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All About the Books October 2015

Posted on November 10, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

It is time once again for the Show Us Your Books link-up with Steph and Jana. I didn’t get in as much reading this month as I would have liked, but that’s life. Luckily, I enjoyed most of what I did end up reading. I’ve ordered the books in order from least to most favorite. I’m looking forward to reading what everyone else has read this month and adding to my TBR list!

3 Stars:

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Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari – This is a non-fiction book in which comedian, Ansari takes a look at modern romance and how dating today is different from the past. I found it interesting and it made me appreciate that I’m not dating in today’s modern age!

3.5 Stars:

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Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy – This YA book is about Willowdean Dickson, who’s mother gave her the nickname Dumplin’, when she was little. Willow knows she’s overweight and owns it, even with a mother who runs the local beauty pageant. But when Bo, a coworker at the local fast food joint where she works, shows interest in her, she begins to doubt herself. While I enjoyed the body positivity message of the book, I didn’t connect with any of the characters and found Willow to be a bit hypocritical of others.

4 Stars:

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Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea – This is a middle grade chapter book that I had heard good things about. It’s about a 5th grade class that is transformed by Mr. Terupt, an inspirational teacher, who impacts all of his students. The story is told through the perspectives of seven different students, in alternating chapters. The book was due back to the library before my daughter had a chance to read it, but it’s one that I think that she’d like. There’s a second and recently released third book in this series that I would like to read.

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The Red Thread by Ann Hood – Maya runs an adoption agency helping families adopt baby girls from China. This book tells the story of six couples trying to adopt children and the women in China who are giving up their daughters. This book has been on my bookshelf for awhile and I’m glad that I finally decided to read it. I really enjoyed this book. Being adopted from South Korea, this book gave me more insight into both sides of the adoption process.

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Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling – I read Kaling’s Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and wasn’t impressed. I feel like I need to reread that book because I enjoyed this one so much! As I read it, I could imagine Kaling’s voice reading it to me. It was a humorous and fun read.

5 Stars:

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult – Picoult is one of my favorite authors. I’ve read almost all of her books. This book has been sitting on my bookshelf for ages and I finally decided to read it. The story is really thought-provoking and deals with the Holocaust, friendship and forgiveness. Sage, a 24-year old baker, befriends Josef Weber, an elderly gentleman who visits the bakery where she works. He eventually asks a favor of her, which she is not sure she can help him with, after she discovers information about his past.

What have you been reading?

Weekend Chef’s Book Review: Why We Get Fat

Posted on October 21, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Book Review- Why We Get Fat: And What To Do About It by Gary Taubes

I included this book in my September favorites post a few weeks back. Nancy picked it up from the library and asked me to read it for a post. I thought I would battle through it as it certainly looked like a fad diet book, one which I had little interest in reading. I was certainly surprised to find that the format of the book is historically driven and scientifically backed, both good things. And it’s really not a diet book at all. Gary Taubes is a journalist and merely reports the facts as supporting evidence to a larger truth. He had previously written Good Calories, Bad Calories: Fats, Carbs, and the Controversial Science of Diet and Health. As I understand, the book was as long and dry as the title suggests. He was inspired to cut the book down so more people could access the valuable information he presented. The first book was just too much for most people to dig through.

The follow up, Why We Get Fat supports the same basic argument: carbs and sugar are the root of obesity and a host of illnesses. He provides the science behind this claim and looks to dismantle the arguments against it: Eating less food and increasing exercise is a popular however frustrating way to try to lose weight because it chemically just doesn’t work, eating fat has never been proven to increase belly fat, the list goes on. I know it all sounds pretty crazy. Just eliminate starch, carbs and sugars of all kinds and eat as much of the correct foods as your want, no calorie restrictions. The book has really hit home for me. After getting back from Disney World in August, I really felt like a mess and I blamed it on the excess calories as we’re taught to do. What I think the real problem was, in hindsight, was the desserts at every meal including the doughnuts at breakfast. My mom is diabetic and it’s a path that I’m trying to avoid. Looking back, she always had ice cream every night and started using Weight Watchers to get back on track 20 years ago.

The one ask I have is for everyone to read the book and make their own decision about food and the science of what really makes us fat. In an upcoming post, I’m going to share some of the book-inspired changes that I’ve made to my diet for the long term, not as a quick fix. A little preview: I’m missing chocolate and ice cream but unlimited bacon makes up for it.

