Sunday Suppers, Simple, Delicious Menus for Family Gatherings by Cynthia Graubart, a Book Review

When I was a kid, Sunday dinner meant that I had to eat the evening meal that I wasn't particularly interested in, earlier in the day. The plus was that, at the normal dinner time, I got to have a sandwich, so things kind of evened out for me. Occasionally on Sundays we’d go to my grandmother’s house to join other members of the family for corn, mashed potatoes, and grandma's fried chicken. Nobody made fried chicken like my grandma. Probably nobody makes fried chicken like your grandma. Grandmas are known for their fried chicken. I know my mother was, my boys are still talking about hers. Unfortunately that apple fell very far from the tree. In fact it not only fell, but gained momentum as it rolled down a hill, and into the next county; I can't make decent fried chicken to save my life.

Thank goodness, then, for Sunday Suppers, Simple, Delicious Menus for Family Gatherings by Cynthia Graubart. As comforting and delicious as grandma's fried chicken is this book full of simple, easy-to-prepare meals. A fun volume with a homey, scrapbook feel, it is divided into five chapters -- “Just Us,” “Great Grilling,” Company’s Calling,” “Lighter Suppers,” and “ Sunday Upside Down” -- designed to help you create a tasty dinner without a whole lot of trouble. I found the chapter on “Just Us” of particular interest; the menus were engaging, the food tempting, the recipes appearing so easy that having a small intimate crowd of people every Sunday afternoon is going to be my goal.

Every recipe in this book is easy to read and incredibly doable. No oddball ingredients are called for, just common everyday things that you are going to have on hand. And you're going to turn those common everyday things into the most delicious dishes you've ever seen. Instructions are clear and concise, there are words of wisdom with each recipe, and the photos are going to make you drool.

The charming section "Sundays Past and Present" profiles popular authors and chefs who wax nostalgic about the Sunday dinners of their past, what they meant to them, and what they would like to see for Sunday dinners in the future. This is a book that you really should purchase not just for yourself, but for the young people in your life. They need to be made aware of the conviviality and importance Sunday dinner is meant to be.

There is a wonderful section after each menu called "Set the Scene" where the author adds personal notes, and offers advice on how to set the scene for your special dinner.

I always consider myself lucky if I find a cookbook that has 4 or 5 recipes that I'd like to try, that's a cookbook I'm inclined to buy. This book didn't have one recipe that I didn't want to try. Every single one in the book made my mouth water.

This needs to be on everybody's bookshelf. It evokes a wonderful feeling of family, togetherness, and teaches the importance of revering dining, something that seems to have fallen by the wayside over the years. It is attractive, fun, and full of great recipes that anyone of any age can prepare. This one's a keeper.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

InStyle Parties, the Complete Guide to Easy, Elegant Entertaining All Year Round, Reviewed

If you long to entertain, but have no idea what to do or where to begin, have I got a book for you! InStyle Parties, the Complete Guide to Easy, Elegant Entertaining All Year Round is the Bible of entertaining. It provides you with 15 different celebrations from which to choose, including dinner parties, holiday parties (although, sadly, Christmas is lacking here), game day gatherings, a darling woodland baby shower, as well as summertime soirées including a fresh summer supper, and beach house lunch. I particularly loved the Latin Fusion Feast. When was the last time you attended one of those?! 

Each celebration has its own customized menu of recipes, including a signature cocktail, tabletop ideas, suggestions for party favors, group activities, even a timeline to tell you exactly what to do, and when. I would have loved to have had such an excellent resource when I was first starting out. Had I, I doubt that I would be suffering from party prep anxiety today!

I have never had a cookbook quite like this one; it is certainly unique. But, to call it a cookbook is selling it short. This is your own personal party planner.  The recipes are easy and doable, there are beautiful, helpful, mouthwatering photos, and copious information on party favors that complement your theme, and that guests can take home with them as a remembrance of the fabulous time they had at your gathering. Additionally, it is also a valuable resource, guiding you, step-by-step, through the party planning process, from invitations, to stocking the bar, to planning your menu, advising as to needed supplies, and setting a table. This book has it all.

There are so many good ideas here that I can't do it justice in this brief review, you're just going to have to pick up a copy for yourself. And if you know anyone who struggles with parties, or is just starting out and doesn't exactly know what to do, this book is their answer. It is a fairy godmother in book form, a “must have” for the holidays, and welcome addition to any cookbook library, large or small. The InStyle people know what they're doing, and it shines through here.

Buy it!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

How to Set a Table, a Review

If you read my recent book review on the holiday cookies book, then you are well aware of my love for books as gifts for the holidays. The first thing I thought upon holding How to Set a Table, Inspiration, Ideas, and Etiquette for Hosting Friends and Family by Clarkson Potter is that this slim, canvas-covered volume would make a wonderful holiday gift. It's a smallish, delightfully inexpensive book that, I'm guessing, would slip rather easily into a holiday stocking. How delightful would it be to have this little book sticking out the top, and then various other table setting components like napkins, napkin rings, flatware, place cardholders, and the like, all making up the contents of the stocking? Adorable!

By now you may have gotten the idea that I really like this book. For someone like me, who has been entertaining for more years than I care to admit, there wasn't a whole lot new here. But that didn't keep me from absolutely falling in love with the book, the lovely pictures, the clever table setting ideas, and the reminder that revering dining seems to have flown out the window beginning somewhere back in the 90s, and definitely needs to return!

If, like me, you would like to see the appreciation for beautiful dining, and Sunday dinners make a come back, then you can join that effort by buying as many copies of this book as possible, and dispersing it amongst your family and friends. Yes, I like this book just that much. In addition to making a great stocking stuffer for the holidays, it would also make a cute and thoughtful hostess gift either on its own, or stuffed into a basket of goodies.

How to Set a Table will guide you through the selection of your dining pieces, how to put all of it together, and then set a variety of lovely tables from a formal dining table, to a breakfast bar, coffee table, picnic table, bistro table, console, and even a serving tray. The breakfast in bed and teatime trays charmed me, and served as a reminder, that we probably don't enjoy small things like breakfast in bed and afternoon tea as much as we ought to.

For a small book, it is an excellent resource, providing information on dinnerware basics such as the types of plates and when to use them, various types of glassware and their proper usage, flatware essentials, information on linens and napkins, as well as a few useful napkin folds.

There are nice layouts in the book directing you on how to set a formal table, mixing and matching, introducing heirlooms to your table settings, and adding lovely finishing touches like candlelight, fresh flowers, and greenery.

The photos throughout will assist and guide you. The information is attractively presented, easy to read, and completely inspiring. A quotation at the beginning of the book from Virginia Woolf really says it all, "one cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well."

You are going to want to get this book -- one copy for yourself, and as many as you can carry for family and friends. Highly recommended.

For purchase or additional information, click the image below.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

It's a sad fact that not all food is pretty. And because this particular dish is not pretty in a very big way, I hesitated to share it with you. But it's so easy, and it's so good, that I wanted you to have this recipe in your repertoire of slow cooker dishes. It's not often I run across a really good Indian slow cooker recipe, but this is one of them. I'm not sure of the exact source, all I know is that, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch, January 25, 2017 issue, this version was adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe. So there's another plus! Good, easy, and Weight Watchers approved. So it may be ugly, but it's tasty and good for you, so two out of three isn't bad. Oh, and it's 125 calories per serving. Woo hoo!

If you enjoy a flavorful exotic dish like I do, then I think you're going to enjoy this. I am kind of sick of rice and noodles, so I served mine on top of a bed of mashed potatoes, and really liked it. You can do what you like. Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 small onion, peeled and cut in a 1/2 inch dice
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
2 tablespoons garam masala
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt
¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves

Place chicken thighs into the bottom of a 4 or 5 quart slow cooker.

Place canned tomatoes in a medium bowl. Add onion, garlic, garam masala, brown sugar, cumin, coriander, and kosher salt. Stir to blend. Pour tomato mixture over chicken thighs.

Cover slow cooker and cook on "high" for 3 to 4 hours or on "low" for 6 to 8 hours. Just before serving stir in the Greek yogurt and chopped cilantro. Serves 8.

