4 comments about Vegetarian Southwest: Recipes from the Region's Favorite Restaurants (Cookbooks and Restaurant Guides).

1. Restaurant quality, but easy to make. Jalapeno Cheese bread is particularly good. A great survival cookbook for Southwesterners stranded temporarily on the East Coast.



2. Having moved from the Southwest to the Midwest, I was so excited to find a southwestern vegetarian cookbook. The recipies are interesting, and with a few minor exceptions, pretty simple and straightforward to execute. The pictures are beautifully photographed. My complaints are largely editorial. The index isn't particularly useful for looking things up by ingredients and the recipies themselves require reading through a couple of times. The quantities of ingredients and number of servings are sometimes difficult to discern.



3. My family and I spent a week camping in northern New Mexico this past June and had a wonderful time! But my most spectacular 'find' was Lon Walters lovely little book full of the very best of regional recipes from the American Southwest! I don't care what other reviewers say about the book's organization, just open it up and make whatever appears on the page before you! Everything I have made so far has been wonderful and fun to make. My Swiss husband, 10-year old daughter and 14-year old son are equally ecstatic about everything I have made .. and I do NOT back off on the spicing at all! Some recipes are more involved than others (which I prefer), but nothing is so involved that you will be reticient to make it. Even non-vegetarians will appreciate these recipes. I have already given two copies of this book as gifts and am buying three more today!!! You cannot go wrong with these recipes. VEGETARIAN SOUTHWEST has become my favorite cookbook in a fleet of some 75!



4. Most of the recipes in this book are right from the area where I live....I go to a lot of these restaurants and the recipes are right on! I was so excited when I saw this book in a little shop in Sedona and that was before I even knew they were restaurant recipes.
   This is a great addition to your cookbook collection even if you are a meat eater, like my hubby.
   Easy to follow recipes, common ingredients, nothing complicated, but such great flavors. Ya gotta try this book! I gave one to a friend who isn't a vegetarian and she uses it all time.
   
   A true taste of the southwest!

5 comments about The Food of Santa Fe: Authentic Recipes from the American Southwest.

1. Food in Santa Fe is a major part of the style and ambiance of the city. New Mexican regional products, especially chilis and corn, and southwestern cooking styles, everything from barbeque to Tex-Mex to authentic regional Mexican and Indian cooking, are strong influences. But Santa Fe has everything from tiny cantinas with home style New Mexican cooking to 5 star restaurants where New Mexico is an influence, but suave professionalism, integration of tastes, and high presentation is the norm.

   The Food of Santa Fe takes you there, telling you about the food, the style, and the best restaurants. We've been to Santa Fe many times and reading the book is like taking a brief (and teasing) visit. I have to head for the kitchen and check out the chili supply. It's also a good way to prepare for a trip -- briefing you on what to expect, what to look for, and where to find the very best examples.

   There are many Santa Fe cookbooks -- those from Mark Miller and the Coyote Cafe being the best known -- but this is perhaps a better overview, and a very pretty book to read.

   We expect to buy copies for our Santa Fe loving friends as Christmas gifts.




2. Dave and Nancy are gods in the hot and spicy food business. As usual you can expect concise information along with mouth-watering recipes. As host of the television series "The Sonoran Grill" and author of 4 cookbooks, I know good food writing when I see it and this is as good as southwest cooking gets. Just click on "All Books" by either Dave or Nancy and you'll see why they are so qualified to write this important cookbook and why I must add a copy of it to my collection



3. Man! This is a GOOD cookbook. I have many many good cookbooks and this one is just to die for. The recipes are gorgeous to look at and even better to eat. One word of caution, if you are not an experienced home chef and a fairly adventerous eater, tread cautiously. These are restaurant-level creative funky recipes with lots of unusual ingredients. If this is just your speed (as it is mine) then go for it!



4. Having read and tried recipes from several NM/Santa Fe cookbooks, I feel this one is the one to get. This is the authentic stuff. Although a Californian, I'm a NM visitor and southwest food enthusiast. I grow chiles, mail order what I can't grow properly, make my own tortillas, take this stuff seriously.
   
