The Conscious Kitchen: The New Way to Buy and Cook Food - to Protect the Earth, Improve Your Health, and Eat Deliciously Review

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(More customer reviews)You know, it is not often that you can change your entire life in a month. However, around here, we have basically done just that. This all began with a simple book called The Conscious Kitchen from Alexandra Zissu...
First off, I have to admit, while I always felt guilty about it, I was not very environmentally conscious. When my youngest was born almost 5 years ago, I realized her birthday coincided with some cool Earth Day festivities in our town. So, I paid a bit more attention. You know how once you "see" something, you see it everywhere? Well, I had that going on. So, I visited health food stores and began attempting to recycle.
Sadly, I have to admit, my feeble attempts to get "greener" never lasted. I have 5 kids and making drastic grocery changes seemed so hard...so maybe that played a role? Is it because I am ADD? Oh, and we are not rich or really hippie, so maybe that was it? In my mind, I rationalized all kinds of reasons why I could not be more environmentally concerned.
Then I read Alexandra Zissu's book, The Conscious Kitchen. And I changed. Because...well, I could. I suddenly got it. Now, I am just sorry I did not understand some of the concepts earlier. I feel bad that I was not one of the pioneers. Because this is worth doing and it is not hard anymore.
I totally recommend reading her book (You can buy it on Amazon, here). The clear writing with specific examples about how to have great tasting food and maintain a green and healthy kitchen made going green the most natural thing in the world for us!


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Your everyday food choices can change the world—and make meals taste better than ever For anyone who has read The Omnivore's Dilemma or seen Food, Inc. and longs to effect easy green changes when it comes to the food they buy, cook, and eat, The Conscious Kitchen is an invaluable resource filled with real world, practical solutions. Alexandra Zissu walks readers through every kitchen-related decision with three criteria in mind: what's good for personal health, what's good for the planet, and what tastes great. Learn, among other things, how to: - Keep pesticides, chemicals, and other harmful ingredients out of your diet- Choose when to spend your dollars on organic fruit and when to buy conventionally grown- Avoid plastic—including which kinds in particular and why- Figure out what seafood is safe to eat and is sustainable- Use COOL (country of origin labels) to your advantage- Determine if a vegetable is genetically modified just from reading its PLU (price look up) code- Decipher meat labels in the supermarket- Cook using the least energy—good for the earth and your wallet- Eat locally, even in winter - Understand what "natural" and other marketing terms really mean- Buy packaged foods wisely Navigate farmers' markets, giant supermarkets, and every shop in between to find the freshest and healthiest local ecologically grown and produced meat, dairy, fruits, and vegetables—no matter where you live With The Conscious Kitchen as your guide, you will never again stand in the market bewildered, wondering what to buy. You can feel confident you are making the best possible choices for you, your family, and our planet. ALEXANDRA ZISSU writes about green living, food, and parenthood. She is the author of The Conscious Kitchen, coauthor of The Complete Organic Pregnancy, and contributes the "Ask an Organic Mom" column to The DailyGreen.com. Her stories have appeared in The New York Times, The Green Guide, Cookie, Details, Bon Appétit, Self, and Health, among other publications. She is also a public speaker and "greenproofer," an eco-lifestyle consultant. Visit her website, www.alexandrazissu.com.

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My Bombay Kitchen: Traditional and Modern Parsi Home Cooking Review

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(More customer reviews)I received my order of "My Bombay Kitchen: Traditional and Modern Parsi Home Cooking - Niloufer Ichaporia King."
I STRONGLY recommend this book. My wife is Parsi, and I enjoy cooking Parsi cuisine (along with many other cuisines, but Parsi cuisine is a favorite) and have a number of books on the subject, so I looked at how she treated some recipies I had already done, Patrel and Dhansak Masala. I've visited where my wife grew up in Bombay on M Karve Road near the Eros theater. There I also enjoyed Goan cuisine (my wife's 'nannys' were Goan and are superb cooks of both Goan and Parsi cuisine). Reading this book made you feel like you were back in Bombay learning a cuisine at the hands of someone who had mastered the cuisine and was gracious and competent enough to be teaching it to you with the clarity and style of a master teacher. Clearly this book is written by a Parsi in America, paying attention to the difficulties of obtaining certain ingredients, noting appropriate substitutions, yet showing the knowledge that could only come from someone who had been a part of the culture in Bombay - maintaining a most authentic result. The book isn't simply a collection of exquisitely presented recipies demonstrating exemplarary versions of those recipies, but the recipies are presented within the cultural context of the Parsi traditions, noting the culinary likes and dislikes of Parsis, what are mainstays of the tradition, etc etc. Delightfully written - a pleasure to read (excellent editing) and a clear presentation of information that I've struggled to get elsewhere.
Dhansak Masala is a complex spice mixture composed of dhana jiru and sambhar masala, each complex mixtures in their own right, with endless variations as numerous as there are cooks. I have searched high and low on the internet for these recipies only to find ones far more mediocre than the excellent verrsion she has presented in this book.
Her explanation of making Patrel would have saved me endless hours trying to find out that Colocasia leaves are actually taro root leaves. She lays out the techniques in a clear style reminiscent of Julia Child of exactly how to assemble this dish. I know that reading each recipe cover to cover will be a treasure trove of information.
I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that if you have an interest in Parsi or even Indian or Persian cuisine, this is a must have for your collection.
I really couldn't recommend a cookbook more highly. I'm not alone either - she is strongly recommended by Alice Waters, who wrote the forward of this book, famous for her restaurant in Berkeley, Chez Panisse and a major influence to cooks everywhere on the use and incorporation of local fresh ingredients being used in her food preparations. Also Paula Wolfert, who has written an excellent book on Moroccan Cuisine among her many accomplishments, and Dianne Kennedy, whose Mexican cookbook is a classial reference of Mexican cuisine. And other esteemed chefs and editors. I really couldn't be in better company in recommending a book.
Finally, my ultimate critic of my cooking, my wife, has been absolutely delighted by the recipies in this book, partiularly the Parsi scrambled egg recipe.

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