Tasting The Seasons by Kerry Dunnington {#cookbook #review}

Disclaimer: I have received a copy of this book for review all opinions are my own; this post contains affiliate links.
                 

Tasting The Seasons Inspired, In-Season Cuisine That's Easy, Healthy, Fresh and Fun by Kerry Dunnington is a 288 page cookbook that includes recipes from breakfast items to appetizers - main dishes and desserts.  The first brief section of the book is dedicated to tips on entertaining and hosting the perfect dinner party; tips include hiring party staff, menu cards, serving sizes etc.  This section is followed by Ms. Dunnington's invitation for the reader to join in The 365 Challenge; challenging one to make more environmentally friendly choices by eliminating plastic ware, eat in, eat local foods, etc.

Each recipe section starts out with a nice, easy to read introduction followed by a recipe overview.  The appetizer section includes favorites such as Guacamole with an interesting twist. Enhancers include salad dressings, sauces, as well as beverages including a recipe for seasonal Sangria.  The breakfast and brunch section includes everything from a Cherry Almond Coffeecake to Oven-Roasted Tomato Quiche to Chestnut Pancakes.  Ms. Dunnington includes a great soup section with recipes ranging from Hearty Soups {21 recipes} to sixteen Lighter Than Hearty Soups recipes which include Shrimp and Cucumber Bisque, Sunburst Squash Soup as well as Home-Harvest Gazpacho.  The soup section is followed by a Pesecatrian, and next a meat section with recipes using chicken as well as pork.  A large recipe collection for side dishes is next.  This section is divided into Cold Garden Greenery and Warm Garden Greenery.  The Cold Garden Greenery part includes thirteen recipes including dishes such as Kohlrabi Coleslaw and Marinated Yellow Beets with Horseradish.  The Warm Garden Greenery includes twenty recipes for sides such as Caramelized Parsnips with Roasted Pecans and a Berry Nutty Couscous. Next up is the Bread, Biscuit, Roll section and is - like all other parts of the book - started with introduction.  The introduction includes a useful guide for successful bread making, and the twelve recipes include Popovers as well as Radish Bread with Caraway Seeds. The final piece of the collection are Sweet Endings and include twenty-two recipes.  Sweets Endings everything from Baked Alaska to Pudding and Shortbread.

The back of the book includes an A-Z Product Resource List with information on what, where, and when to buy. This informational part is followed with an explanation on Eco-Terms, Tips, and Techniques.

This cookbook encourages the reader to understand the importance of knowing where food comes from and to make sustainable food choices. I very much like that the book includes plenty of space for taking notes but would have liked to see a little bit more pictures besides the few black and white sketches. My favorite parts include the 365 challenge, the fantastic guide to bread baking as well as all of the explanation on the environmental terms and tips.

Recipes that are certain to make an appearance at our table include Kohlrabi Coleslaw,  Cream of Kohlrabi Soup,  Popovers, Apple Celery Salad with Peanut Vinaigrette, and Peach Cake

Tasting The Seasons
Inspired, In-Season Cuisine That's Easy, Healthy, Fresh and Fun
Author Kerry Dunnington

Paperback: 288 pages

Difficulty of Recipes:       Easy - Medium
Cuisine:                            American cuisine
Galactosemia friendly:     Yes, many of the the recipes can be easily adapted to suit a dairy free
(dairyfree)                        diet
Pro:                                  Contains good information and tips throughout
                                         250 recipes
Good to know:                 Black and white with very few illustrations

Suggested Retail Price: 19.95    

Broccoli, Love & Dark Chocolate by Liz Pearson {#Review #CookBook}

Disclaimer: I have received a copy of this book for review all opinions are my own; this post contains affiliate links

Broccoli, Love & Dark Chocolate Because food, love, and life should be delicious! by Liz Pearson is beautiful book explaining the nutrition value of food, demystifying foods as well as common misconceptions,  and also contains many beautiful healthy recipes along with a life lesson for each recipe.

