I Like Food, Food Tastes Good: In the Kitchen with Your Favorite Bands Review

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(More customer reviews)"I Like Food, Food Tastes Good: In the Kitchen with your Favorite Bands" is an indie-rock cookbook that features recipes from groups like the Violent Femmes, They Might Be Giants, Calexico and Death Cab For Cutie. (These four bands also happen to be the only contributors I'd heard of, but people much cooler than I will likely recognize the other musicians.) The 105 recipes in this book are varied and range from "Big Apple Quiche Muffins" in the "Breakfast" chapter to "Wild Boar Ragu" in the "Main Courses for Carnivores" chapter. I've had the book for a little over two weeks and have made an adapted version of the "Asian Stir-Fry for Vegetarians Who Hate Vegetables," the oatmeal cake pictured above, a pear and goat cheese panini, and eggplant parmesan, which I baked instead of frying as the recipe recommends. I was pleased with how these meals turned out and was especially grateful for their "easy on the effort" approach. Other recipes range from down-home comfort food like mac and cheese, to playfully titled drinks like "Patriot Act Mojitos," made with fresh mint, sparkling water, Cuban rum and sugar, among other things. For the health-conscious there are several 'healthy alternative' recipes, for instance, cookies made with powdered green tea and vegan chocolate chip cookies. And for the adventurous, the "Strawberry Pop Cake," which is made with strawberry soda and Jell-O, promises an interesting afternoon in the kitchen. Overall this is a good little cookbook with recipes that can be made when you're short on time and that can easily be modified to suit your tastes. It also begins to answer the question: What do musicians eat when they're on the road?
There are two things about this book that I wasn't too thrilled about. First, a handful of recipes are plagued by some of the worst writing I have ever seen - ever. I understand that the musicians who wrote them are artists and infinitely more hip than I will ever be, but I ask you, who publishes instructions like this: "...add a little bit of cream!! And STIRRRRRR!!!!... SIR LAWRENCE OF ARABIA!... THEN, put it on the frying pan!!!! let it get GOLDEN!!!" I mean, seriously, either this guy was on something or the recipe is so out-of-this-world that T. E. Lawrence came back from the dead to try it. (That's the only way I could get my head round the Arabia connection.) Thankfully recipes like this are few and far between, and the one quoted above, for "Africanitas Ricas," was the worst offender. The only other thing I wasn't too keen on was the inclusion of a recipe for a bologna sandwich, but if part of this book's purpose is bringing the artists to the people then I suppose it isn't so bad. "Rock can get complicated," the text reads, "but this sandwich isn't. Feed to those who are living the dream." I can dig that.
In addition to the aforementioned chapters, sections include: "Soups, Sides and Starters," "Sandwiches," "Main Courses for Vegetarians," "Drinks" and "Desserts." Whatever your musical tastes this book has something for everyone and is worth checking out. And if you happen to be an indie-music lover? All the better.

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