No comments about French Cooking Made Easy ("Australian Women's Weekly" Home Library).

1 comments about Australia the Beautiful Cookbook.

1. Not just a book about kangeroo steaks and gator burgers like I thought. All the imigrants have added to the Australian cuisine, so you get Thai, Italian, Vietnamese and lots more! Gorgeous pictures as most "Beautiful cookbook" collectors like me :-) will know. You get lots of fish, lots of low fat lots of spice.

   A "must have" for your kitchen, you get about ten cuisines in one.

1 comments about Muffins, Scones and Bread ("Australian Women's Weekly" Home Library).

1. Not the hockey puck excuses for pastries that Americans call scones or the over bicarbonated items called biscuits - the true scone known in Australia ( and all of england) is light served with jam and cream, or lemon curd and accompnies afternoon tea. You haven't lived till you try them. This book will show you how easy and it is ... oh and the breads and muffins are a treat as well.

   expat australian ;-)

5 comments about Terrific Pacific Cookbook.

1. I've been making Thai Drumsticks for a Crowd for potlucks for the last two years. They're a real draw on a table full of tahini and tabouli! These recipes are easy and the authors descriptions are engaging. Not for people who are looking for serious ethnoculinary books, but easy to dazzle with.



2. I'm a cookbook junkie, and I have dozens of books I just look at and never actually cook from. This isn't one of them. It's stained and dog-eared, from trying exotic but not terribly difficult recipes like Pot Roast with Asian flavors, stir-fried spinach and a terrific pineapple upside-down cafe with rummy, coconutty whipped cream. A great way to cook Asian without resorting to fattening, take-out-style recipes. The small sections about markets in Southeast Asia and such are also good...they make you want to try this food in person!



3. I've been through a lot of Asian Cookbooks but this is one that I keep comming back to for new and orginal reciepes.

   Asian Fusion is the Theme, particularly Southest Asia. Thai, Indonesia, Phillipines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Fusion Recepies from Australia and New Zenland dot the pages as well as receipies that are had to classify other than really good. They blend ingredients and techniques for some awesome dishes.

   The book is more or less organized by theme and ingredient, finger foods, poultry, deserts, salads, soups etc.
   In addition to the organization of the book the receipies are organized in a reasonable fashion as well. To many cook books haphazardly organize the steps and ingredients so that you miss something or do it out of sequence (oh, I was supposed to boil this first).

   This is not a book for beginners though. The reciepies here are generally moderate to very complex and are generally not the sort of thing you throw together at the last minute. Not to say they don't have some quick and easy ones but the theme is more towards those with gormet inclinations and farmiliarity with Asian cooking already.

   One downside to the book is they assume you have access to an incredible variety of ethnic ingredients. In Austin we have Asian Markets and Central Market (an awesome store that specializes in gormet ingredients) but from time to time I find myself unable to locate something needed for some dishes. I've learned some substitutions. Also some of the reciepies can run up your food bill a bit. They are best left for those yearly special occasions.

   Still its an EXCELLENT cookbook. Every time I get bored I go back to it and find something new and interesting. Its just loaded with great stuff. Buy it, you won't regret.




4. I love to cook, and have a number of cookbooks. Over the last four years, I have turned to "Terrific Pacific" 9 out of 10 times. Most Asian cookbooks are too frequently focused on one style, assume you know everything about the mysterious, or unfamiliar ingredients cited, and don't make you feel the recipes are accessible. "Terrific Pacific" is, in my opinion, a new classic. If you are interested in Pacific Rim cooking, this is a great place to start. You will develop a comfort level with fresh, interesting ingredients, and an appreciation for clean, lovely food from the other side of the planet. With a new vocabulary of ingredients, I have also had fun changing/developing recipes of my own. Kudos to Anya von Bremzen.



5. This book has an amazing variety of great recipes from many parts of the world. There are many new and unusual recipes in every section :finger foods, soups, curries, starters, meats, noodles, desserts etc. Each section also has short essays which give you an introduction to unique qualities of the food, ingredients and recipes in the area that relate to this section. This rounds out this great book with historical, geographic, culinary and gastronomic information. The instructions and recipes are clear and easy to understand. Most of the ingredients are ones you can find locally. While I have many still to try, these recipes have garnered my endorsement: stir fried spinach (9.6/10); eggplant curry (9.6/10); BBQ red snapper (9.8/10); grilled herb steak (9.8/10;marinated fish (9.5/10). I already have at least a dozen other recipes I want to try immediately. Get this book if you want to try some recipes from around the world. You will be glad you did.

