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A review by emiged
Worldwide Ward Cookbook: Secret Recipes by Deanna Buxton
4.0
I'm looking forward to testing out so many recipes from this cookbook! I started marking the ones I thought I'd try with sticky notes, but was marking far more than I wasn't, so I gave up... I especially have my eye on the Lemon Zucchini Cookies, Ginger-Glazed Salmon, Root Beer Pot Roast, Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Caramel Frosting, and Avocado Mango Salsa. Oh, and the entire section of beverages - it's nice to have such a wide selection of alcohol-, tea- and coffee-free drink recipes for us teetotaling LDS folks to choose from!
There are a few main dishes with the obligatory canned cream-of-chicken (or -mushroom) soup or dry onion soup mix, but I was pleasantly surprised at how many of the recipes are from scratch or with very few processed ingredients. Not that this is a low-fat cookbook by any stretch of the imagination. Rather, a lot of these dishes would be considered comfort foods; there was quite a bit of cheese, buttermilk, and sour cream.
When I tested recipes, the Ginger-glazed Salmon (page 153) was first up and it definitely started us off on the right foot. It was so simple, yet packed with flavor, that it's going to become a regular whenever we spring for seafood. We also tried the Lemon Chicken (page 165) and it was a big hit with everyone in the family, mellowing the tangy citrus perfectly with brown sugar. The last main dish I made was St. Francis School's Baked Spaghetti (page 136). When my nine-year-old son, who usually subsists on as little as he can get away with eating, went back for three helpings, I knew I had another winner!
For side dishes, I loved the Tossed Broccoli Salad (page 113). The cider vinegar in the dressing and the bacon crumbles mixed in added just enough zip to make the greenery palatable for my kids. We also had Hot-and-Sassy Cornbread (46), which uses creamed corn and turned out wonderfully moist. Next time I think I'll add an additional jalapeño, though; it wasn't quite “hot-and-sassy” enough for me.
Dessert-wise, my children loved the Chocolate-covered Strawberry Muffins (page 33). The recipe calls for dehydrated strawberries, but I had fresh ones instead, so I decreased the amount of liquid and they baked up nicely, without being overly sweet. Finally, the Famous Zucchini Brownies (page 215) went over very well and helped me use up some of my abundant garden produce – but don't tell my kids about the “secret” ingredient!
It definitely lives up to the "worldwide" part of its name with recipes from India, Brazil, Denmark, South Africa, and Haiti, just to name a few. I enjoyed the personal notes from the cooks on almost every recipe; it was fun to get a little of the back story. The kitschy hearts, circles, and locks-and-keys graphics were a bit too cutesy for my tastes, but the food photography was delectable. I wish there were photos for each of the recipes!
I also noticed that a quote that was attributed to Goethe at the beginning of the "Main Dishes" section was attributed to Jean de La Fontaine at the beginning of the "Cookies" section. But that's a minor little quibble.
For more book reviews, come visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.
There are a few main dishes with the obligatory canned cream-of-chicken (or -mushroom) soup or dry onion soup mix, but I was pleasantly surprised at how many of the recipes are from scratch or with very few processed ingredients. Not that this is a low-fat cookbook by any stretch of the imagination. Rather, a lot of these dishes would be considered comfort foods; there was quite a bit of cheese, buttermilk, and sour cream.
When I tested recipes, the Ginger-glazed Salmon (page 153) was first up and it definitely started us off on the right foot. It was so simple, yet packed with flavor, that it's going to become a regular whenever we spring for seafood. We also tried the Lemon Chicken (page 165) and it was a big hit with everyone in the family, mellowing the tangy citrus perfectly with brown sugar. The last main dish I made was St. Francis School's Baked Spaghetti (page 136). When my nine-year-old son, who usually subsists on as little as he can get away with eating, went back for three helpings, I knew I had another winner!
For side dishes, I loved the Tossed Broccoli Salad (page 113). The cider vinegar in the dressing and the bacon crumbles mixed in added just enough zip to make the greenery palatable for my kids. We also had Hot-and-Sassy Cornbread (46), which uses creamed corn and turned out wonderfully moist. Next time I think I'll add an additional jalapeño, though; it wasn't quite “hot-and-sassy” enough for me.
Dessert-wise, my children loved the Chocolate-covered Strawberry Muffins (page 33). The recipe calls for dehydrated strawberries, but I had fresh ones instead, so I decreased the amount of liquid and they baked up nicely, without being overly sweet. Finally, the Famous Zucchini Brownies (page 215) went over very well and helped me use up some of my abundant garden produce – but don't tell my kids about the “secret” ingredient!
It definitely lives up to the "worldwide" part of its name with recipes from India, Brazil, Denmark, South Africa, and Haiti, just to name a few. I enjoyed the personal notes from the cooks on almost every recipe; it was fun to get a little of the back story. The kitschy hearts, circles, and locks-and-keys graphics were a bit too cutesy for my tastes, but the food photography was delectable. I wish there were photos for each of the recipes!
I also noticed that a quote that was attributed to Goethe at the beginning of the "Main Dishes" section was attributed to Jean de La Fontaine at the beginning of the "Cookies" section. But that's a minor little quibble.
For more book reviews, come visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.