CookThatBook

By Krystina Castella

A World of Cake is available for purchase through our online store or at local book stores. For more information on this cookbook please visit Storey Publishing.

Cookbook review written and photographed by contributing writer Helena McMurdo

Krystina Castella, an art college professor, was inspired to begin work on A World of Cake following a bake sale she helped organize on her college campus. She asked her students to bring various cakes to sell and was surprised by the array of baked goods that her international students brought to the table. She became aware of just how narrow her definition of cake was and thought it would be an interesting project to explore this further. The result? A World of Cake.

Published by Storey Publishing, LLC($24.95 USD), this book is a 320+ page comprehensive look at cakes from around the world. It explores the subject matter through recipes, along with the various traditions and history that surround cake.

Some of the interesting and helpful features of this book include:

The world tour of cake holidays – in this introductory section, the author lists cakes under months of the year and pairs them with well-known and some lesser-known holidays. This is a great feature to inspire you if you are unsure of what to make or if you just need an excuse to bake a cake. Why not consider a French Opera Gateau for Bastille Day? Or perhaps some Zeppole for the Feast of St Gennaro?

The author lists traditional cakes for specific holidays, as well as other cakes whose suggested serving occasions are a bit more of a stretch. For example; I’m not exactly sure what Scottish Dundee Guinness Cake has to do with Super Bowl Sunday but I suppose any excuse for cake is a good one!

An international tour of cakes – the book is organized into geographic regions with several cakes being selected from each region and identified by their country of origin.  If when you think of cakes you think of France, Germany, Austria you will indeed find some of the well-known and famous cakes from these countries. I was much less familiar with the cakes of a host of countries from Asia and Africa, and some of the techniques used like steaming and frying. Most of all, I enjoyed the thoughtful excerpts at the top of each recipe that provided a better understanding of the traditions associated with each cake. There are also informative pages called ‘World Tours’ that focus on individual themes. For example; Christmas Cakes or Street Cakes which look at the traditions from various countries within that genre.

Layout and directions – for the most part I like the organization, layout and directions of the book. The recipes are well typeset with subheadings for cake, icing, filling, as well as preparation and assembly. Because many of the recipes have several steps, I found this to be a helpful feature. One thing I would have liked to see called out separately was the pan type. I often found myself digging through a recipe to find out what pan to use. The book also contains helpful sections about general baking and cake making tips, which as an infrequent baker, I found helpful as a reference.  Occasionally I found the specific details of the process to be lacking but for the most part the instructions were clear.

If you love to bake and are looking for new inspiration, this is the book for you. I was amazed by the sheer multitude of cakes, many of which were entirely new to me. But I was also very happy to find familiar favourites for which I had been lacking recipes.

CLICK HERE FOR RESULTS FROM RECIPE TESTS

By Julie Van Rosendaal & Sue Duncan  

Spilling the Beans is available for purchase through our online store or at local book stores. For more information on this cookbook please visit Whitecap Books

Cookbook review written and photographed by contributing writer Helena McMurdo

When it comes to beans; I have good intentions. I have them in my kitchen but I might as well confess that mostly they serve to make my glass storage jars look good. Yes, I know that beans are good for you – which is why I have them in the first place – in the hopes that I’ll make something with them someday and become a better person. It’s not like I don’t enjoy them when fed to me but given the choice between a chicken breast and some lentils (technically a pulse) and barley (a grain) I’d go for the chicken breast every time. Part of this stems from the fact that I know what to do with a chicken.

Thankfully there’s a new cookbook on the scene to help ease me out of my bean rut. With Spilling the Beans, authors Julie Van Rosendaal and Sue Duncan have succeeded in making even a reluctant bean eater like me change my tune. This book provides a host of simple recipes that make it easy and enticing to cook with beans and answers the fundamental question of “what on earth do I do with these things?”

Julie Van Rosendaal is a resident of Calgary (AB) and the food correspondent for The Calgary Eye Opener on CBC Radio One, co-host of TV’s Just Food and the food editor for Parents Canada magazine. Many readers will know her from her award-winning food blog; dinnerwithjulie.com. Already an accomplished author, her previous titles include Grazing, Starting Out and One Smart Cookie. For her latest release Julie has teamed up with her good friend Sue Duncan, who lives in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. You can learn more about Julie and Sue in the recent interview conducted by our very own Stay-At-Home-Chef (click here for full interview).

Although titled Spilling the Beans, this is really a book about beans AND grains. Julie and Sue explain that beans and grains work well together as a protein source because beans contain the amino acids that grains lack and vice versa. Beans are high in fibre, low in fat and full of nutrients. These benefits, along with those of whole grains, are discussed more fully in a small section authored by Julie’s father who happens to be a gastroenterologist. This is all well and good – but what will the recipes be like? Will I want to eat any of this stuff?!

Flipping through the book, I was pleased to see that there are lots of recipes that caught my eye right off the bat – from Savoury Hand Pies with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Olives and Lentils to scrumptious sounding snacks like Roasted Chickpeas & Pecans with Bacon & Maple Syrup. Even Black Eyed Pea and Kale Soup sounded great to me – yep I was feeling myself get healthier just by turning the pages.

The book contains a useful introduction that covers the various types of beans and bean definitions, legumes, pulse etc. as well as information on grains and how to cook them. The rest of the book is organized into chapters for various meal types. In addition to what you might expect (salads, soups, one-dish meals), there are also less expected sections including those for breakfast, sandwiches and even an extensive section on baking with beans. Did you know that you can make bread with beans? Or how about some waffles?

I see the recipes as falling into three broad categories – those that feature beans (i.e. with other ingredients), those that contain hidden beans and those where beans are the stars. I have mixed feelings about the hidden bean dishes. While I don’t believe in the ‘hide the vegetables from your kids’ school of thought, admittedly I don’t have kids and have never spent any time pleading with a six year-old to eat their broccoli. I can see how ‘hidden beans’ help add nutrition in areas we might not ordinarily see it. My preference would be to eat the dishes where beans are the star and where they are allowed to shine. Lucky for me, there are lots of those recipes in this book.

The recipes are simple and easy to understand and prefaced with summaries or anecdotes which bring a personal touch to this book. The authors encourage modification, a feature I always appreciate in a cookbook, and provide solid bases from which to work. Dishes have many different flavour profiles including those found in Indian, Mexican, French and Italian cuisine. And don’t think that because this book talks about beans as a source of protein that it means that it excludes meat dishes. Slow Cooked Lamb Shanks with Lentils & Barley, Pulled Pork & Beans and Roasted Sausages with Braised Lentils are just some of the heartier examples. There is plenty here for vegetarian and carnivore alike.

I think this is the type of book that you could cook from every week and always have something new and delicious to try.  The meals are simple, easy to prepare and surprise, surprise – they taste great.  This book is a great way to turn good intentions into real meals.

  CLICK HERE FOR RESULTS FROM RECIPE TESTS