5 comments about The River Cottage Family Cookbook.

1. An excellent cookbook for the whole family to enjoy. The recipes are basic and simple. The authors have written this book so that children can learn where the foods they eat (and cook) actually come from. The recipes are unlike so many other cookbooks written with families or children in mind- these are not prissy, cutesy or too complicated. My children love to get this book out and find something new to try.The photography is wonderful too- showing children of all ages cooking and helping in the kitchen.



2. This is a wonderful book full of beautiful photographs. I would like to move right in to the pictures. That being said, there is also some useful advice not normally found in other books. It is more a lifestyle book than merely just a cookbook. Terrific for families!



3. We wanted our kids to love food, love cooking and be comfortable in the kitchen, and we thought investing in some family cookbooks would be the perfect place to start. Let the kids flip through the recipes and photographs, find things that tempted them and take it from there.
   
   Sounds easy, right? It's not! Because most cookbooks aimed at children, or families, contain really gross recipes that do the following: 1. Try to sneak healthy foods into kids, like putting spinach into chocolate pudding, thereby insulting children by treating them as idiots who won't like so-called adult flavors. 2. Try to make foods kid-friendly by making them look like clown faces, or animals, by using shredded carrot "hair" or olive "eyes". or 3. Try to make recipes kid-friendly by using shortcut ingredients (dough from a tube, pre-made sauces) that turn cooking into a joke.
   
   In the face of all the bad books, The River Cottage Family Cookbook stands out as one of the best books we've found, not just for our children, but for our entire family. We like everything about this book, from the explanations about cooking, to the photography, to the inclusive nature of the recipes.
   
   We find that the more we cook with our kids, the more adventurous they become about food and the closer we all grow as a family. Don't waste your time with bad cookbooks. The River Cottage is a perfect place to start.



4. This cookbook provides an exceptional breadth of information about not just how to prepare food in the best way, but why. It has a breadth of recipe types and could easily suffice if it were the only cookbook in a kitchen.
   
   But, if you buy this book for nothing else, do so for the chocolate chip cookie recipe.



5. Just what I was looking for! I had been looking for a cookbook for the kids . . . and this is it! My initial goal was clear instructions and engaging photos. I got that and so much more--informative backgrounds on basic ingredients AND the author's philosophy on cooking and food matches nicely with ours. Already the kids have dog-eared the recipes they want to try next.

5 comments about Simple Sourdough: Make Your Own Starter Without Store-Bought Yeast and Bake the Best Bread in the World With This Simplest of Recipes for Making Sourdough (or Sour Dough).

1. This book might be o.k. for someone who has never made sour dough bread before, but I have been making sour dough bread for a few months now. I expected to gain something new from the book, but didn't. The book is probably worth $3.00, but I would have been very disappointed had I paid anymore than this. The information in the book seems somewhat "thrown together," and vague. Better than nothing if you are going to make sour dough bread for the first time!



2. This is my first review, but I had to write something about this simple and wonderful book. I've picked up half the books on Amazon for sourdough and this pamphlet of a book it great. He tries to teach a technique and give a few ideas of how one can play with different ingredients.
   
   My first sourdough bread in 15 years was made using his technique and was very good. The other books were good too but I've notice many of their recipes seem to follow Mark's basic technique, but with a few twists. If you want to make sourdough you can't go wrong with this simple little book.



3. This is a very short book about creating sourdough starter. If you already know how to bake bread, you will probably get some use out of this book. It's not good for a newbie.
   I recommend for somebody who has made bread (sourdough or otherwise).



4. This is a little tiny booklet with one recipe for sourdough. It is too basic for most and I doubt it will help you decide to try sourdough. "Adventures in Sourdough" by Wilford is a much superior and complete primer for making you fall in love with this natural baking.



5. If you are into SourDough, this book is for you. So many good recipes and many that you may tweek, just for your own family. It is well worth the price.

5 comments about The Saucier's Apprentice: A Modern Guide to Classic French Sauces for the Home.

1. I have browsed through many sauce books in the past several years, and found two to be indispensable: Raymond Sokolov's THE SAUCIER'S APPRENTICE and Michel Roux's SAUCES. Both books accomplish their goals impeccably. Roux wishes to present readers with a faster way to produce restaurant quality sauces, providing readers with beautiful appetizing photos for each sauce in the process. It is a book meant not to scare off amateur chefs who are inclined to choose a "Betty Crocker" book rather than a real top notch text on traditional French cooking. Sokolov, on the other hand, appeals to the already converted French gourmet/gourmand. There are no photos, nor are they necessary, since his language is so descriptive and precise, it really creates a photo in your mind.
   