The first 126 pages are dedicated to the "Bottom-Line Advice On What To Eat For A Long And Healthy Life" and is broken down into five subsections.  In the first subsection it the author addresses the power of super foods such as berries, apples, dark green coniferous vegetables, spices, and more.  The second subsection is dedicated to dietary hazards such as lack of exercise, sugar, tips to reduce sodium just to name a few.   Commonly asked questions in regards to alcohol, vitamin D, multivitamins etc. are addressed in the third subsection, while the fourth subsection is dedicated to demystify food myths and misunderstandings including snacking, coffee and more.  The fifth subsection addresses how to loose weight, keep it off, and stay active.  Each subsection is easy to read, understand, and the "lesson learned" section for each subchapter is very well done capturing the information in a nutshell.

The remaining 162 pages of the book are dedicated to healthy recipes and life lessons meant to inspire the reader.  The recipes are divided by  baked goods, soups, salads, veggie sides, whole grains, beans, fish, chicken - pork - eggs, snacks, drinks and also delectable treats.

All recipes are easy to follow and include a complete nutrition analysis; while there are not too many pictures of the dish each recipe also includes on the adjoining page a Life Lesson including inspirational quotes and a brief summary as Lesson Learned.   Recipes include scrumptious items such as  Apple Pie Muffins on page 133, Creamy Wild Mushroom Soup with Beans and Baby Spinach on page 153 (creamy without dairy), Honey-Roasted Spiced Lentils on page 223,  Orange Ginger Glazed Salmon on page 233, Decadent Chocolate Cake with Caramellized Coconut Icing on page 289 and more.   The bulk of the recipes are easily adaptable to a dairy free diet by using vegan margarine such as Earth Balance and substituting your favorite "milk" (ours is Almond) for cow.

Here is my nitty gritty review

Broccoli, Love & Dark Chocolate
Beacause food, love, and life should be delicious!
Author Liz Pearson

Paperback: 304 pages

Difficulty of Recipes:       Easy
Cuisine:                            Health conscious American cuisine
Galacosemia friendly:      Yes,  the bulk of the recipes can be easily adapted to suite a dairy free
(dairyfree)                        diet
Pro:                                  Contains lots of easy to follow advice healthy foods, diet, etc.
Good to know:                Less than 75 recipes combined in all sections

Suggested Retail Price: 29.95                                

Lemony Grilled Chicken {Lemonati Kota sta Karvouna} ~ #GreekSummer {It's All Greek To Me}

This post is part of Take a "trip" to Greece this summer with Debbie Matenopolous sponsored by Bella Books, Inc.
All opinions are my own - This post contains Amazon Affiliate links

I was so excited when It's All Greek To Me by Debbie Matenopoulos arrived at my doorstep earlier this month as Greek food is one of my favorite foods but I have never tried it at home.  Since Greek food is not found as easily in Portland as it is found in Germany it has been way too long.  So needless to say I was beyond happy to review a book on Greek cuisine.

What do you think of when you think of Greek food? Let me tell you what comes to my mind is fragrant, perfectly grilled meats with light sauces, rice, cucumbers, tomatoes, lemons, and of course olives as well as olive oil.  I think of Retsina, white houses, geraniums, blue skies, and blue water - something I remember from my one visit to the Greek island of Rhodes over 20 years ago.  So yes,  you can say that I had a lot of expectation for It's All Greek To Me; did it deliver?  Well, you can say so it exceeded my expectations…

From it's beautiful cover to its beautiful photos descriptive recipes and eloquent introductions to Greek food and culture cook book lives up fully to its expectation.  It  takes the reader on a virtual trip through Greece; the pictures along with the beautifully written introductions to each section of the book take the reader on a "trip" through Greece.  It certainly was the perfect medicine for this homesick European.

