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Books : Nigella Express
Rating: 
- Needs a bit on the side!
How to Eat remains the best; Feast the magnificent one to linger over, but Express has great ideas for simple recipes and food combinations which are ideal for a busy family meal after school. My boys, 14 and 8, love real food and experimenting with cooking (carefully supervised!). We've done the mustard pork chops (p10) and salmon (p9) already. Easy yes, simple to follow - but you do need a bit on the side! We added a few scrubbed new pots to the salmon and the chops on each occasion. Plus I was not happy to read that, having picked up packets in haste, my sugar snaps and ripe avocados were flown in from Africa. We'll be fiddling around with different seasonal veg (from closer to home as best as we can) to go with these recipes. Nigella's wisely bought good storeroom staples - we all know Waitrose does the Wok Oil which she puts in the ingredients' list using a lower case 'w' and 'o'! The good balsamic etc lasts and is therefore money well spent. All these shortcuts help, but I love it as she's kept cut her waffle to fit with the Express theme and reduced the prep time, using good meat/fish, to come up with a book destined to become a favourite here as the children fiddle with the recipes and add things, which is what home cooking is all about.
Rating:
- It's okay
The book is beautifully written as usual, and luscious photographs accompany every recipe. But I was a bit disappointed by the actual recipes - there seem to be quite a few that involve adding together a couple of packaged ingredients then serving, which to me isn't really cooking. I guess if you're not a big fan of cooking, you'll love this book. Or if you don't mind using a whole load of shop-bought, ready prepared ingredients. But if you baulk at pre-cooked noodles and do actually know what to do with green curry paste without being told, this might not be for you. Try Nigel Slater's 'Real Fast Food' instead!
Rating:
- The `Domestic Goddess' is back and what a GREAT book it is.....
'This is, as the title makes clear, a book about fast food, but it is a book about fast food for those who love eating. Perhaps that's self-evident: How could I write any other sort? .......
But, here's the problem: the day doesn't have enough gaps in it for me to do much shopping and the evening - what with the battles over homework, the still unchecked-off list of things I was meant to do, the calls I was supposed to return - doesn't yield much time to cook. But I must eat, and I must eat well - or else what is the point of it all?.......
I could go on, but in the interest of brevity and the 'Express' spirit, it seems only right to cut straight to the chase.
The recipes that follow are not simply quick to cook, they attempt to make the whole of your cooking life - and as a consequence, all of your life - easier.
They are arranged in chapters, but please don't feel confined by these.
Read, browse, sample, fiddle about as you see fit.
As in cooking, so in life: we muddle through as best as we can and this is what `Nigella Express' is all about.
Good Food Fast.....'
Nigella is the author of a number of best-selling books....but this is, arguably, her best to date. In it you will find the likes of everyday favourite recipes, such as `High-Speed Hamburger with Fast Fries', `Quick Chilli`, `Macaroni Cheese', `Butterfly Cakes' and `Roly Poly Pudding', mingling with the lesser well-known, but intriguing:-`Red Prawn and Mango Curry', `Green Apple Martini', `Red-Leaf, Fig and Serrano Ham Salad', `Chopped Ceviche and Mexicola', `Roquamole' and `Hokey Pokey'.
Launched to coincide with her latest BBC TV series, this chunky tome has 390 high quality pages, split over 13 chapters:-
(1) Everyday Easy - speedy suppers, day in, day out
(2) Workday Winners - weekday entertaining made easy
(3) Retro Rapido - time-warp favourites given the express twist
(4) Get Up and Go - breakfast at breakneck speed
(5) Quick Quick Slow - prepare ahead to save time later
(6) Against the Clock - no time? No problem
(7) Instant Calmer - super fast soul food
(8) Razzle Dazzle - give a party pronto
(9) Speedy Gonzales - Mexican-inspired moments
(10) On the Run - food for eating on the hoof, packed lunches and picnics
(11) Hey Presto - instant Italian
(12) Holiday Snaps - Christmas quickies
(13) Storecupboard SOS - how to cope when there's no time to go shopping
sandwiched between an introduction and a full index.
Handy ribbon bookmark.
Each chapter opens with the famous Nigella banter, as does each recipe, e.g. :-
`Lamb Olive and Caramelized Onion Tagine'
`Nearly all stews start with chopped onion.
Here is the lazy person's version, which uses some caramelised onion out of a jar instead..........And I add to the desirable idleness by not even searing the meat. I just tip everything into a big pan and let it do its own sweet thing without any interference from me.
