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Sweetness: Southern Recipes to Celebrate the Warmth, the Love, and the Blessings of a Full Life
Celebrate the sweet spirit and taste of Southern hospitality with Christy Jordan, the voice of Southern cooking for a new generation. Sweetness is a memory made in our grandmother’s kitchen. Sweetness is nights on the porch, listening to the old stories. Sweetness is welcoming guests with an open heart. And sustaining those same guests with Peach Buttermilk Pie. Greeting the kids and their friends after school with Chocolate Chip Dream Bars. Sitting in the shade with neighbors and cooling down with Blushing Apple Juleps. (Pour some for the little ones, too—there’s no alcohol.) Or ending dinner on the high note of a Chocolate Chess Pie, because you always need a little something sweet to finish it off, whether a meal or a day.
In Sweetness , Christy Jordan shares 197 recipes for sweet things to eat and drink—recipes that are deeply delicious, rich with tradition, often reaching through generations, and designed with today’s hectic schedules in mind. Because life is just better when you add a little sweetness.
In Sweetness , Christy Jordan shares 197 recipes for sweet things to eat and drink—recipes that are deeply delicious, rich with tradition, often reaching through generations, and designed with today’s hectic schedules in mind. Because life is just better when you add a little sweetness.
294 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2016
39 people are currently reading
449 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
August 26, 2016
If you appreciate the legacy of women who carried our history with them in the treasured recipes which might be handed down through time, Sweetness is the book for you. It is a memoir in recipes, gathered from the stained old cookbooks and tattered clippings of the author's dearest relatives, living and gone.
Christy Jordan is a Southerner and grew up among those who believed that a meal must have a sweet ending. Both classic and adaptations of recipes for traditional favourites such as Chess Pie, with its critical corn meal component in its custard filling and an easy Poke Cake are featured. For more modern Southern living, there are slimmer choices like the sugar pared-down Super Fruit Salad to meet that bill in this charming cookbook. It has gorgeous food photos and lots of helpful baking tips to successfully duplicate the large repertoire of desserts, candy and drinks.
I love the anecdotes which accompany the sweetly remembered family cooks' recipes; not only do they share love and history, but Christy also reflects on their years of hard times and and their ability to laugh and find happiness. Sweetness would make a wonderful gift: as a cookbook for those eager to make its straightforward, delicious confections or as a delightful coffee table book, an illustrated pleasure for the eyes and a charming taste of cheer for the spirit. Recommended for bakers and nonbakers alike!
Publish Date October 4 2016
** Workman Publishing Company and NetGalley provided the e-galley for my unbiased review.
Christy Jordan is a Southerner and grew up among those who believed that a meal must have a sweet ending. Both classic and adaptations of recipes for traditional favourites such as Chess Pie, with its critical corn meal component in its custard filling and an easy Poke Cake are featured. For more modern Southern living, there are slimmer choices like the sugar pared-down Super Fruit Salad to meet that bill in this charming cookbook. It has gorgeous food photos and lots of helpful baking tips to successfully duplicate the large repertoire of desserts, candy and drinks.
I love the anecdotes which accompany the sweetly remembered family cooks' recipes; not only do they share love and history, but Christy also reflects on their years of hard times and and their ability to laugh and find happiness. Sweetness would make a wonderful gift: as a cookbook for those eager to make its straightforward, delicious confections or as a delightful coffee table book, an illustrated pleasure for the eyes and a charming taste of cheer for the spirit. Recommended for bakers and nonbakers alike!
Publish Date October 4 2016
** Workman Publishing Company and NetGalley provided the e-galley for my unbiased review.
August 23, 2016
I really enjoyed this cookbook. Baking is one of my favorite things to do but I'm often in a hurry and don't have the time to do labor intensive recipes. In this I found a lot of things I could do in a shorter amount of time. There were numerous recipes with various levels of skill needed (but none were too hard). There were also recipes that had "cheats" if you will, premade cake mix, bisquick, etc as ingredients. While those are not always my favorites sometimes that's all the time I have.
The layout of the book was well done and eye catching. The recipes were interwoven with stories from the author's life as well as photographs of the food.
I thought this was well done and would definitely recommend it.
*Review copy provided through Netgalley.*
The layout of the book was well done and eye catching. The recipes were interwoven with stories from the author's life as well as photographs of the food.
I thought this was well done and would definitely recommend it.
*Review copy provided through Netgalley.*
July 25, 2016
I received this book as an advance reader copy from NetGalley.
I am not a baker or a candy maker. The precision measurements, temperatures, and timing of baking and candy making are usually too much for me to handle. And I am a New England native of Italian descent, so my idea of dessert is fairly well fixed to include seasonal fruit pies, ice cream from the local farm, and the occasional delicacies from the Italian bakery down the street. However, the allure of Southern recipes for sweet treats was too much for me to pass up. Surely, there must be at least one or two of the 197 recipes in this volume that are easy enough for me to master?
Sweetness is divided into nine chapters according to the general category of recipe – cookies, brownies and bars, cakes, pies, cobblers and puddings, breakfast treats, fruit salads, candies, drinks – followed by a pantry chapter. The chapters themselves don’t have tables of contents, so you have to rely on the index to find a particular recipe. (The advance reader galley didn’t have an index available, so I can’t comment on how easily you will be able to find what you are looking for.)
Each recipe began with a short paragraph of introduction, explaining the origin or the appeal of the recipe. The last line of the introduction, in bright orange, was the recipe yield. The ingredient list was well organized, and offered in the order items were used in the recipe. The amount of butter was helpfully measured in tablespoons or cups, and sticks. The ingredients themselves were commonplace, inexpensive, and easy to acquire items. In fact, the author advocates the use of imitation vanilla extract (because no one in her family can tell the difference) and permits the substitution of margarine for butter in the recipes. Some of the recipes relied on Bisquick, cake mix, brownie mix, instant pudding mix, frozen whipped topping, prepackaged cookie dough or frozen bread dough as the main ingredient, but not so many that I felt like I was being cheated out of a “real” baking experience. For example, in three of the four recipes in the brownie chapter that called for brownie mix as the main ingredient, it would be easy enough to substitute the Rich and Fudgy One Bowl Brownie recipe that opened the chapter. Likewise, in the Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bar recipe, it would be easy enough to substitute 16 ounces of homemade peanut butter cookie dough for the prepackaged stuff. The Always Moist Pineapple Upside Down Cake included directions on how to substitute the Small Batch Yellow Cake recipe at the beginning of the chapter for the yellow cake mix. All of the homemade pie recipes (except the Basic Fried Pies, the Vinegar Dumplings and the Frozen Oreo Pie) relied on premade pie crusts, although some recipes offered the option of using one of the homemade crust recipes found in the pantry chapter. And it would be super easy to substitute homemade whipped cream for frozen whipped topping. Recipe steps in all recipes were clearly labeled and well written. Lots of descriptive words were used to ensure the reader had a good feel for exactly what things were supposed to look like. For example, in one recipe, forming drop cookies was described as forming “golf ball-sized balls.” The last line in each recipe contained storage instructions. When necessary, notes on ingredients and recipe steps followed the recipe. Variations on the recipes, when possible, also followed the recipe.
