5 comments about The Sopranos Family Cookbook: As Compiled by Artie Bucco.

1. This fun cookbook is full of photos from the Sopranos and the recipes are excellent....I use it all the time for family meals as well as special occassions....I especially enjoy the comments from the Soprano family members and crew....the photos are from the show... the food items are nicely displayed and the recipes easy to follow....I liked this book so much that I have given it as gifts to friends....if you like this, you may also love Entertaining with the Sopranos....Carmela shows us how to set tables and decorate as well as cook for special events like weddings showers, holiday meals, and funeral dinners....I esp like the comments and stories by Uncle June, Livia , Artie Bucco and other characters ...it is a hoot !



2. The book is a combination cookbook, and character study -- all the characters of the Sopranos give their favorite recipes and living tips (!) -- and stay in their character.
   
   It is most interesting, and the recipes are good!



3. Book was a gift to a Sopronos Fan. Was able to get a collector's 1st edition - that arrived a few days after placing order in brand new condition. The book was more than I expcted it to be - the recepies are fantastic! I'm ordering one for myself!



4. Fantastic Cookbook. It was a gift and friend loves the book.
   Quick Shipping. Excellent condition and price.



5. The book arrived in Alaska in the time allowed. The service was great! Thank you!

No comments about Brunetti's Cookbook.

5 comments about The Silver Spoon.

1. Yes, some of the ingredients are hard to find. So substitute creatively! If the quantities are hard to figure, there are a hundred quantity calculators out there to help. I have not made anything from this book which was not delicious - and most of them are surprisingly easy. Is it a textbook on Italian cuisine? No. I think it represents what most Italians cook at home though. I am not a specialist in the area, and I don't have any other Italian cookbooks - but the foods I cook form this one taste like the ones I have eaten in Italy. This has become my favorite cookbook - the one I go to by default when I want to make something a bit different for company.



2. Book was promised as "like new." It was not. It was dirty and spine was split at the bottom.



3. Bought for my daughter who loves it - she says all recipes have a max of 7 ingredients and they are all wonderful!



4. I am happy to comment on this book. The book was wonderful. My daughter was really happy to receive this as a present from me but also very disapointed as to when she opened up the book. It was all wet from the delivery. My package was thrown in the snow, and so the book got wet. It was like it was already used. I would not order books again in the winter time, as there was not any thought put into where my gifts were placed once they were delivered. It was a lovely gift, but the delivery service ruined my gift to her.



5. The book is awesome, but the break on the spine was pretty seveve for being described as "new"

5 comments about Giada's Kitchen: New Italian Favorites.

1. I usaully wont buy a cookbook before I see the recipes but I glad I did I have made 5 dishes out of this one all simple to make and taste so good



2. Once again, Giada creates recipes that aren't long-winded. Simple recipes using fresh foods. I've noticed that not all ingredients are easy to find, but I like how she will normally give an alternate food choice. Although I like her recipes, I am probably more apt to use her previous cookbooks, only because they are more or less meals my family prefers (pasta). I've already made a couple of recipes though, and my family enjoyed them.



3. This is a standby cookbook at my house. I am actually a vegetarian, and there are so many recipes that I love in this book. There is a whole section where the recipes don't use meat (or it can easily be substituted, such as chicken broth for veggie). There is also a section on meat for the meat eaters. Most of my signature recipes that my family knows I make, and love, come from this book. My favorites are the stuffed peppers, potato and garlic soup, and the stuffed mushrooms.



4. This book contains wonderful Italian recipes that are easy to make and beautiful pictures of delicious food prepared by Giada. I highly recommend for anyone looking for a nice Italian cook book.



5. I own all of Giada's cookbooks (preordered the latest one coming out March 30, 2010) and this is by far my favorite. I use the recipes in this book all the time. My favorite is the beef roast with tomatoes and parsley.... yum! The recipes are simple, but some are time consuming. However, all the recipes are definitely worth the time in my opinion. I also like the way this cookbook is arranged (broken down in chapters). It makes it really easy to find what you are looking for.

5 comments about 200 Best Panini Recipes.

1. I expected more from this book......the recipes are good but many of them are quite similar and there are just a few pictures.



2. This cookbook came on time. It was in good condition. I would buy from this seller again.



3. This panini book is good just wish it had a few more vegetarian sandwiches, I myself am not a vegetarian but some of my family members are.



4. I am a fellow of the cooking era
   
   I gave this to a friend who has opened a restaurant!
   
   This book has been great in fulfilling his menu as well as helping me in my cooking!



5. The recipes in this cookbook are easy with everyday ingredients. I have a couple of Paninis and look forward to making more.

5 comments about Everyday Italian: 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes.

