Book Review - Williams-Sonoma Complete Grilling Cookbook-The Best of Grilling and Outdoor Cooking

I love cookbooks. Especially grilling, barbecue and outdoor cookbooks. Of all the cookbooks I have in my collection, one remains a favorite, more so because of my daughter than any other reason. Over this past summer my daughter was in the hospital for nearly a month.  Needless to say, my wife and I spent a lot of time at her bedside, only leaving for the occasional bathroom break and cafeteria meal run. On one of these occasions, a book vendor had set up a display of books and one of them caught my eye. The title? “Williams-Sonoma Complete Grilling Cookbook- The Best of Grilling and Outdoor Cooking”. This book is beautiful! What makes it stand out from another book I own is that it has magnificent pictures on almost every page, and with over 240 recipes to choose from, I seriously doubt any backyard chef would run out of ideas; for this reason alone, I had to have the book!

I purchased the book at over 75% off the cover price (normal price $50.85) and have since found it on Amazon.com in the new/used for about $15.00. I’ve tried several of the recipes in the cookbook, with many more to come, but to give you an example of one of my favorites, I’m chosing to share the “Smoked Hickory Rib Mop Sauce” (page 158).

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Posted by Chuck Posted in: Cookbooks 1 Comment » February 2008

Book Review: “The Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook”

For Christmas, I put several things on my wish list and, of course, at the top of this list were barbecue books related to the style of barbecue that I enjoy the most, “Texas Style Barbecue.”  Having this in mind, I chose to review a book I feel has a unique feel and great recipes for both the beginner and the seasoned pro. This book has become my go-to book for many receipes and methods for cooking delicious BBQ.  Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook, Recipes and Recollections from the Pit Bosses is written by Robb Walsh, a two-time winner of the James Beard Award, food critic and contributing author to numerous newspapers and magazines covering the subject of Texas food cusine.

What first catches your eye with this particular book is the cover. It has the look and feel of a book that I would expect to have found in my grandfather’s collection, tucked away with the pages dog-eared so you could easily find that one recipe or technique that you prize the most.  When you examine this book, you are drawn to the pictures of some of the first Pitt Masters, events and culture of the true pioneers of barbecue. In my opinion, any barbecue enthusiasts would treasure this book simply because of the pictures alone.

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Posted by Chuck Posted in: Cookbooks, Recipes 1 Comment » January 2008

Book Review: The Bacon Cookbook

Who doesn’t love the smell of fresh bacon cooking? Bacon is truly the only substance I know of that can wake an individual up from a deep sleep and have them craving the very thought of finding the aroma, and being happy that they woke up!  As for me?  I LOVE BACON!!  I think that this alone was the main reason I asked to evaluate the new book written by James Villas entitled “The Bacon Cookbook” (published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.) Read the rest of this article »

Posted by Chuck Posted in: Cookbooks No Comments » December 2007

Review: Legends of Texas Barbecue Cook Book

When you become addicted to the BBQ you tend to do a couple of things. First you talk to as many individuals as you can who are either successful in cooking BBQ or who consistently win in contests, and begin picking there brain hoping to find that one secret of success that would make you a big winner.Second, you find information in books written by the experts to help give the knowledge you wish to obtain within the written pages. With all the different styles and regions of the country that barbecue comes from there is no shortage of quality publications covering what ever style you enjoy the most.

And finally you search the internet hoping to find that knowledge on a website, blog or downloadable file. In most cases it’s the later that has brought you to “Get Your Grill On” looking for the valuable insight from the contributing authors here on our site.
This year I wanted more books on my favorite subject barbeque. But my request was a little narrow in scope since I wanted barbecue books that were related to the style of barbecue I enjoy the most, “Texas Style Barbecue”

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Posted by Chuck Posted in: Cookbooks No Comments » July 2007