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This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Grace at Home

Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Create, Bake, Grow and Gather

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Waldorf Salad

I learned how to make Waldorf Salad from Basil Fawlty. I learned how to make Waldorf Salad with grated cabbage from Marte Marie Forsberg via her book The Cottage Kitchen that I reviewed here. I find that I like both of them equally well. I suspect one of my reasons for my liking the latter version as much as I did was because, instead of using one of those hard, bowling ball cabbages that you find in the produce section of the market, I used a lovely, tender, conically-shaped offering from Melissa's Produce called Kool Cabbage. If you haven't tried it, you must! It makes a world of difference in the end result of any recipe requiring cabbage. Once you try this you will never go back to the insipid, rock hard supermarket cabbage that you've eaten for years.

I slightly adapted Forsberg's recipe by eliminating the pineapple and replacing it with dried cranberries to yield a wintrier version. I think the next time I'm going to use either roughly chopped fresh cranberries, or fold in a cranberry orange relish that I make from scratch, doesn't that sound delicious? I also am going to cut back a bit on the sauce; it was a little creamier that I generally like. Not that it wasn't good, it was, but I like to be able to identify each component individually, and I wasn't quite able to do that with the amount of sauce used in the original.

This, however, is well worth making, would serve wonderfully for the holidays, giving you an easy, not-too-sweet salad to serve alongside your holiday ham, roast beef, or turkey. I think even the kids will enjoy this one.

Waldorf Salad
Slightly adapted from The Cottage Kitchen

1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup +2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sugar
Juice of one half lemon
1 Granny Smith apple, cored and cut into bite-size pieces
7 ounces Melissa's Kool cabbage, cored, finely sliced
1 to 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced
1/4 cup dried cranberries
7 ounces seedless grapes (I used a combination of Melissa's Green Muscato and Red Muscato Grapes)
1 cup walnuts, roughly chopped

In a small bowl, beat the cream until soft peaks form. Gently fold in the mayonnaise, sugar, and lemon juice. Add the diced apple to the cream mixture to prevent the fruit from browning.

In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, celery, and dried cranberries. Add two thirds of the grapes and walnuts and stir well. Fold in the cream mixture until well combined, and refrigerate for 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining grapes and walnuts before serving.

Keeps 1-2 days in the fridge. 

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This post is linked to:

Grace at Home

Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Create, Bake, Grow and Gather

Share Your Style

Simple Saturday Blog Hop

A Bouquet of Talent

Paula's No Rules Weekend Blog Party

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Stuffed Pepper Soup

Anyone who has suffered a significant loss, as in my case a spouse, knows how difficult the holidays can be. I try to stay enormously busy so that I don't think about the fact that my husband is now gone.

The other day I started thinking about our first couple of Christmases together. They were busy, they were stressful, but they were so much fun! After we celebrated Christmas ourselves, and then with my family and extended family at my mother's traditional Christmas Day brunch, we would hop onto a plane and head to New Jersey to visit Jim's friends and family. It was always a busy and festive time.

During our Eastern holiday, we always spent a day in New York soaking up all of the Christmas atmosphere, and then would head to Jim's sister’s house in Red Bank where we took up residence for the remainder of our trip. I always liked visiting Red Bank, enjoying particularly walking the length of Broad Street, viewing all of the festive decorations.

It was often flurrying and very cold, so we would duck into a local restaurant for a warming drink and a cup of soup. During one of our visits, we stopped in a place called Murphy Style Grill, where we both enjoyed the soup of the day that happened to be a stuffed pepper soup. I particularly enjoyed it, and even went so far as to contact Bon Appétit magazine to see if they could get the recipe to no avail.

The other day as I was looking at the peppers in my crisper, and box of Rice-A-Roni Spanish Rice in my cupboard, I got to thinking about that soup, and I got an idea! I was going to trying to recapture that wonderful time and come up with my own recipe.

I know that, as with cilantro, there are people who either really like peppers or really don't. I fall into the former category, I love them, and have since I was a little girl, salting them and eating them over the sink while still warm after my dad had brought some in from the garden. Whether you're a pepper fan, or not, this is a tasty, hearty, warming and soothing soup, that is perfect for the upcoming winter.

Stuffed Pepper Soup

1 pound ground chuck
1/2 teaspoon Montréal steak seasoning

5 to 6 cups water
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 ½ cups chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon beef soup base

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 6.8-ounce box of Rice-A-Roni Spanish rice
1-1 ½ cups heavy cream

In a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, brown ground chuck, seasoned with steak seasoning, until crumbly. Drain on a paper towel lined plate. Place ground meat into the bottom of a six-quart slow cooker that has been sprayed with Pam. Place other ingredients, in the order listed, on top of the ground meat; stir to combine. Cook on high 4 to 5 hours until rice is done. Stir in heavy cream, adding more or less depending upon desired thickness. Ladle into bowls, and top with chopped parsley, cilantro, or crumbled feta or bleu cheese.

