March 30th, 2010 
admin 
Welcome to Cookbook Club 101! 101 because it’s BACK to BASICS… and ALL things COOKING! I will be bringing you cookbook RECIPES of all persuasions, and cook BOOKS too! We will be reviewing FOOD, BOOKS, Food Magazine and MORE! I hope that YOU join in! So pull up a comfy chair, or tuck your notebook in your lap, grab a cup of coffee and COME VISIT awhile! I look forward to making friends with YOU within this Cookbook Club!
July 14th, 2010 admin 
Yesterday we discussed a great curried stew to use up all those veggies ripening in our gardens.
Today we use some of the same vegetables to make a cold dish…. GAZPACHO! Gazpacho is a wonderful cold soup that is wonderful by itself, with a salad or as the opening course to a summer dinner.
Use whatever veggies are coming your way to make a dish that evolves as you, and your garden do!
Stay tuned to page 2 (Read More) for my Gazpacho Recipe and even MORE cold soups for your perusal…. ENJOY!
July 12th, 2010 admin 
Have all sorts of vegetables ripening in your garden? You NEIGHBOR’S garden? If you are like me you love the produce but it comes so fast its sometimes hard to know what to make next!
This wonderful recipe was given to me last summer by Jenny, daughter of a good friend, who also supplied all the tomatoes I put in my batch I cooked up just yesterday.
I am going to give you the recipe as she gave it to me but realize that its vegetables, and stew, so tweaking it is not only acceptable, its somehow mandatory! Use the vegetables you have ripening now! Don’t have fresh tomatoes yet in the northern part of the States? Used diced out of a can… adapt and enjoy!
July 12th, 2010 admin 
If you like vinegar and salt potato chips like this cookbook club cook does this recipe is one you just need to try!
Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks always has great ideas to try! This one is a variation of a Martha Stewart Magazine recipe from June 2009. Be sure to check out Heidi’s blog, AND her yummy potato recipe today!
Simmering the potatoes in vinegar imparts a tang not unlike that imparted by salt-and-vinegar potato chips. Grilling gives the potatoes a nice charred flavor.
Click on cookbook club’s READ MORE for my variation of the recipe, and other recipes like this one.
June 29th, 2010 admin 
Paula Deen is featuring a wonderful summer salad that will be a GREAT sidedish for the 4th of July weekend that is absolutely delicious! Be sure to stop by Paula’s site to see it and many MORE recipes!
It’s a fast and easy summer salad to use your leftover grilled corn and watermelon.
Servings: 4
Prep Time: 15 min
Difficulty: Easy
4 cups watermelon, seeded and diced
3 ears Sweet Corn, grilled and kernels cut off the cob
1 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
2 Tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
In a medium mixing bowl, gently toss all ingredients. Serve chilled.
June 24th, 2010 admin 
My wonderful friend, and neighbor, Linda and I set out last week to go shopping in Williamsburg, VA. It was a great day trip, and lunch in the tea room at a Williamsburg antique mall was a wonderful diversion in the middle of the day! One thing they served us that we both loved was called Sangria Tea. I just had to come home and find a good recipe to duplicate it at home. I am sharing one variation here and pointing you in the direction of others!
It is a wonderful non-alcoholic variation of the wine version that is sure to be refreshing. Sip it on your patio or deck, around the pool, or on a picnic on the lake or river of your choice…and of course adding a bit of wine to the mix is okay too!
No matter which variation you decide upon… ENJOY sipping it this summer season!
June 5th, 2010 admin 
Some cookbook club cooks may think difficult means better… but sometimes that just means plain old hard. In this heat sometimes less is more. People eat lighter, and recipes can reflect just that.
Want to make a simple salad tonight that is easy to make and you will love? Heck, it even looks pretty on the plate! Try a grilled shrimp salad with lemon vinaigrette. It can be the salad or you could make it into your whole meal!
“Page 2″ has my creamy lemon vinaigrette recipe, PLUS MORE!
June 4th, 2010 admin 
Well, as always, Jamie Oliver has done it again! I was skeptical when we first traveled to Italy… I thought, oh sure they are going to have some horrible version of what we think of pizza…
BUT I was pleasantly SURPRISED! We ate pizza on the Ponte Vecchio (old bridge), built in 1345, in Florence… or Firenze as it is called in Italy (I still cannot understand why we insist on calling it Florence) … in the piazzas, on the Spanish Steps in Rome… and in, of course Figline Valdarno, located in the countryside of Tuscany, where we love to stay at CasaNuova, a 350 year old monastery turned working vineyard! I would be there in a heartbeat tomorrow if I could! Awww… to sit on the veranda, sipping wine, eating… oh but I digress.
Jamie calles this yummy concoction pizza with spicy salami, courgette, basil, tomato and mozzarella. Don’t let him fool you… courgette is ZUCCHINI! HERE is something to do once all that zucchini starts coming in your garden! So start picking those herbs, tomatoes & zucchini and make Jamie’s pizza TODAY!
June 4th, 2010 admin 
The annual Greek Festival is being held in Richmond, VA this weekend! This cookbook club cook is drooling already!
Do you like Greek food but never remember what dish is which? To the uninitiated, or un-Greek amongst us, well its all just … GREEK! LOL!
Well they published a GREEK CULINARY GUIDE that answers ALL those questions and I am sharing it with YOU! Now I KNOW which is which and so can YOU!
RECOMMENDED READING:
June 2nd, 2010 admin 
• Allspice – Similar to cloves, but more pungent and deeply flavored. Best used in spice mixes.
• Bay Leaf - (also: Indian Bay Leaf) Adds a woodsy background note to soups and sauces.
• Cardamom – This warm, aromatic spice is widely used in Indian cuisine. It’s also great in baked goods when used in combination with spices like clove and cinnamon.
• Cayenne Pepper – Made from dried and ground red chili peppers. Adds a sweet heat to soups, braises, and spice mixes.
• Cloves – Sweet and warming spice. Used most often in baking, but also good with braised meat.
• Coriander – Earthy, lemony flavor. Used in a lot of Mexican and Indian dishes.
• Cumin – Smoky and earthy. Used in a lot of Southwestern US and Mexican cuisine, as well as North African, Middle Eastern, and Indian.
• Fennel Seed – Lightly sweet and licorice flavored. It’s excellent with meat dishes, or even chewed on its own as a breath freshener and digestion aid!
• Garlic Powder – Garlic powder is made from dehydrated garlic cloves and can be used to give dishes a sweeter, softer garlic flavor.
• Mace – From the same plant as nutmeg, but tastes more subtle and delicate. Great in savory dishes, especially stews and homemade sausages.
• Nutmeg – Sweet and pungent. Great in baked goods, but also adds a warm note to savory dishes.
• Oregano – Robust, somewhat lemony flavor. Used in a lot of Mexican and Mediterranean dishes.
• Paprika - (also: Smoked Paprika) Adds a sweet note and a red color. Used in stews and spice blends.
• Rosemary – Strong and piney. Great with eggs, beans, and potatoes, as well as grilled meats.
• Saffron – Subtle floral flavor. Used mostly as a coloring agent.
• Sage – Pine-like flavor, with more lemony and eucalyptus notes than rosemary. Found in a lot of northern Italian cooking.
• Smoked Paprika - (also: Paprika) Adds sweet smokiness to dishes, as well as a red color.
• Turmeric – Used more for its yellow color than its flavor. Can be used in place of saffron.
• Thyme – Adds a pungent, woodsy flavor. Great as an all-purpose seasoning.
• Vietnamese Cassia Cinnamon – Sweet and spicy. Can be used in both sweet baked goods and to add depth to savory dishes.
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