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I have a bit of an addiction to cookbooks. It’s really quite a problem. My collection has officially outgrown the storage cabinet in the kitchen, so they’ve recently worked their way to my office and into their own shelving unit. Like many food lovers, I devour the pages of cookbooks and food related magazines more so than novels.
If I am really geeked about a cookbook, I’ll preorder it on Amazon, so it arrives on my doorstep pretty much on the day of its release. That was exactly what I did for Alice Currah’s debut cookbook, Savory Sweet Life, which hit store shelves on June 5th. I get really excited when fellow food bloggers secure book deals and it’s pretty fantastic to see their recipes, stories and photos transform from the web into tangible pages.
I met Alice a couple of years ago at BlogHer Food in San Francisco and she quickly became one of my absolute favorite sites to read. Her genuine approach to food and life allows her to connect with her readers in a truly special way. After you read just a few pages, you’ll feel right at home in Alice’s kitchen as she expertly guides you through each of her recipes.
Alice’s book, Savory Sweet Life is full of 100 delicious and beautifully photographed recipes that are perfectly divided into family occasions. Whether you’re looking for a menu for a birthday celebration, a lunch with friends, or scrumptious snacks for family game night – Alice has you covered with her simple and creative recipes that are sure to create meaningful memories.
From the moment I first flipped through the book, her recipe for chocolate chip cookies immediately caught my attention. Alice dubbed this recipe “The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever”, and I must say, they are quite incredible – in fact, I made them twice within two days. Her use of dark brown sugar creates a deep, rich flavor that pairs perfectly with the crispy bottoms and soft, chewy centers. There is really no question why this recipe became one of the most viewed recipes on Alice’s blog.
You can find Alice through her blog, Savory Sweet Life and also through Facebook and Twitter.
Because I think Alice’s cookbook, Savory Sweet Life is incredibly lovely, I want to give 3 MBA readers a chance to win a copy of their very own.
[pinit]
HOW DO YOU WIN?
Simply leave a comment within this post telling me about your favorite food memory.
IMPORTANT DETAILS:
-This giveaway is open to USA residents only and will run until Monday, June 25th, 2012 at 11:59 pm EST.
-Winner(s) will be generated via a random number generator software program. Winner will be notified via the contact email provided on the comment contact form.
-Winner(s) will have until 6/29/12 to claim their Savory Sweet Life cookbook or we will choose another winner.
-Books will be shipped by My Baking Addiction through Amazon.
-Links within this post are generated though My Baking Addiction’s Amazon affiliate program.
-No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law. Must be 18 years of age to enter. See Official Giveaway Rules
DISCLOSURE:
This giveaway is provided to you by My Baking Addiction.
All images provided by Alice Currah
Savory Sweet Life's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 360°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Using a hand or stand mixer, cream the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar together on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until nice and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one ay a time, then add the vanilla, and mix for 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to mediium-low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. When the cookie dough has absorbed the dry ingredients, stir in the chocolate chips and mix until they are well distributed.
3. Drop 2 tablespoons of dough (or use a medium cookie scoop) onto the cookie sheet for each cookie, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the edges are nice and golden brown. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and allow the cookies to cool for 2 minutes. Then slide the parchment paper, with the cookies still on top, onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes:
- Kosher salt can be substituted for the sea salt.
Source: Savory Sweet Life Cookbook
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My Dad passed nearly 2 years ago- My wanted to make him a cheesecake for his birthday when I was 14 all by myself. I got the jello no bake cheesecake box out and made it- after it was in the fridge for half the day i got it out and it still was watery- I couldnt figure out why……I have left out the whole cheesecake mix! its was crust with milk! I was horrified so I tossed it and made a cake for him…..The cake ended up tasting wonderful but I was upset and in a hurry so I baked them in pie pans not realizing it till after they baked – He had a UFO cake that year :)
Baking with my kids and including the special ingredient of “kid love” which they sprinkled into the recipe.
My favorite food memory is making Christmas candy with my sister and mother each December since I was very small. We wrap up in fuzzy robes and sweaters to make baklava, coconut macaroons, peppermint bark, chocolate-dipped pretzels, and much more. The treats are then wrapped up and delivered by myself to our neighbors, the rest going with us to my grandmother’s house to share with family on Christmas Eve.
My favorite food memory is from cooking with my great-grandmother. She certainly knew a lot about using everything that you had. When I made cheese biscuits with her, she would always sneak the bowl back from me and manage to scrape out one or two more biscuits from the batter left in the bowl. She made the BEST biscuits and fig jam. Definitely miss that.
My favorite food memory is probably from March of this year. I finally had a large enough place of my own to host my immediate family. For St. Patrick’s Day, I made the requisite corned beef and cabbage along with a Guinness chocolate cake. Everything came together better than I could have hoped for and I felt so proud having my siblings and mom there. We don’t get together often but when we do, it’s full of love. I got to host that love and it felt awesome.
Growing up my parents would always make our favorite meal for our birthday. I love steak and cream of spinach with wild rice. I love it now but don’t have it quite as often.
two that I can’t choose from.. begging for homemade ice cream and finding out *I* had to be the one to crank (shows my age, huh? lol) the ice cream maker while my favorite guy everrr (grandfather) added the salt and Ice.. or.. eating watermelon on my great grandparents front porch. watermelon that they grew, and had just brought in from the field.. super juicy, super sweet (with a bit of salt sprinkled on), on a very hot texas afternoon.
My favorite food memory from childhood is helping make flour tortillas in my grandmother’s kitchen. She would tell me what she was putting into her “torilla bucket”, had me add certain ingredients, and then I got to help her roll them out before she put them on the griddle. She would let me roll mine out and they were always much smaller but thicker than hers and man were they good with melted butter!
My favorite food memory would be eating seaweed and rice – for breakfast, after school, for dinner. (This is before you could buy it at Trader Joe’s!).
My favorite food memory is very recent. Because of a lifelong (unhealthy) addiction to food, I recently underwent gastric bypass surgery. I won’t go into details, but I am now three months post-surgery and it’s the best decision ever!!
That being said, my favorite food memory is being able to eat REAL FOOD after eight weeks of puréed glop! I had a bite of tender chicken and two bites of the best crispy, lightly sweet Belgian waffle ever. My relationship with food has changed for the better and changed for good.