No comments about Pier: A Unique Australian Seafood Experience.

1 comments about Oz Clarke's Australian Wine Companion (Oz Clarke's Wine Companions).

1. Australian Wine Companion: An Essential Guide For All Lovers Of Australian Wine is a 'must' for any who would explore Australian wines with one of the most famous wine writers in the world. Divided by grape growing region and regional producers, this doesn't just list wineries and their specialties: it also provides both background history and insights into how the winery has changed since its establishment; in the process revealing much about Australian wine industry history as a whole. Whether you're a destination-oriented wine enthusiast or an armchair reader/drinker, Australian Wine Companion is the first starter kit.

5 comments about A Baker's Odyssey: Celebrating Time-Honored Recipes from America's Rich Immigrant Heritage.

1. "A Baker's Odyssey" is thick with recipes of all kinds---fried sweet pastries and doughs, flatbreads, savory & sweet pastries, yeast breads & pies (both sweet and savory), cookies, cakes, tortes, and more.
   
   There are a few small bundles of color photos in the book. Most of the time I'm happy either way when it comes to the presence of photos---they aren't a must-have for me the way they are for some folks---but given the wide array of unusual (to me, anyway) treats in here, I would have loved more photos. The ones that are here are gorgeous, though.
   
   There are plenty of notes on ingredients, which is incredibly helpful given that, for example, you might not have worked with lard before. Mr. Patent even includes instructions for rendering your own so it'll be of better quality than that found in your average grocery. There are also plenty of notes on equipment; just because these are traditional recipes doesn't mean you have to forgo modern convenience appliances!
   
   A Baker's Odyssey includes recipes from all over the world---Kahk from Iraq; Puff Puff from Nigeria; Casatelli from Italy; Lebanese pita; Norwegian lefse; and on and on. I'd say that hands-down the biggest hit out of the recipes we've made so far was the Kachauri, fried flatbreads stuffed with a spiced split pea mixture. Cheese Sambouseks were quite popular as well---pockets stuffed with an egg-and-cheese mixture. We made a delightful whole wheat oatmeal bread as well as the tasty, crunchy little Kahk nibbles.
   
   The recipes are clear and easy to read. So far I've only found one editing snafu (two slightly different sets of instructions to divide up a dough in one paragraph, such that it took a moment to realize I wasn't supposed to try to divide up the dough multiple times) and it was easily recognized and dealt with. All in all, I expect this will become one of our more treasured bread books. I just love being able to try out the vast wealth of recipes from around the world.