   I spent two days preparing the mother sauce for brown sauces and the result was spectacular. I've eaten at many of the top four and five star restaurants in New York, many restaurants throughout Europe (I lived in Germany near the French border for over three years), many restaurants in Chicago, and have never tasted better sauces than those I produced at home from the mother sauce. Here's the trick. You should follow Sokolov's instructions. After you've been through the process, you can get creative if you wish. But keep in mind Sokolov's goal is to teach amateur and professional chefs how to make TRADITIONAL SAUCES, not modern incarnations that use lots of fruits, etc.



2. I first was introduced to this book at culinary school in the early 1990s. This is a modern look at the classic techniques of the 19th century Escoffier, the foremost authority on French cookery as established by Careme. Escoffier brought order to the professional kitchen, and maintained the high standards of the French palate. The recipes included in this book, however antiquated, are the basic principles of cooking all professional chefs, and serious "foodies" alike, should use in their cooking every day. With a little imagination, every cook can create his or her own signature dishes by using delicious sauces to accompany their fresh and perfectly cooked meat, fish or vegetable. Even more delightful, the historian in me is fascinated with the historical accounts of the development of French cookery; and the comic in me so enjoys the wit used in the author's address to such a serious subject of many a cook's discipline and heart.



3. If you like to cook and are interested in different sauces.this is a great buy!!!



4. My husband is a professional cook, he bought the 3 copies for himself and his co-workers. Very happy with the quality and excellent recipes.
   
   THANKS!!!



5. PURCHASED BOOK AS GIFT FOR MY SON THE CHEF. SEEMS TO HAVE SOME VERY INTERESTING RECEIPES. CAN'T WAIT FOR HIM TO TRY SOME OUT ON ME.

5 comments about Lobscouse and Spotted Dog: Which It's a Gastronomic Companion to the Aubrey/Maturin Novels (Patrick O'Brian).

1. I haven't cooked anything from this cookbook yet. It's not exactly family dinner fare. But I've flipped through it enough to know that the writers have done a great deal of research into the food, on land and sea, in the times and places of the Aubry/Maturin novels. In several cases, they offer two recipes for one dish, one that tells how it would have been cooked in a ship's galley and one that tells how to cook it in a modern kitchen. My husband has read all of O'Brien's books and has looked through the cookbook to find many dishes he remembers from the books. They're all there. It was everything I hoped it would be. Now if I could just find a good reason to cook this stuff! :)



2. I made both of the title dishes (and many of the others)and all were great. The writing was both entertaining and informative. The recipe for Millers in Onion Sauce almost makes me willing to try rat for dinner.



3. Lobscouse and Spotted Dog is a lot of fun for those of us who are both fans of Nelson's navy, and part time chefs as well. I sometimes think that a historically accurate dish somehow transports us back to those swashbuckling days when men were men, and walking the plank was not measuring your new hardwood floor at home depot.
   The recipes are apparently accurate, and the comments are drole. And if you've got a little time on your hands, there's a theme party waiting for you to create. Get your pals to dress up like Horatio Hornblower and break out the Admiral's Flip. Then the neighbours'll have something to talk about, damn your eyes! Beat to quarters, if you please!



4. Lots of fun for cooks. A pleasure for readers of Patrick O'Brian's novel (so you can find out what "drowned baby" consists of).
   
   Highly recommended!



5. As a huge fan of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series, I thought this would be interesting to read. And it is! The recipes are divided into sections according to events in the books, with excerpts preceding the recipes. However, one must have plenty of time and equipment to make the famous "puddings" of the era. Most of the pudding recipes call for suet as a key ingredient. That, and lack of a pudding-basin, ended my interest in attempting a Spotted Dog. However, I may attempt a few of the biscuits...as long as they don't require suet! As a companion to understanding the cuisine of Nelson's Navy, however, it's absolutely delightful.

5 comments about Celtic Folklore Cooking.

1. I absolutely love this book. It not only gives recipes, but much information on Celtic culture. Recipes tell the holiday or custom for which they were used. Very interesting and informative.



2. This cookbook is chock with excellent recipes (mind you, almost all are for cereals, starches and fats... don't expect a health food cookbook), stories, and trivia -- exactly the kind of book I enjoy. The Celtic folklore and myths are a mixture of genuine folklore, new age herbalism, and history -- quite interesting! It's a lovely read for many lazy Sunday afternoons.



3. This book is yet another insult to Celtic culture, in disguise as a "cookbook". Some of these recipes aren't even Celtic, and the "ancient folklore" she cites has nothing to do with the recipes. The only vaguely valid recipes are the bannocks for certain holidays. Otherwise, it's just a conflagration of Neo-Wiccan nonsense. Even in the intro she tries to present some sort of Matriarchal Great Goddess story, and then associate the ancient Celts(how many times do we have to kill this myth before it dies?). The word "Celtic" is only in the title to win the favor of the gullible New Agey type. If you want a Celtic cookbook, go buy one. If you want a load of New Age tripe, go buy that. But for the sake of all that is holy, haven't the Celts suffered enough??



4. First, the folklore elements to this book were somewhat laughable, particularly the bit about "heather wine." For those who want to know the folklore behind this, the story is called "The Viking Ale" or "The Scottish Ale" depending on version, and is the subject of one of the studies in Viking Ale: Studies on Folklore Contacts Between the Northern and the Western Worlds by Bo Almqvist. It's a pretty cool story, but bears no resemblance to the discussions in that book. (Almqvist suggests that the story is in fact a Celtic tale inspired by portions of the Volsung Saga, which might have been heard by Irishmen or Scotsmen from Vikings).
   
   So it's not really based much on folklore. And with all the nutmeg and other exotic spices, I can hardly call it Celtic. But it is cooking so I suppose one of the three words in the title is correct.
   
   This being said, despite the misleading title, I suppose this was a book that was supposed to give Wiccans some creative cooking tips for neo-Celtic-themed dishes to serve during get-togethers and maybe some inspiration into how to weave herbal folklore into cooking. I suppose for that it's not so bad.
   
   The book could use a proper title, such as "Wiccan cooking." That might help prevent some people from being disappointed.
   
   I rated this 3 stars because I suppose some people will get some use out of it (I won't).



5. Great recipes but it is a cookbook. Regarding the celtic connections I think the book does not have enough information. Good read.

5 comments about A Taste of Croatia.

1. Skagit Hospice Foundation is hosting a Auction & Brunch on May 30th, 2009 and the theme of the event is Discover Croatia. The menu for the brunch is being taken from the book.
   We seat 400 guests and raise about $200,000. for Hospice. The book will also be auctioned off in a gift basket with goods from Croatia.
   The receipts along with the travel journal have offered so many helpful idea's that we have now decided to order additional copies for the committee members.



2. 
   We thoroughly enjoyed the cuisine during a recent trip in Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzgovina. Near the end of the trip, I went in to a bookstore in Dubrovnik and asked if they had any cookbooks in English. This was the book that the clerk showed me. So I bought it and read it on the plane home. I am now ordering several copies for friends who made the trip with us. The author's story brings back memories from our trip and the recipes are the food that we ate. We've only been home a week and I've already made several of the recipes. They are well laid out with simple ingredients. I look forward to trying many more.



3. This book has many simple to prepare but very different recipes. Also,the author has a vivid narrative that helps the reader see the landscapes the recipes come from. Very readable, usable, and enjoyable!



4. With a shortage of soups, boring spaghetti recipes (which are simply Italian recipes with minor variations) and Cevapcici or Raznjici? No only one lamb recipe... dissapointed.



5. this was purchased as a christmas gift and i paid expedited shipping to make sure that it was here and it was about a week early. it was brand new so it was in excellent condition. I was very happy with this transaction and will be buying from again

5 comments about The Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean: 215 Healthy, Vibrant, and Inspired Recipes.

1. The person who bitterly wrote that this book has "millions of kibbeh recipes..." actually did a favor to me. His or her derogatory statement triggered my purchase: I finally found the book I was looking for!!

   This book made it to the list of winners of Julia Child's Awards, and it is by far the best guide to prepare dishes like Kibbeh or kibbi I have found. Kibbeh is the national dish of Lebanon and a staple of Middle Eastern Cuisine. A really nice treat to all!

   My kibbehs turned out GREAT for the first time!!! My frustration is over!! The "exotic" spices can be purchased online, just like the book. Not a big deal to me.




2. What a wonderful cookbook for the serious cook who is interested in new recipes, other cultures and healthy food with a nice mix of history of a given recipe or dish. Ironically it was a negative review or slam, about the authors many (50) Kibbeh recipes that perked my interest and made me want the book.
   
