...all reflect a boom in the cookbook publishing business. A paperback reprint will lower the cost to the purchaser, and also give a publisher a chance to correct egregious errors or add a postscript. Some will reissue a book in paper covers with a new layout or photos. Others will rearrange existing material to present it as more informative text while keeping the focus tight. Some magazines will reissue popular or classic recipes in an "easy" format. Here are some recent "re-editions"...
15.APPETIZERS (Ryland Peters & Small, 2016, 144 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-717-1, $19.95 USD hardbound) is a publisher's book compiled by Julia Charles from contributions of RPS authors (mostly Miranda Ballard, Jenny Linford and Vicky Jones among the 14 cited). The 70 preps here follow on the 100 in Milli Taylor's Party Perfect Bites (RPS, 2014). Appetizers and small bites are the perfect food these days, combining grazing with entertaining. All of them are so yummy at buffets, small plates, shared plates, pass-around platters, and just as leftovers the next day. Most are from Asiatic countries and the Mediterranean Basin. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements with comparable metric. Quality/price rating: 86.
16.BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS NEW COOKBOOK. 16th edition. (Meredith, 2016, 664 loose leaf pages, ISBN 978-0-544-371446-5, $21.99 USD, spiral ring binder) is from the
magazine of the same name. The 15th edition was published in 2012. It is important to remember: this is a classic that keeps getting better, for the basic home cook. Now in this edition of more than 1400 preps are 1300 recipes with 1200 photos (800 new) and 400 photos of techniques. And there is more complete nutritional data for each dish. Features include a chapter on "Cook's Secrets", "8 to Try" (flavour changes to perk up simple recipes), and a new chapter on holiday faves. Recipes have been laid out in a more eye appealing fashion, and there is advice on how to customize basic recipes. At the end there is a list of emergency substitutions, refrigerator and freezer storage notes, cooking at high altitudes, and metric conversion charts. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 85.
17.101 VEGETARIAN GRILL & BBQ RECIPES (Ryland Peters & Small, 2016, 144 pages, ISBN 978-1-84975-722-5, 144 pages, $19.95 USD hardbound) is another publisher's recipe book, compiled by Alice Sambrook. There are contributions from 24 food writers in the RPS stable, with the largest numbers coming from Ghillie Basan, Louise Pickford, and Miranda Ballard. The concentration here is on veggies for vegans and vegetarians. Organized by topic (small bites, skewers, burgers, hot sides, salads, salsas and sweets), it is a good guide to a complete meatless BBQ. It is a niche book, but a much needed one to claim a piece of the BBQ turf for those who don't eat meat and/or dairy. It's terrific for the vegetarian lifestyle. There's 101 recipes here: grilled halloumi and vegetable stack, sesame sweet potato packets, and a bunch of grilled corn dishes (among the total). Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements with some metric, but there is no table of equivalents. Quality/price rating: 87.
18.PETA'S VEGAN COLLEGE COOKBOOK (Sourcebooks, 2016, 326 pages, ISBN 978-1-4926-3554-3, $15.99 US paper covers) is by PETA with Martha Holmberg and Starza Kolman. This edition is based on an earlier book published in 2009 by Sourcebooks. So, in general, it has been updated, revised and is now reissued with new material. It's a solid, basic vegan book with 275 easy and inexpensive recipes "to keep you vegan at school". Most vegans need to cook on their own because it is extremely difficult to find vegan food in restaurants, and when they do find it (outside of special vegan places), it is expensive. And if they are college students, then they also have no real time to mess with cooking. The book is a boon: everything here is flavourful. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. And unfortunately the index is in the smallest possible typeface. Quality/price rating: 85.
19.EAT DRINK PALEO COOKBOOK (Chronicle Books, 2016, 220 pages, ISBN 978-1-4521-5223-3, $24.95 US paper covers) is by Irena Macri; the material is derived largely from her blog Eat Drink Paleo. It was originally published in 2013 by Penguin Random House Australia, and this is its North American release. It is 110 recipes without gluten, grains, legumes, artificial ingredients or processed sugar. But Macri subscribes to an 80/20 rule: 20% of her intake will be butter, cheese, grains, ice cream and beer. Sort of like keeping kosher at home (in my case I'm an omnivore, but I keep "organic" at home and eat widely in restaurants and at parties. There's smoked chicken slaw, chai banana porridge, chili-chocolate mousse, and celery root remoulade with rare roast beef rolls. She concludes with a reference list of sources and further reading. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 87.
20.MANLY FOOD (Quadrille, 2013, 288 pages, ISBN 978-1-84949-731-2, $50 CAD hardbound) is by Simon Cave (as in Cave Manly?) – there is no real info about him in the book, which was originally published in the UK in 2013 but here gets its first North American appearance. 200 preps are within this book, hyped as "The ultimate cookbook for men who love hearty, masculine food". Primer material includes a butchery guide, tips on building a BBQ, and sharpening knives. The eighteen chapters include "chili & spice", "TV dinners", "fast food", "pure meat", and "manly desserts". Preparations have their ingredients listed in mostly avoirdupois measurements with some metric, but there is no table of equivalents. Quality/price rating: 84.
21.FRIED CHICKEN & FRIENDS (Thunder Bay Press, 2016, 256 pages, ISBN 978-1-62686-588-4, $24.99 USD hardbound) is by Gregory Llewellyn and Naomi Hart. It was originally published by Murdoch Books Allen & Unwin in 2015. The authors are responsible for Hartsyard "seed and feed" restaurant in Sydney, Australia. It is unabashedly "Southern US" cooking, which sort of makes it "ethnic" in the land of Oz. Fried chicken makes the event, so the centre piece of the family restaurant is chicken than has been fried. There's lots of other stuff here too, as you might find at the restaurant: apricot buckle, collard greens and bacon, banana cream pie, poutine, ginger cake, carrot pickles, chicken skin crackers, and Dixie polenta with cheese. Overall this is heavy but flavourful food. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements. Quality/price rating: 86.
22.THE PALEO COMFORT FOOD BIBLE (Skyhorse Publishing, 2014, 2016, 252 pages, ISBN 978-1-5107-0329-2, $14.99 USD paperbound)
and
23.THE PALEO DESSERT BIBLE (Skyhorse Publishing, 2014, 2016, 252 pages, ISBN 978-1-5107-0524-1, $14.99 USD paperbound)
are both authored by Anna Conrad, who is both a caterer (Chef Anna) and healthy meal planner (Ideal Mealz). They were published in hard covers in 2014 (the COMFORT FOOD book was pluralized back then as COMFORT FOODS). They are basic paleo books, each with more than 100 recipes for grain-free and dairy-free foods among others. The Comfort book is loaded with chicken, beef, mushrooms, pasta, French onion soup, stews – all the foods we grew up with. The Dessert book has almond butter pie, lemon squares, pecan bars, and chocolate fudge cake. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 86.
24.BETTY CROCKER FAST FROM-SCRATCH MEALS (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, 304 pages, ISBN 978-0-544-71445-8, $19.99 USD paperbound) has 150 preps for 30 minutes cooking time or less. Features include ideas for using fruits and veggies to upgrade dishes, pantry data, farmers' markets for surpluses and stocking up. Some recipes are more than 30 minutes, but they are all for preserves and condiments which help speed up other dishes or lend added depth to the flavours. There are tips on substitutions, and full nutrition data for every recipe. The suggestions for family food include bacon-wrapped chicken and chiles, Moroccan chicken soup, and chocolate berry shooters. Just a few added twists and every family dish can be an "entertaining" dish for company. Each recipe has a time , such as "20 minutes or less". Some are "5 minutes or less". Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 86.
25.BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS JAMS & JELLIES (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, 240 pages, ISBN 978-0-544-71555-4, $19.99 USD paperbound) has over 100 preps for preserving. The book is exotic enough to encourage bacon-shallot jam, which would not have appeared a few years back. In fact, there are other savoury spreads which are enticing. The book contains freezer jam, juice jelly, low-sugar, low-sugar pectin, and a chapter on presenting homemade jams and jellies for gifting. And, of course, safety is discussed, with a concluding chapter on troubleshooting. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there are tables of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 86.