Please share any of your thought or experiences in the comments section.

-The Weekend Chef

September 2015 Reads

Posted on October 13, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Yeah, it’s time once again to blow up my goodreads to-be-read list! Today I’m linking up with Jana and Steph for their monthly Show Us Your Books link-up to share what I read in September. While I read a bunch of books this month, unfortunately, not many of them were really recommend worthy. I’ve listed them by rating below:

5 Stars
No books this month (Insert sad face here.)

4 Stars

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Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin – I am a big fan Gretchen Rubin. I loved The Happiness Project and enjoyed Happier at Home. In this book, Rubin, using research and personal experiences, tackles the subject of habits. She came up with “The Four Tendencies” framework, and provides a short quiz to help readers identify which Tendency they fall under. I am an Obliger – while I hate letting others down (outer expectations), I have difficulty following through on things for myself (inner expectations). Your tendency affects how you operate and how you can change your habits. While I didn’t love this book as much as her first two, I still enjoyed it and learned more about myself.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon – This book is a recently published young adult novel. It tells the story of Maddy, an eighteen-year-old who has a rare disease, and as a result has never left her house. But then Olly moves in next door. The two form an unlikely friendship and then eventually a relationship. Maddy suddenly gets to really experience life and is willing to suffer the consequences. The book is told in e-mails, illustrations and diagrams which make for a quick read.
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The Martian by Andy Weir – Thank you Lisa for recommending this book. First she told me I had to read Ready Player One, which I was a bit hesitant to, but then really enjoyed. This is another book that I would normally not read on my own. Space, science, Mars….not really my usual reading interests. But, knowing this was going to be out soon as a movie (which wasn’t out yet when I read it) I decided to give it a try. This book was suspenseful and emotional. Despite all the technical science and math talk which I kind of skimmed over, it kept my interest and made me want to continue reading. Now….to see the movie in the theater or wait for DVD?!!!

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The Same Sky by Amanda Eyre Ward – This book tells the very different stories of thirteen-year-old Carla and forty year-old Alice in alternating chapters. It deals with issues of illegal immigrants in the United States, infertility and adoption. It’s a sad but realistic story that made me appreciate what I have.

3.5 Stars
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Pretty Baby by Mary Kubica – I wish goodreads let us give half star ratings because this book I rated 3.5 stars. This psychological suspense book is told from multiple points of view. In a very condensed summary of this book, Heidi sees Willow on the train platform, holding a baby and eventually ends up helping the girl. It was suspenseful and had me reading to see how it would end, but it didn’t wow me. I’ve heard Kubica’s previous book The Good Girl was better, so I plan on eventually checking that one out.

3 Stars

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Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead – This book was a recommended read from The Skimm. It is about ballet dancers and, while not aimed towards ballet lovers, I think it might appeal to readers who have an understanding of the dance world. It was slow in parts for me and I wasn’t a big fan.

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Mosquitoland by David Arnold – When I think of one word to describe this young adult novel, “quirky” comes to mind. This book follows Mim Malone as she embarks on a journey to find her mother. It’s a coming-of-age novel in which Mim discovers things about herself and her family.

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Paper Towns by John Green – I read this young adult novel in anticipation of eventually watching the movie…on DVD. While I loved The Fault In Our Stars, this one was just okay for me.
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Summer Secrets by Jane Green – I’ve read and enjoyed a bunch of Green’s other chick lit type books. This one was just eh for me though. This book revolves around Cat and her struggle with alcohol. Not sure if it was the subject matter or that I couldn’t relate to any of the characters, but this wasn’t a favorite read of mine.

2 Stars

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Among the Ten Thousand Things by Julia Pierpont – This is a recently published debut novel from Pierpont. Jack cheats on his wife but his children end up find the box of letters proving his infidelity, which results in his family coming apart. Very “eh” read for me. There are much better books out there worth reading.

DNF
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The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George – This book was on the New York Times bestseller list for what seems like forever. While I don’t read everything on the NYT list, I often use it as a guide when I’m looking for something new to read. I decided to give this book a try and wanted to like it. A book about a bookseller sounds like my type of read. But I’m not even sure I made it to the 50 page mark with this one. It was wordy and just didn’t capture my interest. That’s not to say that I won’t give this one another try. Just not in the near future.

Straight Up Tasty: A Review

Posted on September 9, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Straight Up Tasty by Adam Richman
Rating: 3 out 5 stars

Our family is a big Adam Richman fan. We love watching old episodes of Man V. Food together. So I was really excited to see that his cookbook was available from Blogging for Books. Straight Up Tasty is a collection of over 100 recipes ranging from breakfast and snacks & small plates to sauces & condiments and sweets. I like that Richman is not a chef or claims to be one. He’s a guy who loves food….and don’t we all?!!! There isn’t a specific theme to this book of recipes. Rather it’s a mix of recipes that Adam has grown up making and recipes of family and friends. Interspersed through the cookbook are recommendations on where to get the best breakfast, the best burgers as well as a list of best restaurants based on the protein (beef, chicken, pork, shrimp and meat substitutes), based on his culinary travels.

I didn’t end up cooking any of the recipes from the cookbook. I found the recipes were either similar to things that I’ve already made before (“Lemon Ricotta Pancakes,” “Easy Carbonara,” “Chicken Marsala,” and “Spaghetti Pie”) things that I’d just rather order out at a restaurant and not be bothered making (“Maple-Glazed Pork Belly Poutine and Sweet Potato Fries,” “Roast Pork and Broccoli Rabe Dumplings” and “Pulled Pork Egg Rolls”) and things that I already make and don’t need recipes for (“Latkes,” “Home-style Corned Beef and Cabbage” and “Grandma’s Egg Salad”).

The recipes cover a range of tastes and ingredients. There’s simple recipes like “French Farmhouse-Style Simple Roasted Chicken,” “Easy Lemon Butter Salmon,” and “Smoked Paprika Onion Rings.” None of the recipes called for difficult to procure ingredients, except for maybe the “Banh Mi Burger” which asks for pork pate.

So who is this cookbook for? I’d say fans of Adam Richman will enjoy this cookbook as they get to know a little more about him and are able to cook some of his favorite recipes, including his “Mom’s Spinach Pie” and his “Grandma’s Home-style Brisket.”

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review. However, all opinions are my own.

August 2015 Reads

Posted on September 8, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

I’m happy to be participating again in Steph and Jana’s monthly Show Us Your Books link-up. I love finding out what everyone’s been reading and my to read list grows tremendously after this link-up! I was on a big psychological suspense reads kick this month! Here are my August reads sorted by rating:

2 Stars

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Truth or Die by James Patterson & Howard Roughan – I don’t know why I keep reading Patterson’s stand-alone books! This book was a page-turner as usual, but the overall story was disappointing. Trevor Mann’s girlfriend, a newspaper journalist is killed in a mugging. However, he doesn’t think it was a chance shooting and attempts to find her murderer. I prefer his Women’s Murder Club and Alex Cross series and should just stop reading these stand-alone books!

3 stars
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Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave – Georgia returns to her family vineyard in Sonoma a few days before her wedding to discover her fiancé and family all have secrets they’ve been hiding. There were some interesting facts about winemaking that I learned, but overall, this was just an okay read for me.

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume – Blume was one of my favorite authors when I was growing up. I remember really enjoying her adult novel Summer Sisters. I thought this book was just okay. I found it interesting that it was based on actual events. However, there were a ton of characters to keep track of and the storyline didn’t really interest me.

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Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll – This book has been on the New York Times best seller list for several weeks. I put it on hold at the library and I finally received it after waiting what felt like forever. I had seen this book dubbed as “the next Gone Girl,” which apparently is the standard to which every new psychological thriller is now compared to. I had also read several negative reviews of this book prior to reading. Not sure if those reviews subliminally affected my opinion of this book, but I wasn’t very impressed. After experiencing tragic events in high school, Ani Fanelli has now reinvented herself into a woman who seems to have it all. She revisits those painful memories and we find out what happened in the past as she is interviewed for a television special about the events that happened long ago. Reese Witherspoon is going to be producing this the movie version of this book, which Lionsgate has acquired. I of course, will watch it, regardless of the fact that I didn’t like the book so much.

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Missing Child by Patricia MacDonald – Patricia MacDonald is not a new author to me. I’ve read three other of her psychological suspense type novels. This was one of my least favorite books of hers. Caitlin’s stepson Geordie goes missing one day after she drops him off at school. This story is the search for the boy, with fingers even being pointed at Caitlin. Just an okay read for me.