2. `A Baker's Odyssey' by professional Zoologist, Greg Patent is a sequel to his excellent `Baking in America' and is also different from the rich selection of books we have on American desserts from the likes of Nancy Baggett, Wayne Harley Brachman, and Judith Fertig. It is most similar to `A Baker's Tour' by noted baking author and teacher, Nick Malgieri, except that Professor Patent limits himself to baking imported into the United States by Immigrants.
   This book successfully emulates the virtues of `Baking in America' in many ways. First, it is a superior reference on how to recreate authentic recipes for many classic international dishes, plus some great homegrown dishes, especially from my favorite Pennsylvania Dutch corner of the world. Second, its discussion of the fundamentals is far more nuanced than one would expect in a book intended to be a collection of traditional recipes.
   The very first recipe I checked, for the Russian Easter bread, kulich, is a fine example of both how thorough and how `ethnic' Patent's recipes can be. I have found and made similar recipes in both Betsy Oppenneer's `Celebration Breads' and in `The Best of Gourmet, 20th Anniversary Edition', and it is fascinating to see what the three recipes have in common and what is different. The most surprising common feature is that all three recipes call for baking the bread in two pound coffee cans. And, I can testify from experience that one strays from this recommendation at your own risk. I have mad kulich in three quart soufflé dishes and in 1 quart soufflé dishes, and neither one came out quite as good as I expected. There is something about the metal and the tall thin shape of the container which seems to be needed. The problem is that all 2 lb coffee cans today come with easy open tops, with pronounced lips, which make them virtually unusable as baking pans. I found that small metal springform pans are a reasonable substitute to the metal coffee cans. One simply has to carefully follow the directions on how to determine when the baking is done. The primary difference between Patent and the two more `modern' recipes is that Gourmet and Oppenneer both call for two rises of four hours or less while Patent's grandmother's recipe calls for three rises totaling up to eight hours. Less significant differences are that the modern recipes add saffron. I constantly puzzled over how Russian peasants could get or afford saffron. Patent's ethnically accurate recipe achieves the yellow coloring form using plenty of eggs and butter.
   The second recipe I checked was the classic Pennsylvania Dutch shoo fly pie. Not only does Patent include one, he includes two, both from authentic sources, Betty Groff and William Woys Weaver. So, Patent remedies the omissions in practically every other authors' book(s) on `American' baking.
   Another ethnic recipe very important to me are the Hungarian Walnut Torte, classically flourless, with `body' provided by walnuts and bread crumbs and lift provided by egg whites. Patent gives ample instructions on being careful not to over bake, but I'm surprised he gives no special instructions on how to avoid droopy centers. I'm totally amazed that my grandmother was able to make this cake without a droopy center. When my aunt took over the duties of making it for my birthday, her cake always drooped.
   The last recipe near and dear to my heart I found was for Apple Strudel. Like every other recipe, this one comes from an authentic German recipe, relayed by an authentic German! The highlight of the recipe is that it includes instructions for making strudel dough from scratch. There is a family resemblance between strudel dough and the Greek Phyllo dough, but anyone who has improvised strudel with Phyllo knows they are simply not the same thing. German / Austrian strudel dough is a bit easier to make, and has more body to it.
   As I have intimated above, every recipe comes from an authentic source. Patent had a good start for his cosmopolitan sources, as his parents were Iranian and Russian, and he was born in China. And, virtually all the recipes have a basis in home baking. There is not a trace of artisanal baking from ambient wild yeasts, something which can only be done effectively with a commercial bakery which specializes in such breads. Thus, the whole world of artisanal breads is left for other writers. But this is no loss, as this is a very well-tilled field of writing.
   It is just a bit surprising to find no hot cross buns, especially since it did not appear in `Baking in America'. It is not surprising to find no buttermilk biscuits, since that did appear in `Baking in America'. But Irish Soda Bread, even the `Spotted Dick' variety is here.
   The obligatory list of sources at the back of the book is as good or better than I've seen elsewhere. If you love baking `ethnic', this book and its predecessor are a superb pair of references, especially if you don't have lots of room for a dozen baking books.
   The book includes a DVD which, I am happy to say, includes techniques on two of my favorite recipes cited above, the apple strudel and the Hungarian walnut cake.
   There are many, many good baking books these days. If traditional recipes are your thing, there is nothing better than these two.



3. Baking is made easy with the enclosed dvd. I always prefer to bake instead of fry, this gives me more options. I also recommend Finger Licking different.



4. After hearing the author on NPR, I was expecting the book to have a bit more in the way of savory recipes. That being said, this book contains the only recipe I've ever found for the real Russian kulich I had as a child. While time consuming,the recipe is easy enough to follow for an experienced baker. The result was magnificent-the only perfectly scented and textured kulich I've ever managed to make.



5. I love this book. Mr. Patent has devoted a great amount of time to the research of the recipes and it shows. So far I have tried 4 and loved every single one of them. I have had to make adjustments because I live in a high altitude city, that's standard for me. Actually, the only reason I'm not giving this book 5 stars is because Mr. Patent as most authors, does not give too much of his attention to the subject of high-altitude baking.

3 comments about Surfing the Menu: Two Chefs, One Journey: A Fresh Food Adventure.

1. I bought this as a gift and the recipient loved it. I had browsed the book prior to wrapping and found it to be interesting, colorful and useful.



