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Category: Cookbook Review

Cookbook Review: Warm Wild Mushroom and Chicken Strudel

This hors d’oeuvre is by Chef Charles Palmer and was featured at Aureole.

Zoe’s Take:
4/10

While I liked the flavors in both the sauce and the strudel, there was a lot that was lacking. First off, the instructions for forming the strudel itself was very confusing. The sauce was oily, and could have used more acidity. The strudel dough itself took a lot longer to cook. I used puff pastry because the strudel dough just didn’t work out at all. Also, the chicken and mushroom mixture felt dry. Overall, I disliked it, but it definitely has potential to become a better recipe with some work.

Eric’s Take:
5/10

I’m not sure where to begin with this recipe. I love basil, and the chicken and mushroom filling was good with the sauce. Then the problems come. I also could not find strudel dough, so availability of ingredients lost a point for me. I also ended up using puffed pastry. Flavor lost two because for me this was just ok. There was a lack of heat and fat. The sauce provided acidity, but for some reason mine was a bit thin. Double cooking the chicken ended up drying the filling out. The instructions were too vague on the folding method. Zoe took a hand-pie approach, and I made more of a stromboli. I understand that all the recipes in this book have been standardized to a particular format. This one may have been lost in translation.

February 13, 2019
Cookbook Review: Onion Soup with Glazed Shallots

This month, Eric and I are reviewing a very interesting and non-traditional cookbook. The Great Chefs of America Cook Kosher is a compilation of recipes from famous chefs and their famous restaurants. In order to really cover the recipes in this book, we’ll be taking a recipe from several different sections of the cookbook. We are starting with soup.

Our recipe for this week is Onion Soup with Whole Glazed Shallots from Chefs Mark Peel and Nancy Silverton from Campanile.

Zoe’s Take:
6/10

For me, the best part of this soup was by far the whole glazed shallots. I was not impressed at all by the soup itself. In my house, my 24 hour French Onion soup is law, and by my standards, the soup itself didn’t live up to it. I felt like I had to dip my toasted croutons in it in order to finish even half a bowl. The shallots on the other hand are amazing. So tender and delicious. I added them right into the soup so that it would add extra flavor.

Eric’s Take:
8/10

I’m a huge fan of onion soups. I really enjoyed this recipe. It was simple to make although it had many ingredients. My favorite part was also the glazed shallots. They were so sweet and tender they could have been mistaken for apples. The soup itself was also very sweet. As there was no added sugar or sweeteners the onions provided it all. The first step of the soup is to break down the onions over 40 minutes. I had mine going for about an hour. This recipe lost 2 points because I felt it was rather plain. It could have benefited from some body, or maybe another type of onion.

February 6, 2019
Almond Rose Cake: Cookbook Review

Zoe’s Take:
6.5/10

While this cake is fluffy and buttery with that almond and rose flavor gently coming in for a lovely mild flavor, I just wouldn’t make this cake (other than this review). First, since I know how much butter went into it, I can STILL feel the butter in my pores an hour after eating one small slice. Also, despite the buttery texture and gorgeous crumb, it needs some moisture. The Soframiz cookbook says to pair it with rose petal jam. I made the jam and it definitely added what the cake needed.

Eric’s Take:
8/10

This was a delicious cake. I thought it went well with the rose petal jam. On its own it was definitely lacking something. The almond past, butter and eggs make for a very dense batter that lightens up when baking. However, it wasn’t as light as I was hoping. With over two sticks of butter and six eggs this is also a very rich cake. A half-inch sliver was enough for me. This cake lost one point for complexity of instructions. It was a bit harder to follow than other recipes in the book. The last point was on flavor. Although good, I wasn’t as into it as the other recipes.