   So when I got the cookbook within a couple days of ordering it I went straight to the kibbeh section and had to smile, because it is so interesting because it reminded me of a favorite Italian cookbook with a lot of recipes for different meat balls, or a cookbook I have that has dozens of different types of hamburger recipes. It's awesome.
   
   The book is big and the variety of recipes is vast, with some of my favorites that call for chickpeas, or roasted peppers, fish or chicken. Am a huge fan of pilaf and love her recipes. Love the Macedonian chickpeas, eggplants and tomatoes on page 252, which is easy to make and will make an impression for family and friends.



3. I adore this cookbook and never tire of reading the recipes and fascinating intros to each. Paula Wolfert does an amazing job a painting a picture of the food--you can almost taste it even before you walk into the kitchen. I found the plethora of kibbeh recipes exciting and it was a real thrill to have them work on my first attempt. Unlike many of the reviewers, I don't find the ingredient lists 'esoteric' (this may simply be b/c I spend way too much time ordering spices from Penzeys and visiting Indian groceries), but I have also had great success when when skipping or substituting ingredients. My all time favorite recipe, and worth the price of the cookbook alone, is the "Split Tummies" which are softened eggplant stuffed with a lamb/spice /pinenut mixture (I often use turkey) baked over a bed of vegetables. At the height of summer, when the garden is bursting with peppers, tomatoes, greens and eggplant, this cookbook is a joy!



4. Ever since I first purchased her cookbook, Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco, I have been a fan of Paula Wolfert. Her recipes are not always easy, but they always produce great food. Buy the book.



5. This is one of my favorite cookbooks. I received it as a gift years ago from friends in the printing world. The recipes are easy to follow. Ingredients may not be common to westerners, but Wolfert takes the time to explain them, give alternate options to those that are hard to find, and provides sources to find the "uncommon".
   
   I adore the yogurt-herb stuffed grape leaves, the basmati rice and potatoes, the lebanese tomato salad, the walnut stuffed eggplant with pomegranate, and so many others in this book. I've taken samplings from this book to a friend's annual Persian new year party in the past, and everything has disappeared in a flash.
   
   Buy this book. You will love it!

5 comments about The Czechoslovak Cookbook: Czechoslovakia's best-selling cookbook adapted for American kitchens. Includes recipes for authentic dishes like Goulash, Apple ... Torte. (Crown Classic Cookbook Series).

1. I'm an old Czech man, and most of my mom's and grandmom's recipes have been lost over time. This book is a breath of fresh air for my Bohemian roots. There are many recipes that I remember from my childhood, and many more that I hadn't heard of before. It lacks a recipe for utopenci, but I could make that in my sleep. Still, for only 12 bucks, it's worth every penny of it.



2. If you like Czech food this is the best cook book. My sister-in-law is from the Czech Republic and I purchased one for her also. She has been trying to convert the measurements she used in the Czech Republic for years and her food taste great but not exact. She is so happy to have this cook book with USA measurements. She uses it everyday and I use it at least twice a week. Just reading the recipes makes my mouth water. I have purchased two and will be purchasing three more.



3. I've used this cookbook for a couple of years now, and have mixed feelings about it. As some have already mentioned, for the uninitiated its hard to find the "classic" recipes in here, and you may wind up making some oddball thing that a true Czech has never heard of (but is still in this book for some reason). Secondly, i find that a lot of the savory recipes are a little off, and not true to form -- as in they usually feel like they're missing something, either a spice, or key ingredient. It feels like an *almost* authentic recipe, with just one thing missing. For the sweets and pastries though, you can't go wrong with this book.
   
   I also have something to add that hasn't been mentioned yet, and that's regarding the actual writing of this book. It reads mostly as an ingredients list, with the instructions of the recipe often only 1 sentence long. While i understand that Czech cooking is usually not that complicated and can often be one-pot cooking, i feel like a lot of steps have been left out that a novice cook wouldn't know to do. Additionally, there is some confusion in the book, with base recipes presented in multiple forms. For exmaple, there are 2 pound cake recipes, which are then presented with multiple variations to create different end-products. Great in theory, but its never explained why the 2 base recipes are different, and when you should use one over the other. Instead, the variations always read "begin with pound cake recipe 1 or 2, add xyz...". I find that frustrating.
   
   In any case, i think if you're a decent cook and have tasted most of these things before, you can improvise your way to the final product. Its the only resource i have for Czech recipes and as such i treasure it, but i also find it to be the most poorly written cookbook i own.



