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Purchase Kansas Cookies, my first cookbook. Thanks. Patsy Terrell
Ethnic Cookbooks
These books focus on food from a particular country or region. Or, they illustrate a number of different ways food is prepared in various places.
These are the ethnic books currently reviewed:
Thai Cooking in a Sufi's KitchenSpanish Home Cooking
New Soul Cooking
A Chicken in Every Pot
The Timeless Art of Italian Cuisine
Cooking at the Kasbah
All About Cuban Cooking
From the Global Kitchen
Neptune's Table
Breads from Betsy's Kitchen
Eat First, Work Later
Global Feast Cookbook
The International Breakfast Book
Cook 'Til Done
Cooking with Wine
The Great Little Food with Wine Cookbook
Three Generations of Chilean Cuisine
Chez Nous
Authentic German Home Style Recipes
Recipes from La Isla!
Thai Cooking in a Sufi's Kitchen
by Alima Ravadi Quinn
published in 2008
ISBN 0-978-0-9628783-3-67
www.sufichef.com
$17.95
Alima Ravadi Quinn is a chef, author and poet. For 25 years she has been thinking about this food while at The Emerald of Siam Thai Restaurant in Richland, Washington. This is her third book and she combines food, tradition and spirituality into it.
I'm a big fan of "ethnic" food being brought to us by people of that ethnicity. I'm sure that seems simplistic, but it's not uncommon for me to run across someone who wants to tell me how they know everything about fill-in-the-blank kind of cooking because their brother's mother-in-law's cousin is from there. That's all well and good, but unless you've lived in a place, and experienced it, you miss the nuances. It's not because you're not observant, it's because that's how humans are built.
I put "ethnic" in quotes because Americans are blessed to be treated to food from around the world these days, even in some smaller towns. Nonetheless, there are some distinctive things about various cultures, and I don't forsee Americans giving up their forks for chopsticks or injera anytime soon. But, it's wonderful we can experience delicacies from other places.
"Thai Cooking in a Sufi's Kitchen" has wonderful recipes and beautiful photographs. The author includes the traditional name where appropriate, just in case you wish to impress. You'll also find illustrations on various techniques in the book.
Thai food is one of my favorites and I'm thrilled to have added this to my cookbook shelves. I trust you'll find it a valuable book, too.
review posted 2 July 2011
When we hear the words, "Home Cooking," Americans are conditioned to think of meat loaf and mashed potatoes. But those words have meaning in other places too, and this cookbook gives us a beautiful look at what it means in Spain.
Miriam Kelen has captured the diversity of regional dishes, while weaving in a
constant love of family and food. She spent three years gathering these recipes
and it shows on every page.
The book is a feast for the senses. Color photographs bring the recipes and the people who make them to life. It's an exceptional book.
review posted 4 August 2004
Holland grew up with parents who cooked soul food in their Rochester, NY home. They had come from rural Virginia and Louisiana, and the food brought them a little closer culturally.
She has used the traditional ingredients such as black-eyed peas and sweet potatoes, but added in influences from other cultures too. The result is a book that any cook would be proud to have.
One of my favorite things about the book is that each of the 95 recipes has an introduction that brings it to life. You feel as though Holland is patiently explaining to you, welcoming you into her culture.
review posted 4 August 2004
When Hoover promised Americans a chicken in every pot, he gave us a lasting impression. Of course, he or his speech writer also borrowed the phrase from France's Henry IV. Nonetheless, more than 40% of the meat Americans consume is Chicken.
Heyhoe is the editor of Global Gourmet. In this book she has taken the American favorite - chicken - and given it international flair. She also tells us all the details about how to prepare a chicken from deboning to cutting up.
The book has about 150 recipes. Chicken is good for the budget and good for the palate. It really can't be beat.
review posted 4 August 2004
"The Timeless Art of Italian Cuisine" by Anna Maria Volpi brings Italy alive and directly to your kitchen. The book travels through time and regions to capture the joy of the culture.
More than 170 recipes are in the book, all focusing on the simplicity of Italian cooking - bringing the best and freshest ingredients together in traditional combinations. The beauty of this book is that it celebrates real food being cooked by real people.
Details about various regions and foods specific to them make the book more than just a cookbook. And Volpi's pure joy of cooking comes through on every page. She says, "I am simply someone who loves to cook and share food with others. It is an ancient, familiar way to communicate with those we care about; sitting together at the table unifies a family and draws friends closer together."