The recipe selection was very diverse. I found what I had hoped to find: red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting (albeit cupcakes instead of a layer cake), hummingbird cake, blueberry muffins, orange rolls, sticky cinnamon buns, ambrosia, rice cereal treats, Southern sweet tea. But there is so much more to the book than what you would think of as classic Southern sweet recipes. For example, there is a whole chapter on Jell-O salads, which she calls “congealed salads.” The recipes themselves are a combination of new innovations, treasures rescued from family ancestors’ recipe organizers, and contributions from friends.
Interspersed among the recipes were bright green call out boxes with general culinary advice that varied from choosing cookie baking sheets to bake sale tips and tricks. These were more prevalent in the first two chapters than in later chapters, but were usually informative and interesting. However, sometimes, the bright green call out boxes, like “Birthdays for Teddy,” were family anecdotes instead of culinary advice.
Also interspersed among the recipes were call out boxes with personal remembrances or other reflections that culminated in a lesson about the sweetness of life. The sweetness theme came across very heavy-handed in the chapters where these call out boxes outnumbered the bright green culinary themed call out boxes. Personally, I would have enjoyed the book more without these call out boxes because many of them were overly saccharine. The author’s personality and message definitely came through in the introductions to the chapters and the recipes, so the additional family anecdotes -watching Hee-Haw with Grandaddy, swinging in the park with Katy - seemed to be overkill. The anecdote about Katy’s first sentence being “I need chocwat.” was actually in the cookbook in two different places. And there is only so much of “Guard Your Light Switch,” “Hey You, Time to Sparkle,” “Make Some Wrinkles Today,” and other motivational sweetness of that ilk that I can tolerate in general.
There was a basic baking pantry list in a call out box in the brownies and bars chapter that lists dry goods and refrigerated goods essential to baking. The list did include Bisquick, but didn’t include cake mix or brownie mix. The “pantry” chapter at the end of the book wasn’t about stocking a pantry; it was about the essential “go-to” recipes that were used in the other recipes in the book. This section included cookie crumb pie crust, mix-in-pan pie crust, meringue, self-rising flour, whipped cream, and buttermilk.
The photographs in Sweetness were all styled photos of finished food, including some cakes in the process of being frosted, all of which were wonderfully appetizing. If the recipe was not on the page facing the photo, the photographs were labeled with the name of the recipe and the page that the recipe appeared on.
Overall, the experience of reading Sweetness from cover to cover in two days was a bit cloying. It seems like a good go-to book for modern and heritage desserts because the recipes themselves were so clearly written and required such basic ingredients and techniques.
I have yet to prepare any of the recipes from Sweetness, but I have several on my list to try. I will update my review once I have.
UPDATE: The first recipe I tried from Sweetness was the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing. Thanks to the brightly numbered recipe steps, the recipe was super easy to follow. Curiously, the recipe only called for one teaspoon of cocoa powder, as compared to one-third cup of cocoa powder called for by my normal red velvet cake recipe. Granted, my normal recipe might be heavy handed on the cocoa because it is from Hershey’s Chocolate, but one teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa seemed like too little to even make a difference. I forgot to check my pantry staples before embarking on this project, so it turned out that I was short about half a cup of vegetable oil; I made up the difference with melted butter. Overall, the cupcake recipe turned out well, although I wasn’t so wowed by it that I would declare it “the best red velvet I’ve ever had.” However, I sent the seventeen remaining cupcakes with my friend to the detectives of the major crimes division at a local police department, and they definitely enjoyed them. The accompanying cream cheese frosting recipe turned out very well. I was concerned that it wouldn’t make enough to frost all eighteen cupcakes; I was able to generously frost each cupcake and still had frosting left over. I would definitely make the cream cheese frosting again, because my usual cream cheese frosting recipe calls for either cream of coconut or dulce de leche.
After the incident with the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing, my friend told me that the detectives of the major crimes division were willing to be my guinea pigs any time I felt like recipe testing. Since I knew I was going to see her at a benefit for female war veterans, I decided to bake something for her to take to the detectives. This time my choice was the Easy Coconut Macaroons. Curiously, the recipe calls for two five ounce packages to make up five cups of sweetened shredded coconut. At least in my area, five ounce packages of sweetened shredded coconut do not exist. Both name brands and generic brands of sweetened shredded coconut are only sold in seven ounce or fourteen ounce packages. In fact, the fourteen ounce package of the name brand was clearly labeled on the front of the package that it contained 5 1/3 cups shredded coconut. So it would have been most efficient for the recipe to just call for one fourteen ounce package of sweetened shredded coconut. That small quirk aside, the recipe was really easy to follow, thanks to the brightly colored step numbers, and super easy to execute. The cookies smelled so tempting coming out of the oven that I tried to eat one hot, and it immediately disintegrated, so they definitely need to be left to cool and harden before eating. And the greased aluminum foil on the baking tin is another MUST; I forgot to grease the aluminum foil on my second baking tin and had a devil of a time removing the cookies. But overall, this was a terrific super easy recipe that I would definitely make again. My friend brought the cookies to her midnight shift of police instead of to the detectives, and the word back was that they really enjoyed the macaroons.
Because we had a lunch date on the Army Birthday, I felt compelled to bake something for her to take to either the detectives or to her midnight shift. This time my choice was Miss Barbara’s Sold-Out Key Lime Cupcakes. Normally I wouldn’t have given such a recipe a second thought because it relies on lemon cake mix and lime flavored gelatin as the main ingredients. But I thought they would be fun single serve items. And it would be easier than adapting a cake recipe to cupcakes. Again, the recipe was super easy to execute thanks to the brightly colored step numbers. The cupcakes themselves were not anything super special because they barely had any citrus taste to them. The recipe directed to “divide the batter evenly” among the prepared muffin cups. I didn’t know how to judge that, so I filled each muffin cup about ¾ full and ended up with 18 cupcakes instead of 24 cupcakes. The frosting recipe was exactly the same as the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing, with the minor change that the cream cheese icing recipe for the red velvet cupcakes provided the option of using margarine instead of butter. One recipe specified a 16-ounce box of confectioners’ sugar and the other recipe specified a one-pound box of confectioners’ sugar. It was a good thing that the recipe only made 18 cupcakes because the frosting barely provided them with a generous coating; I would not have been able to stretch it to cover 24 cupcakes. But, again, the frosting recipe is definitely a keeper! Because I left for travel the very next day, I never heard where my friend brought the cupcakes or what their opinion of them was.
I am not a baker or a candy maker. The precision measurements, temperatures, and timing of baking and candy making are usually too much for me to handle. And I am a New England native of Italian descent, so my idea of dessert is fairly well fixed to include seasonal fruit pies, ice cream from the local farm, and the occasional delicacies from the Italian bakery down the street. However, the allure of Southern recipes for sweet treats was too much for me to pass up. Surely, there must be at least one or two of the 197 recipes in this volume that are easy enough for me to master?
