Yum,Yum,Yum. A fantastic book filled with great Amish treats

Having just returned from Canyon Ranch, I was anxious to try the new recipes and a bit skeptical that my family and friends would eat them. There was no problem at all. Besides being healthy, the recipes taste delicious. Even my 3 small children enjoy eating my new creations and my husband no longer turns up his nose when I return from the grocery with Tempeh and FLax Seed. The first chapter on what you need to stock for a healthy kitchen provides the essential building blocks. I recently hosted a dinner party for 8 where I served the poached salmon in orange relish, lemon-poppyseed cake and Quinoa (all from the cookbook). The compliments were never ending and we spent much of the evening talking about nutrition and health. If you can't get away with 5 days at Canyon Ranch, this cookbook will help you meet whatever health needs you may have deliciously. I dare you not to buy the first one when you've exhausted all the recipes in the second.

This book caught my eye at Pearl Harbor on my first significant visit to Hawaii a few weeks ago. Had to order it as soon as I got home. Outstanding digest of Cook's lifetime of exploration. Excellent format with its mixture of concise narrative and outstanding maps. Fascinating "read", I couldn't put it down. Excellent level of detail -- enough to be truly educational -- not so much as to overload. Emotionally moving to recall standing on Hawaiian soil and try to imagine the worlds meeting in the explorations of Cook's time. This book helped stitch my own experience to the history of the explorations.

This is a wonderful mystery with engaging characters that are neither stereotypes nor caricatures. Lillian Morgan is a retired professor living in the Silver Acres retirement community, but she is definitely not your typical retiree. When she receives a phone call from Mark, her granddaughter's boyfriend, telling her that he is being accused of the sexual harassment and rape of one of his students, Lillian refuses to stand idly by. With the help of her would-be suitor Wesley, Lillian begins to investigate the charges despite her own granddaughter's doubts about Mark's innocence.

When the student is found dead, Mark becomes the police's number one suspect for her murder. Soon, things become even more complicated when Lillian discovers that the woman may have a murky past of her own. Lillian's investigation leads her into the politically cut-throat world of academic politics as well as into strip bars and the lives of strippers (which Lillian finds quite fascinating).

Lillian is an entertaining and witty character who doesn't come off as either a cutesy grandmother type or a spoof of a hip and with-it senior citizen. She is likeable and admirable and doesn't put up with the condescension the elderly often receive. Alan Cook as well explores the backlash of sexual harassment investigations that seem to unfairly prosecute the suspects and leaves them with little chance of proving their innocence.

I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery, which follows the first of the Lillian Morgan series, THIRTEEN DIAMONDS. I look forward to the next by Alan Cook and the continuation of this entertaining series.

I have never failed to turn a head, except for one child, when I made her Applesauce Spice Cake. If you like camping and no nonsense cooking that tastes great, this is your book. Her personal stories are wonderful to read too! I received her book when I was married in 1974, and have never parted with it since.

A talented, young chef who has worked in my home preparing meals for dinner parties for our friends shared her copy with me. I kept it for for two months and read it from cover to cover! The profiles on the chefs were interesting and inspirational. The recipes are uncomplicated. I have prepared several recipes and each turned out delicious and almost looked like the photo in the book! I am ordering the cookbook today...you should too.

Center Stage is organized into two books and was written primarily for teachers. Each of the six levels in the program contain thirty lessons that range from beginning exploratory activities to fully developed creative dramatics. The lessons focus on subjects and objectives and each includes sections called warmup, explore, develop, and evaluate. The lessons also contain story scripts, resources, and other information for the teacher. Center Stage encourages students to explore new ways to communicate ideas and emotions in a safe, classroom environment. The materials also provide strategies to include the arts in other content areas and practical suggestions about time, resources, and class management. About the Author: Wayne Cook is a dynamic and experienced professional who has been a drama instructor at the Theatre Center in London, California State University at Long Beach, and Penn State University. The author has had numerous television, film, and stage roles and continues to act professionally.

The last of the trilogy, Ceremony takes the world Cook described richly in the first two books and exposes it to the first meeting of this society with a major space-faring race. That race is human, and could easily be us in the future. We only read snippets about these humans, but learn enough to know we are fighting amongst ourselves and the Meth (the race of the Darkwar trilogy) are about to be dragged into it. The humans of this book are technologically far in advance of the Meth, but know nothing of the mystical powers accepted as real by these people. Merika, unlikely champion of the old ways, leads the battle against the treacherous meth who would destroy the world she loves and hates. Epic battle against a cold starscape -- witchery, black ghosts and ancient magic against lasers, nuclear engines and electromagnetic shields. Will Merika win again, even against these incredible odds? It kept me reading long past my bed time. I own the series but would love to have a spare copy to loan out. Unfortunately, the whole set is out of print and I don't think the publisher will print it again. The ending sequence left me in tears. A dramatic, fitting end to a well-written series. Unlike a lot of trilogies written these days, there won't be a sequel.

I love this cookbook! A friend gave me this book last winter nad I have found great recipes for every season. Everything has turned out beautifully. My favorites are the salad with oven dried pears and the soft shelled crabs--it gives great advice too--like dredging with Wondra flour instead of regular flour--what a difference something so minor can make in a dish!

This is a fantastic compendium of many of the best chefs in America and some of their finest preparations. You've got Romano, Vongerichten, Boulud, Keller, O'Connell...even relative newcomers like Patricia Yeo and Wylie Dufresne. It is an outstanding resource for getting a taste of the various styles and approaches...including multiple no-stir risotto recipes and other kitchen hints. Preparation times and a recipe index are provided to make this a very well done production, including a photo for one of each chef's preparations (each chef gets about half a dozen recipes included).

The meals are mostly accessible to the home cook and very clearly presented. They were obviously kitchen-tested in order to get into the New York Times from where these recipes are drawn, so no bogus preparations. Plus these chefs didn't hold anything back seeing as the New York Times is read by their target demographic and it's a competitive arena.

Anyone who wants to kick their culinary skills up a few thousand notches over Emeril & the food TV gang ought to invest wisely in this delectable tome.