Three fun cookbooks to start the year with!

Okay , so all three of these cookbooks should come under the category – FUN FUN FUN and scrumptious!  I selected them because they support my belief that cooking should be easy and spending time in the kitchen should not be a chore but a way to have fun and relax. 

 

So here they are ( oh, and of course they have the ideal recipes for your SuperBowl party!

1.      Wings – More than 50 High Flying recipes for America’s Favorite snack (Debbie Moose, Wiley, $16.95) – I was just telling a dear friend the other day that wings have to be my favorite snack  foods of all times. I just how easy they are to make and how much fun you can have with the flavors. And of course, perfect food for a crowd. Debbie’s wonderful recipes will have you grilling, roasting and frying wings in no time. Enticing recipes include – Down on the Spicy Chicken Ranch, Jingle wings glazed with pomegranate molasses, and the Quick Caffinated Wings marinated with instant espresso!  A really fun book which makes me want to try every single recipe.

2.      The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Tapas (Jeanette Hurt, Alpha, $14.95) –   The author lived in Madrid and bought back to the US her love for Spanish food, and luckily for us, some really mouthwatering recipes. This book includes super simple recipes like Orange, Artichoke and Avocado Salad (which I really loved), Stuffed mushrooms with bacon (just yummy), Beef Kebabs and creamed cauliflower and tomato soup with pistachio nuts. I also enjoyed the pictures included with the book (in fact, I did not realize that these guides had pictures!). The author worked with DC Chef Jose Andres to ensure the accuracy and creativity of the tapas in the book.

3.      Cool Waters: 50 Refreshing, Healthy Homemade Thirst-Quenchers by Brian Preston-Campbell (Harvard common Press) – So I have to admit a bias here. Whenever I see that Harvard Common Press has a new book, I always have to get it – their cookbooks are not only beautiful but always have such creative and fun recipes. Cool Waters confirms my bias! It is a beautiful, beautiful book loaded with innovative and health-conscious recipes like Eau De Carotte ( very nice – carrots, apples and ginger with water, feels like a drink from a spa), the Mora Picante with ground ancho chile (yummy and has a kick to match!), and I just love his creative recipes for ice-cubes – Tangerine-Ginger cubes, the Cucumber ice-cubes and the very funky Jamaican-spiced pineapple icecubes. So forget the sodas this Superbowl and serve up some Cool Waters instead!!

Comments

[Charmian Christie]

My husband would love the wings book. They're one of his favorite snack foods, too. Me? Always up for tapas. I'm also fascinated with the Cool Waters concept. I'm not big on carbonated drinks but need to get more liquids into me during the scorching hot summer weather. This book might have a few answers.