Sweetness is divided into nine chapters according to the general category of recipe – cookies, brownies and bars, cakes, pies, cobblers and puddings, breakfast treats, fruit salads, candies, drinks – followed by a pantry chapter. The chapters themselves don’t have tables of contents, so you have to rely on the index to find a particular recipe. (The advance reader galley didn’t have an index available, so I can’t comment on how easily you will be able to find what you are looking for.)
Each recipe began with a short paragraph of introduction, explaining the origin or the appeal of the recipe. The last line of the introduction, in bright orange, was the recipe yield. The ingredient list was well organized, and offered in the order items were used in the recipe. The amount of butter was helpfully measured in tablespoons or cups, and sticks. The ingredients themselves were commonplace, inexpensive, and easy to acquire items. In fact, the author advocates the use of imitation vanilla extract (because no one in her family can tell the difference) and permits the substitution of margarine for butter in the recipes. Some of the recipes relied on Bisquick, cake mix, brownie mix, instant pudding mix, frozen whipped topping, prepackaged cookie dough or frozen bread dough as the main ingredient, but not so many that I felt like I was being cheated out of a “real” baking experience. For example, in three of the four recipes in the brownie chapter that called for brownie mix as the main ingredient, it would be easy enough to substitute the Rich and Fudgy One Bowl Brownie recipe that opened the chapter. Likewise, in the Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bar recipe, it would be easy enough to substitute 16 ounces of homemade peanut butter cookie dough for the prepackaged stuff. The Always Moist Pineapple Upside Down Cake included directions on how to substitute the Small Batch Yellow Cake recipe at the beginning of the chapter for the yellow cake mix. All of the homemade pie recipes (except the Basic Fried Pies, the Vinegar Dumplings and the Frozen Oreo Pie) relied on premade pie crusts, although some recipes offered the option of using one of the homemade crust recipes found in the pantry chapter. And it would be super easy to substitute homemade whipped cream for frozen whipped topping. Recipe steps in all recipes were clearly labeled and well written. Lots of descriptive words were used to ensure the reader had a good feel for exactly what things were supposed to look like. For example, in one recipe, forming drop cookies was described as forming “golf ball-sized balls.” The last line in each recipe contained storage instructions. When necessary, notes on ingredients and recipe steps followed the recipe. Variations on the recipes, when possible, also followed the recipe.
The recipe selection was very diverse. I found what I had hoped to find: red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting (albeit cupcakes instead of a layer cake), hummingbird cake, blueberry muffins, orange rolls, sticky cinnamon buns, ambrosia, rice cereal treats, Southern sweet tea. But there is so much more to the book than what you would think of as classic Southern sweet recipes. For example, there is a whole chapter on Jell-O salads, which she calls “congealed salads.” The recipes themselves are a combination of new innovations, treasures rescued from family ancestors’ recipe organizers, and contributions from friends.
Interspersed among the recipes were bright green call out boxes with general culinary advice that varied from choosing cookie baking sheets to bake sale tips and tricks. These were more prevalent in the first two chapters than in later chapters, but were usually informative and interesting. However, sometimes, the bright green call out boxes, like “Birthdays for Teddy,” were family anecdotes instead of culinary advice.
Also interspersed among the recipes were call out boxes with personal remembrances or other reflections that culminated in a lesson about the sweetness of life. The sweetness theme came across very heavy-handed in the chapters where these call out boxes outnumbered the bright green culinary themed call out boxes. Personally, I would have enjoyed the book more without these call out boxes because many of them were overly saccharine. The author’s personality and message definitely came through in the introductions to the chapters and the recipes, so the additional family anecdotes -watching Hee-Haw with Grandaddy, swinging in the park with Katy - seemed to be overkill. The anecdote about Katy’s first sentence being “I need chocwat.” was actually in the cookbook in two different places. And there is only so much of “Guard Your Light Switch,” “Hey You, Time to Sparkle,” “Make Some Wrinkles Today,” and other motivational sweetness of that ilk that I can tolerate in general.
There was a basic baking pantry list in a call out box in the brownies and bars chapter that lists dry goods and refrigerated goods essential to baking. The list did include Bisquick, but didn’t include cake mix or brownie mix. The “pantry” chapter at the end of the book wasn’t about stocking a pantry; it was about the essential “go-to” recipes that were used in the other recipes in the book. This section included cookie crumb pie crust, mix-in-pan pie crust, meringue, self-rising flour, whipped cream, and buttermilk.
The photographs in Sweetness were all styled photos of finished food, including some cakes in the process of being frosted, all of which were wonderfully appetizing. If the recipe was not on the page facing the photo, the photographs were labeled with the name of the recipe and the page that the recipe appeared on.
Overall, the experience of reading Sweetness from cover to cover in two days was a bit cloying. It seems like a good go-to book for modern and heritage desserts because the recipes themselves were so clearly written and required such basic ingredients and techniques.
I have yet to prepare any of the recipes from Sweetness, but I have several on my list to try. I will update my review once I have.
UPDATE: The first recipe I tried from Sweetness was the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing. Thanks to the brightly numbered recipe steps, the recipe was super easy to follow. Curiously, the recipe only called for one teaspoon of cocoa powder, as compared to one-third cup of cocoa powder called for by my normal red velvet cake recipe. Granted, my normal recipe might be heavy handed on the cocoa because it is from Hershey’s Chocolate, but one teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa seemed like too little to even make a difference. I forgot to check my pantry staples before embarking on this project, so it turned out that I was short about half a cup of vegetable oil; I made up the difference with melted butter. Overall, the cupcake recipe turned out well, although I wasn’t so wowed by it that I would declare it “the best red velvet I’ve ever had.” However, I sent the seventeen remaining cupcakes with my friend to the detectives of the major crimes division at a local police department, and they definitely enjoyed them. The accompanying cream cheese frosting recipe turned out very well. I was concerned that it wouldn’t make enough to frost all eighteen cupcakes; I was able to generously frost each cupcake and still had frosting left over. I would definitely make the cream cheese frosting again, because my usual cream cheese frosting recipe calls for either cream of coconut or dulce de leche.