`I don't actually cook this recipe in 'a tagine' - though often serve it in one Le Creuset Tagine, Cerise- but ever since someone told me that in Morocco most tagines are made in pressure cookers, I have felt unembarrassed by calling something cooked in a pan - 'a tagine'.
The recipes are clearly laid out with the list of ingredients, an easy to follow numbered method and the number of servings and, if applicable - notes on accompaniments and/or a footnote.
Mouth-watering full colour photography throughout.
A very small taste of the other recipes contained within:-
Anglo-Asian Lamb Salad
Mustard Pork Chops
Rapid Ragu
Naan Pizza
Caramel Croissant Pudding
Potato and Mushroom Gratin
Eton Mess
Cheese Fondue
Crepes Suzette
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Go Get `Em Smoothie
Frittata Party!
Croque Monsieur Bake
Maple Chicken `N' Ribs
Gravlax Sashimi
Irish Cream Tiramisu
Totally Chocolate Chip Cookies
Sweetcorn Chowder with Toasted Tortillas
Amaretto Syllabub
Holiday Hot Cake with Eggnog Cream
Hot Toddy
Curry in a Hurry
and
Instant Chocolate Mousse - (see above image) - a shockingly easy recipe which is simply delicious - don't forget some white chocolate shavings on the top!
Rating: - ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!!!
Yet another fantastic book from Nigella! Apart from the beautiful grey/pink presentation complete with retro pictures, the actual content is superb! It is different from her previous books in the way that the friendly chat she introduces each recipe with is cut down considerably. So although you still have a comforting narrative to guide you through each recipe, it's short and sweet and cuts to the chase. Also, in keeping with the 'express' theme, there is a recipe per page with bullet point methods. This makes it particularly easy to read when in a hurry. There are beautiful photos to drool over too!
I am very impressed with this latest book of Nigella's. I always thought 'Feast' would be incredibly hard to beat in all aspects. And although 'Express' deals with a different type of cooking, it is just as good and definitely up to the very high standard she has set for herself.
Rating: - Still on top form
This is a brilliant book from a brilliant writer with brilliant recipes. Beautifully photographed and full of Ms Lawsons trademark wit, there are great recipes here that you can make in no time. All Nigellas recipes work and she should be cheered for making great food cooking quick and accessible. A must for any kitchen!
- Needs a bit on the side!How to Eat remains the best; Feast the magnificent one to linger over, but Express has great ideas for simple recipes and food combinations which are ideal for a busy family meal after school. My boys, 14 and 8, love real food and experimenting with cooking (carefully supervised!). We've done the mustard pork chops (p10) and salmon (p9) already. Easy yes, simple to follow - but you do need a bit on the side! We added a few scrubbed new pots to the salmon and the chops on each occasion. Plus I was not happy to read that, having picked up packets in haste, my sugar snaps and ripe avocados were flown in from Africa. We'll be fiddling around with different seasonal veg (from closer to home as best as we can) to go with these recipes. Nigella's wisely bought good storeroom staples - we all know Waitrose does the Wok Oil which she puts in the ingredients' list using a lower case 'w' and 'o'! The good balsamic etc lasts and is therefore money well spent. All these shortcuts help, but I love it as she's kept cut her waffle to fit with the Express theme and reduced the prep time, using good meat/fish, to come up with a book destined to become a favourite here as the children fiddle with the recipes and add things, which is what home cooking is all about.
Rating:
- It's okayThe book is beautifully written as usual, and luscious photographs accompany every recipe. But I was a bit disappointed by the actual recipes - there seem to be quite a few that involve adding together a couple of packaged ingredients then serving, which to me isn't really cooking. I guess if you're not a big fan of cooking, you'll love this book. Or if you don't mind using a whole load of shop-bought, ready prepared ingredients. But if you baulk at pre-cooked noodles and do actually know what to do with green curry paste without being told, this might not be for you. Try Nigel Slater's 'Real Fast Food' instead!
Rating:
- The `Domestic Goddess' is back and what a GREAT book it is.....'This is, as the title makes clear, a book about fast food, but it is a book about fast food for those who love eating. Perhaps that's self-evident: How could I write any other sort? .......
But, here's the problem: the day doesn't have enough gaps in it for me to do much shopping and the evening - what with the battles over homework, the still unchecked-off list of things I was meant to do, the calls I was supposed to return - doesn't yield much time to cook. But I must eat, and I must eat well - or else what is the point of it all?.......
I could go on, but in the interest of brevity and the 'Express' spirit, it seems only right to cut straight to the chase.