26.COOKING WITH LOULA (Artisan, 2015, 240 pages, ISBN 978-1-57965-668-3, $29.95 USD hardbound) is by Alexandra Stratou, who was born in Athens. From her food website she self-published "Cooking to Share" in 2013, which was the original edition of this book. It is a good basic Greek cookbook of family recipes meant for sharing through family life. Even Alice Waters agrees with her ("soulful and imaginative way that honors the generations of cooks who have come before her"). It is loosely arranged by type of meal: weekdays, Sundays, summer holidays, traditions, and basic recipes. There are two indexes: one regular and one that is a list of preps by name and by time, so you can see the longer eight hour preps (roast suckling pig, gavros marinatos) and the shorter meze or salad under 30 minutes (laqhano karoto, skordalia). In between are all the other 90 recipes. Preparations have their ingredients listed in mainly metric and avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 88.
27.BOURBON EMPIRE (Penguin Books, 2015, 2016, 310 pages, ISBN 978-0-14-310814-6, $17 USD paperbound) is by spirits writer Reid Mitenbuler. It was first published in hard covers in 2015; this is the paperback reprint. It is a basic history book of bourbon in American culture and life, accompanied by historical black and white archive photos and drawings. He covers the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 at epic length, the craft of production, bootlegging, lobbying and Prohibition. It is an interesting book, with a bibliography and extensive index, well-worth reading – especially in the paperback format. Quality/price rating: 88.
28.SUPERLEGUMES (Appetite by Random House Canada, 2015, 224 pages, ISBN 978-0-14-753012-7, $19.95 CAD paperbound) is by Chrissy Freer of Australia, who earlier had written the best-selling Supergrains. The current book was originally published in a slightly different form in Australia by Murdoch Books. It is here presented in its Canadian version. It's a holistic health focus, using whole foods for nutritional balance, low Glycemic index counts, and with gluten-free and dairy-free options. The 85 recipes embrace chickpeas, white beans, soy beans, adzuki, fava, horlotti, pinto, black, kidney, plus peas, lentils, peanuts and more. Many of the dried legumes can be used also for their flour, which is particularly useful for gluten-free baking. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 88.
29.THE INDIAN FAMILY KITCHEN (Appetite by Random House Canada, 2015, 224 pages, ISBN 978-0-147-52997-8, $29.95 CAD hardbound) is by Anjali Pathak, granddaughter of the founders of Patak's curry pastes and sauces. It was originally published in the UK by Mitchell Beazley in a slightly different form. This is its Canadian debut. These are classic family dishes for the "next" generation, with her contemporary take on many classic dishes. Indian spices are the highlights here, being added to seasonal and vegetable- inspired preps. The range covers small and large plates, veggies, BBQ for summer, desserts and drinks. Along the way she has sidebars on chiles, kitchen gadgets, pantries, spices, wines, and shortcuts. There are family memories as well, and great photography. The 100 or so preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 87.
30.COOK. NOURISH. GLOW. (Appetite by Random House, 2016, 336 pages, ISBN 978-0-14-753019-6, $35 CAD hardbound) is by Amelia Freer, a nutritional therapist who also authored Eat.Nourish.Glow. This latest book, originally published in the UK last year by Michael Joseph, is the Canadian release of 120 recipes that "will help you lose weight, look younger, and feel healthier." This is getting to be a big business thing now, with many such books advocating a more streamlined lifestyle of exercise, stress reduction, hydration, fewer acidic foods, more green leafy plants, lower gluten and lower sugar, with a watchful eye on reactions. The emphasis in selling the book is mainly to young or middle-aged women, using the fact that skin can glow and be enhanced with this kind of diet. You will age, but not as quickly...There are some good tips on kitchen confidence here. Dishes include crunchy veggie tabbouleh with coconut cream and herb dressing, cucumber ribbons with tahini dressing, millet-sesame croquettes with tamari dipping sauce, tapenade layered eggs, spiced coconut crème anglaise with pineapple and goji berries. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/price rating: 87.
Chimo! www.deantudor.com
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