After the incident with the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing, my friend told me that the detectives of the major crimes division were willing to be my guinea pigs any time I felt like recipe testing. Since I knew I was going to see her at a benefit for female war veterans, I decided to bake something for her to take to the detectives. This time my choice was the Easy Coconut Macaroons. Curiously, the recipe calls for two five ounce packages to make up five cups of sweetened shredded coconut. At least in my area, five ounce packages of sweetened shredded coconut do not exist. Both name brands and generic brands of sweetened shredded coconut are only sold in seven ounce or fourteen ounce packages. In fact, the fourteen ounce package of the name brand was clearly labeled on the front of the package that it contained 5 1/3 cups shredded coconut. So it would have been most efficient for the recipe to just call for one fourteen ounce package of sweetened shredded coconut. That small quirk aside, the recipe was really easy to follow, thanks to the brightly colored step numbers, and super easy to execute. The cookies smelled so tempting coming out of the oven that I tried to eat one hot, and it immediately disintegrated, so they definitely need to be left to cool and harden before eating. And the greased aluminum foil on the baking tin is another MUST; I forgot to grease the aluminum foil on my second baking tin and had a devil of a time removing the cookies. But overall, this was a terrific super easy recipe that I would definitely make again. My friend brought the cookies to her midnight shift of police instead of to the detectives, and the word back was that they really enjoyed the macaroons.
Because we had a lunch date on the Army Birthday, I felt compelled to bake something for her to take to either the detectives or to her midnight shift. This time my choice was Miss Barbara’s Sold-Out Key Lime Cupcakes. Normally I wouldn’t have given such a recipe a second thought because it relies on lemon cake mix and lime flavored gelatin as the main ingredients. But I thought they would be fun single serve items. And it would be easier than adapting a cake recipe to cupcakes. Again, the recipe was super easy to execute thanks to the brightly colored step numbers. The cupcakes themselves were not anything super special because they barely had any citrus taste to them. The recipe directed to “divide the batter evenly” among the prepared muffin cups. I didn’t know how to judge that, so I filled each muffin cup about ¾ full and ended up with 18 cupcakes instead of 24 cupcakes. The frosting recipe was exactly the same as the Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing, with the minor change that the cream cheese icing recipe for the red velvet cupcakes provided the option of using margarine instead of butter. One recipe specified a 16-ounce box of confectioners’ sugar and the other recipe specified a one-pound box of confectioners’ sugar. It was a good thing that the recipe only made 18 cupcakes because the frosting barely provided them with a generous coating; I would not have been able to stretch it to cover 24 cupcakes. But, again, the frosting recipe is definitely a keeper! Because I left for travel the very next day, I never heard where my friend brought the cupcakes or what their opinion of them was.
September 7, 2017
Title: Sweetness = Southern Recipes to Celebrate the Warmth, the Love, and the Blessings of a Full Life
Author: Christy Jordan
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
Published: 11-8-2016
Pages: 304
Genre: Nonfiction
Sub-Genre: Cooking Food & Wine, Bakery, Pastry, Desserts
ISBN: 9780761189428
ASIN: B01EW1]N7XO
Reviewed For NetGalley & Workman Publishing Company
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: 5 Stars
Celebrate the sweet spirit and taste of Southern hospitality with Christy Jordan, the voice of Southern cooking for a new generation. Sweetness is a memory made in our grandmother’s kitchen. Sweetness is nights on the porch, listening to the old stories. Sweetness is welcoming guests with an open heart. And food: sustaining those same guests with Peach Buttermilk Pie. Greeting the kids and their friends after school with Chocolate Chip Dream Bars. Sitting in the shade with neighbors and cooling down with Blushing Apple Juleps. (Pour some for the little ones, too—there’s no alcohol.) Or ending dinner on the high note of a Chocolate Chess Pie, because you always need a little something sweet to finish it off, whether a meal or a day.
In Sweetness, Christy Jordan shares 197 recipes for sweet things to eat and drink—recipes that are deeply delicious, rich with tradition, often reaching through generations, and designed with today’s hectic schedules in mind. Because life is just better when you add a little sweetness.
The sharing memories of family and times gone by. The added bonus is the recipes. You feel you are reading an especially long newsy letter from an old friend.
My rating of "Sweetness = Southern Recipes to Celebrate the Warmth, the Love, and the Blessings of a Full Life" is 5 out of 5 stars.
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EW1N7XO/...
B&N Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/swee...
Books-A-Million Link: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Sweetn...
Google Play Link: https://play.google.com/store/books/d...
Indigo Link: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/...
Kobo Link: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/swee...
GoodReads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
The Reading Room Link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
Twitter Link: https://twitter.com/DelAnne531/status...
Author: Christy Jordan
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
Published: 11-8-2016
Pages: 304
Genre: Nonfiction
Sub-Genre: Cooking Food & Wine, Bakery, Pastry, Desserts
ISBN: 9780761189428
ASIN: B01EW1]N7XO
Reviewed For NetGalley & Workman Publishing Company
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: 5 Stars
Celebrate the sweet spirit and taste of Southern hospitality with Christy Jordan, the voice of Southern cooking for a new generation. Sweetness is a memory made in our grandmother’s kitchen. Sweetness is nights on the porch, listening to the old stories. Sweetness is welcoming guests with an open heart. And food: sustaining those same guests with Peach Buttermilk Pie. Greeting the kids and their friends after school with Chocolate Chip Dream Bars. Sitting in the shade with neighbors and cooling down with Blushing Apple Juleps. (Pour some for the little ones, too—there’s no alcohol.) Or ending dinner on the high note of a Chocolate Chess Pie, because you always need a little something sweet to finish it off, whether a meal or a day.
In Sweetness, Christy Jordan shares 197 recipes for sweet things to eat and drink—recipes that are deeply delicious, rich with tradition, often reaching through generations, and designed with today’s hectic schedules in mind. Because life is just better when you add a little sweetness.
The sharing memories of family and times gone by. The added bonus is the recipes. You feel you are reading an especially long newsy letter from an old friend.
My rating of "Sweetness = Southern Recipes to Celebrate the Warmth, the Love, and the Blessings of a Full Life" is 5 out of 5 stars.
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EW1N7XO/...
B&N Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/swee...
Books-A-Million Link: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Sweetn...
Google Play Link: https://play.google.com/store/books/d...
Indigo Link: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/...
Kobo Link: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/swee...
GoodReads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
The Reading Room Link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
Twitter Link: https://twitter.com/DelAnne531/status...
November 9, 2018
A fabulous book from recipes of a time gone by. The author gives you stories along with some of her memories attached to some of the favorite recipes, she also has made the book easy to follow with easy and clear instructions and measurements. The photos and illustrations are excellent. Some of the recipes I had either remembered from my grandmothers, and her relatives with maybe a slight variation, others I had not heard of. One I liked for sure in the drinks was the orange drink the tasted like an “Orange Julius” which those places are no longer around, that was really good. A very good book. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 5 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com
January 15, 2017
Much like Christy's previous 2 books, Sweetness, with 295 pages, is filled with her personal stories and memories, with all 197 dessert recipes having their own stories as well. My mom and dad were gave signed copies of the book to my sister and me this Christmas after meeting Christy at a book signing (although mom already had our books). We were making dishes from her blog well before her first cookbook, Southern Plate, was published in 2010. Her recipes are all still simple and delicious, and her humor and positive faith make them as fun to read as to cook!
August 4, 2017
I love her recipes as well as her stories. I follow her on social media and she is wonderful. She seems down to earth and very sweet. I have written a ton of her recipes down and have tried many. She is amazing and I would recommend this, and her other books to anyone.
