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Rating: 
Summary: ZEN AND THE ART OF. . .
Review: "The Country Gourmet" is a textbook for the Culinary Artist whose heart has never left mama's kitchen. Any cookbook would be a rare find, indeed, if it can lure me away from my 48 oz, yellow and blue Bisquick box, send me scrambling through fridge and cupboard for scratch ingredients, many of which are in boxes, layered with the dust of disuse -all this for the promise of a true country biscuit. They took me about 10 minutes longer to prepare, but hey! I give that up to the Zen-like experience of its preparation. In fact, for all us in this fast-food, microwaveable, just-add-water-and-bake generation, an enterprising author should write a book called "Zen and the Art of Biscuit Making." The theme would be "slow down and enjoy the process." But wait! Someone has! Margie Robinson-Toone (the name itself suggests a Zen koan) with her "The Country Gourmet" has written the definitive cookbook whose theme could easily be: "Tomorrow, of itself, will come... so today, enjoy the moment. Savor the food on the plate before you. Whether you prepared it, or someone prepared it for you... it was prepared with love." At the risk of being anti-climactic there is more: While the bacon is sizzling in the cast iron skillet, and the eggs are a-scrambling, what better to do while occasionally glancing at the biscuits' progress than read one or two of the anecdotal yarns that are peppered throughout this delightful cookbook. And what better one to read while watching the oven than a tale about what some mischievous children, years ago, did with some uncooked biscuits and some old boots. No, I won't spoil the punch-line, but I will tell you it will leave you chuckling long after your last biscuit has sopped up what's left of the gravy on your plate. Above all, remember that life is short. So enjoy the experience of it.
Rating:
Summary: ZEN AND THE ART OF. . .
Review: "The Country Gourmet" is a textbook for the Culinary Artist whose heart has never left mama's kitchen. Any cookbook would be a rare find, indeed, if it can lure me away from my 48 oz, yellow and blue Bisquick box, send me scrambling through fridge and cupboard for scratch ingredients, many of which are in boxes, layered with the dust of disuse -all this for the promise of a true country biscuit. They took me about 10 minutes longer to prepare, but hey! I give that up to the Zen-like experience of its preparation. In fact, for all us in this fast-food, microwaveable, just-add-water-and-bake generation, an enterprising author should write a book called "Zen and the Art of Biscuit Making." The theme would be "slow down and enjoy the process." But wait! Someone has! Margie Robinson-Toone (the name itself suggests a Zen koan) with her "The Country Gourmet" has written the definitive cookbook whose theme could easily be: "Tomorrow, of itself, will come... so today, enjoy the moment. Savor the food on the plate before you. Whether you prepared it, or someone prepared it for you... it was prepared with love." At the risk of being anti-climactic there is more: While the bacon is sizzling in the cast iron skillet, and the eggs are a-scrambling, what better to do while occasionally glancing at the biscuits' progress than read one or two of the anecdotal yarns that are peppered throughout this delightful cookbook. And what better one to read while watching the oven than a tale about what some mischievous children, years ago, did with some uncooked biscuits and some old boots. No, I won't spoil the punch-line, but I will tell you it will leave you chuckling long after your last biscuit has sopped up what's left of the gravy on your plate. Above all, remember that life is short. So enjoy the experience of it.
Rating:
Summary: A Taste of the Country
Review: Margie Robertson-Toone's, The Country Gourmet, is so much more than a regular country cookbook. Filled with tales of her childhood and family, it's an open invitation to sit a spell with her and enjoy some of the finest home-cookin' in the United States. The recipes are easy to follow and delicious. Not to be missed are her Thanksgiving Turkey, Cornbread Dressing, and Turkey Gravy. All the recipes in the book are filled with comfort and great taste. Altogether, this is one of the best cookbooks I've ever read. Definitely a must-have in every kitchen.
Rating:
Summary: A Taste of the Country
Review: Margie Robertson-Toone's, The Country Gourmet, is so much more than a regular country cookbook. Filled with tales of her childhood and family, it's an open invitation to sit a spell with her and enjoy some of the finest home-cookin' in the United States. The recipes are easy to follow and delicious. Not to be missed are her Thanksgiving Turkey, Cornbread Dressing, and Turkey Gravy. All the recipes in the book are filled with comfort and great taste. Altogether, this is one of the best cookbooks I've ever read. Definitely a must-have in every kitchen.
Rating:
Summary: Comfort food and reading...
Review: The recipes in "The Country Gourmet" spin a tale of comfort as well as good eats. The remembrances of the author's mama and her love of food and life does more than feed the reader's soul, it gives the reader hope that there is truly more to life than getting out of bed each day; there are wonderful dishes to prepare and delicious people to get to know and break bread together with. TWO THUMBS way up for this amazingly inspiring cookbook/biography chronicling a daughter's love for her mother and her mother's cooking.
Rating:
Summary: Comfort food and reading...
Review: The recipes in "The Country Gourmet" spin a tale of comfort as well as good eats. The remembrances of the author's mama and her love of food and life does more than feed the reader's soul, it gives the reader hope that there is truly more to life than getting out of bed each day; there are wonderful dishes to prepare and delicious people to get to know and break bread together with. TWO THUMBS way up for this amazingly inspiring cookbook/biography chronicling a daughter's love for her mother and her mother's cooking.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read
Review: The `Country Gourmet Book' authored by Margie Robertson Toone is a collection of recipes and poignant childhood memories combined to make a interesting read. Ah, the Southern life style sure sounds appetizing. Just reading the vividly described moments in time and imagining the smells of foods added pounds to my ever expanding rear compartment. Imagining the toasty kitchen, hearing the sounds of bacon frying and the smell of breads baking took me back to my Grandma's little log cabin in the hills of West Virginia. The recipes are simple and easy to prepare in contrast to other recipe books that require one to travel to foreign lands to search for unusual spices or where one has to take out a second mortgage to afford the ingredients. The Country Gourmet is a MUST HAVE for those cooks who just want to serve a good UNCOMPLICATED and appealing meal for their family and friends while making memories that last a lifetime! T. Y. Green, Author
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Summary: Curl Up and Read
Review: This isn't just another cook book. From its paperback form to its wonderful stories this is a great novel. This is the type of book that you curl up with. You read and cry; read and drool. This book isn't just about great food; but it is also about a family that experienced the wonderful South and lived to write about it. These people were happy with their cornbread dressing and gumbo. They didn't need fancy foods to be happy. This book makes you think of your own experiences in life and helps you to remember what a wonderful thing food is. I recently made Cornbread Dressing and Sweet Potatoe Suffle and got many compliments on it. There wasn't enough they could say about it. I enjoyed just curling up with this heart-warming book of memories and great food.
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