She is absolutely right in about this noble idea and her book is one step on the path to keeping us cooking and sharing the fruits of our labors.
review posted 13 October 2003
“Cooking at the Kasbah” by Kitty Morse is a treat for the senses. Her cookbook makes you feel as though you are traveling through Morocco with her. Morse was born in Casablanca and came to the US to study for a graduate degree. She now divides her time between California and Morocco.
The recipes can help you get the flavor of Morocco in your own kitchen. Morse provides recipes for some of the basic building blocks of this cuisine, including preserved lemons and aged butter. These are very easy to prepare and will give you an authentic flavor to your food.
The book has wonderful full color photographs – of the food and of Morocco. It features 70 recipes, including everything from beverages to couscous to pastries to vegetables to tagine – Moroccan stew, Morocco’s most common dish.
Morse has dined with Berber families inside goat-hair tents, in the exclusive restaurant of Marrakesh and Fez, and worked wit superb cooks of Morocco. From them she has “acquired and adapted many of the recipes included in this book,” says Morse. “I simplified and lightened when possible, taking great care to preserve the essence of the original dish.”
review posted 27 May 2000
“All About Cuban Cooking” is really two cookbooks in one – the first half is in English, the second half is in Spanish. Alvarez is a native Cuban who has been cooking for 35 years. She teaches, caters and even ran a restaurant in Cuba.
The recipes are organized by food type and Alvarez includes a brief description of where they originate. Most of the recipes are spicy, but not hot.
Cuban food is a mix of African, Spanish and Indian foods. Spaniards introduced many items to Cuba, including sesame, cumin, peanuts, okra, rice, yams, corn, squash, dates, sugar cane and many others. Garlic is the most often used ingredient in Cuban recipes. Onions, bell peppers, lemon and oregano are also widely used.
Standards in the Cuban diet include soups, rice, beans, beef, pork, chicken and vegetables. Of course, desserts are abundant – often made with lots of sugar and condensed milk, making them rich and creamy.
review posted 27 May 2000
This cookbook is devoted to recipes using soy products. Some of the ingredients called for are not going to be available at your regular grocery store. But the recipes give you a flavor of Central America, Africa, Sri Lanka and the Carribean. If you’re interested in pursing a diet that involves soy, this cookbook would be a welcome addition to your shelves.
review posted 27 May 2000
"Neptune's Table: Cooking the Seafood Exotics" bills itself as "The Supreme Shellfish Cookbook" and I can't imagine anyone could argue with this assessment. Over 200 recipes are included with instructions on cooking calamari, clams, crab, lobster, mussels, octopus, oysters, scallops, shrimp, abalone, sea urchin, limpets and sea food sauces.
I must admit that living in Kansas, I'm not familiar with all these delicacies. We don't have a lot of fresh seafood here for the obvious reasons! However, Don points out you can find seafood almost anywhere - especially at Asian markets.
Don gives exquisite attention to detail in this book, not only giving recipes but detailed instructions on cleaning the seafood and tools that can make the job easier. He also expertly weaves in personal observations that make the book a delightful read.
The finishing touch is that each chapter is prefaced with "Gyotaku," a nature print made from the sea creature involved. This 170 year old practice was originally done to record catches, but it's obvious the art has merit on its own. These are excellent, and done by the author. The book is printed on high quality, glossy paper.
Review posted 18 April 1999
Betsy has been baking since she was eight - turned pro at 12 when she started working at a bakery. Over the last few years she had learned a lot about baking in different parts of the world. I've included this cookbook in the ethnic section because Betsy has given us bread recipes with roots in many cultures.
It's easy to see that she loves what she does, sharing her love of baking with other people. She gives such great instructions with her recipes that you feel like she's right there in the kitchen with you, encouraging you as you go.
I grew up in a household where rolls and biscuits were made on a regular basis but where all loaves of bread came straight from the grocery store. After I came to Kansas to work and tasted homemade bread that a coworker brought in I was amazed that you could actually make this stuff at home. Wow! She was gracious enough to invite me to her home one Saturday morning where we made bread until I got the hang of it.
Because of my own discovery, I know what a thrill it must be for Betsy to introduce so many people to the joy of baking bread. Adding a copy of "Breads from Betsy's Kitchen" to your collection is a great way to get started. If you're a seasoned baker, you'll find recipes here that will become a regular part of your repetoire.