2. Nicely presented book, nice anecdotes for the recipies however the ingredients are a bit out of the range of most people. They are also hard to replicate easily, exotic and expensive ingredients form the basis for most recipies, truffles, raddichio, barramundi, lobsters and more are the basis for most of the recipies. could have been much better if substitutes were recommended
   
   Update: Anyone who watches masterchef should by now realise how much of a douche Ben O'Donaghue is after his sore loss to contestant Lucas.



3. While fans of the authors and the show might love this book as a keepsake, I doubt that anyone will use it for much cooking. As a previous reviewer noted, the ingredients called for are hard to find and expensive for the average home cook. In addition, these recipes were created using metric measurements, and I often find that unless you re-test the recipes using American measurements (which are also given) the recipes do not come out very well. I am not willing to spend a lot of money on ingredients unless the authors can guarantee the result will be worth it, and is this case I have my doubts.

No comments about James Halliday Australian Wine Companion: 2010 Edition (James Halliday's Australian Wine Companion).

5 comments about The Cook's Companion: The Complete Book of Ingredients and Recipes for the Australian Kitchen.

1. As the other reviewers have stated, this book covers almost anything a novice to serious homecook would want to see in a cookbook. From abalone to zabalione, it has the antedotes, stories, history, and backgrounds.
   
   The book does slant towards (urban) Australian cooking since Alexander is Australian. Simply put, if you put aside the concept of Steve Irwin or Paul "Dundee" Holgan crocodile and kangaroo, and certainly Outback Steakhouse tongue-in-cheek dishes, the true picture of early 21st century Australian cooking is not terribly far from starting with British cooking with a hefty dose of Italian and Greek first, then Chinese, Japanese, and the Southeast Asian/ASEAN except the Philippines and Burma, cuisines thrown into the mix, and Turkish and Lebanan cooking acting as cameo appearances. All these will probably not shock much of modern American palates except Southeast Asian tastes may crop up more frequently than what you are used to, even to those who are used to Californian dining.
   
   The book does teach basics like how to make a roast for the first time, although I would recommend a techniques/"How to Cook" type cookbook as a tutorial to it since Alexander assumes at least a little cooking knowledge.
   
   A highly recommended book for cooking basics, and those who want to have an Australian-based cooking.
   
   PS It must be noted cooking in New Zealand is a little different from neighbouring Australia, although there are trickle-down effects from Australian food across the Tasman. For instance, there is less direct Asian influence in NZ cooking due to lesser number of Southeast Asian international students studying in this country. We use less lemongrass, we still stick to more British cooking. There is also an absence of much Lebanan influences due to the migrants' tiny numbers. There is more Pacific influences such as taro and coconut in some urban dishes. So this book may give a good approximation but not a completely picture of NZ cuisine.



2. If you want to know how to cook something this is the book. Great for beginners and master chefs alike - great purchase all round.



3. I am one of those cooks who likes to collect only the very best cookbooks- Larousse for France, Hazan for Italy, Fearnley-Whittingstall for meat, Casas for Spain, Kennedy for Mexico. And for Australia? Stephanie Alexander. It has wonderful information about the products and how to prepare them, with perfect easy recipes for beautiful classic immigrant cuisine (Gingerbread? Lemon slice? Minestrone with fresh borlotti beans and cavolo nero? Ceviche?) In the margins she has fantastic little inspirational notes for cooks who don't need measurements, such as "another beef salad: combine light soy sauce with fresh lime juice, fish sauce..." It is a big, heavy, gorgeous but durable book that you will love to see on your shelf almost as much as you love cooking with it. It is organised by ingredient, like Larousse, so you can say, "Hmmmm, I have a lot of potatoes. What can I make?" If you live in Australia, buy this book. It will give you everything your mum used to make. If you don't, buy it anyway- if your mother is Italian, Greek, Vietnamese, English, Chinese, Mexican, French...it might just have something she used to make too. But maybe even better.



4. Whenever I am in cooking strife, am looking for a simple reminder on how to do something like make homemade pasta, or want to explore for a tasty recipe I'll turn to my copy of the Cook's Companion.
   
   This is my recipe bible and I love it!



5. WHat an amazing book. Almost anything you can find in a supermarket is in here, with a list of all the other foods that can go with it.
   If you love to try new things in the kitchen I would highly recommend this book.