Skip to main content

Around the Fire






Around the Fire by Greg Denton, Gabrielle Quinonez Denton with Stacy Adimando

Around the Fire is a new cookbook based upon recipes from Ox restaurant in Portland, Oregon.   Chefs Greg and Gabrielle Denton have been recognized globally for their unique cuisine and flair, especially with their Latin American live fire cooking meals.  Stacy Adimando is a food and travel journalist while also engaging in the writing for many news syndicates.  The cookbook is a beautiful hardcover table book that is very visually appealing. 

The authors incorporate some basic recipes alongside some more difficult recipes to challenge anyone from beginner to trained chef.  On page 95 the recipe for Grilled Maple Brined Pork Chops was a very good one indeed.  The brine is made of Maple Syrup Grade B and infuses the pork with a sweetness that balances out the saltiness of the meat when grilled.  The brine allows the flavor of the meat to stay inside while not making the meat dry out too quickly, since pork has a tendency to dry out if cooked too long.  Further along, the salsa for the grilled zucchini and eggplant adds a kick of saltiness with the rather tame flavors of the vegetables. 

Another great feature of the book is the opening section that relays some features of live fire cooking, namely discussing indirect/direct heart, cleaning the grill, types of grills, and what is the best essential grilling tools one would need for the live fire.  As with many cookbooks, some of the recipes called for ingredients that I wouldn’t normally use in the kitchen on a regular basis but also pushed me to think how I could use them.  The good thing about this cookbook is that the recipes span the range from grilled meats and seafood to grilled veggies and even a few desserts are in the mix.  I’m looking forward to firing up the grill again as I hope to use these recipes for the years to come.

Thanks to Blogging for Books for the copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Rise of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman

  The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman Navigating the culture that we take up residence in, with its laser focus on sexual identity, tolerance, and an individualism that raises its head at every corner, Christians need a robust account of how we got to this point in our Western culture without retreating to our churches nor morphing with the latest trends.   Carl Trueman, professor of religion and theology at Grove City College, brings his keen historical research to bear on this issue in his new book, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self.   Part historical survey and philosophical analysis, Dr. Trueman traces the trajectories of key thinkers such as Rousseau, Freud, and Marx, while also incorporating the insights of Charles Taylor and Phillip Rieff to form a cogent argument as to how we got to this point in our history, both in our expressive individualism and sexual freedom outlooks.   The book is surprisingly insightful and yet demands from the reader the pa
Post a Comment
Read more

The Conditioned Mind

The Conditioned Mind: Overcoming the Crippling Effects of Sin and Guilt by Michael J. Mannia Counselor and author Michael J. Mannia knows firsthand how the spiraling of sin and guilt can eat away at life.  His new book, The Conditioned Mind, is a look into how believers can overcome the effects of sin and guilt and live in the freedom that we have in Christ.  Through a careful look into the patterns that we develop and the mindsets that we get ingrained in, Michael is able to offer ways through guilt that bring freedom and healing.  I think this is not only a timely but a book that aims toward bringing real healing to its readers. In the first chapter Michael looks at two needs that we have: our need for love and our need for security.  Love isn’t something optional for the human race, but something it needs at its core.  “Additionally, we need to reciprocate love.  We need to feel loved as much as we need to love others (8).”  Love is a two-way street that inv
Post a Comment
Read more

Passover and Jesus

The Messiah in the Passover , Edited by Darrell Bock and Mitch Glaser Why should Christians celebrate and remember the Passover?   This is a striking question that needs to be understood as well as the historical and theological context of the Passover.   However obscure we sometimes view the Old Testament, there is some significant reasons why we should reach back and study the Passover.   Mitch Glaser in the Introduction states, “When Christians celebrate the Passover, they grow in their understanding of the Old Testament, affirm the Jewishness of the Gospel, deepen our understanding of the Lord’s Supper, and build community with fellow Christians…” (20).   This book is answer to why celebrate the Passover but even more importantly an answer to what the Passover is and what it signifies to us today.   The various contributors of this book, Messiah in the Passover, bring a wealth of ministry experience in relating the Jewishness of both Jesus and the Old Testament to
Post a Comment
Read more