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Sister by Rosamund Lupton – While I was at my new job training, I got into a book discussion with another woman who highly recommended this book after discovering that I liked psychological suspense books as much as she did. The book is set in England and is written in letter form from Beatrice to Tess. When Beatrice’s sister Tess is missing and then found dead, it is ruled as a suicide. Beatrice knows her sister would never kill herself and she flies to London to try to figure out what happened to Tess. Through her own investigation Beatrice discovers there’s a lot about her sister that she didn’t know. This was an okay suspense type read for me.

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Those Girls by Chevy Stevens – I loved Still Missing which was my first introduction to Chevy Stevens. This is now my third book of hers that I’ve read and unfortunately, it disappointed. Three sisters end up on the run after an attempt to avoid their father’s abuse turns bad. They create new identities and lives in order to survive after additional tragedies occur. Again, another just okay read.

4 Stars

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Ready Player One by Ernest Cline – Blogger friend Lisa from Expandng had recommended this book to me. This was a monthly selection from her online book club Page Turners. After reading the synopsis, I didn’t end up reading it, because based on the summary, it just didn’t sound like my thing. And this is why I love book recommendations and link-ups like this. She read it for the book club and has since highly recommended the book. I decided to give it a try and I was so pleasantly surprised! I’m not a big sci-fi fan, but I enjoyed the game show premise of the book as well as all of the 80’s references. This one was even passed along to my husband to read, who also gave it a big thumbs up. We were excited to find out that Steven Spielberg will be producing this into a movie, which is supposed to premiere sometime in 2017.
5 Stars
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The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay – This book has been on my “want to read” list for what seems like forever. I’m not sure what took me so long to read it, but am so happy that I finally did! This is a young adult, coming of age story that is beautifully written with very likable characters. Nastya Kashnikov starts a new school with a hidden, tragic past. She ends up forming unlikely friendships with Drew and Joshua, two friends with very different personalities and lives. Relationships form and secrets come as the story unfolds. I can see this book being made into a movie.

July Reads

Posted on August 11, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Today I’m linking up with Steph and Jana for their Show Us Your Books monthly link-up. I love seeing what everyone’s been reading and love to add new books to my to be read pile! Having the summer off has made for lots of reading time! I got nine books read in July. This month I’m sharing my books by how I rated them.

3 stars:

14th Deadly Sin by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro – I am still enjoying this series by Patterson. While this isn’t thought provoking, quality literature, I enjoy the fast-paced suspense of his books. Plus, fourteen books in now, I enjoy the characters of the Women’s Murder Club.

Disney After Dark (The Kingdom Keepers #1) by Ridley Pearson – The kids and I listened to this children’s chapter book on CD on one of our drives up to Rhode Island. My daughter has read four of the books in this series and had been trying to get me to read the first book. This first book focuses on five young teens who need to battle villains at Walt Disney World to save the park. This series is aimed for middle school readers and is a bit dark if I must say. There’s a part where the dolls of the It’s a Small World ride come to life and try to attack the kids! Even though the series is aimed at older readers, she enjoys “scary” books like the R.L. Stine’s Goosebump series. While I probably won’t be reading any more in this series, I’m okay with her enjoying them.

The Knockoff by Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza – This is what you’d expect of typical chick-lit. When Imogen returns to work as editor-in-chief of Glossy magazine after a six month medical leave she discovers that her former assistant Eve is trying to take over. Eve is much younger and more tech-savvy with different ideas on how the magazine should be run. This was a mindless summer read but nothing to write home about.

Re Jane by Patricia Park – This book has been advertised as a Korean American retelling of Jane Eyre. I’m not sure that I’ve read the classic Jane Eyre and if I have, I didn’t remember it. It was interesting to learn more about Korean customs and traditions and the struggles of a young woman trying to live in two cultures and feeling like she doesn’t really fit in either very well. Regardless, this book was only okay for me.

The Rose Effect by Graeme Simsion – I really enjoyed the first book The Rosie Project. While this book had the occasional humorous bits, overall it was only an okay read for me.

The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand – This is a summer read, set in Nantucket, like Hilderbrand’s previous novels. Long-time friends Madeline and Grace end up being the topic of a rumor, as the title suggests. This book is filled with infidelity, friendship and deceit. An okay summer beach read.

