http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com collaborative book reviews about all things food and wine Tue, 07 Feb 2012 02:58:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12661_short-and-sweet-dan-lepard-2011-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12661_short-and-sweet-dan-lepard-2011-uk#comments Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:08:42 +0000 Mark Manguerra http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=12661 Packed with more than 250 imaginative recipes, Short and Sweet encourages bakers of every skill level to explore new ways of approaching baking without spending a lot of time, effort, or special equipment. The instructions are simple but never lacking in necessary detail, and Lepard leaves just enough room in the instructions for your own innovations and variations.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12661_short-and-sweet-dan-lepard-2011-uk/feed 3 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12390_cumulus-inc-andrew-mcconnell-2011-au http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12390_cumulus-inc-andrew-mcconnell-2011-au#comments Tue, 15 Nov 2011 11:18:13 +0000 Duncan Markham http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=12390 Chef Andrew McConnell, one of Australia's most prominent representatives of high-end relaxed cuisine, has written his first cookbook. It's attractive, broad in its flavours, and likely to stimulate and puzzle those who aren't familiar with this type of dining. The book has a strong local feel and will be appreciated by McConnell's devotees, despite (or because of) the rather demanding shopping list the cookbook requires.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/12390_cumulus-inc-andrew-mcconnell-2011-au/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10908_hunt-gather-cook-hank-shaw-2011-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10908_hunt-gather-cook-hank-shaw-2011-us#comments Thu, 25 Aug 2011 04:28:00 +0000 Gfron1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=10908 At a certain point many foragers grow hungry for bounty beyond mushrooms and cattails. They seek meat - raw and wild - yet making the leap from acorn gatherer to elk killer is a daunting one that seems beyond grasp. Hank Shaw’s Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast narrows that gap with an entertaining, informative and approachable perspective on all forms of wild dining.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10908_hunt-gather-cook-hank-shaw-2011-us/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10716_the-wild-table-connie-green-2010-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10716_the-wild-table-connie-green-2010-us#comments Mon, 25 Jul 2011 01:26:41 +0000 Gfron1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=10716 In a review with a clear personal perspective, our reviewer explores the usefulness of a book on wild foraging for his role as a chef and restaurateur. Connie Green and Sarah Scott’s The Wild Table: Seasonal foraged food and recipes is the latest in a string of books capitalizing on the foraged (also called wild crafted) food movement. Just as the movement has evolved and matured, Green & Scott’s book is a step above all others.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/10716_the-wild-table-connie-green-2010-us/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9412_ice-creams-sorbets-and-gelati-caroline-and-robin-weir-2010-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9412_ice-creams-sorbets-and-gelati-caroline-and-robin-weir-2010-uk#comments Sun, 06 Mar 2011 09:45:24 +0000 Duncan Markham http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=9412 An impressive, compendious work about ice cream and other frozen sweets for home cooks. The much-awaited revision of an earlier book by the authors has yielded a greatly expanded range of delicious recipes, plus some additional history and trivia. The authors' insistence on precision and recommended formulae for making ices is undermined by their own mistakes and inconsistencies, but despite this, Ice Creams, Sorbets and Gelati: The Definitive Guide is a work worth considering for any avid home ice cream maker.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9412_ice-creams-sorbets-and-gelati-caroline-and-robin-weir-2010-uk/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9300_ideas-in-food-aki-kamozawa-2010-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9300_ideas-in-food-aki-kamozawa-2010-us#comments Wed, 23 Feb 2011 06:05:21 +0000 Gfron1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=9300 If a book’s worth can be measured by the number of dog-eared pages, then Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work could turn around the international financial crisis. In fact, my copy has so many turned page corners that I’m expecting a ‘Cease and Desist” order to arrive at my home any day now. Well over 75 pages are marked as requiring my re-reading and note taking. And lest you think I’m a chronic book destroyer, a quick scan of my most favorite and used books show less than ten dog-eared pages in any one book. This is one worthy book for anyone who cares about the inner workings of their food or for anyone who wants someone to do the homework for them so they can simply follow instructions and put out great dishes.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9300_ideas-in-food-aki-kamozawa-2010-us/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9225_the-entire-beast-chris-badenoch-2010-au http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9225_the-entire-beast-chris-badenoch-2010-au#comments Wed, 16 Feb 2011 07:19:39 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=9225 Chris Badenoch’s cookbook “The Entire Beast” is built around his passion for nose-to-tail eating and beer. Most of his recipes are European, but there are a couple of excursions into Chinese and Mexican food. While there is plenty to keep fans of nose to tail eating happy, there are enough other recipes to keep non-offal fans interested. His passion for beer is reflected in both his preference for using beer instead of wine in his recipes, and his beer recommendations for each dish. For those who don’t know very much about beer, he provides a glossary at the end. Badenoch's passion, whilst sometimes going over the top, encourages readers to follow his cooking and drinking philosophy. Even without this enthusiasm, the recipes are still very tempting. For a first book, this is a very good effort.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/9225_the-entire-beast-chris-badenoch-2010-au/feed 4 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8900_tartine-bread-chad-robertson-2010-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8900_tartine-bread-chad-robertson-2010-us#comments Mon, 20 Dec 2010 07:40:47 +0000 Mark Manguerra http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=8900 Tartine Bread is both a tribute and a guidebook to the process of creating naturally leavened bread (no added yeast). Those with patience, dedication, and a knack for reorganizing a tremendous amount of information will be able to benefit the most from this book. The number of actual bread recipes is small but the book focuses more on the method and does not aim to give variety in terms of bread formulas. Fans of Tartine will also appreciate the various recipes in the final chapter that make use of day-old bread.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8900_tartine-bread-chad-robertson-2010-us/feed 1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8759_hestons-fantastical-feasts-heston-blumenthal-2010-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8759_hestons-fantastical-feasts-heston-blumenthal-2010-uk#comments Fri, 10 Dec 2010 10:22:59 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=8759 Heston Blumenthal’s “Fantastical Feats” is the companion book to the television series of the same name. In the book and series, Blumenthal creates six feasts, each based on a theme. His aim is to capture the spirit of each theme in the dishes he creates. As with his previous books, one of the principle joys of this book is reading about Blumenthal’s thought process as he turns abstract concepts into the form of food. He writes not only about the ideas that work, but the ones that don’t. The book is immensely entertaining. He writes with great humour, and he has a gift of finding experiences that allows him to connect with the reader and help them to see the food world as he does.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8759_hestons-fantastical-feasts-heston-blumenthal-2010-uk/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8503_the-country-cookbook-belinda-jeffery-2010-au http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8503_the-country-cookbook-belinda-jeffery-2010-au#comments Sun, 24 Oct 2010 05:41:44 +0000 Alison Vincent http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=8503 Belinda Jeffery is an Australian author who has published other collections of her recipes and contributes regularly to delicious magazine. She has had a long history working in various media and as a chef and teacher. The Country Cookbook chronicles her move to the country, the hinterland behind Byron Bay in northern New South Wales and, in her words, is both a celebration of and a thank you for the kinder and simpler life she and her husband have found away from the city. This book demonstrates what is best about cooking in Australia – access to an amazing range of fresh produce and flavour influences from all over the world.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/8503_the-country-cookbook-belinda-jeffery-2010-au/feed 0