January 30, 2019
Cheese Borek: Cookbook Review

Zoe’s Take:
7.5/10

I like borek. I know them more commonly as borekas, and I ate many of them when I was in Israel last summer. They come in all different flavors, but any with cheese is the best. I liked these borek. I made the yufka myself, mostly because I don’t have a store that sells the pre-made anywhere near me. (I definitely could have rolled them a little thinner) While this borek was definitely good food, it wasn’t the super flaky and super crispy pastry that I know and love. My expectations are the reason this is a 7.5 and not higher rated.

Eric’s Take:
8/10

I’d never had borek before this. I’ve had many different types of pastry using yufka (or similar dough like phyllo). Because this recipe calls for pouring a liquid milk mixture over the layers, the final dish came out denser than I thought. It also wasn’t as flaky as I thought it would be. Overall It was really good and I enjoyed it fresh and reheated the next day. This recipe lost points on two points. I felt there was something missing to counter the saltiness of the cheese. The other problem was that the instructions weren’t as easy as the other recipes to follow. There was some interpretation that ultimately didn’t matter, but did effect the final outcome slightly.

January 22, 2019
Simit: Cookbook Review

Zoe’s Take:
10/10

I LOVE SIMIT. Well who wouldn’t. It’s basically a better bagel. When they first come out of the oven, they’re crunchy and delicious. Soframiz recommends you eat them the day they are made. Well, I made simit mountain, so I didn’t eat all mine in one day. Days 2 and 3, they weren’t crunchy anymore, but were still tasty chewy and bagel-like. I must say, I am such a fan of this delicious bread. Really, what’s not to love?

My Simit Mountain

Eric’s Take:
10/10

These came out terrific! The recipe was easy to follow, and had simple ingredients. Like the other recipes in this cookbook I enjoyed making them. Being somewhere between a bagel and pretzel when fresh, these were a huge hit. We tried them with cheese warm. The next day we ate them as bagels with cream cheese. I found no faults with this recipe. I will absolutely be making these again!

January 16, 2019
Sofra’s Chai Tea: Cookbook Review

Zoe’s Take:
8/10

I am not a tea drinker. I never have been, and no one has ever managed to convince me to like it. I’ve tried a ton of different types, made in different ways, and never liked any of them. But this tea, for some reason, is So Damn Good. The chai syrup is silky and thick with amazing flavor and mixed with the black tea and milk, it was so good. I wasn’t as big of a fan of the hot chai, but the iced chai is definitely my jam.

Eric’s Take:

8/10

I found this recipe delightful. I made a batch on a cold and snowy afternoon, and it hit the spot. I love tea, so I was already excited before trying it. The process was a bit long, because the Chai Syrup took some time to reduce and cool. The overall flavor was amazing. The different spices complimented each other, creating depth. I have two reasons for giving 8 points. The first point was lost because one ingredient, cardamom pods, is a bit difficult to come by. The second point was lost because I felt the syrup was too sweet. If I were to make this again, I would half the sugar. At the end of the day this was a great recipe, and I enjoyed preparing and drinking it!

January 9, 2019
Cookbook Review: Soframiz

This month, we are reviewing a fantastic cookbook that I actually use on a regular basis. Soframiz is a book full of vibrant Middle Eastern recipes from the Sofra Bakery & Cafe in Boston. We’re so excited to review this cookbook and to show you some amazing food.

Our first review is Flower Pogaca Rolls. They are a common breakfast item in Turkey. While not usually made in the style of roses or flowers, these rolls are just as good formed as a regular roll.

Zoe’s Take:
10/10
I might be obsessed with these rolls. I have a deep love of feta cheese, but also of bread and the soft buttery texture of the rolls, combined with the salty feta is absolute perfection in my mind. I have nothing bad to say because there is nothing bad about them.

Eric’s Take:
9.5/10
I really loved these rolls. The recipe was easy to follow, the ingredients were easy to find and work with. This was by far my most successful bake on a bread, which makes me believe they’re “fool-proof.” The bread was soft and flakey, and remained so for about two days. This was a big surprise as the recipe called for no butter and only one egg. The only reason I dropped the recipe a half point is that there was nothing in the cheese mixture to cut the saltiness from the feta. Otherwise this was perfect!