4 stars:

Little Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan – I was pleasantly surprised by this book. While I thought it would be a traditional chick-lit type book, it had a bit more substance. When Polly’s marriage fails she packs up and rents a small flat above a bakery in the isolated sea town of Polbearne. She ends up turning to baking which brings her income and helps her forge friendships.

Where They Found Her by Kimberly McCreight – I read McCreight’s Reconstructing Amelia and enjoyed it. This book focuses on the body of a dead infant that was found in the woods as authorities try to figure out whose baby it is. This book was a suspenseful page-turner with lots of twists. I even gave it to my husband to read!

5 stars:

The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks – I don’t know why I waited so long to read this. Luckily, the movie came out recently and I want to see it, but I won’t usually watch the movie until I read the book! I’m a sucker for a good love story and a happy ending which Sparks is excellent at providing! There are two parallel love stories occurring throughout this book. I thought the bull riding and horses in this book would be a turn-off, but I really enjoyed this book.

My June Reads

Posted on July 15, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

I had so much fun reading all the book posts yesterday that I decided to post a day late to the monthly Show Us Your Books link-up with Jana Says and Life According to Steph. If you’ve been reading this blog, you know that my whole family loves reading. I love that I get to share my love of books with others in this link-up and get some ideas for new reads. This is an awesome resource if you’re looking for some good reading recommendations! Here’s a round-up of what I read in June. My top recommendation is The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah!

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. This book has been on the bestseller list and I was waiting forever for it on hold from the library. Overall, I enjoyed the story (I enjoy historical fiction, especially books about WWII) but found the book too long and wordy in some parts.

Cooking Up Murder by Miranda Bliss – This is the first in the Cooking Class Mystery series. Cooking class mixed with Romanian gun smugglers didn’t hold my interest. Wasn’t really impressed and won’t be continuing with this series.

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson – Megan from MeginTime had recommended this book for me when I was looking for a suspenseful read. This was definitely a suspenseful read with twists that kept me interested. I even gave it to the Weekend Chef to read. I wasn’t wowed by it, and it was a bit on the dark side, but fit my need for a quick, suspenseful read.

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen – I hadn’t read Dessen’s books in a really long time. I decided to give her newest book a try and am glad that I did. While she’s a YA author, even as an adult I enjoy the themes she writes about. I really empathized with Sydney and disliked her mom a LOT! I enjoyed this story and am looking forward to getting back into reading some of her older stuff.

The Recipe Club: A Novel About Food and Friendship by Andrea Israel and Nancy Garfinkel – I love to eat food, watch shows and movies about it and read books about it as well. This book has a neat concept – you see the history of a friendship from little girls to adults told via letters and e-mails. Tons of recipes are included in the book as well. However, the story itself disappointed and it felt like a waste of my time.

All Four Stars by Tara Dairman – This is a children’s middle grade chapter book that I had borrowed from the library for my daughter, but ended up reading. It’s a cute story about a 6th grader who likes to cook and her parents who don’t. The young food lover secretly ends up becoming a restaurant reviewer for a newspaper.

The Art of Baking Blind by Sarah Vaughan – This book is told through five women who are contestants in a baking competition to become “The New Mrs. Eaden.” This was a 3 star okay book for me. Nothing special.

You by Caroline Kepnes – Jillian from Just Life: Take Two had recommended this book to me when I was looking for suspense recommendations. This felt very similar to The Kind Worth Killing in its dark and twisted style. The book is told in the second person which is different from most books that I’ve read. This is another suspenseful (and a bit psycho) page-turner.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah – This was my favorite book by far this month. It’s another historical fiction book centered around WWII. Hannah ranks up there as one of my favorite authors and this book did not disappoint. This book was very different from her usual contemporary fiction that I’m used to. It really focused on the women’s war taking place in France and the surrounding area during the war.

I Regret Nothing by Jen Lancaster – I’ve read a couple of Lancaster’s books and find her memoirs humorous. In this book she writes a bucket list and this book documents her attempts to achieve it. Not bad – a 3 1/2 star read for me.

I’m currently reading Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan. Looking forward to linking up again in August with my July reads!

