One 2 Try

Spring Break is here or almost here. How about keeping your brain active with puzzles! Are you good at puzzles? How about Logic Puzzles? Those brain teasers that challenge kids and adults alike. Stephen P. Ryder, aka “The Puzzle Baron,” founder and editor of the Puzzle Baron network of websites (PuzzleBaron.com), has created Logic Puzzles Volume 2. This book contains 200 never before released grid-based puzzles!

What is a Logic Puzzle? The type of puzzle in Logic Puzzles is the logic grid. In each puzzle you are given a series of categories, and an equal number of options within each category. Each option is used once and only once. Your goal is to figure out which options are linked together based on a series of given clues. Each puzzle has only one unique solution, and each can be solved using simple logical processes (i.e. educated guesses are not required).

Maybe logic puzzles have you stumped – Try your hand at the brain teasing number game Sudoku. I actually find this numbers game fun and challenging. I sure go through a lot of pencil erasers. Puzzle Baron’s Sudoku book contains 400 puzzles from easy to difficult. It can keep you seeing numbers for hours.

I am more of a visual learner, my brain likes to look at pretty pictures. Here is a fun book everyone can enjoy – The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Picture Puzzles Volume 2. Inside is a treasure trove of full color photo fun. Find the differences featuring more than 100 puzzles. Unscramble puzzles to find which one is different. If you get stuck you can check the answer key to get a hint. You need sharp eyes to find the differences in these gorgeous photos. Grab a cool drink and play awhile.

Look for these three fun brain challenging books at your favorite book seller.

Want to give your brain a workout?

Here is your chance to win!

ONE Lucky reader will win all three books!

Fun for everyone!

[...]

Today 3/14 is Pie it Forward day at Abrams Books. A fabulous new cookbook featuring pies, tarts, tortes and more titled Pie it Forward redefines pie!

Gesine Bullock-Prado – the author of Sugar Baby releases this sweet treat of a cookbook. Inside the recipes include a new frontier of pies sweet and savory! Attempting to make a pie can be intimidating. Gesine provides her many tips to make pie life easier. Even more tips can be found on pieitforwardcookbook.com. Any pie eater and baker will tell you the crust is the key. In the basics are many different recipes for the perfect crust with amazing full color instructional photos.

What is your favorite type of pie? Are you a fruit pie or a cream pie devotee? My personal favorite pie is blueberry. For Pie it Forward day, Gesine is sharing her  Wild Blueberry Pie recipe. You can download a copy of the recipe as well as watch her make pie magic in her video demonstration.

The recipes are delectable! Try your pie making skills with German Apple Custard Tart or Sticky Toffee Pudding Tart. Savory pies such as Pork Pies, Cornish Pastries and Chicken Pot Pies sure to make hungry family members love pie for dinner! Once you master the scrumptious pie recipes, it is time to Pie it Forward. Take the skills you used in the early chapters then create masterpeices of stacked pastries and signature creations! It is a treat for the eyes as well as a pure edible delight!

I am loving the Wild Blueberry Pie recipe with at least a dozen others I would love to make. Sugar Cream Pie is requested by my hubby!

Look for Pie it Forward by Gesine Bullock-Prado coming soon in April.

Pie It Forward

Pies, Tarts, Tortes, Galettes, and Other…

By Gesine Bullock-Prado; illustrated by Tina Rupp

EAN: 9781584799634

Price: 29.95

Many thanks to Abrams Books for providing the review copy.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

One of my favorite gifts to give is a cookbook! My sister loves cooking and baking so finding cookbooks for her is simple. A few years back she went on a quest to make a different recipe every day for an entire year without any repeats. It was a fabulous year! Between the two of us, we have enough cookbooks to do that for probably 10 years or more.

One can never have enough cookbooks!