April 22, 2016
Sweetness by Christy Jordan is a perfectly sweet book as cookbooks go. The author has included plenty of sweet recipes, cooking tips, friendly tidbits reminiscent of her blog posts, and color photos illustrating her cookbook.
I particularly loved reading her recipe intros and blogger type writing sprinkled throughout her cookbook.
I can't wait to try some of her recipes as she's included many attractive sounding recipes that I am sure will taste mighty fine once prepared.
There is a heavy emphasis towards nuts in her recipes, so if you have a nut allergy you might want to think about ways to adapt some of her recipes. I was pleased to find she did include some sugar-free recipes for people who are watching their sugar intake.
Some of the recipes you'll find in her cookbook include:
Monster Cookies
Milk Dunkin' Peanut Butter Cookies
Graham Cracker Praline Cookies
Candy Cane Cookies
Amazing Brownie Bars
Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
Basic Baking Mix Bar Cookies
Small Batch Yellow Cake
Lemon Custard Poke Cake
Pecan Pie Cake
Black Pepper Cake
Lotsa Crumb Cake
Buttermilk Lime Pound Cake
Pound Cake in Jars (it is not recommended that cakes be baked in jars. You can check Ball canning site to confirm this. I do appreciate Jordan's note of storing the jarred cakes in the freezer as the preferred method of preservation.)
Coconut Cake with No-Fail Seven Minute Frosting
Caramel Tiramisu
Peanut Butter Cup Trifle
Classic Buttercream Frosting
Coconut Pecan Icing
Chocolate Fudge Icing
Classic Confectioners' Sugar Glaze
Peach Buttermilk Pie
Apple Doozie Dessert Pizza
Faux Apple Pie (uses Ritz crackers)
Homemade Chocolate Pie
Coca-Cola Pie
Chocolate Chess Pie
Basic Fried Pies
Pecan Pie Cheesecake
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Pie
Frozen Oreo Pie
Old-Fashioned Banana Pudding
Sweet Potato Creme Brûlée
Old-Fashioned Butter Rolls
Amazing Pineapple Bread
Amazing Apple Bread
Super Easy King Cake
Apple Oat Muffins
Hot Cocoa Muffins
Overnight Stuffed French Toast with Strawberry Syrup
Funnel Cake
Feather-Light Chocolate Biscuits
Aunt Tina's Dr. Pepper Salad
Apple Salad
Five-Cup Fruit Salad
Ambrosia
Whoa Horsey Salad (uses sugar-free instant vanilla pudding mix)
Cream Cheese Mints
Cream Cheese Divinity
Chocolate Chip Meringues
Old-Fashioned Egg Cream
Fresh Strawberry-ade
Mix-in-Pan Pie Crust
Homemade Self-Rising Flour
Recommend.
Review written after downloading a galley from NetGalley.
I particularly loved reading her recipe intros and blogger type writing sprinkled throughout her cookbook.
I can't wait to try some of her recipes as she's included many attractive sounding recipes that I am sure will taste mighty fine once prepared.
There is a heavy emphasis towards nuts in her recipes, so if you have a nut allergy you might want to think about ways to adapt some of her recipes. I was pleased to find she did include some sugar-free recipes for people who are watching their sugar intake.
Some of the recipes you'll find in her cookbook include:
Monster Cookies
Milk Dunkin' Peanut Butter Cookies
Graham Cracker Praline Cookies
Candy Cane Cookies
Amazing Brownie Bars
Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
Basic Baking Mix Bar Cookies
Small Batch Yellow Cake
Lemon Custard Poke Cake
Pecan Pie Cake
Black Pepper Cake
Lotsa Crumb Cake
Buttermilk Lime Pound Cake
Pound Cake in Jars (it is not recommended that cakes be baked in jars. You can check Ball canning site to confirm this. I do appreciate Jordan's note of storing the jarred cakes in the freezer as the preferred method of preservation.)
Coconut Cake with No-Fail Seven Minute Frosting
Caramel Tiramisu
Peanut Butter Cup Trifle
Classic Buttercream Frosting
Coconut Pecan Icing
Chocolate Fudge Icing
Classic Confectioners' Sugar Glaze
Peach Buttermilk Pie
Apple Doozie Dessert Pizza
Faux Apple Pie (uses Ritz crackers)
Homemade Chocolate Pie
Coca-Cola Pie
Chocolate Chess Pie
Basic Fried Pies
Pecan Pie Cheesecake
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Pie
Frozen Oreo Pie
Old-Fashioned Banana Pudding
Sweet Potato Creme Brûlée
Old-Fashioned Butter Rolls
Amazing Pineapple Bread
Amazing Apple Bread
Super Easy King Cake
Apple Oat Muffins
Hot Cocoa Muffins
Overnight Stuffed French Toast with Strawberry Syrup
Funnel Cake
Feather-Light Chocolate Biscuits
Aunt Tina's Dr. Pepper Salad
Apple Salad
Five-Cup Fruit Salad
Ambrosia
Whoa Horsey Salad (uses sugar-free instant vanilla pudding mix)
Cream Cheese Mints
Cream Cheese Divinity
Chocolate Chip Meringues
Old-Fashioned Egg Cream
Fresh Strawberry-ade
Mix-in-Pan Pie Crust
Homemade Self-Rising Flour
Recommend.
Review written after downloading a galley from NetGalley.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2016
I received a time-limited electronic copy of this cookbook for evaluation and review.
I enjoyed reading this cookbook as much as the recipes. It was full of inspirational tidbits, stories, and reminiscing. I loved the story of how "Old Scrap Iron" got her name. There are lots of recounted memories from times go by of older generations that I just really loved reading. There was lots of true wisdom there and a lot of times I found myself laughing, and it brought back fond memories of my own. It's definitely Southern, and I think Southern born and raised readers will especially enjoy the way this book often evokes memories of a time when families and people were closer.
The recipes are all about sweets, with some punches, fruit drinks, and Southern Sweet tea added. The Southern Sweet tea recipe was the only one I didn't care for. We just make ours differently, never letting the tea actually boil keeps the bitterness down and we do pour ours over sugar when it is still warm, so the sugar dissolves well. Plus we use 2-3 times the amount of tea. We like our Southern Sweet Tea so it can about get up and walk by itself.
I love that she included very traditionally Southern recipes like Hummingbird Cake, Coca-Cola cake, Divinity, and various chess pies. There are icing recipes galore, and they are good, and many I recognized as being recipes that I learned from my own mother. My favorite new recipes though involved some of the cake mix recipes that were included. I always stock up on cake mixes during sales, and making cookies with them will give me another way to use them up before they expire, so I really appreciated those- and they are excellent; I'd never have known they were made from a cake mix.
The recipes are all centered around common pantry items and are very affordable. Almost all are very simple and make very little mess. They are practical, and good, and pleasing to the Southern palate. They are NOT gourmet, or fussy, and they are full-calorie.
