Every spring, a new harvest’s worth of cookbooks gets released – some of which make for wonderful meals gathered around the table. Here are a few that have recently come across Food Trends’ desk with highlights of each that are worth sampling!
Making Indian Easy
In keeping it tasty, fresh and healthy- let’s start off with Vancouver’s Bal Arneson and her new book, Everyday Indian- 100 Fast, Fresh and Healthy Recipes. Originally from Punjab, Bal’s book is brimming with very accessible recipes, most of which can be made in under a half hour. She takes low fat ingredients, Indian spices and ingredients found in the North American kitchen to create fun, new spins on the everyday- like beef Curried Meatballs in a tomato and spinach sauce with Garam Masala that’s perfect on a cool spring night over a bed of brown basmati. Another must-try includes Bal’s No Butter Chicken which replaces the heavy cream with low-fat yoghurt without sacrificing the luscious flavour of this perennial favourite from the north of India.
A spice glossary and a page outlining the health benefits of Indian cooking precede the recipes which cover breads, sauces, chutneys, salads/dressings, soups, vegetable dishes, proteins, drinks and desserts. Of particular interest is the book’s salad dressing- Bal prefers to use Flaxseed Oil in many of her recipes- including her Lemon Vinaigrette that’s crisp, clean and just a little bit nutty in flavour due to the oil. Perfect for any salad.
Flax- As Good For you as it Tastes!
Speaking of flax, did you know that the seed was cultivated in Babylon as early as 3000 B.C.? You’ll read countless reports stating how good flax is for your body- especially your heart. This and other health benefits are clearly outlined in Everything Flax- More than 100 Ways to Work Flax into your Everyday Diet (edited by Linda Braun, B.S.H.Ec). Given that Canada leads in world flax production and export, it’s not a bad idea to support our local economies as well as making dishes that have the nutty-nuanced goodness of this seed. Food Trends made the Banana Bread with the brown sugar, pecan and cinnamon streusel topping this weekend to rave reviews. Recipes include California Sushi Rolls, Peach Coffee Cake, Pan-Roasted Pork Tenderloin and Oven Fried Chicken. All recipes also include a nutrient value table per serving.
Pastry 101 for Everyone!
Now that you’ve been so good, every once in a while, you deserve to indulge, which is why Michel Roux’s Pastry- Savoury & Sweet is the ultimate pastry-buff’s book. Roux is the three Michelin-starred, UK-based chef behind The Waterside Inn, in Bray. In this compact and complete book, Roux dispels the myth of pastry being indomitable or impossible. His goal is to get the average cook making homemade puff pastry, croissant dough, brioche dough or short crust pastry. All of this so you can prepare home spun Profiteroles with Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce or Cornish Pasties to a table full of oohhs and very well earned ahhs. Beautifully photographed with clear instructions, the only thing standing between you and flaky nirvana is practice my friends. Practice! But at least you’ve got Chef Roux in your corner!
In the next installment, Food Trends will share a few tried and true recipes from each book. Stay tuned!
Oh and don't forget to keep checking in at the Culinary Media Network for Chef Mark Tafoya and Jennifer Iannolo's "Gilded Fork" cookbook- coming to their website soon! Recipes are being tested, photographed and getting ready to be bound by the entrepreneurial, NY-based team (Food Trends tested the tasty Go Green Menu- that Green Tea Orange Mousse Cake still calls her out of reality every once in a while!).
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