Customer Reviews

Ancient Grains for Modern Meals: Mediterranean Whole Grain Recipes for Barley, Farro, Kamut, Polenta, Wheat Berries & More

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

At the first glance, Maria Speck's book not only pleases by its appetizing photos, but, also, by its clear, user friendly design. A mixture of biographical anecdotes, helpful comments and tempting recipes - don't worry, the recipes are the main part - the book is very well written, funny, not only instructive, but also entertaining.
Reading it, I had several "Aha" moments - the author (who grew up in Germany and Greece) doesn't shy away from rich ingredients like butter, bacon, or a shot of booze, but believes that "food has to be mouthwatering" and "eating is about pleasure first, and dieting last". And her recipes really live up to that credo!
I served the "Brie Cakes with Sun-Dried Tomatoes" to my rather skeptical husband who, after the first forkful, turned into an ardent "believer". The oat based burgers, seasoned with roasted pine nuts, rosemary and sage, were absolutely amazing! Being an avid baker, I also tried the "Greek Walnut-Barley Cake", Lemon-Rosemary Scones" and "Orange Scented Scones with Dark Chocolate" - all were delicious.
The instructions are very clear and easy to follow, even for iffier steps (like handling very sticky dough), and, for people like me, who don't like it too sweet, there is no necessity to cut down on sugar or honey - the seasoning is just right.
This is really a cookbook that takes the scary (and Puritan!) out of whole grain cooking.

I've enjoyed everything I've tried from this book so far. There are a lot of interesting combinations of Mediterranean flavors to try. The recipes strike a nice balance between being fully detailed, so that you can follow them exactly if you wish, and being adaptable, so that you can take the inspiration provided and adapt it to your tastes and supplies.

This is a very good-looking book, with nice page layout and lovely photographs.

I love that the recipes, including the baked goods, all use 100% whole grains--no hidden white flour.

I am absolutely in love with cookbooks. As a general rule my grandma once told me, it's worth buying a cookbook if you get 2 or 3 unique new recipes you can go to regularly. Now, I usually don't buy cookbooks that aren't vegan specific but I could not pass this one up. The salads section alone has been worth the money and are already vegan (aside from some added cheese or butter which is easy to substitute or omit).

I've made the salad on the cover, which is delicious with a garlic marinated tofu slice, and we've made this recipe twice in 2 weeks. The recipe that really sold the book for me was the Bittersweet Koliva that you can see in the Amazon "Look Inside"feature. I made this for my Greek friend from Thessaloniki (where the author is from) and she LOVED it! It's a very unique sweet grain dish that I never would have thought of on my own. And a little tip, I substituted the raisins and dragees for ribbons of toasted coconut. So delicious!

I highly recommend this book so anyone and everyone! It has creative recipes that I never could have imagines and they are so simple and wholesome. Though I have only tried a few of these ancients grains, they have become the new staples in my diet (plain brown rice is out! haha). What's also great is that it is a healthy but delicious book that's great for vegetarians, carnists, and vegans alike!

If you're on the fence about getting this book, try some of the recipes you can see in the "Look Inside" feature (this is a good tip for any cookbook you might want on Amazon) and see if yourself how worthwhile it would be to have. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.

i was really looking forward to finding lots of recipes using whole grains, or "berries", as the author calls them, but i found that many of the recipes only use whole grain flour, and not the whole grain. there is only 1 recipe for amaranth and buckwheat, and 3 for quinoa, for example. the recipes look good, but it's not what i was expecting.

I can't even pretend to be objective about Maria Speck's new cookbook, "Ancient Grains for Modern Meals" because a) Maria's a long-time friend; b) she let me test a couple of the recipes; c) the recipes are creative, delicious, and fun to cook; d) the photos are gorgeous; e) it's a great read, because it's full of stories about Maria's Greek and German family; and f) the information about cooking with whole grains is really useful, whether you know your spelt from your farro or you couldn't tell the difference between a grain of brown rice and a couscou (what the heck do you call a single grain of couscous, anyway?)

Maria embraces the use of butter, cream and bacon; and insists that "health is the last thing on my mind when I eat." Fortunately, even though I'm a pescovegetarian and try to eat as healthily as possible, I can still enjoy this cookbook, because many of the recipes includes suggestions for how to lighten them up or make them vegetarian.