4. This cookbook was excellent. I found several of my grandmother's recipes in here and because many of her recipes did not get passed down to other members of the family, I can now use this great cookbook and think of all the wonderful meals she prepared for us.



5. "The Czechoslovak Cookbook" By Joza Brizova is a very good cookbook for Czech and Slovak food. The book was originally written in the 1960s and the passage of time has brought some changes. Notably, what was Czechoslovakia is now the two countries, The Czech Republic and Slovakia. I think the book might be more useful if the recipies of the different ethnic groups were labeled more specifically, as there is a change of cuisine between the countries, from West to East. However, the recipes are sound and yield good food. In general, one finds foods related to the surrounding countries as well as recipes specific to the main ethnic groups within the two countries. This is, probably, the best standard cookbook for this area of Europe. Best of all, all the directions are written specifically for American kitchens and there is no worry about metric measures.

5 comments about A Chef for All Seasons.

1. Gordon Ramsay's A Chef for All Seasons is a cookbook you can use for those super special occasions: when you want to impress those friends, who love to cook themselves, or when you just want to eat really awesome food yourself. A lot of the recipes call for expensive ingredients, like lobster, goose fat, the obligatory truffles and foie gras. But there are also quite a few recipes with more common ingredients, which are real gems. I just want to mention the Veal Chops with a Cream of Winter Vegetables (even Gordon calls this "a nice recipe for a mid-week dinner") and the Pillows of Ricotta Gnocchi with Peas and Fèves.
   
   The recipes is divided into four chapters, one for each season, which is a great plus in a cookbook. Each chapter contains recipes for starters, entrees and desserts. The last chapter is Basic Recipes and Techniques, which contains instructional photographs. Finally, the index has entries for each ingredient used.
   
   It's great fun to read about how things are done in Gordon Ramsay's restaurant, e.g. "Boil the potatoes still in their skin until just tender. Drain and peel them while hot. (We do this wearing rubber gloves to protect our hands.)" in the recipe for Pillows of Ricotta Gnocchi with Peas and Fèves.
   
   His perfectionistic style makes some recipes seem harder than necessary. After following his recipe closely the first time I make it, it is usually easy to see some shortcuts without sacrificing the quality of the end product (I imagine that Gordon will wholeheartedly disagree with this).
   
   To conclude, I would highly recommend this cookbook for the experienced cook, who wants to surprise others (or her/himself) with great food.



2. If only Gordon Ramsay had been writing cookbooks when I was learning to cook some 50 years ago, I never would have bought another series of cookbooks. He's that good.



3. Not only is this cookbook chocked full of interesting recipes, but it is gorgeous! The photos accompanying each season are breathtaking - if you can appreciate the subtle beauty of food itself.
   
   First off, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Chef Ramsay enjoys the flavor of lavender and chocolate as much as I do! I used to make white chocolate and lavender truffles for the spring and I was thrilled to see a recipe for "Mille-Feuille of Chocolate with Lavender": a light dark chocolate ganache with steeped lavender piped over layers of puff pastry. He even serves lavender flavored ice cream on the side! Simply beautiful.
   
   Obviously, the chapters are divided by the four seasons. At the beginning of each chapter, Chef Ramsay informs us as to why the vegetables, fruits and meats belong in each season. Followed are the recipes which may seem a bit daunting to the average chef. As in his other books, there is a good mixture of easy dishes that make this cookbook worth its weight.
   
   Spring recipes that were fun and easy included "Whiting with Lemon and Parsley Crust", "Ricotta Gnocchi with Peas and Fava Beans" and "White Chocolate and Lemon Mousse".
   Summer recipes include "Lobster with Mango and Spinach Salad", "Poached Salmon with Gewürztraminer Sauce" and "Loin of Beef with Watercress Puree".
   Fall recipes that were a joy to make are "Lentil and Langoustine Soup (I substituted Cray Fish for the Langoustine)", "Tomato and Parmesan Gratinee Tarts" and "Monkfish with Creamy Curried Mussels" (a bit expensive but makes a great romantic dinner for two!). Winter recipes we enjoyed were "Smoked Haddock and Mustard Chowder", "Seafood in Nage with Carrot Spaghetti" (you do have to make the Nage(a vegetable broth) ahead of time but it is totally worth it!) and "Veal Chops with a cream of Winter Vegetables" (we actually substituted the Veal for Chicken and it worked well. Pork chops might also work, but you are not going to get the same texture.)
   