Robert Rose publishes a wide variety of cookbooks. I love their cookbooks! The topics have something for everyone. Here are a few titles perfect for holiday gift giving:

750 Best Appetizers -  Does someone you know host a lot of parties? With this book, they will never run out of Appetizer ideas. 16 chapters covering everything from dips and spreads to cheese, seafood, wraps and rolls plus countless finger foods. The recipes will make your party the event to be at! A sample of recipes – Pancetta Wrapped Scallops, Goat Cheese and Sun Dried Tomato Crostini, and Walnut Dusted Cheese Balls. Delicious ideas for the best party food ever! Over 600 pages! $24.95 ISBN 9780778802723. 750 Best Appetizers on Amazon

300 Best Potato Recipes – A Complete Cook’s Guide to everything potato. Did you know there are over 4000 edible varieties of potatoes? With this gem of a cookbook, any potato love will find inspiration for cooking with your favorite spud! Think outside the potato skin and make something other than a baked potato or fries. Inside you will find recipes like – Sweet Potato Pancakes with Maple Butter, Dark Chocolate & Orange Potato Cheesecake, Green Curry Chile with New Potatoes and many more. Appetizers, Soups, main courses desserts all can be made with potatoes. $24.95 ISBN 9780778802785 300 Best Potato Recipes on Amazon

300 Best Rice Cooker Recipes – I have only been using my rice cooker for rice, imagine that! With this cookbook you will find it can be used for making a wide variety of meals. Of course there are many rice recipes, but there are more like Moroccan Bean Dip, Tuscan Wheat Berry Soup, Bombay Turkey and Rocky Road Polenta Pudding. Besides rice, what else can you make in a rice cooker? $24.95 ISBN 9780778802808 300 Best Rice Cooker Recipes on Amazon

The Gluten Free Baking Book – For those needing to watch the Gluten in foods, here is a wonderful cookbook with 250 Small Batch recipes. From brownies to cheesecakes, biscuits, scones, pizza and more favorites! A few recipes include: Classic Banana Bread, Hazelnut Chocolate Brownies, Peach Sponge Pudding and Florentine Pizza. $24.95 ISBN 9780778802747 The Gluten Free Baking Book on Amazon

150 Best Tagine Recipes – Here is an exotic cookbook. Tagines are names after the Moroccan Dish and the pot used for preparation. It is a slow simmer of meats and vegetables with a mixture of exotic spices. Try something new! Dips, salads, street food, and sweets with an exotic flare are inside. Recipes include: Beef tagine with Squash and Beets, Fruits de Mer Tagine, Lentin and Almond Tagine. Be adventurous! $24.95 ISBN 9780778802792  150 Best Tagine Recipes on Amazon

Look for these cookbook titles plus many more at Robert Rose.

***Giveaway Closed***

Want to create in your kitchen?

Here is your chance to win!

Three lucky readers will each win one of these three cookbooks (randomly chosen title)

150 Best Tagine Recipes

300 Best Rice Cooker Recipes

Gluten Free Baking Book

Mandatory Entry (First entry)

• Tell me in a comment which of the cookbooks mentioned you are most interested in.

Additional optional entries: Eligible after completing mandatory entry above: You can do any or all of the following for one entry each unless stated otherwise. Please leave a separate comment for each that you have done.

• Visit Robert Rose and tell me any other cookbook you would love to have.

• Like One 2 Try on Facebook.

• Tweet about this giveaway and leave a link to your tweet (Can tweet once daily, tweet button above).

Giveaway ends on December 30th, 2011 at 11:59 PM Pacific time. ONE PERSON PER HOUSEHOLD and IP address. Open to Continental US and Canada addresses only. No PO Boxes. Must be 18 years of age and over. Winner will be chosen randomly using “And the Winner is plugin” and contacted by email. Please respond within 48 hours or a new winner will be chosen. To be fair to everyone, comments not meeting requirements will be deleted. Rules.

Many thanks to Robert Rose for providing the review and giveaway product.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

With all the hustle and bustle of getting ready for the holidays, I find myself setting up my slow cooker to do all the work getting dinner ready. There is something comforting about walking in the door to the fragrant enticing aroma of a home cooked meal simmering away in the slow cooker. Dinner is done with very little effort.

Today’s busy lifestyles can really benefit from a good reliable slow cooker. The many different recipes to make are sure to please all your hungry tummies. I am loving a great cookbook from Robert Rose  – The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes – Second Edition by Judith Finlayson. You can make a lot more than just tossing together a stew.

In the appetizer section – how about trying Zest Crab Spread for a party, or the Kid’s Favorite Fondue for a rainy afternoon? There is a very tempting recipe for Hot Roasted Nuts. Wow nuts made in the slow cooker. Imagine the happy faces munching on these at a dinner party.

Soups – Delicious ideas from vegetable soups to Caribbean Pepper Pot Soup plus Mom’s Chicken Noodle Soup.

Beef – I can wait to make my hubby the Down Home Smothered Steak or the Tailgaters Favorite Stew. He loves anything made with beef.

Chicken – I am leaning towards trying the Spicy Chinese Chicken or the Chicken in Onion Buttermilk Gravy. Yum!

Something I have never used my slow cooker for is to make desserts. I wonder why? There are more than 20 scrumptious desserts recipes to make in The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes. I think I need to get another slow cooker just for dessert making.

These chapters and more can be found in The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes. There are lots of tips for using the slow cooker as well as choosing the right one for the recipe.

Let your slow cooker do the cooking for you. Toss in a few ingredients and your done. How easy is that! Books make great holiday gifts! They are easy to wrap and very useful. Just a thought – if you are giving someone a slow cooker, get this book to go with it!

***Giveaway Closed***

Bring out the slow cooker and get cooking!

Here is your chance to win!

ONE lucky reader will win a copy of The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Many thanks to Robert Rose for providing the review and giveaway product.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

I read a variety of books. Mystery, fiction, non-fiction, fantasy and many more. It is a rare treat that a book makes such an impression I want to be part of the story. The writing brings me right into the action. One such book is The Magic Warble.

I had the pleasure of reading The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox last year. It is a fantasy adventure in the land of Bernovem. A young girl finds herself transported to this magical land where she encounters fairies, gnomes, and of course an evil Queen. You can read my review of The Magic Warble here.

I am so excited to tell you there is a sequel to The Magic Warble recently released! The fantastic adventure of Kristina continues in Bernovem in The Black Shard. This time she is unwillingly accompanied by her schoolmates in a thrilling and often dangerous escapade.

Synopsis:

Kristina’s stay at summer horse camp is horrible to say the least, and it’s all because Hester and Davina are there as well, making her life miserable. When Hester’s cruel prank goes terribly wrong, it’s actually what sends the three girls back to the magical land of Bernovem. In Bernovem, Kristina is very excited to see her former friend, Prince Werrien. When he invites her to sail with him on his ship to his homeland Tezerel, putting it simply, Kristina can’t refuse.

Reunited with her gnome, dwarf, animal, fairy friends … and best of all, Werrien, things seem like they couldn’t get any better for Kristina. But when Werrien becomes fascinated with an unusual seeing stone, the “Black Shard”, Kristina is haunted by a ghostlike old hag. Struggling against suspicion, guilt, illness, and ultimately the one who wants to possess her soul, Kristina will see it’s in her weakest moment that she will encounter more strength than she has ever known.

I have only begun reading this amazing sequel. I am just as much drawn into the story as the first book. The genre is considered young adult and it has been a favorite of many teens. I found the writing entertaining for adults. The descriptions of the fabulous places and the interaction with the well written characters, is a joy to read. The story is imaginative but written with such reality – you swear there is a fairy sitting with you, turning the pages!

I suggest you read The Magic Warble before starting The Black Shard. Then you will understand the characters and the magical place of Bernovem. I can’t wait to find out how the story ends!

Purchase The Black Shard from Amazon or from My Book Orders.com. If you or your young adults have read The Magic Warble, The Black Shard will be a welcome Holiday Gift!

Connect with The Black Shard and Victoria Simcox – Author

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Many thanks to Victoria Simcox for providing the review product.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

I am always on the lookout for new cookbooks. I enjoy reading them. I have a collection of cookbooks dating back to the 1880’s. It is very interesting to me to read about the preparation methods and the ingredients. It is like a time capsule.

Five Star Publications understands the importance of books. Started in 1985, Linda Radke became a self publisher. Over the years her company grew to include book publishing, marketing, consulting and production. Her dedication to books and the field of publishing has developed book titles everyone can enjoy.

Five Star Publications was so kind to indulge my cookbook obsession with Legends in the Kitchen: Celebrity Recipes for a Cause. This amazing compilation of recipes from some of the most talented celebrities around is a delight to browse. You can cook with the stars! A portion of the proceeds from each sale of Legends in the Kitchen Cookbook, benefits the Motion Picture & Television Fund which helps with services and programs such as health services, charitable services, and children’s services.

The recipes are exciting!

Just a few of my favorites:

Cheese Enchiladas by Debbie Reynolds

Beef Stew with Walnuts by Betty Ford

Cajun Corn Chowder by Dick Clark

Great Guac by Beau Bridges

Cheese Nut Loaf by Dennis Weaver

and many more.

Main dishes, Vegetables and Soups, Desserts, Dips and Breads are included in this easy to read cookbook. Take a trip down memory lane with the celebrities. Legends in the Kitchen would make a great gift for star struck fans and cooks alike! Look for Legends in the Kitchen at your favorite book seller or order online.

Five star Publications is offering a sale for members who join their Five Star Book Nook Club.  There is no fee to join! By joining you will receive a 25 percent discount on books purchased online from Five Star directly as long as you agree to buy 12 in one year’s time. The book selection covers something for everyone! You will love the prices too! it really is cheaper by the dozen! Buy one book at a time or all 12 at once! Books make excellent, practical, holiday gifts plus they are easy to wrap! Shop Now Online!

Connect with Five Star Publications

Facebook

Twitter

***Giveaway Closed***

Love Books?

Here is your chance to win!

ONE lucky reader will win their choice of any book from the Five Star Book Nook Catalog.

Thanks very much Five Star Publications!

Many thanks to Five Star Publications for providing the review and giveaway product.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

Linda Evans is one of the most glamorous beauties I have ever seen. Her work over the many years in well known television productions brought her grace and style to many homes. Who can forget her portrayal of Krystle Carrington on Dynasty? She has won five People’s Choice awards and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Her adventures in front of and behind the cameras, has been a reflection of everything she loves. During her adventures she developed a love for food and sharing this passion with her friends. In Recipes for Life: My Memories – she shares her memories of her life plus acting career intertwined with fond food memories including many recipes. She has always been happy in the kitchen.

I enjoyed the trip down memory lane with Linda. Her warmth comes through in the stories she tells. Her love of good foods gives us very interesting recipes from her family and good friends she has met along the journey. Bringing together friends for a home cooked meal is one of Linda’s passions.

The photos are a trip back in time. There are several photos included with the stories. I enjoyed reading about her childhood and her mom’s Hotdog Stew recipe is included. Her friends were a big part in the collection of recipes. She shared her meetings with John Wayne and his wife plus the Duke’s recipes of Crab Dip Omelet and Green Chile and Cheese Casserole are included. There are many more recipes from friends.

Here is one of Linda’s Recipes:

Linda’s Famed Artichoke Dip
By Linda Evans,
Author of Recipes For Life: My Memories

I’ve been making my artichoke dip for years. Practically everyone who has ever tasted it has asked me for the recipe. It’s perfect for large parties or for smaller, intimate gatherings. Or when your husband’s ex-wife comes to dinner! The secret here is to use the artichoke bottoms, not the hearts. Artichoke hearts may be easier to find, they don’t produce the same results. The recipe easily doubles or triples for large gatherings. You can also replace the artichokes with 7 ounces of lump crab meat for a delicious variation.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Tabasco (or more, to taste)
1½ tablespoons thinly sliced scallions (white part only)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (I prefer Parmigiano-Reggiano)
1 (13¾ ounce) can artichoke bottoms (not hearts), drained and finely diced

Preheat oven to 350°F.

With an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese with the mayonnaise. One by one, blend in the Tabasco sauce, scallions, and Parmesan.

Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the artichokes (don’t use the mixer for this).

Spoon the mixture into a 3-cup baking dish and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm with crackers.

The above is an excerpt from the book Recipes For Life: My Memories by Linda Evans. The above excerpt is a digitally scanned reproduction of text from print. Although this excerpt has been proofread, occasional errors may appear due to the scanning process. Please refer to the finished book for accuracy.

Copyright © 2011 Linda Evans, author of Recipes For Life: My Memories

Recipes for Life: My Memories is more than and cookbook. It is a visit through highs and lows of life. It is an experience of the many facets of love. It is an emotional connection to the adventures of a dream come true. Reading Recipes for Life is a joy.

Look for Linda Evans – Recipes for Life: My Memories at booksellers. For anyone in your family who loves the glamour of the arts, or a home chef, it makes a wonderful holiday gift!

Connect with Linda Evans

Facebook

RECIPES FOR LIFE: My Memories

By Linda Evans with Sean Catherine Derek

Vanguard Press; October 2011; $25.99

ISBN: 978-1-59315-648-0

Many thanks to FSB Associates for providing the review copy.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. A Gratis copy was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

One of the biggest expenses facing college students is the astronomical prices of the required textbooks. Ouch! Many moons ago when I was attending college classes, I always chose the used books. I liked the used books because sometimes I would find useful notes or highlights inside. My sisters approach – she never bought books but spent many hours at the library reading the textbooks.

There is another way to get the textbooks your college bound student needs at incredible savings. Introducing CampusBookRentals.com !

The rental process is easy. Start your search for the textbooks you need. They have thousands of textbooks. Searching can be done by ISBN, Author, Title or keyword. For instance I checked a title On Baking. They have it available! The rental term can be for the entire semester, quarter, summer or set the return date you need for flexibility! This book would cost $69.44 for the entire semester! That is about 37% over the purchase price!

Once you find the textbook required, place the order. Shipping is free! The books will arrive in 7 to 14 days. It is okay to use highlighters in the rented books too! Use the books for your entire term of rental then return. Even the return shipping is no charge to you! Talk about convenience not to mention the savings. CampusBookRentals understands that class plans can change – so they offer a 30 day Guarantee. Any book can be returned within the first 30 days (of the order date) for a full 100% refund.

Let’s say you really love the book and want to keep it. Not a problem. CampusBookRentals has a Keep My Books option. Simply pay the difference from your rental agreement and the book value and it is yours. They love to work with students re-taking classes too. IF you need the book again, you get an additional 30% off the original rental price. They are student savvy and understand what textbook needs you will be facing. I think they have thought of everything! For more details about the program read the FAQ’s.

CampusBookRentals is making a difference by helping support Operation Smile in 2011. Every book rented donates a portion of the proceeds to Operation Smile! Operation Smile offers surgery to families in need when a child is born with cleft lip. CampusBookRentals is on track to beat their goal of covering 1000 life changing surgeries. Way to give back!

Save where you can! By using CampusBookRentals.com – your student gets the textbooks they need at a savings sure to make a difference.

Many thanks to CampusBookRentals for providing the information.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

Did you take your family out for the Unplug and Play weekend?

The SC Johnson’s Shout team wanted us to take a break from technology and get outside to play. Enjoy the outdoors without the digital technology we are so overly connected to. Unplug & Play Weekend was this past weekend.

My family went camping. We loaded up the RV and headed to Lake Casitas for a relaxing few days of campfires and fishing. The weather was fantastic. It was not too hot and the breeze was lovely. The lake is huge. We had other family members drive up to spend the day with us fishing. Well we caught one fish that day. It was fun to have everyone together. Even though the fish were no biting, we did not have any TV, phones, computers to interrupt the outdoors fun of fishing.

The next day I went fishing again and caught a big catfish. OMG it was huge. My hubby was helping reel it in and we could see it coming closer to the shore. It was as big as my arm. Boy was it putting up a fight. We were doing our best to hold onto it. Then all of a sudden – SNAP. It broke my line. Off the fish went swimming away. So sad. It really was okay because I would have put it back in the water anyway. My cheap little fishing pole could not handle the catfish beast. I am getting a new pole!

We had a great time sitting around the campfires in the evenings. The night was a little chilly but it was so toasty around the fire. Our dogs even loved sitting by the fire. Of course we made s’mores and roasted hot link sausages over the open fire. So delicious.

I am glad to have Shout to help me with the cleanup. Being in nature can get pretty dirty sometimes and we sure got a little muddy. My laundry needed to be done pronto when I got home. Our Unplug and Play Weekend was fantastic. How was yours? You can post a photo on the Unplug & Play page.

Why stop at just a weekend? Make unplugged days a regular event with your family. There is a wonderful book to help with all sorts of activities. Unplugged Play by Bobbi Conner. No batteries, no plugs just pure fun. Bring back the innocence of childhood fun with the over 700 ideas. You will find ideas for ages 1 to 10 for plenty of family interactive fun! The format is easy to read. There are craft, music, games and more to choose from. One of my favorite simple ideas is Bouncing Bazooka Bull’s Eye. Using laundry baskets, unbreakable bowls and ping pong balls, set up a distance from a wall and bounce the balls off the wall into the baskets. Set up a scoring system and play. For a rainy day how about making salt dough Rainbow necklaces. With all the fun ideas, you will have endless hours of activities.