I will pick a hard copy of this book up when it comes out. The pictures are nice, but this is a cookbook I'd like to keep a copy of in my 'sweets' cabinet. The icings are great- really with the collection in this cookbook, there's no reason anyone should ever buy another can of icing again.
I enjoyed reading this cookbook as much as the recipes. It was full of inspirational tidbits, stories, and reminiscing. I loved the story of how "Old Scrap Iron" got her name. There are lots of recounted memories from times go by of older generations that I just really loved reading. There was lots of true wisdom there and a lot of times I found myself laughing, and it brought back fond memories of my own. It's definitely Southern, and I think Southern born and raised readers will especially enjoy the way this book often evokes memories of a time when families and people were closer.
The recipes are all about sweets, with some punches, fruit drinks, and Southern Sweet tea added. The Southern Sweet tea recipe was the only one I didn't care for. We just make ours differently, never letting the tea actually boil keeps the bitterness down and we do pour ours over sugar when it is still warm, so the sugar dissolves well. Plus we use 2-3 times the amount of tea. We like our Southern Sweet Tea so it can about get up and walk by itself.
I love that she included very traditionally Southern recipes like Hummingbird Cake, Coca-Cola cake, Divinity, and various chess pies. There are icing recipes galore, and they are good, and many I recognized as being recipes that I learned from my own mother. My favorite new recipes though involved some of the cake mix recipes that were included. I always stock up on cake mixes during sales, and making cookies with them will give me another way to use them up before they expire, so I really appreciated those- and they are excellent; I'd never have known they were made from a cake mix.
The recipes are all centered around common pantry items and are very affordable. Almost all are very simple and make very little mess. They are practical, and good, and pleasing to the Southern palate. They are NOT gourmet, or fussy, and they are full-calorie.
I will pick a hard copy of this book up when it comes out. The pictures are nice, but this is a cookbook I'd like to keep a copy of in my 'sweets' cabinet. The icings are great- really with the collection in this cookbook, there's no reason anyone should ever buy another can of icing again.
December 11, 2016
Originally published on my blog, In the Stacks: http://nikkitheknack.blogspot.ca/2016...
Whether you have a natural sweet tooth or just occasionally need something sweet to satisfy a craving, we all have a place in our homes - well, in our stomachs - for a little sweetness.
Christy Jordan's new cookbook Sweetness has plenty of recipes that would help fill that place in an instant.
From cakes to cookies to milkshakes and beyond, you're bound to find something you're itching to make. As I was going through the recipes, I found myself so excited at all the possibilities of what I could make! Everything looks and sounds so delicious.
But when I came to one particular recipe, I knew I couldn't pass it up: Funnel Cake. You know, that delicious doughey concoction they serve at amusement parks and special events? How could I pass up an opportunity - or, excuse? - to make this in my very own home.
Funnel Cake (p.208)
To my pleasant surprise, Funnel Cake is incredibly easy to make. It involves a few ingredients, all of which are common and can easily be found at your local grocery store or, if you bake with any regularity, probably just in your pantry.
It took a bit of trial and error to get the cooking time just right - neither under- nor over-cooked - but by the end I was pretty darn good if I say so myself.
You can put whatever you want on top, but I used whipped cream and fresh strawberries, which made for an absolutely scrumptious treat, let me tell you. When I posted the above picture on my Facebook, there were calls for me to host a Funnel Cake party.
While I was very happy with how that recipe turned out, I should also mention that I tried another recipe that didn't go quite so well. I made S'Mores Muffins, which sounded great - chocolate and marshmallows, what could go wrong? But unfortunately, I found them very bland and won't be making them again.
All in all, this is a really cool cookbook. There's a huge variety of desserts and tasty treats to choose from, and most seem to be pretty straightforward. I definitely recommend picking this one up if you're looking for some sweet Southern recipes.
*I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Whether you have a natural sweet tooth or just occasionally need something sweet to satisfy a craving, we all have a place in our homes - well, in our stomachs - for a little sweetness.
Christy Jordan's new cookbook Sweetness has plenty of recipes that would help fill that place in an instant.
From cakes to cookies to milkshakes and beyond, you're bound to find something you're itching to make. As I was going through the recipes, I found myself so excited at all the possibilities of what I could make! Everything looks and sounds so delicious.
But when I came to one particular recipe, I knew I couldn't pass it up: Funnel Cake. You know, that delicious doughey concoction they serve at amusement parks and special events? How could I pass up an opportunity - or, excuse? - to make this in my very own home.
Funnel Cake (p.208)
To my pleasant surprise, Funnel Cake is incredibly easy to make. It involves a few ingredients, all of which are common and can easily be found at your local grocery store or, if you bake with any regularity, probably just in your pantry.
It took a bit of trial and error to get the cooking time just right - neither under- nor over-cooked - but by the end I was pretty darn good if I say so myself.
You can put whatever you want on top, but I used whipped cream and fresh strawberries, which made for an absolutely scrumptious treat, let me tell you. When I posted the above picture on my Facebook, there were calls for me to host a Funnel Cake party.
While I was very happy with how that recipe turned out, I should also mention that I tried another recipe that didn't go quite so well. I made S'Mores Muffins, which sounded great - chocolate and marshmallows, what could go wrong? But unfortunately, I found them very bland and won't be making them again.
All in all, this is a really cool cookbook. There's a huge variety of desserts and tasty treats to choose from, and most seem to be pretty straightforward. I definitely recommend picking this one up if you're looking for some sweet Southern recipes.
*I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
March 7, 2017
I received an advance review copy of this book courtesy of Netgalley and Workman Publishing Company.
I love cookbooks, and (being from the south myself) I’m especially fond of cookbooks featuring southern recipes. It’s the type of food I’m most familiar with—it’s what I was raised on, and what I’ve fed my own family through the years.
When I first saw the title of this particular cookbook, I was immediately reminded of my Great-Grandmother. Grandma Margie always had homemade sweets ready and waiting in case any of her grandkids and great-grandkids stopped by to visit for a while. Grandma always came outside to greet us the same way—with joy on her face, and her arms opened wide, saying “C’mere so I can hug your neck!”
Once we went inside the house, my eyes were inevitably drawn to the dining room, excited because I knew what I would see. Two long tables, filled with every sweet treat a child could ever want, made by Grandma herself. The love she put into making those cookies, brownies, fudges, and candies made them even sweeter to me, and I will forever cherish memories of those visits.
It’s appropriate to share this beloved memory in my review, because in addition to the many yummy recipes, Jordan has sprinkled in several sweet memories of her own, along with the encouragement to appreciate the sweetness in life. Sometimes, we get so busy living life that we don’t always remember to stop and smell the roses… to take a moment to be grateful for what we have in this life, and the loved ones we share it with each day. There is always something sweet to cherish, and I was reminded of many cherished memories of my own as I read hers.
As far as the recipes themselves, there were extremely few that I didn’t want to try out myself. They all sound SO good, and if the photos of the finished treats don’t make your mouth water, nothing will. There are also many tips—for example, simple ways to decorate a cake—that are quite useful to know.
