New miriam pascal cookbook

nicole81 ↓

Sun, Nov 26 2017, 5:28 pm

I made a salad from her cookbook that was in a recent mishpacha magazine and my family loved it. The other recipes in the same issue seemed right up our alley... Easy and quick to put together, a bit different than the usual but not too fancy and potentially enjoyed by all the kids. I promptly went onto Amazon to check out the table of contents, which gave me a better feel and I ordered the book.

out-of-towner

Sun, Nov 26 2017, 8:22 pm

lavender_dew wrote:

I got it last week and love it. Already made 3 recipes which were well-received by my family. Plan on making more this week.

Could have written this word for word. Her cookbook is doable. No crazy ingredients or fancy tools required, just easy but unique twists on good food.

seeker ↓

Sun, Nov 26 2017, 11:45 pm

I just ordered it and I'm so excited (As of a couple of hours ago it was $22 on Amazon and there's a code for $5 off any $20 worth of books.) I've been following her blog since it started and I love the real-food recipes. Most of my go-to favorites are from her - I find them approachable, tasty, and either healthy or able to be tweaked to my needs.

Her first cookbook, Something Sweet, was wildly popular but I was disappointed that after waiting so long for her to come out with one it was all sweets! I always feel like I have enough sweet things that I want to make and shouldn't eat. So I've been hanging on since then for a non-dessert real-food cookbook from her and it's finally here!

In summary, I haven't seen the cookbook yet but I have VERY high expectations of this one. It is literally the first cookbook I have ever purchased. (Next on my wishlist is Perfect for Pesach, which coincidentally Miriam did all the photography and setup for, but that's not the reason I wanted it - I know the author of that one too, plus I have an interest in Pesach cooking due to personal year-round food restrictions and this looks far more interesting than other Pesach resources)

↑ cnc ↓

Mon, Nov 27 2017, 9:14 am

seeker wrote:

Perfect for Pesach is really nice , especially if you use varied products on Pesach.

srbmom ↓

Tue, Dec 12 2017, 8:51 pm

I just got my copy today and from glancing through it I am not feeling too excited.
I feel like a good bunch I've seen already on her blog and a decent amount my kids wouldn't even look at. And although some use common ingredients, a lot don't.

Can you all please post which recipes you tried that came out good?

Hashem_Yaazor ↓

Tue, Dec 12 2017, 9:31 pm

I made the maple walnut muffins. One kid complained they're too banana-y, but the others liked them (I left some without nuts for the non-nut likers). I just got it yesterday, and there are actually a bunch I'd like to try, which is rare for me. There were plenty of dessert recipes that did not call for margarine, which I liked, many seemed easy enough to make. My almost 11 yo wants me to try the broccoli stuffed shells and the spaghetti pie (kind of like lasagna). Some of the chickens were a little different but still super easy. Onion garlic stuffed challah seems interesting. Cornbread recipe that reminded my son that he really likes when I make cornbread. The chili looked decent without being a lot of hard work. Pecan pie bundt cake seems easy enough. I don't know, they were just different ideas without being too hard or out there. And this is my third new cookbook in a couple of months (I'm in a rut foodwise and trying to get my kids more involved and open to new ideas!)

I will admit that I don't follow her blog so as a non regular reader, most of the recipes were new to me. I have used some of her recipes in the past, but only when looking for something specific. I imagine most of these are no longer on her blog any more either.

oliveoil

Tue, Dec 12 2017, 9:51 pm

I think her recipes are geared for a very specific type - the people who want the very familiar american/ashkenazi food but with 1 small change. Nothing too different or original. That's not a bad thing, but if that's not your cooking style, you won't find much in there for you.

↑ seeker

Tue, Dec 12 2017, 9:55 pm

I only had time for a quick flip through it so far. There were quite a few things that caught my eye right away that I would like to try. I did recognize a bunch as being familiar from the blog, but they did each seem to have some kind of twist to make it a little different. And I wouldn't even mind because I really like the blog, and I don't necessarily go fishing back to find new recipes among the thousands that are up there over the years.

I'm looking forward to a closer look. I do think that in general cookbook publishers are investing too much into thick, glossy pages - sure the color photos and design add to the appeal on some level but it makes for a very heavy cookbook! This is not a critique of this specific cookbook, just that this is one of the first I've gotten since this became a trend (which must have been a really long time ago because I have one of the KBD books from either before or shortly after I got married, and that also had one recipe per page with a full-page photo.) It's a little impractical, won't even stay open unless you're near the middle.

↑ nicole81 ↓

Wed, Dec 13 2017, 5:15 pm

I appreciate the "plan ahead" tips for freezing and reheating and I wish more cookbooks had those.

I made some recipes and have 2 of her bundt cakes and the gremolata roast sitting in my freezer for a bar mitzvah next week. I'll update about those. I also made the red wine apple and pear compote with phyllo crunch topping and tasted it before I stuck it in the freezer. I make compote on pesach without a recipe and this wasn't much different, but I did appreciate the topping recipe. Using phyllo dough is a bit different, and it did pair nicely with the fruit.

Last edited by nicole81 on Thu, Dec 14 2017, 10:35 am; edited 2 times in total

↑ cnc ↓

Wed, Dec 13 2017, 5:22 pm

seeker wrote:

I guess we all look for something different. I only buy cookbooks that have pictures of the recipes. I like to know in advance what the finished product will look like so I can know if I'm on track while making/ assembling it.

mha3484

Wed, Dec 13 2017, 5:30 pm

I cook a wide variety of food. I am not a picky eater at all and I did not grow up eating traditional ashkenaz foods and all of the recipes look great. I am really excited to look more carefully tonight and start cooking over the weekend.

dancingqueen ↓

Wed, Dec 13 2017, 5:37 pm

out-of-towner wrote:

Could have written this word for word. Her cookbook is doable. No crazy ingredients or fancy tools required, just easy but unique twists on good food.

This sounds right up my alley. Maybe I will order it.

↑ dancingqueen

Wed, Dec 13 2017, 5:38 pm

oliveoil wrote:

But on second thought...

↑ nicole81 ↓

Thu, Dec 14 2017, 10:35 am

small update: I snuck some pieces of the gremolata roast and it was simple, perfect, and delicious-- just as I thought it would be. Since I already have all the ingredients on hand, I'm going to make another one tonight for this shabbos and to freeze leftovers, so I don't end up eating the whole bar mitzvah roast before the actual event.