Review: The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home by Nick Zukin, Michael Zusman

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

For Jewish deli devotees and DIY food fanatics alike, The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home is a must-have collection of over 100 recipes for creating timeless deli classics, modern twists on old ideas and innovations to shock your Old Country elders. Photographs, historical tidbits, reminiscences, and reference material round out the book, adding lively cultural context.
Finally, fifty years after I started eating pastrami sandwiches and knishes at Wilshire’s Deli in Cedarhurst, Long Island, Nick Zukin and Michael C. Zusman have written a cookbook that allows delicatessen enthusiasts to make their favorite deli dishes at home. Making your own knishes? No problem. Rustle up your own pickles? Bring it on. Michael and Nick manage to make deli food simultaneously contemporary and timeless, which is no easy feat. If reading The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home doesn’t make you hungry, you’ve never rhapsodized over a pastrami sandwich or driven a hundred miles for a transcendent plate of latkes. If my grandmother, the greatest Jewish deli–style cook I’ve ever known, were alive she’d be kvelling over this book.”
—Ed Levine, founder of Seriouseats.com
“Michael and Nick’s handsome book brings some of your favorite deli recipes and memories into your home kitchen. Their pickles, knishes, and pastrami are just like you remember, only better!”
—Joan Nathan, author of Jewish Cooking in America
“Before you open this book, be sure to crack a window, because your house will soon reek of the glorious funk of delicatessen. The mouthwatering scent of baking bagels, bubbling soups, and steaming pickled meats will conquer every square inch of available air, bathing it all in a rich, delicious patina of schmaltz. Don’t be surprised if a sarcastic waiter named Abe appears in your kitchen. The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home will turn any house into a delicatessen worth its weight in knishes.”
—David Sax, author of Save the Deli
If you don’t happen to live near one of the new wave of artisan-style Jewish delis that have sprung up around North America over the last few years, not to worry. With this book, the world of Jewish deli, in all its unsubtle splendor—can be yours in the comfort (and privacy) of your own kitchen. And it’s not that hard. Really. On top of all the Jewish deli classics, The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home offers updates and new angles on the oldways that are bound to thrill the palates of a modern generation of eaters focused on quality ingredients and a lighter-handed approach to a traditionally heavy cuisine.
The chapters are organized into:  Starters and Sides; Soups and Salads; Eggs, Fish, and Dairy; Beef; Bagels, Bialys, and Breads; and Pastries, Desserts, and Drinks. The range of favorite recipes include: Crispy Potato Latkes with Chunky Ginger Applesauce; Summer Chicken Salad with Tomatoes, Cucumber and Cracklings; Wise Sons’ Chocolate Babka French Toast; Home Oven Pastrami; and Celery Soda.
Added cultural context comes from quick-hitting interviews with Joan Nathan and other Jewish food luminaries; histories of a few deli stalwarts such as bagels and pastrami; and first-hand reports from within the walls of the authors’ favorite temples of modern Jewish gastronomy located across the country including: Mile End Delicatessen in New York City; Wise Sons Delicatessen in San Francisco; Kenny & Zuke's Delicatessen in Portland, OR; Stopsky's Delicatessan in Mercer Island, Washington; and Caplansky's Delicatessen in Toronto.

MY TAKE:
There aren't a lot of opportunities for me to try Jewish food here in the Philippines, so I thought I'd give this a read to see if I could duplicate some at home.

In The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home, we get to see different recipes, as well as interviews with experts in Jewish food/cooking.

There were lots of interesting recipes here with ingredients that should be easy to find in most supermarkets. Some, though, look like they would need a lot of effort or time to finish.

Those who don't have access to ingredients, such as kosher salt, may also have to improvise with some of the recipes. Taste-wise, though, it shouldn't be a problem.

I appreciated that there were different types of recipes to choose from. This way, it's easier to find recipes you might like, based on what your needs or cravings are.

Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the e-ARC. Publication date is on September 3, 2013.

THE GOOD:

1. You get to recreate Jewish delicatessen favorites in your home.
2. There are interesting interviews.
3. The dishes look mouthwatering.

THE BAD:

1. Some ingredients may not be easily available to everyone.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

This is a classic sweet kugel recipe, with raisins, cinnamon, and sugar joining the noodles and customary ensemble of dairy ingredients.

READ IT IF:

1. You like to visit Jewish delicatessens.
2. You like trying new recipes.
3. You want to make kugel and other such recipes at home.

RATING:


SOUNDS INTERESTING?

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

You can't make a great chicken soup without a flavor-charged chicken broth.