Whether you're a hedonist or a health nut, this book will make you want to try every recipe, because Maria swoons over the taste and texture of each whole grain like it's a treasured friend. To be candid, I think she's a bit nutty, because, face it, certain grains are rather bland. For example, what's the big whoop about polenta? Even when it's fried with a nice crust, it still tastes like breakfast cereal. Fortunately, her recipes call for foods with strong Mediterranean flavors--such as feta cheese, smoked trout, and olives--that could make almost any grain taste good.

Millet is another one of those grains that I'm not particularly crazy about, but its dry, almost nutty flavor is a perfect foil to soak up the salty tomato sauce in one of my favorite recipes in the book, "Greek Millet Saganaki with Shrimp and Ouzo." I've never been a fan of ouzo, either, but the liqueur cuts through the salt and gives this dish a bright, clean flavor. I even discovered that ouzo can be pretty refreshing when you drink it on the rocks with a splash of soda.

Although I'm admittedly biased, I'm sure that you, too, will find at least one new food in this cookbook that you never thought you'd want to eat.

It's so nice to finally see a book on whole grains that incorporates a wide variety of foods (e.g., isn't also vegetarian, vegan, etc.). This book has recipes that anyone would like and can eat. The book is part reference book and part recipes. The photography is beautiful and everything looks delicious. I've only tried the fig muffins so far, but they were easy and excellent! And now gone! Can't wait to try more recipes from this book.

I really love cookbooks that are packed with recipes that take simple things already in the house and guide you to make something fabulous and this cookbook totally delivers! If you are looking to increase the amount of fiber and vegetables to your diet, you will find this cookbook jammed with awesome recipes to make it happen. I also like cookbooks that allow me to substitute things (like a different type of cheese than what the recipe calls for) without ruining the dish. I did a LOT of substituting and experimenting after cooking most of the recipes as they are listed, and was able to come up with some great variations. The recipes definitely have a Mediterranean look and feel which is obvious when you consider history, but it's not a diet cookbook, it's a cookbook that takes staples as old as man and reworks them into delicious recipes for today's family. And yes, my kids actually liked everything I made.

Here's what I like:
-recipes don't call for odd ingredients that you'll never use again and for those that do, there is a listing of sources in the back of the book (I substituted for some of these, and everything came together just fine)
-easy to follow directions and pretty fool-proof
-really, really yummy!
-plenty of variety for all meals
-excellent intro to whole grains with a brief history and uses

Some make not like:
-recipes don't use a lot of meat (easy to add on your own)
-recipes not organized by grain type

Also, kudos to Ms. Speck for creating a wonderful cookbook with plenty of good information (not just recipes) that's not preachy about healthy eating. As she says, she cooks what she likes, and yes, she loves baguettes with plenty of butter. What she does explain is her thought about balance of using whole grains occasionally with the much-maligned processed white flour. She states, "I believe in the right hands and with good ingredients, any food can be a delicacy." And she's right, whole grains do taste really good!

I love the stories behind the food. I love the fact that Maria Speck doesn't avoid mention of lovely cream and prosciutto (99% of the year I avoid any red meat). The recipes have turned me on to grains I'd been afraid to approach. Forbidden rice is chewy and marvelous (she mentions it but doesn't have a recipe for it but I searched on-line) and whole oats are wonderful (and I'm not a great oatmeal fan) with walnuts and Gorgonzola. She demonstrates a love of good food. YES!

This is my new favorite cookbook. This is gourmet cooking with whole grains. Maria Speck has a very unique take on whole grains, she grew up in Europe with a Greek mother and a German father and she incorporates the German love of whole grains into Mediterranean dishes. The results are absolutely delicious. This is not a vegetarian cookbook. Nor is it spartan in its ingredients. She uses butter, cream, and prosciutto to add flavor and depth. My husband and I have been using this cookbook for about 3 weeks and we've made around 10 dishes and none have been duds. I like this so much I bought this for my mom and now she loves this also.

The recipes are well written and easy to follow. The results are delicious. This is a great cookbook for someone who loves to cook and wants to incorporate more whole grains in their diet but doesn't want to give up taste. This is not a quick-to-the table cookbook (more suited to weekend cooking). Highly recommend!

Maria Speck's cookbook on Ancient Grains is much more than a cookbook -- she provides history and personal stories that make it a fun book to read. So far I've tried the lemon quinoa (delicate and delicious!), the honey-nut granola (crunchy and fun to eat -- even my 4 year old loves it) and the clafouti (used cherries instead of peaches but it turned out perfectly). I am very much into convenience, and Maria provides recipes that are easy to follow. I just gave a copy to my mom, and will be giving this to friends and family for birthdays and holidays this year!