Four Kitchens – A Review

Posted on June 16, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

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Four Kitchens: My Life Behind The Burner In New York, Hanoi, Tel Aviv and Paris by Lauren Shockey
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

If you have ever wondered what it was like working in the kitchen of a restaurant, this book is for you. After graduating from the French Culinary Institute, author Lauren Shockey apprentices in four very different restaurants around the world. The book is broken up into four sections documenting her experiences at each restaurant. Starting at chef Wylie Dufresne’s wd-50, in New York City, she then travels to Hanoi, Vietnam to stage (apprentice) at La Verticale. After three months in Vietnam, she travels to Tel Aviv, Israel to apprentice at Carmella Bistro. Finally, she ends her last stage in Paris, France at Senderens. Each kitchen is very different and so are her experiences in each. What we do see is the hierarchy of the kitchen and the tedious jobs that apprentices are assigned. These workers put in twelve plus hour days, sometimes spending hours cutting Brussels sprout leaves or shelling pounds of crabs, only to get up and do it all over again the next day. Having eaten at wd-50, I found that chapter to be the most interesting. While many famous chefs don’t tend to be very hands-on in the kitchen, as seen in Shockey’s apprenticeships in Israel and France, Dufresne cooks most nights on the fish line along with his staff. I enjoyed reading about the molecular gastronomy that went into the preparation of food that I had eaten at wd-50, like the everything bagel and the cold, fried chicken. Even with language and cultural barriers in Vietnam, Israel and France, Shockey seemed to have successful apprenticeships and forge new friendships with fellow co-workers, roommates and friends of friends. I found those chapters to be insightful to the culture and food of the respective countries. Shockey provides recipes throughout the book inspired by each restaurant that she staged at. She also noted that apprenticing taught her more about being a chef than culinary school. While culinary school may teach you how to cut a carrot, when you work in a restaurant, you will have to learn how to cut the carrot the particular way that chef wants it done. I found it somewhat difficult to understand how she could afford to spend a year working four, unpaid apprenticeships around the world after spending $40,000 at culinary school. Then after the whole worldly experience, she realizes that she doesn’t want to work in a kitchen for a living.

Milk Bar Life – A Review

Posted on June 2, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

Milk Bar Life by Christina Tosi
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Christina Tosi is well-known for Milk Bar, the sister bakery of David Chang’s restaurant, Momofuku. Prior to receiving this cookbook for review, I was unfamiliar with either Tosi or Milk Bar. Warning: this cookbook is NOT a collection of fancy desserts found at the bakery. This is a collection of recipes that Tosi creates when she’s off the clock. Some of the recipes featured are family recipes passed down from her grandmother or those that must make an appearance at family gatherings. There are recipes that are made for “family meal” when her kitchen staff eats together before service begins. There are supermarket-inspired recipes featuring corn flakes, Ritz crackers, boxed cake mix and refrigerated tubes of crescent rolls. I’m not sure that some of the recipes can even be called recipes like Brown-Butter Cinnamon Toast and Blue Cheese Pretzels?!! This is not a stuffy cookbook, but one that focuses on flavors, not fuss. This book shows that chefs don’t always have the time nor energy to create fancy schmancy meals when they get home at who knows what hour after a long day in the kitchen. Milk Bar Life reads like a conversation with your best friend. Tosi’s writing is so down-to-earth and real. I love her philosophy that we all deserve at least one cookie a day, or for her, more like five a day…and that’s not including work cookies! This book has been in my possession for over a month now and I have yet to make anything from it. While this is a fun read, it doesn’t have many recipes that are appropriate for my every-day repertoire. On my to-try list though are a few of the desserts. Nothing earth-shattering, but Crock-Pot Cake, Hershey’s Kiss Roll and Crackle all appear to be easy and tasty.

Since receiving this book, the Weekend Chef brought home cookies from Milk Bar which he got from their stand at pop-up UrbanSpace Garment District in New York City. It was nice being able to read this book while sampling some of the deliciousness that Tosi is so well-known for. Tosi is a judge on the sixth season of MasterChef, that premiered May 20. This is not the last that we will be seeing or hearing about Christina Tosi or Milk Bar!

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Family Armchair Travel: Israel

Posted on May 28, 2015 by nyfoodiefamily@gmail.com

As mentioned yesterday, our subscription to International snack box Universal Yums! sparked the idea of our family to armchair travel to the featured country each month. May’s snack box featured country was Israel, so off we went!

Prior to receiving the box, I knew that the featured country was Israel. I printed up a blank flag of Israel found at Coloring Castle and using an online picture I had my son color the flag (see picture above). We have a children’s atlas and the kids found Israel.

