22 October 2016

Weekend Cooking: Ziggy Marley and Family Cookbook

Weekend Cooking hosted by www.BethFishReads.comWeekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page.

_______
Review: Ziggy Marley and Family CookbookBeing a long-time Reggae fan, I couldn't resist the chance to review the Ziggy Marley and Family Cookbook. This great collection of recipes emphasizes organic, GMO-free ingredients and recipes that are family friendly and easy to make.

The first things I noticed about the cookbook were the thick matte paper, beautiful photos, earthy colors, and clean font. These features are the immediate hooks, but Marley's passion for good nutritious fare clinches the deal.

As you can imagine, Marley's culinary style is based in Jamaican tradition, but it has also been influenced by Rasta culture. More recently, Marley has found inspiration from his wife's Israeli-Iranian roots, which bring an international flare to the family's everyday dinner table.

The recipes range from a simple frittata to trendy smoothies and juices; from comforting grain salads to squash and leek soup and Caribbean coconut-flavored fish. Several dishes have caught my attention, especially among the soups and salads. I also have my eye on the roasted yam tart (made with puff pastry), spicy grilled jerked chicken, and especially the stout-infused ginger bread. All the recipes are geared toward family meals, though I doubt any guests would find room to complain if they were served such flavorful and nutritious food.

The Ziggy Marley and Family Cookbook has a lot going for it, but here are some things to note:
  • The Marley family runs a company called Ziggy Marley Organics and a few recipes call for one of their products. The good news is that substitutions are always noted in the ingredient list.
  • Some of the recipe directions seem a little light on the details. This doesn't bother me, but more inexperienced cooks may wish for better guidance when it comes to judging whether a dish has finished cooking.
  • Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free people will find a lot to love, including gluten-free pancakes.
  • If you're landlocked, like I am, some of the fish dishes will be (excuse the pun) off the table.
  • Finally, I'm sorry Marley didn't contribute more stories to go with the recipes he included in the book. The chapter introductions offer hints, but not quite enough for me.
Recommendation: The Ziggy Marley and Family Cookbook will appeal to a wide range of cooks, especially confident cooks who have access to fresh seafood. If you are cutting down on meat, this book will give you fresh ideas. On the other hand, despite the word family in the title, I bet whole wild red snapper would be a hard sell for most parents. Bottom line: Look through the book at the store or borrow it from the library before buying, just to make sure the recipes will suit your family and your skill level.

Here's a quick and easy fall salad to grace your holiday table or to take to a tailgating party. (Note: scan and recipe are used in the context of this review. All rights remain with the original copyright holders: Tuff Gong Worldwide.)

Fall Quinoa Salad
Serves 2 to 4; vegetarian, vegan, gluten free
  • Review: Ziggy Marley and Family Cookbook1 cup pomegranate seeds
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa, drained and cooled
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 large bunch cilantro, minced
  • 1 large bunch of mint, minced
  • 3 green onions, minced
  • 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together and serve chilled.

Notes from Beth Fish Reads: For my table and my tastes, I'd start with only half the mint and would most likely add some olive oil.

Published by Akahic Books, 2016
ISBN-13: 97816717754838
Source: review (see review policy)
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)


15 comments:

Tina 10/22/16, 7:04 AM  

What you said about the quality of the paper and how the book is out together is appealing right off. Don't you just love when you open a very good quality book with matte paper, that alone is a statement of quality instead of some of these flimsy cookbooks where the pages could just tear as you flip though.
Ok, off that rant now. Great salad! I almost used my BFR hookup for a quinoa salad I made this week and I used cranberries too. And kale. Love your recipe and will check out this book.

Mae Travels 10/22/16, 8:22 AM  

I never heard of Ziggy Marley, but I'm intrigued by a family that's part Jamaican and part Israeli-Iraqui. Your wish for more family stories makes me afraid it would be a disappointing book.

best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

jama 10/22/16, 8:26 AM  

This is worth a look -- will take your advice and see if my library has it. The quinoa salad sounds good. :)

Melynda@Scratch Made Food! 10/22/16, 8:35 AM  

I need to check my library and with your suggestions for modification make the salad. It sounds great and for some reason, quinoa is not on my table very often. It sounds like a great read, thanks.

bermudaonion 10/22/16, 8:56 AM  

This sounds like a cookbook that will hold a lot of appeal for a lot of people.

Nan 10/22/16, 10:17 AM  

I don't need to copy and save the recipe because I'm going to buy the book. Hadn't heard of it. Sounds wonderful. Ziggy is my fave of the 'boys' and I look forward to this. I think I'll buy one for each of my kids for Christmas. Thanks so much!!

Katherine P 10/22/16, 11:18 AM  

Between food allergies and a general lack of knowledge and challenging availability of fresh seafood I'm thinking most of the fish dishes wouldn't work for us either but I'm intrigued by this cookbook. I don't mind a cookbook suggesting a specific brand especially if they include substitutes and this sounds gorgeous! I think this may be a library book for me but I'm looking forward to flipping through it!

Claudia 10/22/16, 11:38 AM  

That book looks like it would totally work for us, and that Fall Quinoa salad sounds delightful. Hope I'm able to find it in a book store or the library first though.

Deb in Hawaii 10/22/16, 11:50 AM  

I have seen a little about this book already and your review makes me want it all the more. That Fall Quinoa Salad looks delicious.

I have linked up two posts today--the book review is only vaguely food-related this time, but the eggs and dukkah post is totally food. ;-)

Esme 10/22/16, 12:31 PM  

I have not heard of this book-I have a pomegranate on my counter, mint in the garden and quinoa in the cupboard. I know what will be on the table tonight. Some almonds may be good to tossed in.

(Diane) bookchickdi 10/22/16, 5:46 PM  

The salad looks like a great dish to bring to a potluck.

rhapsodyinbooks 10/22/16, 5:49 PM  

The quinoa salad looks very good. I made some today in fact, but my own recipe, and it did not occur to me to add dried cranberries but that seems like a great idea!

Jackie McGuinness 10/22/16, 6:50 PM  

That salad sounds delicious!

Debbie 10/22/16, 7:37 PM  

I love any cookbook that is a bit storytelling too. What do I mean? I guess when people write about their family/food lives it can't help being a bit of a memoir. Anyway, I love 'family' cookbooks. Sounds good.

Molly 10/23/16, 4:08 PM  

I love quinoa salad... and this sounds as though it has a nice sweet flavor.

Thanks for stopping by. I read all comments and may respond here, via e-mail, or on your blog. I visit everyone who comments, but not necessarily right away.

I cannot turn off word verification, but if you are logged into Blogger you can ignore the captcha. I have set posts older than 14 days to be on moderation. I can no longer accept anonymous comments. I'm so sorry if this means you have to register or if you have trouble commenting.

Copyright

All content and photos (except where noted) copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads 2008-2020. All rights reserved.

Quantcast

Thanks!

To The Blogger Guide, Blogger Buster, Tips Blogger, Our Blogger Templates, BlogU, and Exploding Boy for the code for customizing my blog. To Old Book Illustrations for my ID photo. To SEO for meta-tag analysis. To Blogger Widgets for the avatars in my comments and sidebar gadgets. To Review of the Web for more gadgets. To SuziQ from Whimpulsive for help with my comments section. To Cool Tricks N Tips for my Google +1 button.

Quick Linker

Services

SEO

  © Blogger template Coozie by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP