Dessert & Booze Hacks by Peggy Wang, Founding Editor of BuzzFeed

If I could only say one word about Dessert & Booze Hacks by Peggy Wang, it would be – AMAZING!  I love having friends and family over but don’t always have the time to cook/bake/prepare delicious stuff for my guests.  This book is essentially a cheat sheet to yummy snacks and drinks in no time.

While looking through Dessert & Booze Hacks, I discovered several recipes that look familiar and some that I’m looking forward to making. On several occasions I have made both Drunken Gummy Bears and Five-Minute Pretzel Bites.  While the drunken gummy bears were way too potent for me (gummy bears soaking in vodka for days) – the hershey’s kiss filled pretzel bites were absolutely delicious.

Frozen Sangria is the recipe I’m looking most forward to making.  Just wanted to share it with everyone else, in case you guys enjoy sangria as much as I do!

• Ingredients – 1 bottle of fruit red wine, 1.5 cups of raspberry or orange sorbet, 1.5 cups of frozen berries and fresh berries.
• Simple instructions – Pour wine, sorbet and frozen fruit into a blender, puree until smooth.  Pour into six glasses and top with fresh berries

Overall, this book is awesome.  I would definitely recommend it to a friend and would even consider purchasing it as a gift.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

The Skinnytaste Cookbook by Gina Homolka with Heather K. Jones, R.D.

Hi all! After quite a few months break from blogging, I’m finally back in the game! Our first child, Maxwell, was born in March – and is the love of our lives! We’ve spent the last few months learning how to be the best parents we can be, it’s now time to focus on ourselves for a bit – and getting healthy again! The Skinnytaste Cookbook has been sitting on my coffee table waiting to be reviewed for the last few months, and this is definitely the perfect time!

The Skinnytaste Cookbook, by Gina Homolka, is a cookboook that prides itself on being “light on calories, big on flavor.” The book is divided into the following sections: The Skinny Basics, Sunny Mornings, Skinny-licious Soups & Chilis, Sandwiches on the Lighter Side, Skinny Bites, Fabulous Main-dish Salads, Perfect Poultry, Lean Meat Dishes, Fabulous Fish, Meatless Mains, Veggie-licious Sides, and Skinny Sweet Tooth — all of which include healthy versions of delicious but not so healthy dishes. All recipes include caloric information for each dish as well as main dish recipes include what the perfect side dish to pair it with.

I’m really excited to start using this book because I need to get rid of this last little bit of baby weight but can’t seem to give up everything that tastes yummy and delicious. Already scheduled into my cooking calendar for the month of September are several recipes from this book including Buttermilk Oven “Fried” Chicken, Chicken Marsala on the Lighter Side, Chicken Rollatini Stuffed with Zucchini and Mozzarella, and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers. Hopefully these recipes are as delicious as the pictures look and will keep us on our track to becoming healthier parents!

click here for more information on The Skinnytaste Cookbook

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Back Lane Wineries of Napa, Second Edition by Tiler Mazzeo

Hi all – after a long and exhausting summer, I’m finally back on track with blogging!

I requested this book to assist with planning my trip to Napa (which is now next week). Along with information shared with me by my cousins wife, it has definitely been helpful with providing additional facts about the area.

This book provides a generous amount of information about the various sections of Napa including: Downtown Napa and Environs, Silverado Trail, Calistoga and Environs, Howell Mountain, Spring Mountain, Downtown St. Helena and Environs, S. Helena Highway, Eastern Valleys, and Los Carneros and Environs South of Napa. Each section begins with wineries to visit, including their basic contact information (address, phone number, website) as well as their tasting schedule and some interesting facts about the winery ranging from history to their best wines. A few sections stop there, but many of them continue on to include local restaurants or food focused locations to visit as well as local attractions to visit ranging from spas to hot air balloon rides to hiking trails.

Overall, this book is a wonderful resource to have. I’m not one to refer to guide book but have already used it to fill in our days and will definitely be bringing it on vacation with us!

click here for more information on Back Lane Wineries of Napa, Second Edition

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

American Heart Association Go Fresh

Go Fresh, written by the American Heart Association, is written from a heart-healthy health-conscious point of view. The book begins with an elaborate shopping and storage guide for almost anything fresh you would buy for your kitchen such as vegetables and herbs, fruit, fish and shellfish, meat and poultry, and dairy products. Each section includes helpful hints and tips about what to look for at the grocery store as well as the best way to store each item once you bring it home to ensure the longest freshness possible.

Next in Go Fresh you will find the largest part of the book, the recipes section, divided into several chapters including: appetizers, snacks, and beverages, soups, salads and salad dressing, seafood, poultry, meats, vegetarian entrees, vegetables and side dishes, sauces and condiments, breads and breakfasts, and dessert. Each recipe is well written and consists of a concise ingredients list, well written instructions, the number of servings, preparation time, cook time, and caloric content of the dish per serving.

I haven’t cooked anything from this book yet, but I definitely plan on doing so this week! Cauliflower-Carrot Soup and Parmesan-Spinach Soup are on the top of my long list of stuff to cook, which was very difficult to choose because everything look so good. Go Fresh has so many recipes that not only sound delicious but are healthy! I would definitely recommend this book to others and may even buy it for a few family members!

click here for more information on American Heart Association Go Fresh

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

Clatter Valley Farm & CSA Week 5

In this weeks basket I was given corn, carrots, escarole, green zucchini, golden zucchini, onions, and peaches.

Roadfood by Jane Stern and Michael Stern

Roadfood is awesome! In this book, Jane and Michael Stern share 900 great restaurant recommendations throughout the country. Even though it has zero recipes in it, it is still one of my new favorite food books and has already earned its place on my bookshelf!

Roadfood is laid out well, divided first by different parts of the country; New England, Mid-Atlantic, Mid-South, Deep South, Midwest, South West, Great Plains, and West. Within each section of the country, the authors then separate the recommendations by state. Each recommendation has the name of the restaurant, location, phone number, website, meals open for, anywhere from one to three dollar signs signifying the estimated cost of the meal, and a paragraph explaining why the restaurant earned its place in this book. Jane and Michael Stern highlight the key facts about the restaurant you should know including when the best day/time to go is or what the best item on the menu to order is, as well as what makes the it a must eat at spot.

My husband and I love to travel. This book is not only going to be an asset on our future vacations but will also be an asset when we go out to eat in our local community. We both love food and Roadfood is definitely going to save us time in searching for a good meal.

click here for more information on Roadfood

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

Clatter Valley Farm & CSA Weeks 3 & 4

I got a little excited last week and ate my veggies before I could post a picture! Last week we got carrots, lettuce, garlic, parsley, kohlrabi, and kale. I ate everything except the kohlrabi – if anyone has a recipe for that, please share!

For Week 4 we got: green beans, red onions, rainbow carrots, basil, escarole and cucumber

My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz

I was really excited while waiting for this book, although was slightly disappointed when it arrived. I ordered My Paris Kitchen because of all of the other wonderful reviews I saw, but was very overwhelmed when it arrived. This book is beautifully written and well laid out, but I felt the introduction was excessive – specifically, an entire page on why the author likes pepper.

My Paris Kitchen was a difficult read, but once I got into the book I was able to enjoy it. I am looking forward to cooking several of the recipes including: French onion soup, Parisian gnocchi, and scalloped potatoes with blue cheese and roasted garlic.

Even though I was very overwhelmed by this book, I would still recommend it to others looking for a good book on Parisian food. This book is well written, includes wonderful recipes, and provides details explanations of the authors thought processes while cooking.

click here for more information on My Paris Kitchen

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Grilled Asparagus with Grilled Lemon

My mom and I took a cooking class a few weeks ago where we made this dish. I’m normally not a fan of lemon but warmed up it was absolutely delicious!

Ingredients:
1 lb asparagus
1 whole lemon, cut into 8 pieces
1 teaspoon of oil

Instructions:
1) Heat grill pan to a medium high temperature
2) Trim asparagus and coat in oil. Place asparagus on the grill pan, cooking time is approximately 6-7 minutes
3) Cut lemon into 8 pieces and place on grill pan. Lemon will cook quickly, only needing 30 or so seconds on each side
4) Remove all food from the grill pan, squeeze the lemon over the asparagus, and serve!

Tips:
* Make sure to trim the asparagus before you cook it. You will want to trim off all of the white/purple ends. These will be very tough to chew if you do try to eat them
* I cut up my asparagus into smaller pieces after I grilled it, I found that the asparagus absorbed more of the lemon flavor that way

Clatter Valley Farm & CSA Week 2

In this weeks basket I was given lettuce, radishes, onions, garlic, beets, spinach and zucchini!

I already put the onions in the pot of chili I put up this morning and used my new spiral cutter for the zucchini… Looking forward to creating some fun dishes with everything else I received!