5 comments about Cook Yourself Thin Faster: Have Your Cake and Eat It Too with Over 75 New Recipes You Can Make in a Flash!.

1. great follow up to cook yourself thin!! i love both the books. this one is even better with recipes that show calories, total fat, sodium, and sugar. im not big on counting calories but i do like to know im eating something i already like but with half the calories.



2. I loved the first volume of this book and was so excited to see they brought out a second volume. The recipes are very yummy and easy to make. I am proof that this book works - I've already lost 10 lbs!



3. This book is filled with AMAZING recipes. I've tried a few already and can't wait to try more. Highly recommend!



4. I was very satisfied and not disappointed by this book . Although I liked the first book, it has many more recipes and I believe they taste better too. The updates on the people also helped with encouragement. The snack list of 100 calories or less was very useful.It seems to have more suggestions for variations of a recipe.For example, the chicken cordon bleu recipe has suggestions for a greek and mexican versions.



5. So far, all recipes I have made have turned out delicious. Would not even know that they are calorie/fat conscious! the blintz pancakes are delicious! The fettucini with mushrooms is also good. Most recipes make at least 4 portions and are easy to cut in half if cooking for 2. I have the original cookbook, too and this is a great compliment. the TV show site gives a lot of the recipes online, but having all details , including pictures, in one place is quite handy!

5 comments about Martha Stewart's Cupcakes: 175 Inspired Ideas for Everyone's Favorite Treat.

1. I'll start by saying I have not made any of the recipes from this cookbook. That being said, I love the creative decorating ideas the book has to offer. The book has great pictures of many different ways to decorate cupcakes - for different holidays or themes.



2. I tried making the Chocolate Salted-Caramel mini cupcakes (in standard size), and everything went perfectly. Until it can time to taste them. The batter was simple and came out great, the caramel came together easily (who knew I could make caramel), they all tasted great...seperately. The problem came when the caramel cooled to room temp, as would be the case if you were bringing them somewhere. Instead of having a nice soft, flowy caramel (like I was expecting) it was a lump. Not real hard like the wrapped candies, but it was just too, too much. Maybe it is my fault and it works way better in mini form. I would definitely try it again that way. The caramel was really good, even nice for maybe making candies for something else. I ended up using the batter to make the cupcakes, and using the caramel to drizzle on the top. Turned out much better.
   I like that there are quite a few recipes that call for ingredients anyone would have on hand, like regular flour as opposed to self-rising or cake flour.(Although there are a few of them too.)
   There are great tips, suggestions and ideas. There are a ton of pictures. I was intimidated by the whole "It's a Martha Stewart book", and thought I would never be able to pull it off, but many of the recipes seem pretty straightfoward and simple. My only other criticism is that there is not a simple vanilla cupcake recipe (maybe in the next one?), but that is my own peeve. There are enough ideas in here to try for anyone's tastes.



3. I bought this book as i love the cupcake stores that are now opening. I have been disappointed with martha because I have now realized she does not test her recipes. I have made 8 of the cupcake recipes, and there is something "off" on every one, and all of these things are recipe flaws;
   1- the tiramisu cupcakes call for coarse salt - the salt does not dissolve in the recipe and while eating the cupcake you will crunch into a large piece of salt
   2- the rich chocolate frosting is very expensive to make, and the recipe advises you to refrigerate the frosting - this is not true; if you refrigerate the frosting, it becomes a large bowl of fudge; i had to melt the entire bowl of frosting in a double-boiler and then stir for about an hour to gain any consistency back
   3- the chocolate chunk cupcakes taste good - but all the chocolate sinks to the botton of the cupcake; thus you have a chocolate bottom that sticks to the paper, and the top 3/4 of the cupcake is just a plain cupcake
   4- the buttermilk cupcakes were very heavy - almost like a pound cake, the recipe made 36 cupcakes - the frosting to go with it makes enough for frost 24 cupcakes; i had to go out and buy more ingredients to make another batch of frosting
   5- the peanut butter cupcakes turned out good, but the recipe says you can dip your fork into powdered sugar to make the fork marks in the frosting - it should be sugar, not powdered sugar
   6- red velvet cupcakes turned out fine
   7- cookies & cream cheesecakes turned out find
   **all of the cupcakes taste good - however each recipe makes me anxious and there will always be one or two things that is not correct in the recipe; i've have to look up on the internet or call a cake store to fix the problems
   **because of these things, won't use any Martha cookbooks in the future as she doesn't test the recipes.



4. I received this cookbook and Cupcakes Galore for Christmas, and to be honest I use the other book more often. I've made two recipes from this book, the banana pecan cupcakes and the chocolate peanut butter ones, and they were both very good. A lot of the other recipes look good, but what stops me from using them is the huge yield. It's not unusual for one recipe to make 36 cupcakes and be nearly impossible to scale down to a portion more appropriate for someone who lives alone. In addition, a lot of the recipes are for cheesecake or muffins disguised as cupcakes. The last nearly half of the book is dedicated to decorating, often saying the same thing over and over (Here are three pages to show how to make a pig! Now here are three for a cow, doing the same thing but with white icing!) But like I said, I've only really tried two recipes and they really were very good, so I can't give this less than three stars, despite the book's flaws.



5. I purchased this cookbook with high expectations and am now left utterly deflated. After following the devil's food recipe exactly, I was left with a cupcake that fell apart and would not come out of the cupcake liner. After rereading the recipe, I noticed that there was not a spot with a high altitude adjustment recommendation. Living at 6000 feet, such a recommendation would have been helpful and would likely have saved my cupcakes. I find it appalling that Ms. Stewart does not have a high altitude recommendation for ANY recipe in the cookbook--even my Betty Crocker cookbook has general adjustment suggestions, but nary a one in Ms. Stewart's. Totally disappointed in the book, the cupcakes are pretty though.

5 comments about The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life.

1. Wonderful recipes!
   
   I make her Ratatouille Tart almost every week, it is that good! My husband and daughter who both dislike eggplant do not even notice that eggplant is in the tart. One tip if you start making it alot too - make 2 batches of roasted eggplant & zucchini at one time and freeze one batch to use later. The sloppy joes are good and the Pasta with escarole, white beans, and chicken sausage is wonderful with a glass of wine. Buffalo Chicken Salad is good but do not use a baking sheet to broil the chicken. I had a category 4 mess on my hands after the chicken juice flowed off the baking sheet all over my oven and kitchen floor. No fun. Now I use a broiler pan.
   
   My husband says he eats like a king. Now isn't that the complement all women want to hear? Great job, Ellie!



2. I ordered this cookbook after seeing it on a blog site. Absolutely a keeper! The recipes are clearly written, concise and the end product is fantastic! Have bought many copies to give as gifts.



3. I do all the cooking at my house. Have really loved the inspiration this book gave me to try some new things in a healthier way. My husband loves the results and doesn't mind helping with the clean-up!



4. I bought this book in an effort to eat and cook healthier that I honestly thought was destined to fail. But this book has stuck, and I cook from it all the time. The Edamame "Hummus" is a virtual constant in my house - who knew? I consult this book regularly, and the principles put forth have translated into all my daily cooking. I recommend this book to friends all the time and it sits on my shelf with a colorful collection of post-it flags marking my favortie recipes, like Baked Shrimp with Feta. And the Turkey Meatballs are fantastic - I make a batch and freeze the, to have on hand.



5. I really enjoy Ellie Krieger's show on the Food Network. She has great tips for making almost every dish more healthful. Unfortunately this cookbook is full of amazing recipes that my family would never eat. Grilled Zucchini Roll-ups with Goat Cheese, Portobello Panini with Gorgonzola and Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and White Gazpacho with Grapes and Toasted Almonds are just a few examples of foods my kids would never touch and which require ingredients we never buy. I was looking for a cookbook that gave simple substitutions for more healthful cooking. Most of these recipes are just too fancy for us. Cornmeal-Crusted Ratatouille Tart? Really?!

5 comments about Hungry Girl Chew the Right Thing: Supreme Makeovers for 50 Foods You Crave.

1. Great idea and easy to use. Love the recipes. Wish the points were on them though.



2. Hungry Girl has given us with what we eat to help us lose weight. Great ideas for substituting for higher calorie/higher fat foods we know and love.



3. I am not one for giving up my favorite foods. Me sacrificing tasty foods??? Until I got Diabetes, and High Blood Pressure, and High Chloresterol. I was forced to find a new way of cooking my favorite foods. Well, the Hungry Girl option was there to help me and it did. Am I upset that I can't eat the way I used to? Oh YESSSSS!!! But at least I can eat the same foods only preparing them differently with the help of this book and the rest in the Hungry Girl line of books. I give this book a thumbs up. Tracie Szakal



4. I subscribe to the daily emails, too...every time I saw a recipe I liked, I printed it and now my cookbook is stuffed with paper. These cards are a handy resource (and easy to clean from spills) of some of her best recipes. I've tried to do alternative baking, which resulted in some very rubbery food. But she's somehow got it all right! I give only four stars simply because I wish there were more!!