1. This is a great cookbook - with functional, easy-to-follow recipes. Highly recommend it to those who like to cook/eat Italian.



2. it was a good purchase but not as good as I expected it to be. I tend to prefer cooking books with picture by recipe so I can imagine how it should looks like and also get ideas about presenting the plates and so. In this book I found that not all the recipes were pictured and I found that a lot of emphasis was given to the writer rather than the contents. I love Giada and I enjoy her shows but when its a cooking book I expect it to be 100% about cooking!!



3. I would have loved more pictures of the food and fewer of Giada, but the recipes are great and easy to follow.



4. I have always been intimidated by alfredo sauce. I admit it. But when I flipped through this book and saw her simple and straightforward recipe, I decided to try it. This cookbook is well laid-out, the recipes are uncomplicated, and the instruction is clear. Ingredient lists are short, for the most part. I love this book. I really like the mindset that cooking doesn't have to be confusing or complicated in order to be delicious. Try this book. It will make you feel like a champ in the kitchen.
   By the way, the alfredo turned out scrumptiously...



5. I love Giada's show, and love cooking and eating Italian food, but was really really glad I checked this out at the library before buying. It's nearly impossible to read. Small fonts and white text on various pastel backgrounds combined with very shiny pages make it way too much trouble to try to cook from. According to the flyleaf, the design was by Jan Derevjanik. All I can say is that Jan probably has never cooked and likes going blind. My graphic design profs would have flunked him.

5 comments about Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.

1. I cannot express how great this book is. It truly is THE Italian cookbook. Marcella Hazan is the Julia Child of Italy. She pays close attention to detail, going through step by step instructions on things as simple as how to wash and prepare broccoli. But she pays just as much attention to the more intensive recipes like homemade pasta, gnocchi and polenta. I could and have raved on for pages ([...]) so I won't go on too much more here. All I'll say is that if you want to cook great Italian food the old-fashioned way, buy this book.



2. Via Amazon - Excellent service, prompt delivery, excellent condition
   as described, packaged well.
   Would use again.



3. This book was used and has a personal handwritten inscription on it which makes it feel like it doesn't belong to me. Other than that, it has many old, original Italian recipes that are hard to find and the reason I bought it.



4. I had the first volume of the original version of this cookbook and now I have this new one. It has long been my go-to book for Italian cooking, and I still look here first, even after getting "The Silver Spoon" for Christmas a few years back. The Bolognese sauce is to die for, and I also learned to make fresh pasta from this book. I have made some substitutions for health purposes - like more olive oil and less butter and leaner beef than the recommended chuck - without a detectible (by me anyway) loss of taste. There are pictures and diagrams and some good introductory remarks.



5. The best italian cookbook i have ever used. Simple and delicious recipes in which Hazan describes very well. I am first generation Italian (Calabria) and can attest to the authenticity of her methods and ingredients. Bottom line, I havnt found a recipe i didnt like. If you like real italian food, you will love this book.

5 comments about Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy: A Feast of 175 Regional Recipes.

1. 
   Wonderful recipes even us non-cooks could attempt and probably succeed with, but great for real cooks.



2. I am a big fan of Lidia, as well as the owner of one of her earlier cook books. I found this particular cookbook chock full of easy to follow recipes that even a less experienced cook would be able to prepare. Instructions were clear and precise. Ingredients were readily available in the neighborhood supermarket. An all-around delightful book, picturesque, enhanced with Lidia's personal touch.



3. I collect cookbooks and am an experienced amateur chef. Sometimes you buy a cookbook and get one recipe from that book that is worth the price of the book. Lidia's treasure chest of regional recipes is just that, a treasure.
   Oh, that one recipe that was worth the price of the book? Spinach alla Genovese, page 107. I did take liberties with the recipe as Lidia often suggests and added red pepper flakes. I grilled rib eye steaks and served them on a bed of this spinach.
   She suggests we make sandwiches of the leftovers - this dish will never have left overs at my house! I had already planted a Swiss chard bed and plan to have Swiss Chard alla Genovese Lidia - The Julia Child of Italian Cooking.



4. I have all Lidia's cookbooks and I enjoy cooking her recipes. I also enjoy the history of Italy that is always a part of her books as well as her family experiences. The photos of her food makes me hungry so there is only one thing to do,--go cooking. My dream has always been to take my fork and head for her kitchen. Thank you Amazon for this wonderful service you provide for cookbook addicts like me. And the price is right too.



5. My only complaint about this book is that there are very few photographs of the prepared dishes. We also eat with our eyes and Lidia's book could have been superb with the additions of photographs of the food and any out of the ordinary preparations. Other than that, yum!!

5 comments about Giada at Home: Family Recipes from Italy and California.

