Book Giveaway #12/13: The Flavor Bible AND Bob’s Red Mill Cookbook

the flavor bible and bob's red mill cookbookTHE PRIZE

One reader will win a copy of Bob’s Red Mill Cookbook by Miriam Backes (published by Running Press) and another reader will win a copy of The Flavor Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg (published by Little, Brown, and Company)!

MY REVIEWS

Bob’s Red Mill Cookbook

This book has been the best resource in my attempts to include more whole grains in our diet. There are hundreds of recipes in all categories from breakfast to dessert, and they all incorporate whole grains so well my kids don’t even notice. The two biggest hits so far have been the Heavenly Granola and Best-Ever Banana Bran Muffins.

There are a handful of different granola recipes, which is a fantastic way to incorporate whole grains into my snacking. I’ve started carrying around a reused peanut butter jar with granola every where I go to avoid those mid-morning/afternoon hunger pangs.

Spread often throughout the book are also little boxes of additional information. Next to the granola recipe is a paragraph about wheat germ and all its benefits and tips for using and storing it. I love info like that – now I know what wheat germ is and that it goes nicely atop pies, fruit salads, cereals, and yogurt, that toasting brings out its nutty flavor, and to keep it refrigerated!

The next recipes on my list to try are:

  • Hazelnut Oat Scones
  • Banana Crunch Muffins with Blackberries (yum…)
  • Blueberry Yogurt Pancakes
  • 3-Grain Waffles
  • Easy Mexican Lasagna
  • Whole Wheat Cornmeal Pizza Crust
  • Basic Tomato Sauce
  • Spinach-Tomato-Feta Pizza
  • Broccoli Garlic Pizza
  • Vegetable Grain Pie

Can you tell I like breakfast and pizza?!?

In the last few months I’ve really become convinced that if I want to be healthy I need to eat healthy, and Bob’s Red Mill Cookbook is a great resource for easy, healthy cooking!

The Flavor Bible

I’m the kind of cook who mostly just follows the recipe and doesn’t make any changes because I don’t have any idea what the heck I’m doing. I can follow instructions but beyond that, my artistic/scientific cooking skills are very limited.

The Flavor Bible is the secret to truly fabulous cooking because it gives you information about how to recognize what your food is missing and what to add to complement and bring out the natural flavors to make the best of each recipe.

The first few chapters talk about why you need to understand the basics of sweet, salty, bitter, and sour and all the things involved with cooking and eating besides the actual food like aroma and visual, emotional, and mental aspects.

The rest of the book is a giant chart of all things edible from A-Z and each ingredient’s key aspects (season, taste, weight, volume, and primary function), recommended cooking techniques, recommended ingredient pairings, flavor pairings to avoid, flavor trios, and more.

the flavor bible feta salad

For example, I had some Feta in the fridge and wanted to know what other salad ingredients would go well with Feta. I came up with romaine lettuce, grapes, and red bell pepper, and the salad was beautiful and delicious! It’s really a pretty simple salad, but I don’t think I would ever have come up with it on my own. I have no imagination when it comes to food pairings!

I’ve also looked up eggs to see what other flavors and ingredients to throw in and have tried red onion, spinach, and bell peppers.

The best part is that I’m getting more variety in each dish I make, I’m using up more odds and ends from my fridge, and I’m learning how to really cook!

Thanks to Hachette and Running Press for sponsoring this giveaway!

GIVEAWAY RULES

  • Make a comment on this post telling me which book you’d like to win and why before midnight Sunday, October 10.
  • A winner will be selected and announced at the top of this post on Monday.
  • Only one comment per person unless you earn extra entries.
  • Giveaway open only to residents of the continental United States…sorry.
  • Winners must email me to claim their prize within 5 days.

EARN EXTRA ENTRIES

You may earn 1 extra entry each for doing the following (make a separate comment for each thing you do):

{These products were provided to Vanilla Joy for review purposes.}