Review posted 30 August 1998
Allen Lee has written a book long overdue. He demystifies Chinese cooking so we can all have delicious egg rolls and sweet and sour chicken at home.
Mr. Lee explains each recipe step carefully and provides instructions we can all follow. He calls his recipes "practical" and indeed they are. He also adds some information about Chinese language and culture to make this more than just a cookbook.
The name comes from an old Chinese saying, "Eat first; work later." He includes the calligraphy and translation for us in the early pages of the book.
If you like to prepare Chinese food at home, this will be your favorite book. All the basics are here. My only criticism of the book is that I wish it were longer!
Review posted 29 August 1998
Mystic Seaport Museum used the theme of immigration in compiling
this book. It's a great fit considering that most of our
ancestors got here by taking a long sea journey. For some people, the sea was also their workplace.
The book has recipes reflecting a number of cultures from Native American to Asia, Australia, Russia, India, the Middle East and many more. This is a great concept for a book.
To top it off they have included historical information and interesting anecdotes about the recipes. This book is a must-have for anyone who wants to experience other cultures through food. All proceeds benefit the preservation work of Mystic Seaport in Connecticut.
To see a photo of the book or order a copy visit the Favorite Recipes Press web page at http://www.favoriterecipespress.com.
Review posted 29 August 1998
I'm not a morning person although I do make it a point to start each day smiling, regardless of how tired I am. After all, acting tired doesn't make you, or anyone else around you, any less tired so you might as well act normal. When I do manage to get out of bed in time for something more than my normal quick bite, I adore having a sumptuous breakfast.
"The International Breakfast Book" has 100 recipes from around the world. The chapters are organized by ingredient so if you're in the mood for eggs, find different ways to prepare them. To top it off, you can enjoy a history lesson while you eat by reading Hollis' anecdotes that go with each recipe.
At the risk of sounding like your mother, it really is important to eat something for breakfast. An apple, some yogurt or a handful of trail mix is a vast improvement over nothing. Your body is screaming for something nourishing and you'll feel better in the long run if you eat a little something. If you can't think of anything to make, open this book at random and you'll be in for a treat.
OK, now that I already sound like your mother, you might as well clean up your house and do some laundry too.
Review posted 29 August 1998
The title of this book is a take off on that cooking principle we've all seen at work - "oh, a little dab of this," and "a pinch of that" and then "cook 'til done." Kimberly De Filippis has turned this instinctive cooking from the large Italian family into which she married into recipes with measurements we can all follow. In doing so, she has captured the essence of this family and preserved a piece of its history.
Her introduction tells a great story about her family first meeting her then-boyfriend's family. When her family had a get-together it meant the immediate family. When his family had a get-together it involved the family and, as she says, "anyone who may have been related through some obscure linkage to Italy." This made me laugh because I could relate to the first time my boyfriend visited my family in Kentucky. To him "family" was him, his mom and his brother. "Family" to me was siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews, brothers, their wives and children, their wives and children, etc. etc. etc. Greg spent a lot of time in a chair in the living room, trying to mentally shut out the noise. He was a bit overwhelmed.
The recipes De Filippis gives come from Mola di Bari, a small village outside the city of Bari on Italy's Adriatic coast. One glance through the book and you know you've got the real thing here. These are not recipes that call for ingredients you've never heard of, or cooking procedures even Martha Stewart and her staff couldn't manage, these are things real people cook and eat.
If you often find yourself looking for that really special Italian restaurant where the food is fresh and delicious, you can stop looking. You'll find it in your own kitchen once you have this book at your side. Be sure and take a look at the website at
http://www.wooden-spoon.com.
by Virginia and Robert Hoffman
These books demystify the idea of cooking with wine and offer
ideas of which wines to pair with various recipes. They
are a guide to "wine country." "Cooking with
Wine" has 172 recipes from 86 winery chefs. Both books focus
on American and Canadian wines. If you can't find them locally,
they are available from The Hoffman Press,
PO Box 2996, Santa Rosa CA 95405. Phone 707-538-5527.
Email them at hoffpress@worldnet.att.net.
This is an excellent example of what a cookbook should be.
It captures the essence, the history and the recipes of an
entire culture. The author drew on hand-written recipes
given to her by her mother and added the expertise of yet
another generation to make this into a great book.
