It was so amazing to hold my very own copy in my hands! I have been following The Yellow Table blog for a while and had seen Anna’s cookbook dream slowly come to life. I love how she decided to make her dream come true, after reading a sign with the following quote: “You can make a wish or you can make it happen”.  When she started a Kickstarter campaign to finance the self-publishing of her cookbook, I had to support her and order a copy! And now, many months later, I get this copy in the mail. The book is so so so gorgeous and it is so amazing to have followed her creation process over the past year! Anna is a true inspiration to follow our dreams and make them come true! When I opened the book, a lovely hand written note from Anna fell out, she is so incredibly sweet and thoughtful!

Everything she did to create this book is so amazing. First, she collaborated with food photographer Signe Birck to get gorgeous photographs of each recipe. She also borrowed beautiful props, linens and rustic wooden floor samples from local stores, which is such an ingenious way to have awesome sets and backgrounds for your food photographs at a low cost! You can read more about her cookbook writing process in her Cookbook Diaries, where she documented the behind-the-scene of creating a cookbook during 100 days. Without waiting any longer, here is my review of this amazing book. I also tested 3 recipes and am sharing the results below.

The Yellow Table Cookbook Review

1. Overall Impression

The lovely Yellow Table Cookbook has a gorgeous hard cover that makes this book perfect for your coffee table. The layout of this book is gorgeous, with a full page picture for each recipe. This is the perfect cookbook to inspire you to host delicious meal gatherings. The last chapter of the book offers hosting tips and menus to help with planning when you are receiving guests for a meal. All the recipes included in the book are fairly simple, with super clear instructions and incredibly appetizing photos. It is such a joy to turn each page of this book, it definitely makes me hungry!

2. Book Layout

The book is broken down into 11 chapters, starting with the story of the yellow table and how this cookbook came to be. Then, there is a short but really interesting chapter about wine pairings, written by sommelier Jean-Luc Le Dû.  The following chapter provices basic guidelines about how to use the book and Anna’s food philosophy. Then, there are 7 chapters of recipes and finally, the last chapter of the book brings everything together with tasty menu ideas. I love that there are a lot of gluten-free and vegan recipes in this book, even though it is not entirely dedicated to these types of food.

Here is the list of the 11 chapters included in the book:

• introduction (story of yellow table);
• wine pairing 101;
• how to use this book
• sunrise
• snacks
• soups & stews
• salads & sides
• sandwiches & such
• simple suppers
• sweets
• gatherings

3. Recipe Testing

My cookbook review would not be complete without the results of my recipe testing! As soon as I opened this book, I flagged too many recipe that just looked so appealing and that I wanted to try right away! The morning after receiving the book in the mail, I started cooking right away! Here are the three recipes I tested so far.

I made my first recipe for breakfast and just had to try those gluten-free blue cornmeal waffles. These waffles turned our amazing, with a crisp texture and nutty flavour, just as Anna described it in her book! I made them as outlined in the book and found the instruction so well laid out and easy to follow. I served those waffles for breakfast with a quick frozen fruit jam that I prepared while the waffles were cooking.

The second recipe I tested were these Spicy Maple-Rosemary Cocktail Nuts. Since the holidays are approaching quickly, I wanted to try this recipe; I thought these would make the perfect snack to have on hand when guests arrive. I was not disappointed, this is such an amazing recipe. The nuts are super crunchy, sweet, savoury and spicy. They are truly addictive and it is definitely a recipe that I will make again!

Finally, the third recipe I tried was a Tomato-Chickpea Curry. This vegan dish was really tasty and satisfying, although I added a bit more spices than what was required in the recipe, because I love it spicy! This dish was perfect to bring for lunches during the week, I brought some 3 days this week and it was as good when re-heated than when fresh. The flavours are delicious.

Other recipes that are high up on my to do list are the Lemon-Parsley Tahini Dip, Tuscan White Bean Soup with Swiss Chard, Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with Roasted Summer Vegetables, Gluten-Free Almond Cake with Lavender Honey and Flourless Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Coulis… just to name just a few!

4. Overall Rating

I can see that Anna put a lot of passion into this cookbook and it is truly exceptional. I love the beautiful layout, gorgeous pictures, simple recipes and lovely menu planning ideas. It is just such a well rounded cookbook that is perfect to inspire every home cook to host their friends and families for a delicious meal. This cookbook is also such an inspiration, as it is the tangible proof that Anna realized her dream, and it makes me believe that one day, I will also be able to realize mine! Thank you Anna for being such an inspiration!

Below are my thoughts on this beautiful and artistic recipe book. I also tested 3 recipes and am sharing the results below.

The Forest Feast Cookbook Review

1. Overall Impression

The Forest Feast is a unique piece of art that you will want to display on your coffee table. From the colourful watercolour food art to the handwritten recipes and gorgeous photographs, every single page is just so inspiring. The recipes are really simple and beautifully displayed, you just want to try them all! The ingredients used in the book are also easy to find. This is the perfect book to get ideas for entertaining people or simply for making a quick and colourful meal. The recipes are so simple yet so creative and they are great to help you plan your menu for a dinner party or picnic. I am so impressed by the amount of work and creativity that Erin put into this book, it is a true gem.

2. Book Layout

The book is broken down into 8 chapters, starting with an introduction which describes Erin’s story and some useful tips about the book. The introduction is short and sweet and quickly lead us into the recipes.

There are 5 recipe chapters in this book:

• Appetizers;
• Cocktails;
• Salads;
• Vegetable Dishes; and
• Sweets.

Each chapter begins with a short two page overview of each recipe included in the section, with a brief description of each dish. Then we go into the creative space where the recipes are tastefully presented. Each recipe covers a two page spread. The left page contains the recipe, which is made of a photograph in the background where Erin used watercolour, handwriting and typewriter to write each recipe in a simple and creative way. The right page shows a picture of the finished dish.

Each recipe is styled in a very earthy, natural and simple manner. Erin photographs many of her recipes in her backyard, which consist of a redwood forest in California. The pictures not only make you hungry but also make you dream about beautiful lush forests! You can even get a glimpse of Erin’s life in the various lifestyle pictures included throughout the book.

I am amazed at Erin’s immense talent in photography and food styling. This book is an inspiration.

3. Recipe Testing

I prepared 3 recipes from this cookbook. Overall, the instructions are fairly easy to follow. The only downside is that there is no separate ingredient list. The ingredients are listed throughout the instruction so you need to check the recipe a few times before cooking to ensure you have everything you need. However, each recipe is so short that it if fairly simple to do. 

First, I made the apricot bites for an appetizer that I wanted to bring at a dinner. These are so simple to make, yet so original! The surprising combination of flavours was just perfect and they were great to take on the road!

The second recipe I tested was another easy appetizer that I served with the apricots. I made the gorgonzola grapes, except that I used the same goat cheese that I had for the apricots above. The recipe worked wonderfully! This was another super quick, simple yet very unique recipe that was packed with flavour. These crispy grapes were a hit at the dinner party!

Finally, the third recipe I made from this book was the Kale Caesar with Polenta Croutons. The take on ceasar salad is different and perfect for a gluten-free version of this traditional salad. The greek yogurt dressing was delicious, but I am not sold on the texture of the flat-leaf kale used instead of romaine lettuce. The flavours in the salad was delicious, but the kale stayed too rubbery for my taste. I would definitely try this recipe again, but I would substitute the kale for the more traditional romaine lettuce or spinach… I guess I might be more of a traditional caesar type of person! But believe me, it was still very tasty.

4. Overall Rating

Without a doubt, The Forest Feast will be on my coffee table for a long time. It is just so inspiring to flip through each page. Every visitor who saw this book on my coffee table was just so impressed by its creativity and beauty. The concept is unique and the recipes are simple. You can prepare the recipes with just a few ingredients. Most of them are fresh summer recipes that can be made on a busy evening when you need to entertain a crowd. I can’t wait to make more of Erin’s simple vegetarian recipes from her cabin in the woods.

Note: This post is not sponsored. The opinions expressed in this post are my own.

My dream one day is to write my very own cookbook! In the meantime, while I develop my recipe writing and food photography skills through this blog, I thought I would start a series of posts to share my notes and review some of the recipe books in my library. I have over 100 cookbooks and hope to be able to review some of the staple ones that I always go back to.

I was inspired by the amazing book reviews from Paleolland. When I read her review about the Paleo Chocolate Lover’s Cookbook, I was just so excited about the book that I purchased it right after reading her review! So, I thought I would also share my thoughts on some of the cookbooks I love, to hopefully inspire you to read some of the amazing ones out there.

For my first cookbook review, I decided to share my thoughts about a new book that I had been waiting to get for a while and was so excited about: the amazing Oh She Glows Cookbook by Angela Liddon.

The Oh She Glows Cookbook is the first book from the author of the very famous vegan blog Oh She Glows, which is definitely up there in the food blog world! Angela Liddon shares her love for whole healthy food by creating unique vegan recipes and highlighting their beauty with gorgeous photographs! No wonder she gets millions of visitors each month. Her website is definitely one of my favourite and I read it on a regular basis.

I can tell you that I was so excited when I heard she was working on her first cookbook! I couldn’t wait to see her creation and pre-ordered it as soon as it was possible (with the pre-order, I even received an amazing free bundle of 10 beautiful recipes). After a few long months of waiting, I finally received the book and have to say that I absolutely love it! The Oh She Glows Cookbook lived up to my high expectations (and even surpassed them).

So here is my review of this amazing book. I also tested 4 recipes and am sharing the results below.

Oh She Glows Cookbook Review

1. Overall Impression

From looking at the book cover, you can tell that this book is going to be special. The book is simply gorgeous on the outside, and when you open it, it only gets better: the layout of the book is so beautiful, practical and easy to follow.  The book is filled with full page photographs which give you a great idea of what the recipes look like. Angela has a great writing style and her book is very captivating. From her personal story and journey to health to an appetizing description and detailed instructions for each recipe, each page is just so fascinating. I seriously could not put the book down and read through it all in one sitting.

2. Book Layout

The book is broken down into 13 chapters, starting with an overview of a natural foods pantry and staple kitchen tools and equipment. These chapters provide a great insight into the ingredients and tools that are to be used in the recipe book. I love how Angela personalizes the description of these items and includes her personal stories on some of them.

After these sections come the delicious recipes. There are 10 chapters containing recipes, including:

• breakfast;
• smoothies, juice & tea;
• appetizers;
• salads;
• soup;
• entrées;
• sides;
• power snacks;
• desserts; and
• homemade staples.

There is a full-page photograph for each recipe included in the book, and they all make me feel hungry. I love how all the accessories and props used in the photographs are colour coordinated and make the book really feel whole and integrated.

If I had to pick my favourite chapters, I would choose the power snacks and homemade staples since all the recipes in these two chapters are so great and useful, and you don’t often find these topics in all recipe books.

Finally, Angela included a short chapter on basic cooking charts where she provides guidance on how to cook certain grains. The guidance is presented in a very easy to use table, which is such a great idea when you only need a quick reminder.

3. Recipe Testing

And now here is the real test : I prepared 4 recipes from this cookbook. Overall, the instructions for the recipes were extremely well written and detailed – I did not have to wonder if I should leave the cover on while cooking, or whether I should incorporate all the oil at once, all the steps were there. By simply following the detailed instructions , I was able to get four successful and tasty recipes that looked like the pictures I saw in the book (although my pictures are not as nice, the foods are pretty similar).

First, I made the Classic Glo Bar from the Power Snack chapter. This is a granola bar that Angela used to sell on her website. I feel so honoured that she shared it with her readers! This recipe is amazing! I love the taste and they are super simple and quick to prepare. I made them at 5am one morning before heading to work and had a great snack to keep me going during the day. That weekend, I had some friends visiting and they also really loved them! I even brought some to the SeaBerry Workshop I was giving that weekend with my friend Paula and all the comments were positive!

The second recipe I tested was one of the homemade staples: Grapeseed Mayonnaise. I have always wanted to try to make mayonnaise and was especially intrigued by this recipe for a vegan mayonnaise. The recipe turned out perfectly! I was so impressed at how easy it was to make and how good the result was! I will definitely try to keep a jar of this mayonnaise in my fridge at all times! The picture of my Grapeseed Mayonnaise is below, in the Mason jar next to the Chickpea Salad Sandwich.

For my third recipe, I used the homemade Grapeseed Mayonnaise to make Angela’s Perfected Chickpea Salad Sandwich. Instead of making a sandwich, I served  it with gluten-free bread as an open face “tartine”. I really love the mixture of textures, with crunchy veggies and soft chickpeas, which are bound together with the creamy homemade vegan mayonnaise. I made the recipe and then kept the leftover in the fridge, which makes a great snack. I even ate some for breakfast and it was so tasty… yes, breakfast… if you did not know that about me, I love to eat savoury food for breakfast, and I also love leftovers for breakfast! I am a true believer that breakfast is the most important meal of the day so I love to start my day with a protein filled meal!

Finally, I was intrigued by the Life-Affirming Warm Nacho Dip so I decided to give it a try. Believe me, I now understand where the name comes from! It is definitely the best nacho dip I ever tried in my life and you cannot tell there is no dairy in it. My husband and I ate the dip with corn chips and it is definitely something that would be amazing to bring to a dinner party. We will definitely be making this again and again!

4. Overall Rating

Without a doubt, Angela’s cookbook is extraordinary! It so well organized, well written, cohesive, and has beautiful photographs. In addition, the recipes are very creative and so delicious! If you love healthy and vibrant vegan food, I truly recommend having a look at the Oh She Glows Cookbook, all the recipes I tried were so delicious and I can’t wait to try some more!

The small caption on the cover (vegan recipes to glow from the inside out) definitely applies to both the recipes and the cookbook. They are all just glowing and I really can’t wait for perhaps another cookbook from Angela!