This would be a fantastic addition to anyone’s cookbook library, and with Christmas right around the corner, it’s a great time to try your hand at making some of these luscious sweets!
I love cookbooks, and (being from the south myself) I’m especially fond of cookbooks featuring southern recipes. It’s the type of food I’m most familiar with—it’s what I was raised on, and what I’ve fed my own family through the years.
When I first saw the title of this particular cookbook, I was immediately reminded of my Great-Grandmother. Grandma Margie always had homemade sweets ready and waiting in case any of her grandkids and great-grandkids stopped by to visit for a while. Grandma always came outside to greet us the same way—with joy on her face, and her arms opened wide, saying “C’mere so I can hug your neck!”
Once we went inside the house, my eyes were inevitably drawn to the dining room, excited because I knew what I would see. Two long tables, filled with every sweet treat a child could ever want, made by Grandma herself. The love she put into making those cookies, brownies, fudges, and candies made them even sweeter to me, and I will forever cherish memories of those visits.
It’s appropriate to share this beloved memory in my review, because in addition to the many yummy recipes, Jordan has sprinkled in several sweet memories of her own, along with the encouragement to appreciate the sweetness in life. Sometimes, we get so busy living life that we don’t always remember to stop and smell the roses… to take a moment to be grateful for what we have in this life, and the loved ones we share it with each day. There is always something sweet to cherish, and I was reminded of many cherished memories of my own as I read hers.
As far as the recipes themselves, there were extremely few that I didn’t want to try out myself. They all sound SO good, and if the photos of the finished treats don’t make your mouth water, nothing will. There are also many tips—for example, simple ways to decorate a cake—that are quite useful to know.
This would be a fantastic addition to anyone’s cookbook library, and with Christmas right around the corner, it’s a great time to try your hand at making some of these luscious sweets!
December 27, 2016
Lots of yummy southern recipes.
November 6, 2016
I adore everything about this cookbook. I have bought many a cookbook, especially of the southern variety, and I have not found a southern baking book better than Sweetness by Christy Jordan.
It is important to me that the recipes are on the simpler side, and the ingredients are easily obtained. Think about your family favorites. They are usually more simple in method. I think that's because the recipes that get made over and over again and become a part of your family story are the ones that aren't too difficult, and can be made while chatting around the kitchen island. These recipes are just that, and Christy makes everything crystal clear, so the first time with the recipe is a fun experience right out of the gate. I do so wish that there were more picture, however; as I rely on them to know what my finished product is suppose to look like.
Originality is another thing that is important to me and Sweetness is completely original. It is such a drag to have a cupboard full of cookbooks with each of them holding only a handful of recipes that are different from the others.
So, Sweetness meets my criteria for almost everything that I want in a baking cookbook, and takes it one step further by adding personal narrations and tidbits of helpful information.If there were only more photos of the finished goods this would be a solid five stars.
It is important to me that the recipes are on the simpler side, and the ingredients are easily obtained. Think about your family favorites. They are usually more simple in method. I think that's because the recipes that get made over and over again and become a part of your family story are the ones that aren't too difficult, and can be made while chatting around the kitchen island. These recipes are just that, and Christy makes everything crystal clear, so the first time with the recipe is a fun experience right out of the gate. I do so wish that there were more picture, however; as I rely on them to know what my finished product is suppose to look like.
Originality is another thing that is important to me and Sweetness is completely original. It is such a drag to have a cupboard full of cookbooks with each of them holding only a handful of recipes that are different from the others.
So, Sweetness meets my criteria for almost everything that I want in a baking cookbook, and takes it one step further by adding personal narrations and tidbits of helpful information.If there were only more photos of the finished goods this would be a solid five stars.
July 13, 2017
*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review*
I really liked this book, it was the first cookbook that I entirely read!!
The recipes are all great and I saved some of them to practice(since I am just a beginner). But, if you are just starting in baking and cooking, I think there are some recipes easier than others. It's a pity that there aren't a lot of pictures to take as a reference, I want to know how it is supposed to look like!!! Maybe I did something wrong and I'll never know because I didn't have a picture.
The organization of the book is great, as well as the content and design, so I hope to buy it soon. And I hope that in the future this book will have a translation so I can share some recipes with my mom and maybe baking together, since I am the only one in my home that likes to bake.
If you like to cook, this book is for you, and if you are absolutely not interested in cooking, this book is for you as well. I am sure that you'll find an easy recipe, there are like 197 recipes to practice!!! But, you'll also find some interesting memories from the author that I enjoyed so much because it added a more sentimental feeling to the book :).
I really liked this book, it was the first cookbook that I entirely read!!
The recipes are all great and I saved some of them to practice(since I am just a beginner). But, if you are just starting in baking and cooking, I think there are some recipes easier than others. It's a pity that there aren't a lot of pictures to take as a reference, I want to know how it is supposed to look like!!! Maybe I did something wrong and I'll never know because I didn't have a picture.
The organization of the book is great, as well as the content and design, so I hope to buy it soon. And I hope that in the future this book will have a translation so I can share some recipes with my mom and maybe baking together, since I am the only one in my home that likes to bake.
If you like to cook, this book is for you, and if you are absolutely not interested in cooking, this book is for you as well. I am sure that you'll find an easy recipe, there are like 197 recipes to practice!!! But, you'll also find some interesting memories from the author that I enjoyed so much because it added a more sentimental feeling to the book :).
October 9, 2016
I haven't had a cookbook move me to tears before, until now. Christy Jordan to not only put together a book that is "drool worthy" because it's so good, but one that moves your heart as well.
I miss my Grandmother very much, among other people. Jordan's book is full of memories of family. While they aren't my memories, they are able to easily cause nostalgia and memories of my own to come to the surface very quickly. She's correct about why we cook some of the things we cook.
The recipes are awesome. I did know some of them, others I can't wait to try. Cakes, pies, and pastries are what I'm good at in the kitchen. So very many recipes in this book are just waiting to be made, and to create memories with. This book is well worth reading, and not just for the recipes.
My copy came from Net Galley. I was not required to leave a review, I do so of my own free volition. My thoughts and opinions are my own. I will be buying this book, and hopefully copies as gifts. I highly recommend it.
I miss my Grandmother very much, among other people. Jordan's book is full of memories of family. While they aren't my memories, they are able to easily cause nostalgia and memories of my own to come to the surface very quickly. She's correct about why we cook some of the things we cook.
The recipes are awesome. I did know some of them, others I can't wait to try. Cakes, pies, and pastries are what I'm good at in the kitchen. So very many recipes in this book are just waiting to be made, and to create memories with. This book is well worth reading, and not just for the recipes.
My copy came from Net Galley. I was not required to leave a review, I do so of my own free volition. My thoughts and opinions are my own. I will be buying this book, and hopefully copies as gifts. I highly recommend it.