The recipes that follow are not simply quick to cook, they attempt to make the whole of your cooking life - and as a consequence, all of your life - easier.
They are arranged in chapters, but please don't feel confined by these.
Read, browse, sample, fiddle about as you see fit.
As in cooking, so in life: we muddle through as best as we can and this is what `Nigella Express' is all about.
Good Food Fast.....'
Nigella is the author of a number of best-selling books....but this is, arguably, her best to date. In it you will find the likes of everyday favourite recipes, such as `High-Speed Hamburger with Fast Fries', `Quick Chilli`, `Macaroni Cheese', `Butterfly Cakes' and `Roly Poly Pudding', mingling with the lesser well-known, but intriguing:-`Red Prawn and Mango Curry', `Green Apple Martini', `Red-Leaf, Fig and Serrano Ham Salad', `Chopped Ceviche and Mexicola', `Roquamole' and `Hokey Pokey'.
Launched to coincide with her latest BBC TV series, this chunky tome has 390 high quality pages, split over 13 chapters:-
(1) Everyday Easy - speedy suppers, day in, day out
(2) Workday Winners - weekday entertaining made easy
(3) Retro Rapido - time-warp favourites given the express twist
(4) Get Up and Go - breakfast at breakneck speed
(5) Quick Quick Slow - prepare ahead to save time later
(6) Against the Clock - no time? No problem
(7) Instant Calmer - super fast soul food
(8) Razzle Dazzle - give a party pronto
(9) Speedy Gonzales - Mexican-inspired moments
(10) On the Run - food for eating on the hoof, packed lunches and picnics
(11) Hey Presto - instant Italian
(12) Holiday Snaps - Christmas quickies
(13) Storecupboard SOS - how to cope when there's no time to go shopping
sandwiched between an introduction and a full index.
Handy ribbon bookmark.
Each chapter opens with the famous Nigella banter, as does each recipe, e.g. :-
`Lamb Olive and Caramelized Onion Tagine'
`Nearly all stews start with chopped onion.
Here is the lazy person's version, which uses some caramelised onion out of a jar instead..........And I add to the desirable idleness by not even searing the meat. I just tip everything into a big pan and let it do its own sweet thing without any interference from me.
`I don't actually cook this recipe in 'a tagine' - though often serve it in one Le Creuset Tagine, Cerise- but ever since someone told me that in Morocco most tagines are made in pressure cookers, I have felt unembarrassed by calling something cooked in a pan - 'a tagine'.
The recipes are clearly laid out with the list of ingredients, an easy to follow numbered method and the number of servings and, if applicable - notes on accompaniments and/or a footnote.
Mouth-watering full colour photography throughout.
A very small taste of the other recipes contained within:-
Anglo-Asian Lamb Salad
Mustard Pork Chops
Rapid Ragu
Naan Pizza
Caramel Croissant Pudding
Potato and Mushroom Gratin
Eton Mess
Cheese Fondue
Crepes Suzette
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Go Get `Em Smoothie
Frittata Party!
Croque Monsieur Bake
Maple Chicken `N' Ribs
Gravlax Sashimi
Irish Cream Tiramisu
Totally Chocolate Chip Cookies
Sweetcorn Chowder with Toasted Tortillas
Amaretto Syllabub
Holiday Hot Cake with Eggnog Cream
Hot Toddy
Curry in a Hurry
and
Instant Chocolate Mousse - (see above image) - a shockingly easy recipe which is simply delicious - don't forget some white chocolate shavings on the top!
Rating:
- ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!!!Yet another fantastic book from Nigella! Apart from the beautiful grey/pink presentation complete with retro pictures, the actual content is superb! It is different from her previous books in the way that the friendly chat she introduces each recipe with is cut down considerably. So although you still have a comforting narrative to guide you through each recipe, it's short and sweet and cuts to the chase. Also, in keeping with the 'express' theme, there is a recipe per page with bullet point methods. This makes it particularly easy to read when in a hurry. There are beautiful photos to drool over too!
I am very impressed with this latest book of Nigella's. I always thought 'Feast' would be incredibly hard to beat in all aspects. And although 'Express' deals with a different type of cooking, it is just as good and definitely up to the very high standard she has set for herself.
Rating:
- Still on top formThis is a brilliant book from a brilliant writer with brilliant recipes. Beautifully photographed and full of Ms Lawsons trademark wit, there are great recipes here that you can make in no time. All Nigellas recipes work and she should be cheered for making great food cooking quick and accessible. A must for any kitchen!