   The recipes for Carne Adovada, Green Chile Stew,Chicken Enchilada filling, Piquin Chile Salsa are totally great and, if you have the ingredients, very simple. The Carne Adovada recipe, while non-traditional, is off the dial. If you've visited Santa Fe and want to re-live the essence of this earthy, elemental cuisine, get this book.
   
   Directions are simple and direct, pictures are beautiful, local ingredients info and historical background is great. First rate.



5. I was really impressed with this cookbook because it is so much more than a cookbook. It has history, culture, food background, and much, much more. In face, it is only part cookbook. I have been fascinated with all that I learned about Santa Fe. I originally bought the book because of a research paper I was doing on Santa Fe, but then I fell in love with the book itself.
   
   There are really some colorful pictures of the foods as well as the city itself.
   
   As far as the recipes, they are easy to follow. It would be easy to cook with these recipes.

5 comments about Southwest: The Beautiful Cookbook.

1. Not only does this book include excellent recipes, it is of coffee-table quality for its beautiful pictures and history of the southwest. Definitely try the tortilla soup, the stuffed pork roast, the fiesta shrimp, etc., etc., etc.



2. As with the rest of the "Beautiful Cookbook" series, this is more than a cookbook full of wonderful recipes -- it is a book of wonderful pictures of food, of the stories behind the people and of the traditions of the culture.

   I collect this series because:
   a) The recipes are always incredible
   b) The presentation is always unique & intriguing
   c) The recipes are simple for beginning to intermediate cooks
   d) The stories and information makes it more than just food, but an experience.

   The only "watch-out" I give is that the recipes are authentic and on occasion I have found finding some of the ingredients very difficult. However, the book usually will suggest alternatives.




3. The styling and recipes in this book reflect the time in which they were encapsulated, but they're still beautiful nonetheless. We keep it on the coffee table in our Southwest rental house as a primer to Southwest cooking and culture for out-of-town guests.



4. The whole series of "Beautiful Cookbooks" is first-rate.
   
   The pictures are an added bonus to recipes that are usually easy to reproduce. I bought this for my mom for Mother's Day and she likes it very much. I use my own copy frequently, too.



5. I've tried more recipes from this book than any of my other cookbooks and have never been disappointed. The pictures are alluring, the instructions are clear, and the flavor combinations have been excellent. My favorite recipes to date are the tortilla soup and the corn fritters.

No comments about Santa Fe Cooking School: Flavors of the Southwest pb.

5 comments about Feast of Santa Fe: Cooking of the American Southwest.

1. I have had this book a few years now. Every recipe has been great. The spare ribs with peanuts and chipotle chile sauce are wonderful and completely different. The carne adovado is wonderful served over spaghetti noodles instead of the usual spaghetti sauce. If you are tired of making the same old thing, buy this book.



2. I have used this cookbook for over 5 years and I still find new things to try. Today I showed this book to my in-laws and they were so excited to see long forgotten recipies from their childhood. I will now buy another copy to give my father-in-law otherwise he will have me make all his favorites everytime he visits.



3. This is a splendid book that is both entertaining and informative. The advice on how to choose fresh, ripe produce is very helpful as many of the ingredients mentioned may be foreign to readers.



4. There is no doubt in my mind or on my tongue that this cook book has absolutely the best recipes for SW Territorial Cuisine. When you dine in Santa Fe or Taos, this is the food you eat in private homes or at the best restaurants. The meals are totally authentic. Dent takes you through time and tradition providing descriptions of ingredients and preparation methods that are sure to get your juices flowing! There isn't a better reference. I've given over a dozen of these books to people who have commented on my enchiladas and green chile. Go for it without hesitation!



5. A good cookbook must be a regional one. Huntley Dent's book, The Feast of Santa Fe, is the gem in this class. Most important, all the recipes I have tried in this book have been a success.
   
   The author is straightforward when advising extra effort when a shortcut will not do, such as grinding your own chili powder. Dent is equally candid when convenience is more practical, such as purchasing flour tortillas instead of making them.
   
   I appreciate the author telling how to best prepare the fillings for burritos and enchiladas. The resulting quality you will be hard pressed to find even in the most prestigious New Mexican restaurants. The sauce recipes found in the book are certainly a match for those establishments.
   
   There have been some recipes I tried with a less than authentic but convenient substitute suggested by Dent; the result was still quite good. A perfect example is Chorizo made with kielbasa. It was so easy. The flavor is very New Mexican. Dent's real specialty is in authenticity. There is a recipe for authentic Spanish rice that is easy to make and authentic. This is certainly better than what is served in restaurants.
   
   The book offers so much. I still have some suggested techniques to try with chili sauces. So many recipes are offered with multiple variations. I'm sure it will take years for me to try them all. But I am determined, this is a fun book.

1 comments about Santa Fe Kitchens: Delicious Recipes from the Southwest (Museum of New Mexico Foundatn).

1. Developed by The Museum of New Mexico Foundation Members and Friends, Santa Fe Kitchens: Delicious Recipes From The Southwest is a cookbook of over 300 mouth-watering dishes from a variety of accomplished Santa Fe chefs, including the proprietors of Coyote Cafe, El Farol, Harry's Roadhouse, Jinja Cafe, and many more. Sample recipes include such culinary delights as Chile Cheese Cookies, Pasta Fiesta Salad, Chicken Santa Fe, and Pinon Nut Cookies. Illustrated with vintage photographs and artworks centered around the seasonal beauty of Santa Fe, Santa Fe Kitchens is truly a "best-of-the-best" recipe book showcasing the highest talents of the local professionals, and reflecting a measure of the zest of the city itself.

5 comments about Pirate's Pantry: Treasured Recipes of Southwest Louisiana.

1. Octavia's Fried Chicken is the best, most foolproof fried chicken in the world. Octavia: whereever you are out there, thanks for making me EXTREMELY popular!



2. I have had this cookbook for many years. I first purchased it back in 1977, and it is without a doubt the best in authentic Cajun cooking. My original Pirate's Pantry finally fell apart from many years of use; but, although I recently replaced it, I still have my old original stuffed into a manila envelope. I love this cookbook!!!



3. I think every single woman I know has this cookbook. It's as if you get one after a certain age as a "right of passage" or something in this town. I have this cookbook, my mother has it and my Grandmother had it. We have never ran across a recipe in this book that was not great! Buy it! You will NOT be disappointed.



4. I've had (earlier printing - plastic bound) version of this cook book for at least 25 years. I absolutely love it. Unfortunately, after much use the binding broke and my cook book was a total mess, although I still frequently used it. I actually went online to order one for my new daughter-in-law and was delighted to see it in hard cover. So, I bought four (my daughter-in-law, my daughter, one as a gift for a friend and another for myself). I am delighted with the quality of this cook book. I come from a long line of great cajun cooks (my mom and both sister also have the cook book). I've eaten cajun food all of my life. These recipes are delicious, truly cajun and easy to prepare. The informative welcome to each section is a delightful extra. I would strongly recommend this cook book for anyone who enjoys cooking delicious meals. I will purchase them again for gifts for friends and family.



5. Being born & raised in Southwest Louisiana, I learned how to cook from generations before me. This cook book is the closest thing to real Southwest Louisiana food. I have had my copy for numerous years and have worn it out but continue to use it. I give this book as a gift on every occasion that is appropriate (& some that are not). This is the only book I would recommend to anyone with an interest in Cajun food. It's awesome! Karen - Lake Charles, Louisiana transplanted to Omaha, Nebraska.

5 comments about Seasonal Southwest Cooking: Contemporary Recipes & Menus for Every Occasion.

1. I bought this book for my father-in-law who loves to cook and loves southwestern food. I decided to flip through the book when it arrived and couldn't put it down to wrap it so decided to use five of the recipes and make my father-in-law his birthday dinner from the book I was giving him. I chose Pulled pork (which as a unique ancho chile-dried cherry sauce, YUM!), Cow boy beans (sounds boring, but I could have eaten the entire pot myself it was so good!), chipotle cornbread (spicy, just the way we like it!), cornmeal biscuits (a great non-spicy biscuit with a great texture and flavor, couldn't decide if I liked the chipotle cornbread or these better!), and triple chocolate, ancho chile, and almond tart for dessert (decedently divine!). I also loved how the book has a sample menu for each month of the year so entertaining can be that much less work. The book also included some great recipes that utilized different catus. There are also specatcular photographs of southwestern landscapes and plants that give this book a elegant coffee table feel.
   
   So, if you, or you need to buy a gift for someone who loves to cook and loves southwestern food this is the book for you! I am going to have to buy my own copy so I don't end up stealing my father-in-law's.



2. Chef Jacques Pepin offers the foreword for a gorgeous, oversized collection of recipes and menus pairing lovely color photos of not just foods but regional scenery with a cook's guide to specialties. This is a presentation piece cooks will relish: its dishes come from a chef and author who uses nearly forty years in the Southwest among professional circles to provide home cooks with unique dishes, from Corn Soup with Poblano Chilies to Apricot Chicken. An outstanding presentation.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



3. This book first caught my eye as it was featured in the gift shops at Zion and Grand Canyon National Park. After a short introduction to well-prepared SouthWest food on this trip, I did some research and this book seemed to be a fan favorite.
   
   I highly recommend this book for several reasons - 1) there is plenty of background information to satisfy your curiosity without overwhelming you; 2) the recipes and instructions are well-thought out and organized around an efficient work plan; 3) there are plenty of basic recipes such as salsa fresca, guacamole, and avocado and corn salsa; from these basics, you can create your own dishes; and 4) the photography is stunning.



4. Seasonal Southwest Cooking: Contemporary Recipes & Menus for Every Occasion is an amazingly versatile cookbook. Looking through this book, the reader can easily find tasty recipes to create something new and exciting for a family meal. Most of the items in these recipes can be found in the average kitchen with missing ingredients creatively substituted with what's at hand.
   
   However, within this book, the reader can also find recipes suitable for special occasions. In fact, menus for special occasions ranging from romantic soirees and thoughtful brunches, through formal buffets and informal barbeques to festive Thanksgiving and Christmas meals are provided at the beginning of this book. Each month's menu is based upon a seasonal theme. Throughout the book, photographs of the southwest landscape during these various seasons are illustrated. These photographs are absolutely breathtaking and definitely help the reader get into the southwest mood as he or she cooks.



5. This book is a real pleasure - both aesthetic and culinary. The recipes are well written and easy to follow. DROOL!

5 comments about Southwest Slow Cooking.

1. I'm relatively new to slow cooking, but this book has entirely won me over. I love the idea of starting dinner before I leave for work in the morning and eating it as soon as I come home, with either no additional work required, or in some cases, a few extra simple steps. My husband and I love the flavor of southwest cooking, and this book covers many of our favorite recipes, including Chicken Fajitas (yes, you can make them in a slow cooker too!), Tortilla Soup, and Chile Verde (a green chile stew). I'm looking forward to trying many more of the recipes, which are healthy and easy to make.



2. Like a lot of people, I use my slow cooker regularly because it means I don't have to spend a lot of time in the evening, after work, cooking from scratch. You let something spend the day cooking by itself and when you come home, it takes only a few minutes to make a salad or a side dish and then you can get down to eating. And because I'm an afficionado of Tex-Mex and New Mexican food, this nicely illustrated volume caught my eye. Well, there are a number of interesting recipes here, but very few of them were designed with slow-cooking in mind. The authors seem mostly to have taken standard dishes, like Chicken & Chile Enchiladas and Pork Adobada, and substituted a crockpot for a stove top pot. That is, after you remove the contents of the crockpot, you still often have a fair amount of work to do. That's not why I use a slow cooker. I also have to wonder why they think simply tossing in some chipotle powder makes spareribs (or whatever) "southwestern." So it's not a bad book, but neither is it what the title seems to advertise.



