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Melange du jour
By Ann | February 8, 2008
A bit of a mix today. First, I am happy to announce that Cooking the Books will begin a new cookbook review — The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics (pictured above). Several of my friends and family members swear by Martha. I’m looking forward to sampling some of the 1,200 recipes.
Second, a new cookbook means we must say adios to Moro: The Cookbook. Some final positives and negatives–
+ A wonderful introduction to the flavors of Spain and Northern Africa. Expanded my knowledge in both technique and taste. Delicious food.
+ Recipes are well-organized and easy to follow. Accompanying text is well-written and informative. Short paragraphs on special ingredients are interesting. Photographs are gorgeous.
+ Introduced me to Oloroso sherry — a marvelous drink!
– Relies on too many special ingredients. There are whole sections of this book that I will not try because of ingredients I can’t find — like mojama, a special wind-dried Spanish tuna. The suggested Spanish food suppliers are all in the U.K.
– Some of the recipes use bizarre techniques, like their method of grating pastry dough.
Favorite recipes: Fish tagine with potatoes, tomatoes and olives, chickpea salad, chocolate and apricot tart
Recipe duds (in my opinion): grilled chicken wings with tahini (too messy!), beetroot soup with black cumin (boring), almond tart with oloroso (dry)
Still want to try: paella with chicken, artichokes and oloroso, roasted fish with Muslim Mediterranean marinade, roast chicken with harissa
Finally for today, Mark Bittman, aka the Minimalist, has a fantastic new blog on the NYT website called Bitten. He aims to “look at great food made with everyday ingredients and readily available techniques.” Like all his writing, it is great, very accessible, chatty and fresh. Check it out!
Bon weekend!
Topics: Cooking the Books, Articles |
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