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punkeymonkey529's review against another edition
4.0
This is a review for Quirk Books as part of their blogger team. Thank you guys.
First I was going to add a video along with this of me semi-preparing one of the recipes, and a review of it..but I recorded it on my tablet, and well I'm not to good with videos. The file was too big for all the editing software I tried. (I admit I didn't try very hard with editing the video,but it's not the most important thing. I can still put in my word about it. :) ) I did only cook one thing from the book right now, I'll make more later.
OK, I made Karen Haper's Zucchini Bread. I chose this because it was cheap,easy,and well I like zucchini. I did really enjoy it. As I was making it I kept thinking I was doing something wrong, and prayed it would turn out correctly. When I pulled it out of the oven I was glad it came out. The only issue I had was it stuck to the bottom of the pan a little. I did grease it like I was supposed to, but like I said I'm just not the baker type really.
I also made quite a mess making it. Book is already soiled...oops. well it's a cookbook that's going to happen.
I flipped through the book, and was really impressed. I was trying not to drool over some of the pictures of the stuff I would eat. Some stuff I know I wont make, just either I won't eat it, or well I also don't have anyone to cook for in general.
This book is really well laid out into categories,and many well known authors have put in their favorite recipes. Pick this up if you're hungry. preferably for food. Feed your hungry for murder and mystery with food inspired by your favorite authors,and feed your hungry for murder and mystery with a book from your favorite mystery author.
oddandbookish's review against another edition
4.0
I received this book for free through BookLikes' giveaways.
This is a fun cookbook filled with a variety of different recipes from mystery writers. There are also little tidbits abut food and crime novels. I enjoyed those little tidbits. I haven't tried any of the recipes but I might do so sometime in the distant future.
This is a fun cookbook filled with a variety of different recipes from mystery writers. There are also little tidbits abut food and crime novels. I enjoyed those little tidbits. I haven't tried any of the recipes but I might do so sometime in the distant future.
taymwoods's review against another edition
5.0
Definitely must check out Lisa Scottline's tomato sauce and James Patterson's chocolate cake recipes!!
alicea's review against another edition
4.0
I've marked several recipes to try for my next party and I've learned heaps of trivia about food and famous mystery writers (and characters). For instance, did you know that you can use milk as a kind of invisible ink? (You know I'm going to have try this out now.) Fans of Agatha Christie won't be surprised to learn that the author used poison in over half of her 66 novels as the murder weapon. These were usually hidden in food or drinks such as coffee, marmalade, and even curry. Each of the recipes contains a short blurb about the author, a famous mystery character, and the food item itself. There are some really hilarious ones such as Sue Grafton's 'Kinsey Millhone's Famous Peanut Butter & Pickle Sandwich'. It was so funny that I'm determined I'll try it at least once. The best one, however, might be the last one of the book: Lee Child's 'Coffee, Pot of One'. Now THAT is a recipe I can get behind. ;-) Bottom line: If you're a foodie and/or a mystery enthusiast then The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook is the one for you. It goes on sale March 24th! :-)
ihuntsnarks's review against another edition
4.0
I'm still laughing over "Male Chauvinist Pigs in a Blanket".
hrhacissej's review against another edition
3.0
This cookbook is a very good community cookbook. Like most community cookbooks...I suspect that there was no recipe testing done (be careful of the lemon poppyseed recipe - it doesn't include the flour measurement) prior to printing. But...you've probably bought it because the organization that produced it is near and dear to your heart and because there is that one recipe that "insert name here" brings to every potluck that always draws you back for seconds.
If you enjoy reading mysteries (and cooking!), then you'll enjoy this book. I think it is the most delightful cookbook that I've ever read. Each author's intro to their recipe is charming. The layout is ideal...most recipes are limited to one page. The recipes that require 2 pages are facing pages. I'd appreciate a larger font size, but then I'm sure that would mean more recipes would be multiple pages. I'd also appreciate more photos of the finished recipes.
There is a large selection of recipes (including beverages! and slow cooker options!) I made Edith Maxwell's Local Leek Tart and Karin Slaughter's Cathy's Coke Roast. Both recipes included easy to find ingredients, and the directions were easy to follow. A caveat...the directions are suitable for experienced/confident cooks...cooking times are not always paired with visual prompts.
I enjoyed the tart more than the roast. The roast needed more flavor from spices, and the vegetables were pretty grey by the end of the cooking time. I used a tri tip roast which definitely needed gravy.
I sampled the Gooey Butter Cake, Grandma's Killer Chocolate Cake, and Farfalle with Fennel and Pine Nuts at the Maze Library cookbook discussion and enjoyed all of them.
If you enjoy reading mysteries (and cooking!), then you'll enjoy this book. I think it is the most delightful cookbook that I've ever read. Each author's intro to their recipe is charming. The layout is ideal...most recipes are limited to one page. The recipes that require 2 pages are facing pages. I'd appreciate a larger font size, but then I'm sure that would mean more recipes would be multiple pages. I'd also appreciate more photos of the finished recipes.
There is a large selection of recipes (including beverages! and slow cooker options!) I made Edith Maxwell's Local Leek Tart and Karin Slaughter's Cathy's Coke Roast. Both recipes included easy to find ingredients, and the directions were easy to follow. A caveat...the directions are suitable for experienced/confident cooks...cooking times are not always paired with visual prompts.
I enjoyed the tart more than the roast. The roast needed more flavor from spices, and the vegetables were pretty grey by the end of the cooking time. I used a tri tip roast which definitely needed gravy.
I sampled the Gooey Butter Cake, Grandma's Killer Chocolate Cake, and Farfalle with Fennel and Pine Nuts at the Maze Library cookbook discussion and enjoyed all of them.
aleesquer's review against another edition
5.0
This is the perfect book for anyone slightly morbid, mystery novel obsessed, or even vaguely interested in cooking. Not only is the actual book beautiful (the cover made me swoon when I opened the box, and the photograph of the rum-soaked french toast makes me feel both faint of heart and full of joy whenever I flip to it), but the recipes are wonderful (at least, the terrible cook in me believes them to be so). They are beautifully described, carefully chosen, and, best of all, each comes with an introduction by the writer who made it (including one written from the POV of Richard Castle, from the TV show Castle). My favorite part though, is definitely the sections in between the recipes, though that may be the writer in me overcoming the cook. Each section (breakfast, appetizers, and so forth) has an intro page with a funny (and dark, obviously) comment, and there are also informative sections sprinkled throughout the book, mostly detailing mystery novel tropes (red herrings, to name one) and the use of poisons ("Pretty Poisons, Right in Your Garden" is oddly specific, and shockingly helpful for any fan or writer of mystery novels).
To sum it up, this is an altogether lovely book. Buy it for yourself! Buy it for all of your friends! Maybe just don't buy it for any chefs you know... those informational sections can be a little tempting to anyone seeking revenge, or so I would suspect.
To sum it up, this is an altogether lovely book. Buy it for yourself! Buy it for all of your friends! Maybe just don't buy it for any chefs you know... those informational sections can be a little tempting to anyone seeking revenge, or so I would suspect.
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