3. Slow cooking is such a practical way of preparing meals with the busy lives everyone leads. Southwest Slow Cooking by Tammy Biber and Theresa Howell presents 101 recipes that allow the 'cook' to pop the ingredients into the slow cooker and forget it until it's ready to eat--or the aroma gets to you.
   
   The authors include some staples to keep on hand so you don't have to run to the store so often. Note: Those of us who live in the Southwest always keep chiles on hand. It's a rule. Also included in the cookbook are slow cooking tips and techniques that will improve your cooking experience. The "no-peeking" rule is the most difficult for me.
   
   The contents include recipes for appetizers, soups, stews and chilis, meat entrees, vegetarian entrees, side dishes, breads and desserts.
   
   I'd never considered preparing appetizers in the slow cooker, but had to try the Red, Yellow, & Green Rajas con Queso and Roasted Red Pepper & Garlic Tostinis. Delicious!
   
   The Southwest Chicken & Rice is flavor-full and uses ingredients most kitchens have on hand (remember the chili rule). For comfort food with a zing, try the Mexican Meatloaf. My favorite is Brian's Southwest-Style Pot Roast. This is down-home food at its best.
   
   And it wouldn't be southwest cooking if you didn't have a recipe for Corn Bread Casserole or Green Chile Corn Bread. Mouth watering goodness.
   
   But who knew you could make a cake in the slow cooker. Try the Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and swoon.
   
   Armchair Interviews says: Southwest Slow Cooking is easy, fast and just plain good.



4. Spice up your slow cooker with these great Southwest recipes.



5. this book i highly recommend. its well written and easy to understand, as well as informative about what good pairings are.

5 comments about The Border Cookbook : Authentic Home Cooking of the American Southwest and Northern Mexico.

1. I purchased this book about three years ago and believe it to be the best cookbook I've seen covering Mexican and Southwestern Cuisine. The only disappointment was with the recipes being so good you would've liked to have seen some pictures. That being the only flaw, I would highly recommend it to anyone that has a fondness for border cooking. Try the Chicken Enchiladas Verda and the Arizona Enchiladas. They are time-consuming recipes that are well worth the effort.



2. For the last 15 years, I had been looking to recreate several of the wonderful Mexican dishes I ate while living in Tucson, Arizona for 6 years. It was not until I found The Border Cookbook that I was able to accomplish this task! The authors have made it very easy to cook the wonderful flavors that I have been missing all of these years. The descriptions of the history of the dishes and the detailed explanations of how to cook each recipe make this cookbook one of my favorites!



3. An excellent cookbook. Well researched and the recipes all work. I especially enjoyed that there were recipes that are usually hard to find such as Horchata and Diablo Shrimp. I would have given it 5 stars but I think that some pictures of the food would have helped. I guess we get spoiled in today's world by various cookbooks and magazines that inspire us to try a recipe because it looks so delicious in a photo. I would recommend it based on the quality of the recipes though.



4. I absolutely love this cookbook. Everything we've made from it has just been delicious! We've had it for going on three years now and I don't even think twice about making my own chile powder or enchilada sauces now. I love the regional variations that allow you to take one dish and make it New Mexican or Texan or however you want to make it! Everything is well researched, it's almost like a story book with recipes inserted. Definitely recommended to anyone who enjoys Mexican and Southwestern cooking!



5. It's okay, but missing a couple huge areas--hominy (both white and yellow)and black beans. I can't imagine chile without either or both. Much less Mexican soups. Sort of why I bought the book in the first place. Also needs expansion in prickly pear cleaning and uses, and pretty thin in chili pepper ID. So I was disappointed. There are some goodies, and could help people in other parts of the country learn a bit about what goes on here in the Southwest.