October 26, 2016
Oh my goodness...where do I begin? This book is aptly titled as it practically oozes with Southern sweetness. It is filled with good old-fashioned recipes that I remember enjoying as a child but have forgotten many of them. I cannot wait to revisit and remake these recipes as I was quite the little baker in my childhood and enjoyed being in the kitchen with my mother and grandmothers. The recipes are not complicated and the ingredients should be easily found in any grocery. The author provides great tips and shares many memories of her childhood that trigger many memories of my own. And the pictures, well they just brought a smile to my face as many of the recipes were photographed in vintage bakeware, serving dishes and placed on vintage tablecloths. I think I may have gotten a little younger while reading this book! I highly recommend this book for anyone who is nostalgic for older, forgotten recipes and memories of years gone by! (It would also make a great gift.) My thanks to the publisher, author and NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book for review.
April 14, 2016
Literally five minutes after I've decided to go on the paleo diet, I get approved to review this book. And there goes my resolution out the window.
I'm far from being a baker (too science-y) for me, but Christy Jordan really nailed it in the beginning of her book when she mentions that her dad was a policeman and worked multiple jobs to allow for her mother to stay at home to raise three children (similar to my upbringing).
The recipes in the book are really easy and cost effective, if you're okay with not doing everything from scratch (brownie mixes, cake mixes are used -- I'm okay with cheating). The recipes don't have many ingredients, but have lots of the authors memories and I for one will be trying some recipes (to give away of course, not to eat). I love the old fashioned design of the book and the photos are beautiful and encouraging to first time bakers.
I'm far from being a baker (too science-y) for me, but Christy Jordan really nailed it in the beginning of her book when she mentions that her dad was a policeman and worked multiple jobs to allow for her mother to stay at home to raise three children (similar to my upbringing).
The recipes in the book are really easy and cost effective, if you're okay with not doing everything from scratch (brownie mixes, cake mixes are used -- I'm okay with cheating). The recipes don't have many ingredients, but have lots of the authors memories and I for one will be trying some recipes (to give away of course, not to eat). I love the old fashioned design of the book and the photos are beautiful and encouraging to first time bakers.
May 3, 2016
Unfortunately this book is not for me. I like to make everything from scratch, no shortcuts, and I found that this book had too many recipes with "shortcuts" such as using bisquick, pudding, cake mix, etc. If I'm going to spend money on a cookbook, I want every recipe to be from scratch. I also like to see what I'm making, before making it, and there were not enough pictures in this book for me. The pictures that were provided were gorgeous. If you are ok with using cake mix and brownie mix, etc in your baking then this book is for you, there are lots of great ideas.
I did like the layout of this book, it's cute, and I like the colours. Her personal stories are heartwarming. :)
I received a free digital copy of this book for an honest review.
I did like the layout of this book, it's cute, and I like the colours. Her personal stories are heartwarming. :)
I received a free digital copy of this book for an honest review.
April 30, 2016
This is my favorite cookbook in a long time. I love a cookbook that has memories, stories, etc in it, and this one doesn't fail me. The writing is delightful, the photos are super tempting, and the recipes aren't overwhelming. I love that she gives options to change it up, whether because of taste preference, mood, or ingredients....I'm dieting, and this one definitely made me fall off the wagon. That said...she also gives tips on freezing ahead of the holidays, etc. LOVED this book. I've already bought another copy as the one I received in exchange for an honest review was digital...and I wanted my actual hands on it.
June 14, 2016
This is a great book if you are in the mood for some good ol' fashion comfort food. There are so many recipes that bring back Americana and old family memories. I'm not from the South, but a lot of the recipes are familiar and seem reasonably simple to whip up. The Cookie Jar section had to be my favorite, although there were other recipes that definitely caught my eye and were bookmarked for later baking/making. This would make a great selection or even a gift for anyone who likes to indulge their sweet tooth on occasion.
June 6, 2016
4.5 Stars. I received a copy of this title in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.
What a delightful cookbook! From the recipes to the gorgeous layout, this book had me hooked. The recipes are desserts that my family would enjoy and I'm looking forward to making a few of them. One small quibble that would have made it a five star rating is that I wish that there were more photos of the recipes, but the photos that are included are beautifully shot and presented.
What a delightful cookbook! From the recipes to the gorgeous layout, this book had me hooked. The recipes are desserts that my family would enjoy and I'm looking forward to making a few of them. One small quibble that would have made it a five star rating is that I wish that there were more photos of the recipes, but the photos that are included are beautifully shot and presented.
November 16, 2016
Perfect cookbook for anyone looking to start their own holiday traditions or someone that participates in bake sales or potlucks. Wonderful gift for a new bride. Clear concise recipes with beautiful pictures in each category. I've tried a few and added them to my holiday list. Great present for the new or busy cook.
I received an advance copy...it's a definite buy.
I received an advance copy...it's a definite buy.
December 5, 2016
I really couldn't get behind this book. First of all and mainly because there were very few pictures. This for me is a big turn off. It was not a single recipe per page there were multiple per page and sometimes for me they ran together. I found nothing in this that I would ever like to make that was different from any other cookbook like this.
February 2, 2017
ARC provided in exchange for review.
I didn't love it but didn't hate it. There are better cookbooks out there. I love pictures and there were few, instead there were little family stories. Also there was more than one recipe per page. I love the old pyrex clip art. My grandmother used to have those dishes.
I didn't love it but didn't hate it. There are better cookbooks out there. I love pictures and there were few, instead there were little family stories. Also there was more than one recipe per page. I love the old pyrex clip art. My grandmother used to have those dishes.
July 14, 2017
There is nothing like Southern food in my opinion! Bring on the tastiness and forget the calories and other nonsense! This is one fun book! It's load with lots of delicious recipes and stories about each one and lots of family and friends amid all the tasty treats! A must have for a cookbook collection!
April 26, 2016
I received the ebook in exchange for an honest review.
I knew when I would start this book, it would be very hard to stay still. The book contains a lot of lovely bakery recipes and the water started running my mouth. I loved it very much and now I'm going to duck into the kitchen :).
I knew when I would start this book, it would be very hard to stay still. The book contains a lot of lovely bakery recipes and the water started running my mouth. I loved it very much and now I'm going to duck into the kitchen :).
May 15, 2017
I made the All American Chocolate Cookies. Altered the recipe slightly and made it with M&M's instead of chocolate chips. They're delicious. I did however find it weird that a lot of the recipes had cake mix listed as an ingredient. But the cookies were good.
March 13, 2017
One of the best baking cookbooks I've read and believe me I've read many. I really enjoyed all the family stories she shared about each recipe. If you're a peanut butter cookie fan definitely give her recipe a try, you will not be disappointed! So delicious!
March 12, 2017
This book is all about dessert - yum! It still has some of the layout issues of her last book, although not as bad. We're always happy with her recipes!
March 9, 2022
Lots of sweetness here as well as many cakes I have never come across but look delicious. I also liked the focus on individual bakers contributions and philosophies.
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