1. I chose to review this book for the Vine program because I really like Giada DeLaurentiis, I love to watch her cooking show, and I already own several of her cookbooks. Her latest cookbook follows the same basic ingredient list that you will find in her previous collections. Her staples include mascarpone, pancetta, Pecorino Romano cheese, ricotta, salt, pepper, olive oil, and herbs. Add some pasta, rice or meat and you have yourself a meal. But herein lies the issue that I (and by extension, my family) has with her latest cookbook. Many of her recipes are starting to look like variations on other recipes we already have of hers, and they are starting to taste the same. While many of the recipes are quite good, I was hoping for more of a variety in her newest book than a re-hash of recipes that she already published. To be fair, she does seem to offer a lot more in the way of seafood dishes, unfortunately, we are not big seafood fans in our house, so I can not speak to how these recipes taste.
   
   It is also of note that if you plan to make a recipe from this cookbook, I would make sure to pick out your recipe well in advance of when you are planning to make it, so that you are sure to have all of the ingredients on hand. I am usually the type of cook that decides about an hour or two before dinner what we are going to have, and if you take that approach with this cookbook, you may be out of luck with the ingredient list. Some of the more "unusual" ingredients you might need are Taleggio cheese, Swiss chard, fennel seeds, fresh tarragon, Japanese eggplant, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and fennel bulbs. I applaud her use of out of the ordinary ingredients to spice up some of her dishes. I just don't happen to have these items in stock and ready to use in a pinch. If you are hosting an outdoor summer party and have the time to prepare for it, these would be great choices for dinner, just make sure you make your shopping list before you get started.
   
   As with her other cookbooks, Giada's recipes are fairly easy to follow, even for a novice chef, and this cookbook offers something for everyone--from appetizers to desserts, and even has a short section on brunch items. Most of the recipes are accompanied by a story about the recipe, or the event that the recipe was used for, and it makes for a very nice read as you skim through the book. The pictures are wonderful, and you get more than a glimpse of her absolutely adorable daughter, as well as the rest of her family. The cookbook has a very homey feel, like you are part of the celebration that is about to take place. If you are a fan of Giada DeLaurentiis, you will enjoy her latest collection of recipes, and if you have never bought one of her cookbooks before, this is a good place to start.



2. This collection turned out to be better than I anticipated. Having limited time to cook and some picky eaters to cook for, I was able to find several easy recipes. Wonderful salads and you just have to try the risotto. Some of the ingredients are a bit difficult to find in my region.



3. ...not really! but this book (even the ARC in which the photos are Black and White) will tempt even the most reluctant cook into the kitchen.
   
   In Giada at Home: Family Recipes from Italy and California the popular Food Network star shares her love of food - not just the nourishment that food provides but she celebrates the power that food has to bring people together - family and friends.
   
   This book shows why Gaida has become the star of a hit TV series...her sincerity comes across as she generously shares the traditions of her grandmother and mother married with her talent for making it current.
   
   I've been trying some of the recipes and I can't seem to make it past the Appetizers...bruschetta, crostini and OMG the Smoked Salmon and Apple Carpaccio with Granny Smith Apples...the flavors melt together mmmmm.
   
   The book ranges from Appetizers, Soups & Sandwiches to a first ever look at Brunch on Giada's Porch, a feature which hasn't been in previous books. All of this is interspersed with photos of Giada with family and friends enjoying food and life in her lovely home.



4. "Gaiada At Home" is a really good collection of mostly Italian\Mediterranean style recipes that are actually practical for the average person to make. I enjoyed Gaida's light writing style and the personal stories that accompany each of the recipes. The accompanying pictures, mostly of the food but also some of her family, are well done and add to the overall light friendly feel of the book.
   
   As for the actual recipes, some of the ingredients might be hard to find in a regular grocery store but we are lucky to live near a good sized town that has a well stocked Italian market, so we often get fresh cheeses, oils, and breads that might be hard to find elsewhere. The recipes are fairly easy to follow and include the tips required to successfully make the dishes.
   
   My wife does most of the cooking in our house (her choice, not mine), but my daughter and I occasionally get assigned a meal to plan and prepare. We decided to make an event out of it and try using four of the recipes from this book: "Grilled Asparagus and Mellon Salad", "Butternut Squash Soup" (but without the recommended "Fontina Cheese Crotini"), "Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Basil-Curry Mayonnaise", and "Pomegranate and Mint Sorbet" (since we have an Ice Cream maker). It was an expensive experiment but I was surprised how well our meal turned out. We also did have far too much food left over for the six of us, so we could have left out the soup or salad (but I liked the soup best).
   
   This is a very good cookbook with a wide range of dishes for every meal of the day!
   
