Paula Deen & Friends: Living It Up, Southern Style

`Paula Deen & Friends' by, you guessed it, Paula Deen and `Savannah Magazine' columnist, Martha Nesbit is Deen's fourth book, her first without the plastic many-fingered loose leaf format and her first for publisher Simon and Schuster. It is also the one with by far the largest `As Seen On food Network' logo of all recent publications by that cable channel's culinary stars.I really sort of miss the plastic binding, although Ms. Deen and her Simon & Schuster handlers seem to have kept the price of this volume down in spite of the fully sewn binding. This format really seemed to match the `church fund-raiser' flavor of her recipes.The premise of this book is Ms. Deen's statement that she loves to cook, and she loves to entertain, but she hates to plan parties. And, since she expects this attitude is not hers alone, she sets out to prepare for us 21 menus and their component recipes to relieve us of the task of putting together a lineup of dishes to fit these and similar occasions.The good news, and the bad news, is that these premises for parties are not your usual Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, Fourth of July, occasions. There is at least one birthday menu and a New Years day menu, but all others are for events which you may never encounter, such as a bridge club supper, a tailgating party, a boss comes to dinner menu, a hunt (fox?) lunch in the field, a christening brunch, a Kentucky Derby party, and a christening brunch. Now obviously, a `bridge club supper' can be adapted to any number of different sit down dinner occasions, especially since, like all of Deen's recipes, none of the ingredients are very pricy.One complaint I have about the recipes in the menus is that none of them are scaled for a large number of people and in parties where one may expect a large number of people, the recipes are not scaled to the same number of people. Thus, in the `cooking shower', the Tomato Tarts makes 24 count, the shrimp and grits serves 4 as a main course, the fish serves four, the roasted new potatoes serves six to eight and the fresh fruit tart serves eight. I think it should not have been too difficult to scale all the recipes within a menu to the same number of people, and make that number appropriate to the type of occasion. On the other hand, each party menu includes six to eight dishes, which means that you can always leave one or two out if you are serving just four people. Similarly, this gives a nice variety to please a wide range of tastes if you are serving eight to twelve.Being a Mario Batali kind of cook, I am not especially fond of Martha Deen's brand of Southern recipes, as I always seem to find her dishes too sweet for my tastes. And, if I want to go ethnic, I always have my Pennsylvania Dutch style of sweet tooth cooking on which to fall. But I really happen to like her show on the Food Network and I think her style of cooking has a lot of appeal to a lot of people, and this book simply adds a new dimension of utility to her published recipes.Like all her earlier recipes, there are virtually no expensive ingredients used. The number of prepared foods in the recipes is relatively small and relatively unobjectionable. And, virtually all recipes are relatively straightforward, requiring few special appliances or techniques. There are some recipes that understandably do require a rather large number of ingredients, such as the recipe for gumbo. There are also some dessert recipes that are a bit involved, but most take all available shortcuts, such as the one for apple strudel. My Austro-Hungarian heritage forces me to point out that strudel dough is NOT the same as the Greek phylo dough used in Ms. Deen's recipe, but it will get the job done a lot more easily than a trip to Vienna for a crash course in strudel making. Note that the title of this book should make it clear that many of these recipes were created by Paula's friends and neighbors, to whom she gives ample credit in the Acknowledgments and headnotes.Part of the charm of a lot of cookbooks based on cooking in Italy, Provence, or Spain lies in the little stories that surround the recipes. It is easy to forget that just because Ms. Deen's terroir is close to home, she does not have some very heartwarming stories of her own.Paula Deen is your Down Home Savannah version of the more scholarly James Villas. And, it isn't exactly Martha Stewart either, but it's a darn good, darn cheap (far cheaper than Ina Garten's similar volume) bindle of suggestions for entertaining.

First off, I love this book and I could go into the details of favorite recipes but I basically bought this book because:1. I love Paula's show on tv, have made some of those recipes and like her casual, chatty style. Good food, nice presentation.2. The book has menus and great recipes and the humorous writing of Paula herself. I really like cookbooks that contain slices of the cook's life, books which are as fun to read as to use. This one is. I love the Oatmeal cookies and her fried chicken is pure Southern cooking at its best. Nothing too fancy, just good, basic home cooking.NOW, HERE IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS BOOK: This is one time when Amazon's "Search Inside the Book" function really helps you figure out if this book is for you. It is about as close to going into a bookstore and looking through an actual book as you are going to get - at least, while still online. Take a look at the sample menus. Then take a look at the index, most (if not all) of which is featured in the "Search Inside the Book" function. That will give you a detailed list of recipes and menu ideas contained in this book. You'll also be able to look at the introduction and get a feel for Paula's writing and style. Reading this book is fun and when you are in the mood for cooking, these are some fine recipes! Personal tastes differ, of course, and what one person finds delicious, others may not. But I think you'll find this book will up your chances of pleasing friends and family with delicious food. Not only does the author have a popular tv show but she has run a food business for years, one that has been successful and at least one of her sons worked in restaurants and BOTH of them grew up cooking with her. This means you'll be cooking food that has a proven track record for appeal and popularity.

Hello! I rarely write reviews of the products I purchase online. In fact this is my FIRST, lol! However, this book I feel deserves a write up and I hope it helps buyers out there~ I LOVED the book! I find the recipes well written and easy to follow. Not complicated to cook nor are the ingredients hard to find! MOST IMPORTANT, after making a few of the meals, THEY TASTE FABULOUS! That's what it's all about! The book is written in a very straight forward, down to earth manner with down home southern hospitality thrown in. I cook for a living. I am a foodie! I have over 300 cook books, (YES that other famous one with the peacock guy...) and like that one, this is also one of my favorites, right off the bat; I knew it before I even tried any of Ms Deen's WONDERFUL recipes! There are many "trade" secrets or cooking tips included, if you don't know them already! Many of the recipes are very unusual and unique; not found everywhere! (Now today, that's important with the slew of cookbooks out there!). I suggest you go out and buy this cookbook NOW, AT ONCE, NO QUESTIONS ASKED! You won't be disappointed in it, I feel! Lastly, THANK YOU MS. DEEN for your wonderful book, you are making me FAT! But "never trust a skinny cook" as the saying goes! Scott in New York City. [email protected]

I can't personally attest to the flavor but my Dogs love it!Always very fresh looking. I just ordered another bag.

Good

Nice

We love her cooking especially my hubby and I'm looking forward to see her next cook-book.A cookbook to buy, u wan't be disappointed.This is a great cookbook if you want good, but not complicated recipes. The Not Yo Mamma's Banana puding is so good and so easy. The book is charming as is it's author. I plan on trying many of the recipes. The only thing was not many pictures i like so see what I'm preparing.Thanks, and enjoy!

The recipes are ok. I think her cookery show on the Food Network is more interesting than her cookery book. I havent seen her other books so I cannot compare this one to her other books. I wasnt that impressed.I like to open a book and the way the recipe is written and the pictures make me pick up the pots and pans. I havent looked at this recipe book a second time.

It has not the recipe that I am looking for