powder, potato starch, coffee, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs. Add dry ingredients; stir to combine.
  4. Pour batter into Bundt pan; bake 40-45 minutes, until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely in the pan. Remove from pan; glaze with coffee glaze.
Coffee Glaze
  1. In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients to form a glaze. If the glaze is too thick to pour, add water, ½ teaspoon at a time, until desired texture is reached.
  2. Pour glaze over cooled cake.

I was generously given a review copy of Perfect for Pesach by Naomi Nachman from Artscroll/Shaar Press/ March 2017 and they have agreed to give one away too! To win your very own copy of Perfect for Pesach by Naomi Nachman, head over to my Instagram @lilmisscakes to enter. US mailing address only.

The Silver Platter: Simple Elegance {Review and Giveaway}

Cookbook Review

The Silver Platter: Simple EleganceThe Silver Platter: Simple Elegance is the second book by Daniella Silver. After the success of her first cookbook, The Silver Platter: Simple to Spectacular, Daniella has yet again teamed up with cooking guru Norene Gilletz. These two ladies make an amazing team and have put out another winning cookbook. Daniella comes up with impressive dishes with simple ingredients and Norene gives some really interesting and helpful tips for each and every dish. This book contains over 160 new recipes with tricks and techniques for planning, prepping, and serving stunning dishes for any occasion.

I love the layout of this book. Each recipe has a small introduction. The ingredients are clearly listed, and the directions are easy to understand. Each recipe includes “Norene’s Notes” which can be anything from make ahead tips, to substitutions,  leftover ideas, Passover options, preparation tips, and even nutritional information. Every recipe is also paired with a gorgeous color photo to give you an idea of what your dish will look like as well as plating ideas. The cookbook itself is nice and big and is just gorgeous to flip thorough-it makes a beautiful coffee table book and makes the perfect gift.

The book is broken up into categories: appetizers, soups, salads, fish, poultry, meat, dairy, grain side dishes, vegetable side dishes, cookies and treats, and cakes. I like how easy Daniella and Norene make it to be healthful. Not only are the recipes lightened up when possible, but at the end of the book you will find a clear breakdown of the nutritional information for each recipe.

Some recipes I’m excited to try: roasted eggplant salad, pulled BBQ beef nachos, sweet potato and kale soup, cheesy potato leek soup, balsamic spinach salad with carmelized onions, honey garlic herbed salmon, chili lime fish fillets, smoked turkey cabbage slaw, asian flavored miami ribs, quinoa pizza ramekins, spinach cheese bites, candied cauliflower with almonds, peanut butter cookie brownies, brown sugar peach crisp, and salted chocolate ganache tart.

Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cake

I am excited to share this recipe for Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cake from THE SILVER PLATTER SIMPLE ELEGANCE: Effortless Recipes with Sophisticated Results by Daniella Silver and Norene Gilletz reproduced with permission from the copyright holder, Artscroll, November 2016.

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Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cake
Author: 
Serves: 2 Loaves
 
You can’t beat the combination of fruit and chocolate in this fragrant cranberry loaf. Perfectly tart and sweet, it’s a great cake for breakfast, brunch, or an after-dinner treat. It makes two loaves, so freeze the second one for another occasion.
Ingredients
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 ¼ cups sugar
  • 1 ¼ cups vegetable oil
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cups orange juice
  • 2 ½ cups flour (or gluten-free flour with xanthan gum)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 ½ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (no need to thaw)
  • 1 ½ cups mini chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat eggs with sugar, oil, and vanilla on medium-high speed for 3-5 minutes, until light.
  3. Reduce mixer speed to low; gradually blend in orange juice.
  4. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until combined. Fold in cranberries and chocolate chips.
  5. Divide batter evenly between prepared loaf pans; spread evenly. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out dry.
  6. Allow loaves to cool for 20 minutes. Invert onto serving platters.
Norene's Notes
  1. Muffin Variation: In Step 5, scoop batter into muffin pans coated with nonstick spray or lined with paper liners until ¾-full. Bake at 375°F for about 25 minutes. Yields 18-24 muffins.
  2. Frozen cranberries don’t need to be thawed. Just rinse and pat them dry with paper towels before folding them into the batter.

Want to win your very own copy? Artscroll has offered to give one free copy of The Silver Platter: Simple Elegance to one of you! Head over to my Instagram @lilmisscakes for a chance to win! US mailing addresses only.