   Highly Recommended!
   
   CFH



5. I'll preface by saying I'm not completely unbiased. I've watched Giada's cooking show for years and have already made many of her recipes (none were included in this cookbook though), mostly with success. I love the way she explains the dishes within the context of what region things come from and includes bits about her own experiences. This cookbook is no different and I found it delightful.
   
   The cookbook is divided into 7 sections: soups and sandwiches, meat, poultry and fish, desserts, appetizers, pasta and grains, vegetables and salads and brunch. At the beginning of each section, Giada gives an explanation about where these types of foods would be eaten in a traditional Italian meal and how she's adapted some of them to conform to an American style of eating. These sections are written in a nice, conversational style and remind me very much of her chatter on her cooking show.
   
   There are some recipes that just don't appeal to me, mostly in the appetizer and vegetable sections. Olives and tapenades are too salty to me, and if the recipe only called for them in small amounts, I didn't use them at all and the end result was still great tasting. The Tomato Basil Tartlet was the most successful of these: the recipe called for puff pastry, tapenade, fontina, cherry tomatoes and basil leaves. Since the tapenade was the bottom layer on top of the tartlet, followed by the fontina, I don't think the texture of the dish was affected and in my opinion, tasted better.
   
   My favorite section was the desserts. Giada has a sweet tooth, and as with recipes I've made from her show, the ones here are equally amazing and I ended up testing nearly all of them. My favorites, in order of their appearance in the cookbook:
   
   Poached Pears in Honey, Ginger and Cinnamon Syrup (I could eat this every day)
   Espresso Chip Meringues (awesome and easy)
   Lemon Hazelnut Tiramisu (a gorgeous, light twist on the original)
   
   The sandwich section of the book I used generally as a guide, rather than using everything in the recipe, mostly because I just wouldn't use things like zucchini or eggplant in combination with cheese.
   
   There were only a few cases where I couldn't locate ingredients: zucchini blossoms (seasonal), Medjool dates, Taleggio cheese, Moscato wine and smoked sea salt. A lot of the recipes call for olives and capers and most everything (with the exception of the desserts) is a combination of savory/sweet tastes.
   
   The recipes in this cookbook are accessible, don't require a whole lot of steps and aside from remembering to pick up proscuitto, pancetta and various cheeses, most ingredients can already be found in any non-Italian kitchen. I think this is not only a great addition to anyone's Italian cookbook collection, but really, for anyone who enjoys cooking.

5 comments about The Italian Slow Cooker.

1. What a wonderful cookbook! I've made quite a few recipes from it and each one has been fantastic. They are also easily adaptable to cooking in the oven if you want to double the recipe for larger crowds. Whether you're an experienced cook who likes to modify recipes, or a novice just learning the art of cooking, you can't go wrong with buying this book.



2. I made the beef short ribs last night for company and everyone thought they were great. Yes, there is more prep work involved in these recipes than the typical "throw it in the pot and ignore" crock pot cookbook recipes but that is also why they taste more interesting. While these recipes could probably be made on the stove as well, it was nice to do the prep work and then be able to go about my day without worrying about dinner cooking dry or the stove catching on fire. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone willing to do a little extra work for great tasting food.



3. What a wonderful book! My husband hates slow cooked food he say's it all taste the same like mush. I've made two recipes from this book and he loved them.



4. This is one great cookbook. The recipes are easy to read and follow, and the final product is awesome. What I like the most is that they require very little in prep time and are very fast to do for people who work outside of the home. You do not have to sacrifice taste for speed. The recipes include are for: soups, sauces for pasta, risotto, polenta, grains, seafood, eggs, chicken, turkey, beef, veal, pork, lamb, vegetables, dried legumes and desserts.
   
   Some of the recipes that I tried were: Creamy Cauliflower and Potato Soup (page 21), Pasta Fagioli -- my husband's favorite (page 35), Mussel, Saffron, and Fennel Stew -- takes a longer time (page 100), and Pesto Chicken (page 125).
   
   All the recipes turned out delicious and I am not a great cook (but I can follow recipes). About half the recipes require a longer prep time but I thought that it was worth it since they turned out very good. I highly recomend this cookbook for everyone.
   The Italian Slow Cooker



5. I love this book...I have made soups and fish stews and even the amazing meatball meatloaf from this book and my husband and I have loved everything. Recipes are clearly written and easy to follow and it is truly delightful to be able to make Italian food in this new way. Sauces are easily thrown together and simmer away...the result is that my entire kitchen smelled so fragrant...I am working my way through almost every recipe. It is a much needed addition to the volume of recipes out there for slow cookers. The fact that these recipes have such an Italian flare is wondrous.
   
   
   
   The Italian Slow Cooker