Cookbook Countdown: 2 Days to Go: Cookbook FAQ

Posted by:Lindsay S. Nixon

I actually had a blog post featuring some tasty recipes today... 

Last night, I made the Portobello Steaks (which are in the cookbook and on this blog), along withBraised Asparagus (from the cookbook), Cauliflower Mashed potatoes (from the blog) and Beer Bread (also from the blog) but my camera has decided to be shy and refuses to upload....

So... I'm answering a few FAQ's about my cookbook that have came my way.

FAQ: Nutritional InformationEach recipe comes with nutritional stats. The stats are per serving, unless they specify otherwise. For example, all the sauces, gravies, condiments and icings are per 2 tbsp since they make something like 24 servings and it would be hard to estimate what 1/24th is, but generally,  if a recipe makes 12 muffins, the stats are for one muffin and if a soup recipe makes 2 servings, its 1/2 of the soup.

Some people have been confused by the bread recipes since it says it makes "1 loaf". To clarify that, 1 loaf = 12 muffins, or 12 slices, so for those, the analysis provided is per one slice. For the mini-loaves, it's 6 slices per mini loaf, for a total of 12.

FAQ: Fresh Instead? I used canned ingredients in my cookbook for ease and convenience. For example, I always have canned beans and canned tomatoes on hand, but I don't always have the time to soak and cook dry beans or have piles of fresh tomatoes lying around (esp. since tomatoes have such a short season!). However, if you want to use cooked beans, fresh tomatoes, fresh pureed pumpkin, etc., by all means do so. 2 cups cooked beans = 1 15-ounce can. When using fresh tomatoes or pumpkin, make sure you get to the same measurement (i.e. if I call for a 14-ounce can of tomatoes, you need 14 ounces of fresh). Except for the baked goods, all of the recipes are really forgiving and will work with minor adjustments to fit your preference. I've already had a number of people write me saying they ran out of this or that while making the dish, and still the recipe was a success.

FAQ:  Why Condiments? Several of my recipes use mustard and ketchup. I actually got into a spat with my proofer about this... here's my thing... everyone has mustard and ketchup on hand. Even if you have nothing else in your fridge, you probably still have those two condiments, right? I wanted to write a cookbook that used "every day" foods -- ingredients that most people had. I'm a chef, and I almost never have tomato paste, or mustard seeds, but you can bet I have condiments! So thats why I use them. :-)

Feel free to leave any other questions in the comments, I'll be happy to answer them. 

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