   Again, at the back of the book is a plethora of cooking techniques, broth recipes and miscellaneous kitchen information.



4. This book is full of really good recipes. I love that it is divided by season



5. It's true that this book contains recipes that are not all that well-suited to home cooks, although there are certainly several that home cooks could reproduce quite well. But this book is called "A CHEF for All Seasons", not "A Home Cook for All Seasons".
   
   I've noticed a lot of people will give poor ratings to cookbooks like some of those from Gordon Ramsay, Eric Ripert, Thomas Keller, and other high-end chefs because the recipes are difficult to duplicate at home. That's because these books were not meant for home cooks! These books have no place on the shelf of the standard home cook, except as coffee table books. If you love looking through cookbooks you will never cook from, then by all means buy it and do that. But don't expect to buy a cookbook from a top-tier chef and think you can duplicate every recipe. If you could, you would have little reason to visit their restaurants!
   
   If you want to buy a cookbook from a high-level chef like Gordon Ramsay, look for keywords like "Made Easy", "Makes it Easy", "for Friends", "at Home", etc. Most of the time you can tell from a book's title who that book is meant for.
   
   As an aspiring culinary professional, I find this book very delightful. It's not as "high-end" as his book "Three Star Chef", but the recipes are easier to duplicate at home. I would say at least 10% to 20% of the recipes in this book can be duplicated at home by novice cooks. The rest can be made at home by people who have a little more cooking skill, time, and money for high-end ingredients. Not all recipes require truffles or lobster. Some contain common ingredients you can buy in any grocery store.
   
   If you buy this book for what it is, it's a fantastic piece of work... truly five star material. But it's not a book that you would use as a home cook on a regular basis. You're not going to be cooking Wednesday dinner or even Sunday lunch from this book, but you could certainly use it for special occasions. It's also very enjoyable to just read and study!

5 comments about Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health.

1. The contents of this book are far more interesting than they might seem in that this is not a cookbook to encourage the control of calorie intake but it offers a wide range of recipes influenced by countries of the Mediterranean which are unusual, delicious and healthy.
   
   I haven't stopped referring to it since it came in to the house!



2. I was very disappointed with the book I received. It was listed as
   "New Condition" but when I started reading it I found at least 25
   or thirty pages had been torn out. Most of these were recipes.
   The only thing this taught me is not to order "used" books any longer.



3. I can hardly wait to try many if not most of receipts, I've scanned through it and decided there are many I want to try. I'd recommend this book and have already.



4. I've purchased and tossed many a cookbook and this is one of my favorites among the keepers. Glad to see it's still available. Some things I like about it:
   
   simple recipes designed for home cooks
   ingredients easy to find
   plenty of vegetarian (adaptable) recipes
   plenty of bean recipes for vegan cooking
   everything I've tried so far has been very good
   recipes low in saturated fat
   
   Recommended for anyone who likes (or wants to try) southern European, Middle Eastern, and North African dishes.



5. I bought this book almost four years ago, have followed it faithfully every day and it changed my life. The food tastes fabulous and it's healthy. My cholesterol was too high and it dropped quickly into the normal range along with the use of medicine (so much so because of my diet, they cut my dosage radically). Along with portion control and regular exercise, by eating this way every day I have dropped about 50 pounds over this time period. Granted, it's not a weight loss diet, but it can be since it's really all about very simple ideas: more fresh vegetables and fruits, far less protein, especially red meat, olive oil instead of butter and keep the sweets to a dull roar. I have also used it to teach my kids about eating good food, so much so that we now joke that we are Greek because we like a lot of the Greek recipes even though we are of northern European ancestry. Some of the recipes take some time and planning, but so what? I don't have anything better to do than deliver nutritious food to our family table and sometimes (but not always) that's what it takes to cook good, healthy food from scratch, a lost art in our modern American way of life. This is a good use of time as the obesity crisis rages in our country and victimizes -- incredibly -- our children! Ms. Jenkins writes in such a way that you feel like you know her and she is teaching you a whole lot more than just particular recipes, she is sharing some key concepts that will let you live longer and enjoy life. I refer to her just as "Nancy" in our house and everyone knows to whom I am referring. I can't thank her enough for taking the time to write this book. I have already bought the newer version and it is just as good. Pictures would be great, but not necessary. I just Google the recipe and find pictures on the internet if I want to see what I am making. Thank you, Nancy, for teaching my family and me about how to eat well. The food in your recipes now tastes like home-cooking.