It contains useful cooking tips and a great glossary of The Greek Pantry explaining everything from bread crumbs to the vinegar used in Greek cuisine.  One point I particular liked was the special note on vegan "butter" and learning that some of the sweets can also be easily recreated by using it.  This is - as may come as no surprise to you - a big win for me.

The cookbook contains everything from Appetizers - Mezzethes to Main Dishes both vegetarian and meat based to Sweet Pastries - Glyka.  The recipes are beautifully written, easy to follow and the bulk of them are adaptable to a dairy free kitchen {triple yay for that}; I for one am super excited to learn there is a dairy free alternative to Tazatziki which Skorthalia pg. 81 let me tell you I had no idea….

The recipes both sounds amazing and intriguing; Horta - Dandelion Greens Salad, Pligouri Salata - Bulgur Wheat Salad, Domlmathes Gyalantzi - Stuffed Grape Leaves, Faki - Greek Lentil Soup, Tahinosoupa, Tahini Soup…so far a couple of recipes have been recreated in my kitchen but the list is super long; way too long to list here :)  So far we have enjoyed Aunt Aphfroditie's Beet and Apple  Salad page 108 which was just amazing {I used vegan sour cream instead to make it dairy free} and also Pilafi - Rice Pilaf with Carrots and Parsley page 230 along with Latholemono - Lemon-Olive Oil Dressing page75 and the most amazingly moist delicious Lemonati Kota sta Karvouna - Lemony Grilled Chicken.  Now, it is confession time once again…but I am usually not the biggest fan of white chicken meat as it tends to be too dry for me however this recipe?!  It is just amazing, moist, lemony and full of flavor.  Take a look

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Lemonati Kota sta Karvouna (leh-moh-NAH-tee KOH-tah stah KAR-voo-nah)
Lemony Grilled Chicken (page 201)

I have found that simple food with great flavor is often the most satisfying, healthy, and easy to prepare. This fast and fantastic chicken recipe is packed with flavor and can be doubled or tripled easily for a big crowd. Serve this chicken with Summer Peach Salsa for a great summer lunch or light dinner. You can make the salsa and start to marinate the chicken right before you leave for work in the morning. Then, when you come home, just toss the chicken on the grill, and you can have a healthy dinner on the table in about 20 minutes.

SERVES 4
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about
2 lemons)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
5 scallions, soft green parts reserved, thinly sliced
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups loosely packed mixed greens or baby spinach
1 recipe Summer Peach Salsa (page 83) or Latholemono (page 73)

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, and the white parts of the scallions. Set aside.

Rinse the chicken under cold water, pat dry with paper towels, and season on both sides with the salt and pepper. Put the chicken into a large Ziploc bag and pour in the lemon juice mixture. Squeeze out as much air as possible, seal the bag, and shake to coat chicken in the marinade. Refrigerate on a large plate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. Flip the bag over at least once so that the chicken marinates evenly.

Prepare a very hot grill or set a grill pan over medium-high heat. Brush the grill or grill pan with a little olive oil to prevent sticking. Remove the chicken from the marinade and grill for 4 to 6 minutes per side or until cooked through. Remove from the grill and let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before serving.

To serve, evenly distribute the greens among 4 plates. Slice the chicken breasts into 1-inch diagonal slices and fan the slices over the greens. Spoon the Summer Peach Salsa or Latholemono over the top of the chicken. Garnish with the reserved green parts of the scallions. This chicken is also delicious served with Tzatziki (page 76).

Here is the nitty gritty brief review

It's All Greek to Me by Debbie Matenopoulos

Publisher BenBella Books, Inc., 2014

Hardcover, 303 pages ~ $29.95

Cuisine:                        Greek

Difficulty of recipes:    Mostly easy

Easily adaptable:          YES, the bulk of recipes can be adapted to a dairy free 

                                     and galactosemic diet
Pro:                              Great recipes for every day life that are easy to follow; the portions are
                                     generously calculated.  The pictures of Greece and the food photography
                                     a like are amazing.

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