Look for Unplugged Play at your favorite book seller or order online at Amazon.

***Giveaway Closed ***

Ready for Unplugged Play?

Here is your chance to win!

ONE lucky reader will win an autographed copy of Unplugged Play by Bobbi Conner.

Thanks very much Shout!

Mandatory Entry (First entry)

• Tell me in a comment your favorite Unplugged Family Activity.

Additional optional entries: Eligible after completing mandatory entry above: You can do any or all of the following for one entry each unless stated otherwise. Please leave a separate comment for each that you have done.

• Like Shout on Facebook.

• Like One 2 Try on Facebook.

• Subscribe to my blog and verify the subscription. Current subscribers are eligible too.

• Follow my blog on Google Friend Connect or Networked Blogs (see the right side bar to sign up) Already a follower, just leave a comment saying that you are a follower.

• Follow Shout on Twitter.

• Follow One 2 Try on Twitter. Current followers are eligible too, just leave a comment saying that you are a twitter follower.

• Tweet about this giveaway and leave a link to your tweet (Can tweet once daily, tweet button above).

• FOR 2 EXTRA ENTRIES – Share this giveaway on your favorite social media site, your choice (other than twitter above). Leave me the link to the location.

Giveaway ends on October 12th, 2011 at 11:59 PM Pacific time. ONE PERSON PER HOUSEHOLD and IP address. Open to Continental US addresses only. No PO Boxes. Must be 18 years of age and over. Winner will be chosen randomly using “And the Winner is plugin” and contacted by email. Please respond within 48 hours or a new winner will be chosen. To be fair to everyone, comments not meeting requirements will be deleted. Rules.

Many thanks to SC Johnson Shout for providing the review and giveaway product.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.

In my kitchen, I have a few favorite “go-to” cookbooks. I have them within reach for easy access. They have been my little helpers for many years. I am proud to add to my kitchen collection a very handy and extremely helpful cookbook – The Commonsense Kitchen by Tom Hudgens.  

The Commonsense Kitchen contains 500 recipes and wisdom from the Deep Springs College farm and cattle ranch located in the Sierra Nevada. Only 12 men are accepted to the college each year to learn a variety of physical jobs as well as academic studies. Tom Hudgens attended Deep Springs as a student then later returned to be the Chef at the college. He recently came back to teach a cooking class.

The concept of Deep Springs makes the community part of everything it does. They work together as one, cooking ,sharing experiences and learning about life.  To learn more about Deep Springs visit deepsprings.edu.

The Commonsense Kitchen includes 19 chapters covering everything from Kitchen Basics in chapter 1 to cleaning up in chapter 19. I loved the selection of Hot Vegetables and Vegetables Soups in chapter 7. There are simple recipes such as Sautéed Green Beans, Carrot Soup with Ginger, Simple Roasted Potatoes that anyone can make. From the Beef, Pork and Lamb chapter, I have on my shopping list the ingredients for Pork Chops Slow –Cooked in Olive Oil and New Mexico Green Chile Beef Stew. I bet that stew is fabulous for a cold winter evening. There are so many recipes to please every taste. Fish and Shellfish, Pasta, Sauces, plus 4 chapters of sweets. Pies, Cakes, Gooey Desserts and Cookies and Candy. I guess the students need their sugar rush! I am loving the two Biscotti recipes, I love making biscotti. Chapter 18 is filled with menu ideas for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The format of The Commonsense Kitchen is simplistic. The recipes are easy to read. There are no photos just a few illustrations. With each recipe is a little glimpse into the love that goes into the recipe, it ‘s history or where it came from. It makes for delicious reading. The Commonsense Kitchen would fit into any cook’s kitchen.

Look for The Commonsense Kitchen at your favorite bookseller.

The Commonsense Kitchen

500 Recipes Plus Lessons for a Hand-Crafted Life

By Tom Hudgens

6-7/8 x 9-1/2 in; 608 pp;
2-color illustrations
Hardcover
Published in July, 2010
ISBN 9780811872225
ISBN10 081187222X

$35.00

Many thanks to Chronicle Books for providing the review copy.

Disclosure: No monetary compensation was offered or accepted for this post. Gratis product was received in order to write my honest review. The opinions above are my own and were not influenced in any way. Others experience may vary. Terms of Use.