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This post is linked to:

What’s for Dinner Sunday

Happiness is Homemade Sunday

Dishing It & Digging It

Cooking & Crafting with J&J

Amaze Me Monday

Busy Mondays

Inspire Me Tuesday

Reader Tip Tuesday

Tuesdays with a Twist

The Scoop

Dream, Create, Inspire

Celebrate Your Story

O My Heartsie Girls Wonderful Wednesday
 Homestead Wednesday

Wow Us Wednesday

Wine’d Down Wednesday

Full Plate Thursday

Grace at Home

Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Create, Bake, Grow and Gather

Weekend Inspiration Party
Share Your Style

Simple Saturday Blog Hop

A Bouquet of Talent

Paula's No Rules Weekend Blog Party

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Easy Homemade Cookie Cookbook, Reviewed

When I was a kid, my mother used to say that I had the most boring gift list ever. "You want the same thing year after year," she complained. "Books, records, and purses. I am so sick of buying you books, records, and purses!" she'd wail. Somehow explaining to her that this was all I really wanted didn't seem to make any difference.

All these years later, I have to say that my list hasn't changed all that much. I still want books, largely cookbooks and mystery novels; I still want purses, but now I want designer bags; and records may be a thing of the past, but I do love DVDs, particularly of my favorite British mystery programs. Why am I telling you all this, you are probably asking yourself. I'll tell you why, because holiday gift season, like it or not, is upon us. And I am sure that you have people on your gift list, a lot like me, who are interested in similar things, cookbooks among them, and they're going to want the latest and greatest.

That brings me to a new cookbook by Miranda Couse called Easy Homemade Cookie Cookbook, Simple Recipes for the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies, Brownies, Christmas Treats and Other American Favorites. What's not to like about something with the words easy, homemade, and cookie in the title? This is a book that is perfect for the young people in your life who are just starting out and learning how to cook, the older people in your life who are tired of complicated cooking and long for something simple and delicious, or maybe you, who wants to make a tasty cookie without having to run to the store for some obscure ingredient that you don't have on hand.

Here you will find 150 recipes for cookies, brownies, and bars, including holiday cookies, and no bake options, all of which will no doubt please the cookie lover in your life. Additionally, this book shows you how to make cookies using ingredients that you already have on hand, so there will be no last-minute run to the store in order to get what you need. It is full of the classics, simply presented, with time-saving techniques. Oh boy! Don't we all love those time-saving techniques?

There are enough cookie recipes in here to please absolutely everyone in your life from simple drop cookies, to cut out cookies, shaped cookies, holiday cookies, and cookies that are a bit more complex.

Each recipe gives clear indications as to how many cookies it will yield, the amount of time you'll need to allow for preparation, baking time, and most importantly the shelf life. Although, truth be told, when it comes to cookies, I never have to worry about shelf life; they are gone long before their time is up.

Paging through this book was a lot like stepping back in time, I recognized so many of the cookies that my grandmother used to make when I was a child -- slice and bake cookies, cut out cookies, monster cookies (remember those?), and a recipe for pecan bars that does not include honey (I hate pecan bar recipes that include honey. Does pecan pie contain honey? I think not!), and some that are no doubt soon to be my new favorites including Malted Milk Chocolate Cookies and Rum Raisin Cookies.

The only downside to this book is the lack of photos. I like a cookbook that has a photo to go with every recipe, and this one is lacking in that regard. A mere peppering of photos is generally not enough for me, and I like to think that, for the most part, I know what I'm doing. For novices, it seems almost a necessity, particularly needed, I would think, in the case of a rather intriguing sounding cookie called Basket Weave Fall Leaves. If you need a picture in order to be able to prepare a recipe, this book may not be for you, and, as a consequence, it loses one star from me.

 However, this book is packed with cookie deliciousness, simple recipes, easy step-by-step instructions, a comprehensive index, weight conversion chart, measurement conversion chart, and with a superb explanatory introduction that will turn even the novice baker into a cookie baking hero.

For purchase or additional information, click the image below.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.