5. I was really disappointed in these recipes. Each one takes an extra special ingredient that needs to be purchased specifically to cook for these recipes. For example, the pizza needs Fiber One cereal, regular oats, fat-free mozzarella, garlic powder instead of real garlic, fat-free liquid egg substitute, etc. Another recipe calls for low-fat flour tortilla with about 110 calories with at least 6 grams of fiber. One of the wraps requires La Tortilla Factory Smart & Delicious Low Carb/High Fiber tortillas, fat-free cheese, frozen ground beef style soy crumbles, Laughing Cow Light Original Swiss Cheese, fat-free sour cream, etc. The ingredients take a lot of planning and are not always easy to find. For example, you can find Laughing Cow cheese, but it might not be the light version or the swiss version. As much as I see the need to eat less fat and more fiber, I don't have the time or the patience to spend that much time food shopping at one store and then another if they don't have some of the required ingredients. I also bought two of her other books at the same time and have yet to make a recipe from any of them.

5 comments about The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook : 250 No-Fail Recipes for Pilafs, Risottos, Polenta, Chilis, Soups, Porridges, Puddings and More, from Start to Finish in Your Rice Cooker.

1. I have wolfgang puck 7 cups rice cooker,and I am looking for the right book. Can I use this ultimate rice cookbook for cooking with my W Puck cooker?



2. I wish I could tell you that I just love the book but am sorry to say it was disappointing. The layout is hard to follow but trying to read the print is frustrating. It is colored in a fine light green and pale orange print that makes it very difficult to see. If you have any eye condition at all you may want to consider a cookbook in different colors.



3. I ordered this book after my recent purchase of a rice cooker and was very much looking forward to trying the great sounding recipes. I was so disappointed when I opened the book and saw the print. It is printed in a light olive green print and a light orange print, both of which are drab and faded looking. Maybe it's just me, but I kind of like to see the recipe I'm trying to make. If this book had black or a much darker print that was easy to see, I'm sure I would have liked it. Unfortunately, I found the print annoying enough to return it.



4. Ordered this for our son who is away at college living in an apartment. He used a spanish rice recipe out of the book and cooked it in his new rice cooker. He said the rice was very tasty, just a little dry. He will use a little more liquid next time and cannot wait to use other recipes out of the book.



5. What genius came up with the idea of using light orange type on a pale orange background? Or light green type on beige paper? Tasteful and completely useless. This cookbook may be very good. Or not. I don't think I will ever know. Reading it in the kitchen would necessitate a flashlight and magnifying glass. And it would be worse in any other room.

5 comments about The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook.

1. Bought this book along with The Zo bread maker. It is an excellent reference on bread machine baking and the only one you'll need. It is very detailed and will give you all the information you need to make excellent breads no matter what machine you have. I don't use the manual that came with my machine except for looking at the order to add ingredients and how to use it. Otherwise, I make the recipes from the book. They have all come out well. The two I recommend most highly are the SOUR CREAM BREAD and the BRIOCHE. These breads are the best I've ever had and get devoured by my family within a day. Yes, if you follow Hensperger's recipe for the BRIOCHE bread exactly you will be amazed that such a bread would come from your machine. I've made Brioche by hand, and I can tell you the result from the machine using her recipe is awesome!It's french bakery quality. Buy this book; you won't be disappointed.



2. This has been a great book. I borrowed it from the library first to try it out and now I want to buy it. there is a lot more in it than just recipes. It has her own experiences in it and little tid bits of information about each recipe and group of recipes, flours, and gluten free flours and sour dough... etc. All the recipes I have tried work for me in my cusine art bread machine. My loaves turn out better than the book the machine gave me. It even has a recipe for sour dough which hasn't tasted sour enough for me so I will be trying that again.
   
   I give this book a five star rating for being easy and informative



3. After buying my Bread Machine, I had little luck with making breads. This book - all 600+ pages is the best book purchase I've ever made. Aside from the hundreds of recipes, the history, pointers, etc. found in this book are invaluable. Buy it! You'll be a winner with baking breads via your bread machine.



4. I'm a rabid bread baker and have probably tried most techniques, old and new. Just for the heck of it I bought a Zo recently and after a few mediocre attempts at some of my rustic favorites, I decided to go back to the old fashioned, labor intensive ways. I came across a few mentions of Beth's book on The Fresh Loaf website. Okay, I'll try it. Wow. Without a doubt this is the BEST bread machine reference source available. Bar none. She incorporates old and new,even ancient techniques to help achieve some really high quality breads; even sourdough starters are made easy and understandable....and they work !
   If you have a bread machine...this is the only book you need.



5. Better than the recipe book that comes with bread machine. All recipes I have used turned out great!

5 comments about Julia's Kitchen Wisdom: Essential Techniques and Recipes from a Lifetime of Cooking.

1. I like this book because it offers dozens of practical cooking tips. It is also a pleasant read. I compare JC's recipes with other sources. Recipe construction is still behind today's equipment. Think three tablespoons of butter or 45 grams of butter.



2. Lots of fun to read and full of Julia's comical comments. Great cooking tips, a few outdated, but for the most part, a great book.



3. Though I love to cook I've never been a big fan of Julia Child nor aspired to master the art of French cooking. However, I was intrigued by the publicity for the movie "Julie & Julia" and went to see it. I loved it! I then realized what an icon Julia Childs really is and came to appreciate her personal journey. So I came away interested in finding one of her cookbooks that was practical, non-intimidating and fit my own style. I've enjoyed reviewing the cookbook and have yet to use it but I'm sure I will!



4. A gift for my daughter - she was very happy with it and thought it was concise and better for how she cooks than the full "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."



5. This is a wonderful summary of Julia Child's instructional style. I have several of her other books and this made a perfect addition.

5 comments about Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Cookbook: Delicious Recipes That Will Burn Fat and Re-Shape Your Body!.

1. If you are at all familiar with Tosca Reno and her Clean Eating Diet, then you will truly appreciate this cookbook. She takes the daunting task of figuring out healthy eating, and turns it into easy, tasty recipes that even the novice cook can do.



2. Love Love this cook book,I make the dinner's for my family and the kids love it,and I'm so happy we are eating healthy:)



3. I purchased this book with excitement, I even pre-ordered it! I purchased the first book and absolutely loved it. I have been a clean eater for many years. Tosca's first book was a great addition to my cookbook library. The follow up book to me seems "too much" yet at the same time "nothing". It has way too many ingredients and even some hard to find items. Then the extreme with filler recipes. What's the fascination with coconut products? Some recipes are almost boring. Trying to get the general population to even remotely eat healthy, let alone clean is a hugh task. If you make it too involved and to some too much effort, the book will either be sold as new/used or it will sit on the shelf. I don't see the passion in this book as with the first. The first book is clearly more of an example of clean eating. Simple, fast and tastes great. Tosca has lost touch with her roots on this book. If I want a real international cuisine cookbook, I will purchase a real international cookbook. Thanks, but no thanks.



4. I am a big fan of Tosca and have enjoyed her other books, so I purchased this one hoping to add a greater variety of recipes to my current favorites. Although I like the format of the book and the beautiful photos, many of the recipes are just not appealing to me, and I know my family would never try them. I also agree with other reviewers that many of the unusual, hard to find ingredients prevent me from even wanting to try a recipe. If you only purchase one of Tosca's cookbooks, I would recommend the original Eat Clean Diet Cookbook.



5. Beautiful full color pictures and recipes so delicious no one will know they are super good for you!

5 comments about The Princess and the Frog: Tiana's Cookbook: Recipes for Kids (Disney Princess: the Princess and the Frog).

1. This book is great! I thought it was going to be a cutesy kid's cookbook with overly simple recipes in it, maybe a book of kids snacks or something. Well, I was surprised to see that these recipes are delicious and great to cook for meals for the whole family! Gumbo, mac and cheese, everything that Tiana would haave on the menu in her restaurant in the movie. I gave this cookbook 5 stars because my little girls love it, and so do I!



2. This made a great little gift. I wish it was spiral-bound. That would make it easier to flip through & to keep steady while cooking. Other than that, very nice.



3. So far, I've only made the beignets-and they were delicious. I'm looking forward to trying more recipes, it may become my go-to Creole style cookbook. I agree with some of the others who noted that most of the recipes aren't entirely kid friendly and require adult supervision. I'm looking forward to using it with my children in the future.