Our Table Cookbook {Review and Giveaway}

Cookbook Review, ,

Our Table by Renee Muller

 

 In Our Table, food stylist and recipe columnist Renee Muller shares her simple and delicious kosher family recipes. Each recipe calls for everyday ingredients, all easily accessible, and is accompanied by full color photos. Both of those components as well as the easy to follow directions and tips make this cookbook perfect for a beginner in the kitchen as well as a great resource for the seasoned chef. The cookbook is not only for the kitchen, it makes a stunning coffee table book. Renee brings her expert food styling skills to each and every photo. This is something I really look for in a great cookbook. I love looking at beautiful food and love seeing what the recipe will look like.

The book is filled with recipe tips, suggestions, and techniques to help in the kitchen. Some of the recipes also include links to online video tutorials. As Renee was writing she wished she could be there with her readers in the kitchen. “Many times while writing down recipe instructions, I wished I could just invite my readers to join me in my kitchen and cook with me.  That thought led me to create a variety of videos of some of the recipes so you can view them as you want and see some of the techniques I use when cooking my recipes.”  I love this idea, it’s like getting personal cooking classes with Renee Muller!

The categories in the cookbook include Appetizers, Soups & Salads, Fish & Dairy, Meat, Chicken & More, Snacks & Sides, Bread, Cakes & Cookies, and Desserts. Each recipe is labeled as Meat, Dairy,  or Pareve as well as Freezer Friendly or Gluten Free. There is even a Pesach (Passover) guide with substitutions so many recipes can be used over the holiday as well.

I have already made the Belgian Birthday Waffles  and My Most Favorite White Flour Challah which were both a huge hit! I cant wait to try Mommy’s Stuffed Cabbage,  Mushroom Barley Soup Done Right,  Lo Mein, Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Tart, Sweet and Tangy Spare Ribs, Oven Baked Honey Mustard Chicken,  Babka Swirls, Just Right Cookies, and Malky’s Old Fashioned Apple Bake.

Apple and Honey Rosh Hashanah Muffins | Renee Muller

I am delighted to share this recipe for Apple and Honey Rosh Hashanah Muffins from Our  Table by Renee Muller reproduced with permission from the copyright holder, ArtScroll Publications, October 2016.

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Apple and Honey Rosh Hashana Muffins
Author: 
Serves: 48
 
At our house, Rosh Hashanah cannot happen without honey muffins. At least, that’s the way my kids see it. It’s a family project, and by now, a family tradition, too. This recipe was given to me by a relative in Israel who bakes them all the time and claims that no matter how many batches she bakes, there are never enough. She’s absolutely right. We once baked a quadruple batch of these (sans the apples) for a bake sale on our block and we were left without a crumb!
Ingredients
For The Apples
  • 2 Tablespoons butter OR margarine
  • 4 Granny Smith apples, diced
  • 4 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
For the muffins
  • 2 cups prepared tea, lukewarm
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 cups oil
  • 2 cups honey
  • 12 eggs
  • 6 cups flour
  • 2 Tablespoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 heaping Tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
  2. Prepare the apples: In a saucepan, melt butter over a medium-low flame. Add apples, sugar, and cinnamon; cook until apples are fragrant and soften a bit, about 15 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  3. Prepare the muffins: In the bowl of a stand mixer, on medium speed, combine tea, sugar, oil, honey, and eggs. Mix until smooth. Reduce speed; gradually add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Scrape down sides of bowl as needed.
  4. Fill each muffin cup halfway with batter. (I like to use a cupcake pen for this; I find it very helpful.) Top with a teaspoon of prepared apples. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out almost dry with some moist crumbs attached.
note: The apples are optional; I find that some children prefer the muffins plain. We add the apple for Rosh Hashanah (very loudly singing, “Dip the apple in the hooooneeeyy” as we do so) but throughout the year, we bake them plain.
tip: I recently discovered an amazing gadget called “The Cupcake (or Muffin) Pen.” It really removes the whole messy aspect of filling cupcake pans with batter. Look for it in specialty equipment stores.

Want to win your own copy? Artscroll has graciously offered to give one copy of Our Table to one of you! Head over to my Instagram @lilmisscakes and enter for a chance to win! US mailing addresses only-sorry!