Cookbook Evaluations

Cookbook #1:

My mom likes to cook a lot (my grandmother owns a restaurant and is amazing cook/baker) and she has a bunch of cookbooks so I called her up and asked her to bring me some cookbooks. Yes, I am that lazy. So I looked through them all and the first one I decided to evaluate is Southern Living : 30 Years of Our Best Recipes.

Southern Living cookbooks have been around a long time (since 1966 to be exact). This particular cookbook highlights some of the best recipes Southern Living has published in the past 30 years. I'm thinking if a cookbook has been around for 30 plus years it's pretty reliable. I know I wouldn't continue to buy cookbooks by the same author if the food was awful. So seeing as this is a 30 year celebration of sorts, I would venture to say the intended audience is anyone who has been following Southern Living for any number years, or someone who just wants recipes for the best of the best.

I think the layout of the book is very well thought through. The recipes are presented with the yummiest ones at the beginning (drinks, cake, candies, bread), the staple foods in the middle (meat, pasta, eggs/cheese), and the foods no one likes to eat or make (soups, stew, veggie and fruits) towards the back. Rather clever. However I usually read magazines and articles like cookbooks backwards so this method wouldn't really work for me. The first six pages or so are dedicated to the three decades all of the recipes are taken from (70's, 80's, and 90's) and have small little quotes and blurbs about what was going on at the time, what foods were in, and what was featured in the cookbooks.

The recipes themselves are very easy to follow, with big, easy-to-read print. The titles of the recipes are in a different color and a bigger font than the recipes. Underneath the titles is a little hint to help the cook (make ahead, quick, family favorite). I think these little hints are very helpful. There are also some tips to make the recipe better (marinate longer, chill overnight) or a little history on the origin of the recipe. Throughout the book there are small boxes containing info on the three decades. One that caught my eye was "Buzz Words." It had different food slang for the three decades.

The pictures in this cookbook are fabulous. They make me want to make and eat recipes I know I won't like. They are all delicious-looking and presented in a neat, sophisticated way. Which is the feeling I get from reading this cookbook. It aims to be sophisticated.

Overall, I would have to say this is a very good cookbook. I would definitely recommend it to anyone. It would also be helpful if you were doing a project and wanted a recipe from one of those decades. This would ensure you are a getting a popular and delicious one.

I might just keep this cookbook and try out a few things for myself. Thanks Mom!