Infuse (Oil, Spirit, Water)

For awhile now, I've wanted to learn how to infuse olive oil. It all started when I made a stop at a friend's house. We decided to have a salad along side dinner and she told me she got a bottle of Lemon Infused Olive Oil to try, so we decided to put it over the luscious greens. I was in Heaven.

Along came infuse. I was blown away by the different varieties of recipes for the oil, spirits, and water. I got excited when I read them because I wanted to try a lot of them. Now, some of them are super easy and only take a few hours to maybe a day to do. Some..take a little longer (we're talking weeks here, people). I haven't tried those yet.

My only downfall with this book is the fact that they have a special lid to use for a lot of them. Since they are made in mason jars (and I have 5 kazillion of them because I drink out of them like they are going out of style), I would have to purchase the lid. Or, I could cheat and use other containers that had the shaker lids. I haven't personally made any of the recipes yet, but I borrowed the book to a friend of mine that does a lot of her own mixed drinks. She said the recipes were really easy and easy to follow. She also mentioned that the pictures alone were making her hungry (or thirsty).

Looking forward to trying a lot of these myself and contiuing on my journey with being all domestic-y and making things myself instead of buying into Big Box America.

*NOTE* I received this book in return for an honest review for Blogging for Books. The views in this blog are my own personal opinions on product. I am not receiving any compensation for my reviews. 

The Sprouted Kitchen: Bowl + Spoon

I love food. I love cooking food. I love looking for new recipes, especially since I have started to eat a lot more clean.

I've never visited the Sprouted Kitchen before, until recently  when I found a recipe for Sprouted Bread. Then I happened to see this on Blogging for Books. You can never have too many cookbooks or recipes right??

When I first flipped through the book, I was starting to drool just from looking at the pictures. So, I immediately decided to sit down and take a closer look. Sara does a good job letting you know what kind of "staples" you'll need in order to do the recipes. It's mostly the basic kind of things from utensils to use and things to stock your pantry with, which most of the stuff I have already.

Most of the recipes seem very easy. There are a lot of new names, at least for me, of different kinds of recipes and items used in them. Some I think might be hard to find. Most of the stuff I can either find at my local grocer, farmer's market, or health/ whole food store. There is a great variety of things to try that will suit almost everyone's taste buds.

While I haven't tried all the recipes in the book, I did make a couple of them. I made the Golden Quinoa and Butternut Breakfast Bowl (two of my favorite things: quinoa and butternut squash). I had most of the things on hand already and just needed to pick up a couple things that I didn't have. The recipe instructions were very easy to follow and it was so tasty I probably could eat this every day for every meal.

I'm looking forward to trying my hand at making the ricotta cheese with goat's milk (while I know that COW milk is VERY BAD for you, I am not sure on goat milk, but I CANNOT give up my ricotta cheese, which I eat straight from the carton, or with fruit, or in massive amounts in my lasagna. So if I can do a healthier version, then so be it!

I would recommend this book to anyone that loves food and loves to cook.

**NOTE** I received this book from Blogging for Books (.org) in return for my honest review of the product.

The Loving Kitchen

Good, down-home cooking. That's what brings happy memories to my mind. And as this books suggests, most of the recipes remind me of times I've gone by friends houses, visiting my grandmother, or making them at home (I still cannot master making home made bread...maybe someday!)

A lot of the recipes were fairly easy to follow. Just looking at the ingredient lists, most of the stuff you have at home already. The instructions were easy to read too. There were a lot of the recipes I have used, or very similar to, so to me it reminded me of a regular "down-home" cookbook.

One thing that I notice about myself is I love to look at the pictures of the recipe being made. I get an idea of what the final product is supposed to look like. While there were probably plenty pictures for most people, I would have loved to have a picture of every recipe. Maybe that's why I love Pinterest so much. Finding the recipes, seeing what they look like, and then going to the person's blog and reading about the process and seeing the recipe in motion.

Overall, if you are looking for a good home cooking cookbook, you will like this one.

I Quit Sugar

Where do I begin? I happen to love sugar. I sympathize with you, Sarah, I really do. However....can I completely give up sugar all together?

When I first started reading this book, I thought I'd give it a shot. Now, I'm not so convinced that  I could ever do it. I love fruit and I adore honey (both of which have, you guessed it, sugar.) But I dug in and took a deep breath.

I like her honesty in the beginning. She was a sugar addict. I can't say that I am a sugar addict. I don't eat a lot of sweets, but I love fruit (as I said) as a snack. I never really ate a lot of candy, but there are lots of foods that have hidden sugars in them, and if you can make it yourself (almond milk...I love almond milk, and there can be lots of hidden sugars in almond milk from store bought brands. If you make it yourself, so much better. She includes a recipe in the book that seems fairly simple....)

The book starts out with stats about sugar and then goes in to an 8 week "sugar free detox". While there are lots of great tips, I don't think I'd EVER make it past day two without wanting a strawberry. I'm obsessed....I love strawberries. Sorry, Sarah.

Then, there are the 108 recipes. Oh my goodness, I want to try so many of these. I made a few and they are extremely simple. Sarah explains in the beginning of the book that she does not like to waste, likes simplicity, and doesn't consider herself much of a "cook". So the recipes have very few ingredients and are quick and easy. While I do this already, she shows you how the freezer will become your new best friend for stocking up on things. While people may feel it's more time consuming or expensive, in the long run, it's going to save you time and money when you freeze your own stocks and sauces.

I don't think I could quit sugar. While I'm going to incorporate a lot of these recipes in to my cooking and life to have a healthier body, mind, and spirit, I could never ever turn my back on my fruits and honey. But if you have the willpower and stamina, GO FOR IT! I'd love to hear your results. Sarah also has a website: I Quit Sugar that you can check out as a companion with the book.

**NOTE: All my views are mine alone. I am receieved this book from Blogging for Books in return for a fair and honest review of the product shown. I am not getting paid to review this book. **