The food of Chile is put into a geographic and cultural
context, allowing the reader to see its influences and what
makes it distinctive. The authentic recipes take you right to
the family's table.
"Chez Nous" by Lydie Marshall focuses on home cooking from the
south of France. I'm so jealous I can hardly stand it, but
Ms. Marshall spends part of each year in Nyons, France.
Needless to say, this makes her an expert in the food of this region.
She offers lots of ideas for substitutions for things that just
aren't easy to get here in the U.S. Recipes here includes ones
from three generations of French friends and family. She makes the
idea of entertaining "French Style" seem easy and workable.
"Chez Nous" is a great book with just the right amount of flair.
Don't miss this one.
first published in 1986, fourth edition in 1994
ISBN 0-939593-03-3
This spiral bound book contains over 280 original German recipes.
They have come from the author's kitchen as well as those of her
family and friends. She has also translated some common German sayings
which add some interest to the book. Now in its fourth printing,
the book sold over 47,000 copies, many to service families stationed
in Germany. Youngkrantz keeps the recipes simple and using
ingredients readily available in American kitchens. If German
culture is of interest to you then you'll want to get a copy of this.
It can be ordered
online. I cannot speak about this company, but I always provide
a link if I know one. They do have a photograph of the book on their
page.
Spanish Home Cooking
by Miriam Kelen
published in 2002
ISBN 0-9715115-0-0
$34.95New Soul Cooking
by Tanya Holland
published in 2003
ISBN 1-58479-289-2
$30A Chicken in Every Pot
by Kate Heyhoe
published in 2004
www.globalgourmet.com
ISBN 1-931868-32-8
$24.95The Timeless Art of Italian Cuisine
by Anna Maria Volpi
published in 2003
www.annamariavolpi.com
ISBN 0-9729229-0-3
$25.00 Cooking at the Kasbah
by Kitty Morse
published in 1998
Chronicle Books
ISBN 0-8118-1503-X
$22.95All About Cuban Cooking
by Josefina Alvarez
published in 1991
by AACC Publisher, 5100 Overland Ave., Suite 406, Culver City CA 90230
http://www.cuban-cooking-cookbook.com
$14.95 From the Global Kitchen
A Collection of Vegetarian Recipes from Plenty International
published in 1995
The Book Publishing Company
ISBN 1-57067-006-4
$11.95 Neptune's Table
by Don Hubbard
published in 1997
ISBN 0-943665-06-X
$17.95
Sea Eagle Publications
1022 Park Place
Coronado CA 92118
800-804-0438
eaglepubs@aol.com
Breads from Betsy's Kitchen
by Betsy Oppenneer
published in 1998
ISBN 0-9627665-4-2
$17.95 plus $3 postage/handling
The Breadworks, Inc.
RR1 Box 238A
Canaan NH 03741
Visit Betsy's web page at
http://users.quest-net.com/~breadworks/index.html
Eat First, Work Later
by Allen W. Lee
published in 1998
P.O. Box 318
Haileybury, Ontario
POJ-1KO, Canada
email Mr. Lee
Visit his web page at
http://www.nt.net/~stirfry
Global Feast Cookbook
by Mystic Seaport Museum Stores
edited by Annice Estes
illustrated by Lauren Jarrett
published in 1994
ISBN 0-939510-25-1
Favorite Recipes Press
2451 Atrium Way, Nashville TN 37214
1-800-358-0560 for ordering
http://www.favoriterecipespress.com
The International Breakfast Book
by Martha Hollis
published in 1997
ISBN 0-02-861011-3
Macmillan
Cook 'Til Done
by Kimberly De Filippis
Southpaw Publishing
PO Box 5080 - San Marcos CA 92069
760-727-9805
ISBN: 0-9659187-0-X
http://www.wooden-spoon.com
Review posted 28 February 1998
Cooking with Wine
$14.95 --- ISBN 0-9629927-3-9
The Great Little Food with Wine Cookbook
$7.95 --- ISBN 0-9629927-0-4
The Hoffman Press
Review posted on July 18, 1997
Three Generations of Chilean Cuisine
by Mirtha Umana-Murray
published in 1996
Lowell House --- ISBN 0-06-017203-7 --- $25.00
Review posted on March 1, 1997
Chez Nous
Lydie Marshall
published in 1995
HarperCollins Publishers --- ISBN 0-06-017203-7 --- $25.00
Authentic German Home Style Recipes
Gini Youngkrantz