Review: Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Fantastically funny, fresh and utterly relatable, Brooklyn Girls is a charming debut by Gemma Burgess & the first novel in her brand new series about five twenty-something friends discovering the ups and downs and ins and outs of  their “semi-adult” lives.
Pia, Angie, Julia, Coco and Madeleine share a brownstone in hip, downtown Brooklyn and this first novel in the series focuses on sophisticated, spoiled, and stylish Pia, who finds herself completely unemployed, unemployable, and broke. So what is a recent grad with an art history degree and an unfortunate history of Facebook topless photos to do? Start a food truck business of course! Pia takes on the surprisingly cutthroat Brooklyn world of hybrid lettuce growers, artisanal yogurt makers and homemade butter producers to start SkinnyWheels—all while dealing with hipster bees, one-night-stands, heartbreak, parental fury, wild parties, revenge, jail, loan sharks, playboys, karaoke, true love, and one adorable pink food truck. And that's without counting her roommates' problems, too. Gemma Burgess has captured the confusion, hilarity and excitement of the post-graduate years against a backdrop of the pressures and chaos of New York City life, with heartfelt empathy, fast humor and sharp honesty.

MY TAKE:
This book sounded like it had a lot of the elements I look for in  a chicklit and young adult book.

In Brooklyn Girls, we meet five girls who are navigating adult life in New York. This book focuses on Pia who loses her PR job and must now come up with a way to make some money or her parents will force her to leave her beloved New York.

While the plot isn't exactly unexpected, I did enjoy the book anyway. The girls are fun, interesting and, for the most part, relate-able. The relationships between the girls is more sisterly than my experience with my roommates in college, but then again, perhaps their relationships are better matched than ours were.

There were times when I was angry at Pia because she was immature, selfish and naive. However, oddly enough, I still cheered her on when she achieved success. Her success isn't exactly realistic, of course, but there have been lots of people who have achieved a lot of success from a simple idea.

I wasn't really into Pia's love interest, though. I felt like he was the most cliche character in the book and I didn't feel any sort of interest or connection with his character. I liked the other girls, though. There was something about each of the other girls that I could relate to. I think I'm most like Julia, but I thought Coco was very cute and I would like to learn more about her. It's a good thing this is a series. I really would like to learn more about the other girls of Rookhaven.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the e-ARC. Publication date of Brooklyn Girls is on July 2, 2013.

THE GOOD:

1. The girls are fun and interesting.
2. You really feel like you're in New York City with the girls.
3. There's a lot of potential in the series.

THE BAD:

1. The main love interest feels a little bit cliche and out of place with the rest of the book.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

We sit at a tiny table in the corner, and little taster plates start arriving: courgette fries, eggplant rollatini, garlic knots, buffalo mozzarella salad, chicken romano, spaghetti carbonara, baked ziti, linguine in white clam sauce, tiny pizzas of every variety.

READ IT IF:

1. You like reading books set in New York City.
2. You like Sex and the City.
3. You like books about groups of girls.

RATING:


SOUNDS INTERESTING?

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

FROM NETGALLEY:

Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess
The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home by Nick Zukin, Michael Zusman

Review: The Man of Steel: Superman vs. the Doomsday Army by Laurie S. Sutton

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Thousands of aliens have targeted Earth. The MAN OF STEEL battles them in back into orbit, and opens the armor of one of the soldiers. Inside is DOOMSDAY! Superman breaks open more armor. All the soldiers are DOOMSDAY clones — thousands and thousands of clones! One Doomsday is bad enough, but now there are infinite Doomsdays!
From DC SUPER HEROES: THE MAN OF STEEL chapter book series. For ages 8-12.
*Over 600,000 copies sold in the DC SUPER HEROES series
About the Author:
Laurie Sutton has read comics since she was a kid. She grew up to become an editor for Marvel, DC Comics, Starblaze, and Tekno Comics. She has written Adam Strange for DC, Star Trek: Voyager for Marvel, plus Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Witch Hunter for Malibu Comics. There are long boxes of comics in her closet where there should be clothing and shoes. Laurie has lived all over the world, and currently resides in Florida.

MY TAKE:
It's hard to find good books for young boys, but a book featuring a comic book hero sounds like a recipe for success.

In The Man of Steel: Superman vs. the Doomsday Army, an alien race tries to invade Earth but Superman will not let them. Superman gets a nasty surprise, though, when he finds out what the alien race's soldiers actually are and how they came to be.

Pretty much the whole time I was reading this, I got the feeling like I was watching an action movie. I'd say it was comic book-like, but I usually only got that vibe when I saw the illustrations. The prose felt like it was moving at a faster clip than when you're reading a comic book.

