Every now and again I get sent stuff.  Super fun for me cause I love mail and for the most part everything I receive is either really cool, useful or tastes great. For this particular post… I received a copy of a new book  – Keys to Good Cooking: A Guide to Making the Best of Foods and Recipes just released this month by Harold McGee.  I just want to give you a little scoop on what it is all about.  Deal?  Thought so.

About Harold McGee

Harold McGee writes about the science of food and cooking. He’s the author of the award-winning classic On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, and writes a monthly column, “The Curious Cook,” for The New York Times. He has been named food writer of the year by Bon Appétit magazine and to the Time 100, an annual list of the world’s most influential people. He lives in San Francisco.

My Thoughts

Keys to Good Cooking is just what I expected from McGee: a well-researched, well-written reference. The book is divided into twenty-four chapters, each one focusing on a category of ingredients (fruits, meats, dairy), on tools (small and large), or on techniques. One major topic in Keys to Good Cooking is food safety, including proper handling, cooking, storing, and buying.

Some features of the book that I really enjoyed were the organization and concise way of displaying the information.  Being a reference book, He intends for his readers to simply look up what they need to know before they use a specific ingredient or try a new preparation method, and the book is full of extremely useful information!.

This cookbook does not have any recipes in it, at least not recipes as you know them now.  It’s more of an explanation.  McGee explains how to shop for fruits, vegetables, meats, all foods; he tells you want to look for, what to avoid, how to store it in your house, how to clean it and when do throw it away.

One of my favorite lines in the book…

Cooking  can be one of the most satisfying things we do in life.  It’s a chance to make things with our own hands, nourish and give pleasure to people we care about, and choose exactly what we eat and make part of ourselves.

Since I love eating and preparing food so much, this one hit pretty close to home.

Video Clips about the Book

Below are a couple of videos that give you a simple look into Harold’s style and the premise around the book as well.

Stay tuned for a book giveaway( maybe tomorrow) and have a super day.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

It’s Giveaway Time! This month I have the pleasure of giving away 2 free books.  I am giving away a beautiful and wholly comprehensive how-to book for today’s photographers, FUNDAMENTALS OF PHOTOGRAPHY by renowned author, Tom Ang.

Novice or Advanced, Film or Digital, this book is your guide to everything photography related today.

Fundamentals of Photography – Book Review

When I received this book in the mail – I was really excited. I love free stuff not too mention I am really interested photography and learning how to improve my picture taking skills.  If this sounds like you – than this book will be perfect!

About the Book

Fundamentals of Photography, the Essential Handbook for Both Digital and Film Cameras, by Tom Ang is 352 pages long with a soft cover. The book contains 11 chapters filled with information and sample photos to demonstrate the topics covered. The chapters include a General Introduction, Fundamentals of Light, The Camera, Capturing Light, Using the Lens, Manipulating Light, Working with Color, Processing the Image, Digitizing the Image, Outputting the Image, and References.

Each chapter is broken up into small sections covering a very specific topic (as the sample above shows). Most of the sections span two pages (across the fold), so the topic can be studied without flipping through page after page — it’s at your fingertips.  Certain sections are also marked as “advanced topics” aimed at the photographers with a previous background. And finally, there are “Analysis” sections in some of the chapters that present a full image across the two pages.  This analysis includes many notes pointing out tips that were discussed in previous sections of the chapter — like a “tutorial” lesson.

The really cool thing about this book is the fact that it presents material for both digital and film photography.

About the Author

Tom Ang is an award-winning photographer and a leading authority on digital photography. His books include Dictionary of Photography and Digital Imaging, Digital Photographer’s Handbook, Photoshop CS for Photography, and How to Photograph Absolutely Everything. His work has been exhibited internationally, and for twelve years he was Senior Lecturer in Photographic Practice at the University of Westminster, London. He was the presenter for two six-part BBC programs on digital photography.

He has contributed regularly to magazines such as What Digital Camera? and The British Journal of Photography, and now writes for MacUser magazine. Tom won the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his photographic coverage of the Marco Polo Expedition, which pioneered the modern land crossing from Europe to China via Central Asia.

You can find Tom on the web at his main website.  This man has a wealth of knowledge, and I’d suggest you check out his website and any of his books.

Zesty’s Final Thoughts

I like it!  I definitely like it. My main reason for liking the book is because of its concise layout.  It gets to the point and doesn’t fool around. The book covers topics for all photography lovers as it is easy enough for a beginner, but interesting and useful enough for advanced photographers.  I would definitely recommend this book as a great read and a great reference.

Contest and Giveaway

How To Enter:

• New and existing email subscribers will automatically get an entry on draw date.  Note that only verified subscribers count. (+1 entry)
• Leave a comment telling me what kind of Camera you use. (+1 entry)
• Earn an extra chance to win by linking back to this post on your own blog (if you have one). (+1 entry)  (please email me if you link back)

The Rules:

• Please only 1 comment entry / person (please enter a valid email address).  Your email will be kept private and never given/sold to third parties.
• Two winners will win a copy of “Fundamentals of Photography” book.

So let me know your camera name in the comments below!  A random generator will be used to pick the winner.  Contest will end at 5pm EST January 23, 2009.

I look forward to all your responses.  Have a great Wednesday!

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty