Review: Vegangelical by Sarah Withrow King

Vegangelical: How Caring for Animals Can Shape Your Faith
 by Sarah Withrow King

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (June 7, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310522374
• ISBN-13: 978-0310522379
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x

 There are so few books that present a Christian answer to worldwide issues. The world tends to have spiritual takes on many situations, issues, etc but when a Christian attempts to write about a worldview, either the Christian sounds uninformed, utterly flaky, pseudo-Christian (or non-traditional/un-Orthodox), like a copy-cat jumping on some trendy bandwagon, or seriously arrogant and proudly-pious.  Those are a few of the reasons why I avoid reading Christian non-fiction.

Imagine my happy surprise when, after taking a leap of faith to read a Christian non-fiction book, that the book is incredibly well-done.

This is a book I want to give to my Native American friend who interprets Christianity as a nature-hating religion. A book that shows that our interpretation of certain verses about dominion/stewardship might very well be interpreted wrongly, but also a book that shows how loving the Christian God is toward all His creation.

The book is divided into two major parts. The first is theological and deals with theology, semantics, religious ethics. The doctrinal discussion is accessible but well-researched, coming together as conversational and passionate but grounded in Scripture.  It's such easy reading and could be read in an afternoon if one wished. Also the implications of the author's doctrinal stand are so clear that there is no confusion or inclination to debate the author. We Christians generally open Christian non-fiction books with one of two attitudes: either we are geared to disagree with the writer or we are geared to totally agree with them. Whichever kind of reader we are, this book will open our eyes and will definitely make us see some Bible verses with new eyes, and will make us notice others we hadn't seen before. There are a lot of verses to support the author's point but I did wish she had included a whole spate of verses in the back. I'm not an easy reviewer. But this book was worth my time. And the second part is about how we humans have treated animals.

I received this book free in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Review: Broth and Stock from the Nourished Kitchen

Broth and Stock from the Nourished Kitchen: Wholesome Master Recipes for Bone, Vegetable, and Seafood Broths and Meals to Make with Them 
by
Jennifer McGruther

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (May 31, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1607749319
• ISBN-13: 978-1607749318

Maybe I had a bad idea about broths. After all, the front cover of this book hints at the basics, and feeding sickly folks who can't keep down "real" food. Luckily, the back cover shows that the book is more than just for invalids.

This little book will probably be treasured by those who buy it. It contains recipes for broths that can become foundations for other meals and it has lots of helpful nutritional information.


The Table of Contents are:
Introduction
Broth maker's kitchen
Master broths and stocks
Poultry
Meat
Fish
Vegetables
Where to shop
Bibliography
Measurement conversion chart
Gratitude
Index

I liked this book a lot. It's definitely informative and contrary to the impression given by the cover, this book doesn't only have broth and stock recipes. It's got some really great stews and chowders as well. Like every good recipe book, this book generates ideas. For instance, it has never occurred to me to take soft peas and make a veggie soup out of them. Nor did I really know what to do with veggies in my fridge to turn them into a good soup or vegetable stock. And although I'm always boiling hamburger for my son, it never occurred to me that instead of boiling down the water I could actually make a beef broth. The use of vegetables, seafood, meat, and poultry makes this recipe book perfect for everyone.

I've got to say that this is also one incredibly well-written recipe book. Very MFA. But not pretentious, and not inaccessible. Just well-written.

I recommend this book for all cooks: those interested in good nutrition, those who want to add tasty recipes to their repertoire, and those who want to learn how to cook.

I received this book for free in exchange for  fair and honest review.
                              

Review: The Elements of Pizza

The Elements of Pizza: Unlocking the Secrets to World-Class Pies at Home Hardcover – April 19, 2016

by Ken Forkish (Author)

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (April 19, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160774838X
• ISBN-13: 978-1607748380

The Elements of Pizza is a new book that shows the history, making, and varieties of pizza -- traditional and artsy.

I seriously now know more about the history of pizza and the making of pizza than I ever dreamed of. The question is, of course, "Will I commit to all this knowledge?" I mean, that's what knowledge is about, right? Just how much of one's learning one actually uses.
For instance, in the section on dough-making, detail four states, "Mix your pizza dough by hand, not by a machine." So yeah, I won't use a machine. But....Sorry, I'm not going to be making pizza dough by hands either. I am just that lazy. Neither do I see myself getting perturbed over the varieties of good pizza cheeses. I might buy some of the recommended equipment though.

The chapters are:
The Soul of Pizza
Pizza Styles
Eight Details for Great Pizza Crust
Ingredients and Equipment
Methods
Pizza Dough Recipes -- with subchapters: Saturday Doughs, Refrigerated Long Doughs, Naturally Leavened Doughs, Specialty Doughs
Pizza Recipes -- with sub-chapters: Sauces, Italian and Italian Inspired, New York and New York Inspired, Ken's Artisan Pizza Classics, Trifecta Flatbreads, Vegetables and Just Because
Measurement Conversion Charts
Acknowledgments
Index

The book has many wonderful photo illustrations (although for some reason at least one of these photos was repeated, which seemed odd to me.) Like any great recipe book, the photos are often enough to spur a cook's creativity. But still, all that said, the recipes are very detailed. I'd almost say a tad too detailed. I prefer all the steps of a recipe to be given as distinct different steps. The writer of these recipes numbers each steps of the recipe yet each step is often a collection of two to three different steps lumped into one. This makes prospective cooks have to re-read each numbered step. I would've liked things broken down a bit more so I could easily tick off each step.

I'm a lover of pizza but I simply refuse to make dough. I tend to buy dough made from the store. So the sections in this book that showed how to make various doughs is totally lost on me. I will however use their sauce recipes. The fun of this book for me is that it widens my horizons about what kind of stuff I can add on top of the dough. But for people who want to experiment with making traditional and perfect pizza, this is the perfect book.

For people who like their foods healthy and who wish to avoid processed foods or foods they are allergic to, for folks who want varieties in their pizza, and to folks who want to avoid processed foods and for folks who want to stop eating out so much.

So I recommend this book, especially if you're a baker or if you fear casein, soy flour, etc in your pizza. You'll also learn how to make your own version of traditional pizzas. Which is always good. Store bought pizzas are generally pretty crappy.

I got this book free in exchange for a fair and honest review.