4. My daughter loves, loves, loves this book. The recipes are simple enough for her to understand and follow on her own with very limited help from me. The first thing she made was "Swamp-Water Smoothies" yum!



5. I am highly impressed with the quality of this cookbook! Both my mother & mother-in-law agree that it has some very promising, authentic recipes. My daughters and I are super-excited about getting to try these things out :) I thought it would be more cutesy than anything... but it's actually very genuine, and I think that's excellent!

5 comments about Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook.

1. Got this for my wife and she likes it..Ive liked everything shes made and it's way bigger than i expected it to be. A little something for everyone,.



2. I bought this cookbook years ago. While a working mother--leaving home by 6 a.m. and returning after 5 p.m.--I never used this cookbook. I've not actually counted them, but it seems that most of the recipes are ready in 6 to 8 hours and would have turned to mush before I got home. Plus, I wasn't about to start sauteing onions at 5:30 in the morning--in my work clothes. Now, that my work schedule has shortened, I am using more of the recipes, but not necessarily in a crock pot!
   
   Before you buy this cookbook, you need to be able to answer "yes" to the following two questions: Are you willing to get out your saute/fry pan to prep some recipe ingredients before you leave home? Can you get back to your crock pot/slow cooker within 6 to 8 hours? If you can't answer "yes" to the previous questions, you won't get much crock-pot-use from this cook book.
   
   If you have an appliance with a removable liner that can be used on your cooktop, then you probably will be happy with this cookbook. But I don't. Since I don't like to clean multiple pots if I can think of a way around it, and now that I have more time, I have been using these recipes on my cooktop either in a large, well-constructed, lidded pot or a dutch oven. I saute and then slow-cook in the same pot.
   
   I can't rate this cookbook five stars because it never gave me what I was looking for. But to give it credit, if I would have thought it through, I should have realized that it would be close to impossible to find a great recipe that produces a tasty meal if I didn't want to take the time to brown my ingredients and had to leave the pot unattended for ten hours. And there are a lot of good recipes in this book that can be adapted--easily--for stovetop cooking.



3. This is definitely not a fix it and forget it slow cooker book and that's what I like about it. I hate the slow cooker books that request for you to throw in some meat with a "cream of" soup and that's it. I try to eat clean 80% of the time and the recipes in the book do somewhat cater to that. So far I have made 3 meals from this book and two were great and one was ok but that is because of my taste preferences not really a reflection on the recipe (I didn't really know what Jamaican jerk was and now I know I don't like it, but the chicken came out moist and flavorful).
   
   The beginning of this book has a lot of instruction on slow cookers which is great for a beginner like me. There are helpful tips on slow cooker size and hints and tips about recipes.
   
   Outside of the meals recipes this book has some great side dishes. I absolutely love it applesauce (orange flavored) and pizza sauce. I have marked a few other side dishes to make in the future.
   
   This book is definitely worth your money if you like slow cooker meals that contian actual ingredients instead of different flavored soups. I will continue to try new recipes :)



4. We bought a crockpot and 2 cookbooks for our son and his fiance' at Christmas and since then, we heard about one great meal after another that they were enjoying. So I came looking for a crockpot cookbook. I'd purchased 2 easy recipe cookbooks for their fast-paced lives, but I wanted something different for my stay-at-home life. I wanted to learn to cook. I wanted to learn how to use spices, wines and other liquers. I have waited to write this review until I've made over a dozen of the recipes. If you've seen the movie Julie and Julia, where the characters sit at the table and just make groans and other sounds of pleasure as they take one delicious bite after another, that would be my husband and myself as we enjoy the results of these recipes. He is as surprised as I am with each meal I've created with these recipes. I've done the roast with roots, TWICE, though I must admit, I've yet to buy a turnip. I love that recipe. The onion soup twice too, (delicious! - better than anything out of a can or anything I've EVER had in a restaurant). My husband quickly got over the cost of the Cognac. I tripled the ingredients of the broth recipe (just for two).
   
   I've done the whole chicken, short bbq ribs, roast pork, pork chops, swiss steak, and many more. My husband is getting used to having dinner cooking in the slow cooker AND having the kitchen all clean and me relaxing when he gets home. It's quite a nice combination. When I do my cooking in the morning and clean up the mess afterwards, I have the rest of the day to myself.



5. I love this cookbook. So many good dishes. I bought this along with the Hamilton Beach Set and Go Slow Cooker. They are a great combination.