January 3, 2019
Peppermint Chocolate Ganache Bars Review

Zoe’s Take:

7.5/10

So I love chocolate, and ganache and, well, bars. What I am not a huge fan of is peppermint. I think having the peppermint extract and the peppermint on the top of the bars is too much for one cookie. Plus, the candycanes on top were a little bit chewy after sitting on top of the white sugary layer all night. The crust is good, the chocolate ganache layer is good and the cream cheese layer is good but there’s way too much peppermint in this. I think that just the peppermint extract is enough. If you’re really into candy canes though…this dessert is definitely for you.

Eric’s Take:

9/10

These were delicious. I love “oreo” crust and chocolate ganache. The top is similar to a cheesecake. I thought there was just enough peppermint in these bars. But I like a lot of peppermint flavor. The problem with these are they don’t keep well and they are a bit messy. That might be due to me not pressing the cookie layer down enough. The shortcuts here were using a cookie bottom and folding in cool whip into the cream cheese layer.

December 26, 2018
Gingerbread People Review

Zoe’s Take:

7/10

I like gingerbread a lot, and these were no different. The biggest problem is that the recipe called for a cake mix that basically doesn’t exist, volume wise, which made the dough very wet. I remedied this by adding more flour. Another problem was because of the cake mix, the gingerbread expanded way more than if I had made the dough from scratch. The gingerbread was very good though, and very moist and chewy, exactly what I was looking for. I decorated each gingerbread person very simply, but they could very well be complex and done with royal icing. Definitely good, but definitely some issues.

Eric’s Take

8/10

I enjoyed making this recipe. The shortcut for this cookie was a spice cake mix. Again, the recipe called for a size that didn’t exist anymore. I also added a tad extra flour and this helped a lot. This was my first time making gingerbread and I had fun doing it. I also decorated very simply. This recipe lost one point for the texture as it was chewy and less traditional. I also dropped it a point for taste. I didn’t overly love the flavor. It was a bit bland and needed some more sweetness. Overall I enjoyed the process and cookies. I gave these cookies away as gifts, and they received very good reviews.

December 19, 2018
Cranberry Cereal Wreaths

Zoe’s Take:

5.5/10

These looked really promising in the cookbook… however, I definitely had some doubts. First of all, it’s a whole lot of sugary sweetness in one cookie. White chocolate is very sweet, and paired with dried fruit (also very sweet), cornflakes, almonds and marshmallows, it was just way too much. Don’t get me wrong, I like sweet things. But these were just way too sweet for me. Then there’s the fact that actually making them is a very messy process. I used a very large mixing bowl, and ingredients still kept coming out while I was mixing it. Also, it’s a little bit impossible to mix cornflakes gently. Finally, actually shaping the wreaths was a PAIN. I was smart and used gloves, but I don’t think most home cooks keep gloves for cooking in their pantry. They didn’t want to stick together and making the hole in the center was even more frustrating. They took about 15 minutes to cool down and dry and THEN they stuck together pretty well. I do like that they are very good for decorating.

Eric’s Take:

6/10

This was a disappointment for me. I felt the same way Zoe did. Everything started out well. The ingredients were easy to find and put together. Everything changed when it came time to form the wreathes. The batter was very sticky, but as I made the holes and formed the wreathes as instructed, they started to fall apart. I can give the recipe the benefit of the doubt though. For this recipe I believe timing is critical. Once the white chocolate begins to cool it’s more difficult for the mix to keep a shape. The ones that made it hardened and were easy to decorate and transfer to a plate, which I was worried about. They second major problem…again, much like Zoe I felt they were too sweet. I don’t like super sweet things, so these made me cringe a bit. I think they would be great paired with other treats though, and would make a lovely addition to a cookie plate.

December 12, 2018