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If you’ve made it through that gigantic title, you probably realize I’m about to share brief impressions of some popular cookbooks I’ve perused in the past several weeks.
The 4 cookbooks we’ll be walking through are: “Magnolia Table” by Joanna Gaines, “The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook” by Annie Gray, “Naturally, Delicious Desserts” by Danny Sea, and “The Simple Paleo Kitchen,” by Jessie Bittner.
A good book summary is always something that catches my eye because I am a total minimalist when it comes to racking up new books and stuff in general, and I know a lot of moms feel this way.
Really, though, bringing home something that- innocent as it looks today- may morph into *even more* clutter, is a responsibility of epic proportions.
This fear comes into full expression during my chatchka stare-downs in Target or Barnes & Noble, telepathically interrogating the offending bin, shrub, picture frame, or cookbook:
“I think I might like you, but tell me, will you be in my junk drawer in 1 month from now? Will you?!?!“
Please assure another frazzled housewife that this is within the range of normal…?
Either way, the idea here is to help you scout out whether these cookbooks will actually complement your cooking style and lifestyle!
With any luck, this will help you decide whether you want to buy these personally. Hopefully it will give you a flavor of whether one or more of these may be useful to you and your family!
Let’s get into it.
Quick Review on “Magnolia Table,” by Joanna Gaines
Even though it’s a few years old, having been published in 2018, this cookbook is new to me. I actually took it out from my local library and have been really enjoying poring over it when the house is quiet at night, because it has a casual, easy energy.
The most immediately striking aspect to me is the natural, almost carelessly beautiful photos. (I know this wasn’t Joanna Gaines, it was someone named Amy Neusinger). I love keeping it around and looking at it before I take my own food photos, because it’s really been giving me inspiration with light and shadows especially.
The rest of the internet may disown me for saying this, but this was my first time encountering Joanna Gaines firsthand. I mean, I knew she was quite a sensation, but just hadn’t directly read or seen her content. Well… this cookbook has just turned me into a fan.
The reason for that is that the cookbook’s most striking aspect, aside from the pictures, is of course Joanna Gaines herself.
Conversational, intimate, upbeat charm all pulse through her words and jump off the page.
She has a significant voice throughout the cookbook- a meaningful blurb before each recipe and also longer entries before special recipes or sections.
Some of the recipes are slightly involved, which isn’t something I’m attracted to.
But for the most part, the entries are easy, classic with a fun twist. Lots of easy family meals, like egg bakes similar to my recipe here. It definitely serves up family-friendly fare that most adults and children will be fans of, and even includes some ethnic dishes.
What I’ve tried: About to try the Lavender Shortbread cookies. They’re perfect for throwing in the freezer and defrosting right when you need them. Can’t wait!
If you’re interested, you can order this cookbook here.
Quick Review of “Naturally, Delicious Desserts” by Danny Seo
Firstly, it’s huge! I mean, just SO many recipes. I assume it’s so vast because Danny has a large team, so he likely didn’t create all the recipes himself. But still, impressive, and it means you’ll be getting a lot for your money.
The cheery, lighthearted captions clearly do come from Danny, though, and they were generally amusing.
To repeat my previous faux-pas, I must confess I’d actually never heard of Danny Seo before. This made me go investigate what he does and am now embarrassed that I’ve never heard of him.
Regarding the recipes though- If you’re a health nut with a sweet tooth, you’ll have a fun ride with this book.
Stylistically, the recipes were surprisingly on my wavelength. Most of it was vegetarian/vegan which you know isn’t what I preach. But what did resonate for me was its creativity and simplicity.
For example, most recipes have a short ingredient list and when you read through the ingredients and steps, you can see yourself tackling this. There’s nothing overwhelming.
The use of flavors was also very creative- to the point where I wondered more than once if the final product would be repulsive!
For example, would you ever have considered making purple sweet potato blondies, whoopie pies with spinach filling, avocado Boston cream pies, and so on?!
So I found myself slightly incredulous at some of the combinations, but they could very well be smashingly delicious!
Overall, a bright and colorful book that gets your creative juices flowing.
What I’ve tried: Probably a dozen recipes caught my eye. However the one I made just last night was the copycat “Twix” bars. I skipped the chocolate drizzle on top but was otherwise faithful to Danny’s instructions. They were as easy as promised, and good!
If you’re interested, you can order it here.
Quick Review of “The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook”
Not to be confused with the UN-official Downton Abbey cookbook. “The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook” derives recipes, photos, and historical backdrop straight out of the show.
I am not super familiar with the later seasons but had friends and family who watched the show religiously, so I was in a good position to appreciate the many scene references, beautiful full-page photos from the show, and character mentions.
All the write-ups throughout have a heavy cultural and historical element, and I actually came away feeling that I learned a lot about culinary trends, proper etiquette, and kitchen structure of the time period.
It’s a smooth, easy read that’s chock-full of information, behind the scenes from the set, and conversations about good food.
In short, a charming, educational, and mouthwatering read even for non-diehard fans, and a delicious revisit to Downton, plus an opportunity to cook and host a Downton resurrection, for diehard fans!
What I’ve made: There’s a full-page photo of exquisitely beautiful berry-filled meringues, that I had my heart absolutely set on making. I was going to fill it with blueberries for a blue and white Tu B’Shvat cookie.
I tried that meringue recipe, which seemed very straightforward, three times.
For some reason I kept losing my egg white peaks to a collapsed, soggy heap. I may make another attempt after this disappointment fades. But don’t be scared off, I think this recipe would be fantastic for a luckier cook.
I’ve also frequently been making salads inspired by the Downton sardine salad, which is included in the book.
If you’re interested, you can find the cookbook here.
Quick Review of “The Simple Paleo Kitchen”
Jessie Bittner is one of the few paleo bloggers I have appreciated for years and years. She is one of the most helpful and genuine people, and it really comes across over the screen. If you’ve never seen Jessie’s website justjessieb.com, head over and you’ll be impressed by the variety of flavors her recipes offer, all while keeping to really clean ingredients and being extremely simple and easy.
True to her usual style, the recipes in this cookbook are utterly unpretentious, using few ingredients and offering many variations depending on your family’s preferences.
Still, everything tastes delicious.
What I’ve tried: One of the first recipes I tried from the cookbook was the apple pie blondies- and of course I made a double batch right away because I knew it would be a winner. It’s a tad sweet for me so I’ll use a little less sweetener next time, but it was otherwise delicious, easy, and looked beautiful as well.
If you’re interested, it’s actually on sale right now and is the best price I’ve ever seen it.
Wrap-Up
It was a really fun activity to flip through these, try them out, and make an activity out of reporting back! Let me know if it was helpful.
Share and pass it along if this helped you!
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