We watched volume 1 of Shalom Sesame: Welcome to Israel. This is a 12-DVD series that includes episodes on Passover, Purim, Shabbat and more. My children are almost seven and nine years old. I figured that this DVD was going to be too babyish for them. Although Sesame Street characters like Grover and some new characters from Israel are featured, this DVD was surprisingly informative and engaging for even my older children. Viewers accompany Anneliese as she goes to Israel to visit a relative. You get to see the sights and food of Israel and meet children from the country. Hebrew words and numbers are also introduced. There’s a special appearance by actress Christina Applegate who teaches viewers the different meanings of “Shalom.” (We borrowed this DVD from the library.)

We read the following books:
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Count Your Way Through Israel by Jim Haskins
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This book was published in 1990 and has a dated look and feel to it. There’s an informative introductory note that gives a little background information on Israel and the alphabet and pronunciation of some of the letters. The book counts from 1 through 10 showing the Hebrew word and pronunciation for each number. It also connects each number to information about the country. While the Four Questions is appropriate for number 4, for the number 5 Haskins writes about five agricultural products that Israel is known for. The book also shows illustrations, whereas I think photographs would be much more engaging. This book had difficulty holding the interest of my six year-old son. (We borrowed this book from the library.)

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Exploring Countries: Israel by Joy Gregory
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

This book is part of the Exploring Countries series AV2 Media Enhanced Books collection. There’s a special code in the beginning of the book that when input into the AV2 website makes a variety of additional resources available to the reader. This is one of the most recently published children’s books about Israel. It includes information about the land and climate, plants and animals, goods and services and much more. The supplemental online media includes videos, quizzes and activities. Each set of pages includes a “By The Numbers” feature, with factual information relating to the particular topic. For example, under Politics and Government, the “By The Numbers” feature notes that Israeli citizens can vote at the age of 18 and that there are 15 judges on Israel’s Supreme Court. The book is colorful and includes lots of photographs. The text on each page is semi-lengthy and the book is geared towards older elementary students. (We borrowed this book from the library.)

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The Remarkable Journey of Josh’s Kippah by Barbara Elissa
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

In this picture book, we follow a kippah from Joshua Jacob’s Bar Mitzvah as it travels around the world. From Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur the kippah travels from New York to places like Israel, Argentina and Miami before making its way back to New York. Unfortunately, we were not big fans of this book. There were lots of words that many readers may be unfamiliar with. While there’s a glossary in the back of the book, the number of words that are unfamiliar, and not defined in the story, disrupt the flow of the book. While many Jewish holidays and special days are identified in the story, there’s little to no description as to what the day is about. This was not a favorite book of ours. (We borrowed this book from the library.)

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Welcome to Israel by Elma Schemenauer
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

This book is part of the Welcome to the World! series from They Child’s World. This book is a little older, but still very informative. Again, the amount of info and detail in this book makes it geared toward middle to upper elementary students. It covers information about the land of Israel as well as its people, food, holidays, school and work. At the back of the book there’s a list of famous people from Israel as well as a glossary and pronunciation guide for some basic Hebrew words. This book was informative but did not keep my six year-old son’s interest. (We borrowed this book from the library.)

To finish up our Armchair Travel we ate some Israel-themed dinners.

The Weekend Chef’s family is part Jewish, so we celebrate Passover and Hanukkah with them. Our kids are familiar with latkes, gefilte fish, matzo ball soup, matzo and haroset. I wanted to make some dishes that were new to us.

I made Fresh Mozzarella, Mushroom and Eggplant Shakshuka from blog May I Have That Recipe? Although, my shakshuka didn’t come out quite as pretty as theirs! I served this with some Italian bread which we used to scoop up the sauce and veggies. I was pleasantly surprised that both kids ate this, eggplant, mushrooms and all.

I made a whole roast chicken in the slow cooker and made Noodle Kugel from the Food Network to go with it. The kids loved this sweet noodle dish!

The last dish I made was Baked Falafel, adapted from allrecipes.com with a Tomato and Cucumber Salad. This wasn’t a new dish for us, but I hadn’t made it in a long time. I love falafel but the kids aren’t the biggest fans. They ate theirs mixed with the tomato and cucumber salad inside their pita. I wanted to have them try it again before we had the falafel-flavored snacks in the Universal Yums! snack box.

We are looking forward to see where we will be traveling next month! Stay tuned so you can travel along with us!