The good thing about the book is that kids don't need to have read the comic books to understand the story. The book gives the necessary details they need to understand who is who and their relationship with each other. I'd say this is a pretty good introductory book for kids who are curious about Superman or who prefer chapter books to comic books.

Thanks to NetGalley and Stone Arch Books for the e-ARC. Publication date of The Man of Steel: Superman vs. the Doomsday Army is on August 1, 2013.

THE GOOD:

1. You don't need to have read the comic books to understand the story.
2. The story has a good message.
3. It's a fast-paced book.

THE BAD:

1. The lead up to the action-packed part may be boring to some.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

The creature had the same powers as Superman.

READ IT IF:

1. Your kid likes Superman.
2. You want your comic-book-addicted kid to read more chapter books.
3. Your kid likes action-packed stories.

RATING:

Review: The Alphabet Parade by Charls Ghigna

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Iguanas, pandas, tigers too its a letter parade just for you!
From the Learning Parade series. For ages 1-3. Board books.
Author Charles Ghigna, also known as Father Goose, charms with lyrical rhyming text that is engaging and fun for even the youngest readers! This series helps preschoolers learn the basics: letters, numbers, shapes, and colors. Bright and delightful illustrations make the concepts come alive.
*Board books teach basic concepts in a fun, lighthearted way
*Well-known author Charles Ghigna
About the Author:
Charles Ghigna, known as Father Goose, is the author of more than 50 award-winning books from many other publishers. His books have been featured on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” PBS, and NPR. He is a poet,
children’s author, speaker, and nationally syndicated feature writer who promotes the love of poetry and children’s literature throughout the world.
About the Illustrator:
Ag Jatkowska has been drawing and playing with color ever since she can remember. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk (Poland) with a MA in Graphic Design and Illustration. Ag now works as a full-time illustrator and has been dealing with illustration, graphic design, greeting cards, stationery, and photography.

MY TAKE:
There are lots of alphabet books out there, so what makes this book different?

In The Alphabet Parade, each letter represents a member of the circus whose name starts with that letter.

I thought the idea of a circus parade was cute. Of course, there were some instances wherein the animal that represented a letter wouldn't exactly be seen in your typical serious. However, there's only so much you words you can use per letter that fits the theme, so it's understandable.

The illustrations and layout were charming, and reminded me a little bit of those cards that you'd send for kids on their birthday.

Thanks to NetGalley and Picture Window Books for the e-ARC. Publication date of The Alphabet Parade is on September 2, 2013.

THE GOOD:

1. It's a great way to introduce kids to different animals.
2. The illustrations are charming.
3. The parade concept works for the circus theme.

THE BAD:

1. The illustration style might not work for everyone.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

K is for the KINKAJOU who ties his tail in knots.

READ IT IF:

1. Your child likes the circus.
2. You want to teach your child about different animals.
3. You're teaching your child about the alphabet.

RATING:

Review: Peek-a-Boo Monsters by Charles Reasoner

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Monsters hide throughout this die-cut book from Charles Reasoner. As you read the simple verse, small windows give you a peek at the creatures on the next page. Each spread reveals more adorable monsters!
From the Charles Reasoner Peek-a-Book Books series. For ages 1-3.
*Topics are great for Halloween promotions: monsters, ghosts, pirates, dinosaurs, and fairies are all popular costumes
*Die-cut windows allow the reader to see a little bit more of each scene as they flip the pages
About the Author:
Charles Reasoner has been creating and illustrating best-selling children’s books for nearly 30 years. Chuck’s
imaginative and fun-filled illustrations are colorful evidence of his belief that reading stimulates a child’s future creativity.

MY TAKE:
I appreciate books that get creative with their layout and presentation.

In Peek-a-Boo Monsters, we meet different monsters and get peeks at the next monsters via small windows on the current page.

Because I only had an e-copy of the book, some of the magic and effect was lost since I could only see a white background on the part that was cut out and I could only guess which part of the next monster was visible on the next page.

The monsters were cute, although I don't think they'd be a perfect fit for the Monsters, Inc. universe. The book is very colorful and the coloring matches the cartoon-ish style used for the illustrations.

Thanks to NetGalley and Picture Window Books for the e-ARC. Publication date of Peek-a-Boo Monsters is on August 1, 2013.

THE GOOD:

1. The layout is creative.
2. The monsters are cute.
3. The rhymes used to introduce the monsters actually work well.

THE BAD:

1. The illustrations might not appeal to all kids.

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

Peek-a-boo
MONSTERS,
BIG and small...

READ IT IF:

1. Your child likes monsters.
2. Your child likes books that have cut-out windows.
3. Your child likes rhymes.

RATING:


SOUNDS INTERESTING?