Thug Kitchen: The Official Cookbook: Eat Like You Give a F***
Cookbook Overviews , Cookbook Reviews / February 26, 2019

OK, this is an interesting cookbook! I am always looking for good “healthy” cookbooks. I have problems with this category, because my idea of healthy is pretty broad. I just eat a lot of different things, including fruits and veggies, and I make most of what I eat, so not a ton of processed or restaurant food. But I do eat all the “bad” things, like meat, carbs, dairy, sugar, etc. Thug Kitchen, like the Whole Foods cookbook I reviewed recently, is vegan, but it’s completely different in attitude. It’s totally irreverent and fun, and it was much easier for me to get excited about the recipes in this book. So, let’s get at it! To Read: Yes, but only if you don’t mind a lot of cussing. There are bad words in every part of this book, so some of you might find this off putting. I live with two teenage boys and hear a lot of rap music, so I’m sort of past being scandalized by bad language. 🙂 To Look At: Sure, there are some photographs of recipes and then some random photos that I guess are supposed to add to the L.A. vibe of the cookbook….

Parmesan Pesto Zucchini Sticks
Recipes / February 15, 2019

  Serves 6 to 8 3 medium zucchini, trimmed 1/2 cup store-bought pesto 8 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley 2 large garlic cloves 1 1/4 cups panko bread crumbs 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes Kosher salt and freshly ground black peppe Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Cut each zucchini in quarters lengthwise through the stem and then cut each quarter again in thirds lengthwise. In a medium shallow bowl, whisk together the pesto and 4 tablespoons of the olive oil and set aside. Place the parsley and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until they are finely minced. Add the panko, Parmesan, red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper plus the remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil. Pulse only until all the panko is moistened with oil. Pour the mixture onto a dinner plate. Dip the zucchini spears first into the pesto mixture, turning to coat completely, then place each one in the crumb mixture, pressing and turning to coat thickly. Arrange the sticks in rows on the prepared…

Cook Like a Pro: Recipes & Tips for Home Cooks
Cookbook Overviews , Cookbook Reviews / February 12, 2019

Things have been crazy around here! The weather is terrible every other day, which means lot of missed school and work. My oldest son just turned 16 and got his license, which is very exciting, but also very stressful. And I just haven’t had the time to try out new recipes. But if you are a chocolate lover, you might like Martha Stewart’s Salted-Caramel Chocolate Cake. My son asks for it for his birthday every year. It’s a pretty serious cake, but I make it a little easier, by just making it a three-layer cake instead of the six layers that are in the recipe. Now back to the cookbooks, I was finally able to peruse Ina Garten’s lastest cookbook Cook Like a Pro. Like most cooks on the planet, I love the Barefoot Contessa. I already reviewed The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook last year. The premise of her latest cookbook is that she is sharing some tips of the pros with home cooks. So what did I think? To Read: Yes. She does share a lot of tips in this cookbook. Since I read so many cookbooks there was not a lot that was new, but there were a few tips…

Blueberry and Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake
Recipes / February 2, 2019

Makes 2 cakes 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature 4 cups cake flour, plus 1 tablespoon for blueberries 1 teaspoon salt 3 teaspoons baking powder 2 cups sugar 6 large eggs 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups buttermilk 1 1/2 cups blueberries Zest of lemon Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour 2 (9 x 5 inch) loaf pans and set aside. Sift the flour with the salt and baking powder into a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, use a mixer to cream the butter and sugar until pale in color, about 5 minutes on medium speed. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then add the vanilla and beat until combined. Slowly add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, beating until only just combined. Toss the blueberries in flour and fold in with lemon zest. Pour batter into the prepared pans, making sure to divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Level tops with an offset spatula or smack on the counter a couple times. Bake for about 1 hour, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the…

%d bloggers like this: