Southern Living Christmas Cookbook

作者:Editors of Southern Living Magazine

页数:288

出版时间:2008-10

价格:CDN$ 35.95

isbn号码:9780848732295

具体描述

Throwing a party--big or small, simple or extravagant--just got easier. Whether you're planning your first big holiday celebration or your twentieth, you'll find this memory-making treasury an invaluable hospitality guide for all occasions. Over 350 recipes, 32 menus, and nearly 250 color photographs team up to make this the ultimate holiday entertaining guide. Take the guesswork out of meal planning with complete menus and time-saving game plans-one for every menu. Make entertaining a joy with casual-fare menus, for when you're entertaining family and close friends, and more dressed-up menus, for when you want to go all out. You'll love the make-ahead ease of the Harvest Fare menu that features "Bourbon-Glazed Ham" and "Out-of-this-World Scalloped Potatoes." The Easygoing, Family Breakfast, with its "Breakfast Pizza" and "Cheesy Baked Grits," will delight the entire family. Don't miss the Coffee and Chocolate Party that offers such indulgences as "Mocha Fondue," in addition to tips on setting up a coffee bar. The Classic Christmas Dinner, with its entree choice of "Marinated Cornish Hens" or "Marinated Turkey Breast," will have you preparing this meal year-round rather than waiting for Christmas Day You'll be ready for every Yuletide event with menus for brunches, buffets, and cocktail parties, as well as a New Year's Day feast. A full-to-overflowing "Holiday Cooking" section encompasses every food category from appetizers and beverages to main dishes and sides; there are breads, as well as cakes, pies, and candies. Treats for Early Risers gives you at-a-glance breakfast and brunch ideas, from "Basic Buttery Biscuits" to "Bananas Foster French Toast" and cute, little"Mini Sausage-and-Egg Casseroles" baked in coffee mugs. You'll refer again and again to Simple Supper Solutions as a year-round source for family-friendly dishes. Whether it's "Fiesta Turkey Soup" and "Green Chili Biscuits" or Spicy "Coleslaw Reubens," you'll discover a treasure trove of easy weeknight meals. Convenient prep and cook times are listed with every recipe to help you plan ahead. A bonus gift section--"5 Ingredient 15 Minute Gifts From the Kitchen"--shares a dozen quick-and-easy gifts from the heart of the home. Each recipe either has just 5 ingredients or takes only 15 minutes to prepare--and some feature both. Colorful photos show simple packaging ideas, so whether it's "Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix" or "Red-and-Green Pistachio Bark," you'll have delicious solutions to satisfy everyone on your gift list. Be sure to check out the "Holiday Entertaining Guide" for inspiring table-setting ideas, hostess tips, and a special selection of 12 year-round, all-occasion, mix-and-match menu ideas that will have you in good standing for party planning any season of the year.

用户评价

我必须承认，我最初对这本书的期望值其实是比较高的，毕竟“Southern Living”这个名字本身就带有一定的权威性，但真正翻阅后，我发现它在某些环节的处理上显得有些保守和传统，这对于追求创新的读者来说，可能略显不足。比如，在饮品方面，虽然有几款经典的蛋酒和潘趣酒配方，但缺乏真正具有现代感或国际融合风味的创新性饮品。我期待能看到一些融入热带水果或者更偏向于无酒精鸡尾酒的创意，但这本书的重点似乎还是紧紧围绕着那些最经典的、不容置疑的南方节日元素。此外，对于素食或纯素食读者的考量，在主菜部分似乎也略显单薄，大多时候需要读者自行脑补如何用蔬菜替代肉类，而没有提供像样的独立素食圣诞大餐的解决方案。虽然经典很重要，但适当加入一些能适应现代多元饮食习惯的变体，会让这本书的适用范围更广，更有竞争力。

我作为一个烹饪新手，对那些动辄需要花费一整天时间准备的复杂菜肴通常望而却步，但这本书给我的感觉完全不同。它的难易度划分似乎考虑得非常周到。我尝试了其中一个标为“Quick & Festive”的开胃菜食谱——那种用山核桃和枫糖制作的小零食，准备时间控制在半小时内，效果却惊人地讨喜，连我那个对甜食不怎么感冒的丈夫都赞不绝口。更让我欣赏的是，它对于食材的替换建议非常人性化。比如，如果当地不容易买到特定的南方香肠，书里会很贴心地建议使用品质相似的熏肉作为替代，并且说明了风味上的细微差别，这极大地降低了尝试新菜肴的心理门槛。很多步骤的描述都非常口语化，像是邻居在厨房里手把手教你一样，没有太多晦涩难懂的专业术语，即便是对烘焙流程不甚熟悉的人，也能很快上手。我感觉作者群对家庭厨房的实际操作环境有很深的理解，而不是高高在上地指导。

这本书的魅力远不止于食谱本身，它更像是一部南方圣诞季传统文化的“百科全书”。我花了好长时间沉浸在那些穿插在食谱中间的文化小故事里。比如，关于为什么在某些州，人们习惯在圣诞夜准备油炸食物而不是传统的烤肉，或者某个特定配方的历史渊源，这些背景知识让制作食物的过程变得更有意义，不再是机械地遵循指令。我发现，许多食谱的灵感都来源于“代代相传”的家庭秘方，文字中流露出对家庭和团聚的珍视。特别是关于餐桌布置和节日饮品的章节，它不仅仅是告诉你要放什么酒，而是详细解释了如何用简单的松枝和浆果，就能营造出那种经典美式的节日餐桌氛围。阅读这些文字，让我感受到了一种深厚的文化传承感，仿佛自己也成了这个温馨的南方圣诞圈子里的一员，这种精神上的满足感是其他一般菜谱无法比拟的。

这本书的实用性测试环节，我得说，它的“可操作性”略微低于我的预期。虽然食材容易获取，但有些食谱步骤的描述，尤其是关于“时间掌控”的部分，描述得有些模糊。举例来说，某个派类的配方中提到“烤至中心微微颤动”，对于烘焙新手来说，“微微颤动”的界限感非常难以把握，究竟是应该拿出，还是再烤五分钟？如果能像一些现代烘焙书那样，提供明确的内部温度指示（比如烤到175华氏度），那会更加精确和可靠。另外，由于食谱数量庞大，索引系统的设计稍微有点混乱，当我急切地想找“肉桂风味”的所有菜品时，我需要翻阅好几页才能确定它被归类在了“烘焙甜点”还是“节日早午餐”下面。如果能在实体书的侧边增加标签页，或者在电子版中加入更细致的关键词搜索功能，那会大大提升我日常使用的效率，让烹饪过程更加流畅和无压力。

这本书的装帧设计真是太有心思了！封面那种带着微微磨砂质感的厚纸板，拿在手里就感觉沉甸甸的，充满了圣诞节的温馨气息。尤其是那个深松绿的底色，配上烫金的“Southern Living”字样，显得既复古又高雅。我特别喜欢内页的排版，照片的色彩饱和度非常到位，那种温暖的烛光和食物的光泽感被捕捉得淋漓尽致。很多菜谱旁边都会配上一张主人家客厅或者厨房的场景图，那种南方特有的那种壁炉、格子窗和繁复的装饰风格，简直就是一本视觉享受的家居杂志。翻阅的时候，我甚至能想象出南方家庭在壁炉边烤制饼干，空气中弥漫着肉桂和丁香混合的甜美香气。编辑在版式设计上明显下了大功夫，字体选择上很经典，但又不会显得老气，阅读起来非常舒适，即使是厨房灯光昏暗时，也能轻松找到需要的步骤。这不仅仅是一本菜谱，更像是一本精心策划的节日生活美学指南，光是摆在厨房台面上，都能让整个空间的节日气氛瞬间提升好几个档次，让人迫不及待地想动手试试书里的每一个造型。