Cooking With Fire

I absolutely love cooking and am always on the look out for unique cookbooks to add to my collection and ones that give me things to experiment with.  While at a flea market in Ohio, I came across this gem.  Biker Billy Cooks With Fire.  So many different things about this cookbook appealed to me.  1. It's a biker, one that makes me think of someone I love dearly, 2. It's cooking with fire whether it is grilling, or hot and spicy things, either way it's good in my mind, 3. It is just so outrageous that I had to pick it up.  While doing a quick skim through I seen many different recipes that I wanted to try and wouldn't have thought of trying.

Each recipe has something to do with a pepper or hot sauce.  Perfect for me because I as my friend say, like to burn my face off, meaning I like my food spicy enough that it clears my sinuses.  It starts off giving tips and techniques of cooking with peppers and other ingredients, then it goes into the recipes.  Each one starts off with a small note describing the recipe and how it will come out and./or why Billy choose to add it into his cookbook.  There is everything in this cookbook from sauces and marinades to desserts and everything in between.  There are times when looking through a cookbook that I am not sure if I would try a recipe or not, but there are a lot of different recipes in this book that I would love to try and look forward to trying in the future.

Just from reading this book so far I get high hopes for the food inside.  I would recommend this for foodies who are looking for something different in their cooking repertoire. Bike Billy has some interesting ideas, and I will update this when I have cooked some of the recipes contained in this book.  So far the rating if 4 out 5 stars, this may change to a 5 once I have prepared some of the recipes.

5 Ingredient Recipes

I am always looking for a new cookbook to add to my collection of books.  I am an avid chef and sometimes wonder what I could make with a few ingredients.  This was the perfect book for that task, many of these recipes are quick and easy and taste like I slaved over the stove all day. 

I would like to say this cookbook has a wide variety of recipes, but it seems like chicken and smoothies predominated the book.  The recipes were easy to follow and have ingredients that are easy to find in your local grocery store rather than having to find the in a specialty store.  The instructions are even 3 steps or less so you are not spending a lot of time cooking a great meal.

I admit some are recipes I have seen and cook prior to owning the book and nothing really stood out a completely unique, but I think this would be a great book for a beginner or a parent teaching kids to cook.  It helps get the understanding of cooking basics down.  The front even includes a chart showing what everything equals like 3 teaspoons equal 1 tablespoon.  A lot of the recipes include already prepared items like cornbread mix when it is fairly simple to make a cornbread.

I would recommend this book for beginners and young chefs.  It has all the basics for growing the craft of cooking and baking.  As for a rating, I would give this a 3 out 5 stars  I expected a little more than chicken, and smoothies.

The Cheesecake Cookbook

I will fully admit my biggest weakness is cheesecake.  I can never pass up a cheesecake dessert no matter how stuffed I am.  It is the perfect comfort food, creamy and sweet.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it!  When I seen this cookbook on amazon, I needed to add it to my cookbook collection and I am happy I did.  I haven't gotten the chance to make too many of them yet, just one or two.  But the recipes are so easy to  follow and easy to make.  I don't think there is a way to mess up cheesecake, especially if you had this book to guide you.

Who knew there were so many different variations on cheesecake?  I plan on making one or two for Christmas especially the Gluten-free recipe as I have a few family and friends who need to be gluten-free.  This book gives you many ideas and is filled with interesting tastes, such as the Japanese Cherry Blossom cheesecake.  I never had it nor have I worked with some of the ingredients and am excited to give it a shot.  There are a large amount of ingredients I have never worked with or thought to include in a cheesecake. 

Sharon Belcher even gives cooks ideas on how to decorate and serve the cakes which is very helpful if you want to create a wonderful presentation before devouring your creation.  For anyone who enjoys cooking or wants to start out with something new, I highly recommend this cookbook.  It is beyond helpful and easy to understand.  I give this a rating of 5 out of 5 because well...it's cheesecake now to devour a whole cheesecake myself....don't judge.

Hunger Games Cookbook

Along with reading, one of my favorite things to do is cook.  When i found the Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook, I got really excited.  Throughout the series of Hunger Games there are a lot of different foods that sound delicious as you read the books.  This cookbook includes those foods.  With each entry of recipes there is the passage that includes the food and which book you will find it.

It also tells you different things you can do to make it different or alter it to meet your dietary needs.

There are a few recipes that I have tried and they are as delicious as the books made them sound.  Most cookbooks include images from time to time, but this one does not include them.  Not that pictures are necessary for cookbooks, but sometimes it helps make something look delicious enough to eat.  The recipes are easy to follow and do not include anything that you wouldn't be able to find at the local grocery store. 

I love that I have a cookbook that has a literature element to it, it fits the person that I am and I think it would make a great addition to other bookshelves for those who love cooking and reading.  I give the cookbook a 4 out of 5 since there isn't a way to determine if the food looks good.

Green Juice 32 Recipes

I have been looking for ways to naturally detox without the use of pills and other expensive things.  Green Juice: 32 Recipes is a great book to use to accomplish that goal.  We hear so often how important it is to incorporate green foods into our diet, in fact I was just told that this past Wednesday.  Doing so can be so difficult sometimes, but this book helps in finding ways to get the essential nutrients we need from these green foods.

It starts out with tips on juicing in order to get the best juices such as "peel oranges, lemons, grapefruits and especially pineapple, pumpkin, and cantaloupe.  In other words super hard skins."  I wouldn't have thought of peeling pumpkin for juicing.  After that is a section on the benefits of the juices from different fruits and vegetables.  Did you know beets are good for cleansing your liver and gall bladder as well as the bowels?  That is something I learned from this book, it is rather interesting.  Then the book talks about vegetables and fruits that are low in sugar like broccoli.  So before you even get into the recipes this books is very educational and helpful.

The recipes included in this book are easy and simple to follow.  They combine items I never would have thought to combine like kale, strawberries and apple in one recipe.  I know there are people who are weary about trying these recipes and I admit I was one of them.  But I tried one this morning for the first time and it was good.  I  tried the Minty Ginger Green juice, it tasted of course minty with a hint of apple and lemon.  The fruit juices combined covered the taste of the spinach.  I think this is a book of recipes I will continue using on a daily or semi daily basis.  I cannot wait to try a different recipe.

Plant Nation

Plant Nation Cookbook by Kim Campbell
Media: Paperback; won through Goodreads
Rating 5 out 5 stars.

Recommendation:  This is a great addition to any kitchen cookbook shelf.  I don't think you need to eat a vegetarian or vegan diet to enjoy this cookbook.

The Plant Nation cookbook is a companion piece to the documentary of the same name.  It is an encouragement to eat plants.  This cookbook provides excellent recipes to achieve that goal.  People tend to think meat and fat based meals need to be a staple, but this cookbook proves that theory wrong.  The images of eat recipes simply make your mouth water with anticipation.  Many of the recipes included are things I never thought to try, and can't wait to get into my kitchen to create.  There are excerpts from the documentary included as well to help give a little more education of plant-based living.  Fascinating read.

As someone who needs to be gluten free this cookbook provides many wonderful recipes that are delicious and will help me adhere to my diet.  Vegetables and other plants are not things to sneer at and be afraid of.  Embrace the goodness of plants and utilize this amazing gem to achieve this goal.  If you are a lover of cooking, eating, and food in general then this needs to be added to your shelf.