South African Gourmet Food and Wine

South African Gourmet Food & Wine published by Dorrance Publishing is a lovely cookbook. I was impressed by the center section of beautiful and mouthwatering photographs, the well laid out recipes with every ingredient listed first, (no surprises halfway through a recipe), and all measurements are given in both customary and metric measurements; marking this volume as the truly international cookbook it is!

My one and only disappointment was in discovering that the traditional dishes of South Africa occupy only the first 77 or so, of the book's 300 pages. Although, as the authors explain in the quite interesting forward, South Africa, like the United States of America, is a melting pot of different ethnic groups. Further perusal of the book certainly proves this statement: featured are Middle Eastern dishes, Italian sauces, Chinese Chicken Salad, & several lovely cheesecake recipes.

From the Traditional section my family especially enjoyed Bobotie, a spiced ground beef dish, first pan browned, then baked, beneath a custard topping and served with rice and a delicious selection of condiments. Monkey Gland Steak, also from the Traditional Recipes section certainly caught our eye! It is not made with Monkey Glands, but is a recipe for a delicious BBQ sauce.

We discovered several other favorites from the international section of the cookbook as well. Some examples are Chicken in Balsamic Barbecue Sauce, Javanese Chicken, and a delicious Grilled Veggie & Pasta Salad. Two or three wine suggestions are listed below each entree; and a list of suppliers for South African products from both the U.S and Canada, a very helpful addition, is listed within the Contents page.

What was my favorite recipe from the book? After considering this question quite a bit I must admit it was a dessert: Banana Ginger Cake. Dense, moist and spicy, it was absolutely delicious. Usually banana breads taste... well, like bananas! But this concoction had a lovely, not quite banana, highly spiced flavor all its own. It disappeared very quickly and has earned a place of honor in the "favorite sweet breads section" of my Rolodex!

South African Gourmet Food and Wine is a cookbook I am happy to include in my cookbook collection, and is a volume which I am certain will become smudged and well worn, as I refer to it again and again over the years!

I received a complimentary copy of South African Gourmet Food and Wine as a member of the Dorrance Publishing book Review Team.

Lisa Taylor is currently living life on the edge in the mountains of Utah. Mother of five, including "Girly Girl", her beautiful daughter with Down Syndrome, and four crazy boys, Lisa spends her days enjoying nature, writing, homeschooling, and searching for her passport in a no doubt vain attempt to one day escape to the Islands. (Which "Islands" make no difference whatsoever). She records some of her family's adventures as well as her own (often sarcastic) observations upon life in general at her blog Its Own Sweet Will. http://www.neebeep.com/itsownsweetwillneebeepc/

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South Beach Diet Cookbook - What Does it Say?

Dieting does not only lie mainly on the food that we eat but also in the preparation, cooking and the choices of food. A popular diet program among Hollywood celebrities as well as elite members of the society offered cookbook that presents and shows how different healthy and nutritious recipes are prepared.

We can find around 200 recipes in books like south beach diet cookbook; recipes that were made by the best chefs in Miami Beach and other cities. Each recipe has its own designation to the different phases of the south beach diet, phase one, two and three. A recap on the three phases of south beach diet: in phase one, carbohydrates are completely off limits. In the seconds phase it is reintroduced but with better source of good carbohydrates like whole grain. During the third and last phase, there is less restrictions to food source, you still have to make the right source of the fats and carbohydrates. Phase three focuses mainly on letting the dieter acquire the habit of healthy eating and healthy choices of food group.

The cookbook will give you a step by step instruction in making tasty dishes without worrying about gaining weight. And the meals being presented in the south beach diet includes main meals for the whole 3 meals in a day, including healthy snacks, drinks and dips.

Diet cookbooks will teach you how to prepare and cook delicious meals such as Coconut Chicken and Crab royale. It will offer you variety of foods that are healthy and easy to learn, this will battle the boredom of eating the same kind of food everyday, where some diets require making you crave for other food. Dr. Arthur also introduced and presented different choices of food sources for each food group that is healthy; the book also offers dessert tips and fat free dips. It also gave emphasis to fresh vegetables and fruits, healthy appetizers and even home made condiments that have no sugar in it.

We do not have to relate good food with weight gain. We can have the best and tasty food ever with vast array of choices that is healthy and nutritious and will meet our daily dietary intake of the food groups in the food pyramid. With great books such as south beach diet on hand, you are always ready to start making healthy meals for you and your family anytime and anywhere.

Check out more on what's inside south beach diet cookbook here! http://southbeachdietrecipe.org/south-beach-diet-cook-book.html

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