The Book Club Cookbook, Revised Edition: Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's FavoriteBooks and Authors [Paperback]

Judy Gelman (Author), Vicki Levy Krupp (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 1, 2012

“Part cookbook, part celebration of the written word, [The Book Club Cookbook] illustrates how books and ideas can bring people together.”
—Publishers Weekly

  

"We are what we eat, they say. We can eat what we read, too. The Book Club Cookbook by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp (Tarcher/Penguin, $21.95), first published in 2004 and now newly updated and revised, offers up dozens of new recipes inspired by book clubs’ favorite books, their characters and authors."
—USA Today

"It's pretty much a no-brainer why we love something like The Book Club Cookbook - it combines two of our all-time favorite things: food and books. Even better - the recipes in the book let us get a fuller experience of our favorite novels by thinking up recipes either inspired by the story or literally contributed by the author as essential to the book."
—Flavorwire

"The Book Club Cookbook excels at offering book groups new title ideas and a culinary way to spice up their discussions." 
 —Library Journal

Whether it's Roman Punch for The Age of Innocence, or Sabzi Challow (spinach and rice) with Lamb for The Kite Runner, or Swedish Meatballs and Glögg for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, nothing spices up a book club meeting like great eats. Featuring recipes and discussion ideas from bestselling authors and book clubs across the country, this fully revised and updated edition of the classic book guides readers in selecting and preparing culinary masterpieces that blend perfectly with the literary masterpieces their club is reading. This edition features new contributions from a host of today's bestselling authors including:

• Kathryn Stockett, The Help (Demetrie's Chocolate Pie and Caramel Cake)
• Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants (Oyster Brie Soup)
• Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper (Brian Fitzgerald's Firehouse Marinara Sauce)
• Abraham Verghese, Cutting for Stone (Almaz's Ethiopian Doro Wot and Sister Mary Joseph Praise's Cari de Dal)
• Annie Barrows, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (Annie Barrows's Potato Peel Pie and Non-Occupied Potato Peel Pie)
• Lisa See, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (Lisa See's Deep-Fried Sugared Taro)

The Book Club Cookbook will add real flavor to your book club meetings!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

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 A Look Inside The Book Club Cookbook
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Review

"The Book Club Cookbook excels at offering book groups new title ideas and a culinary way to spice up their discussions." --Library Journal

"If you're in a book club, you'll savor the stories of the many culturally and ethnically diverse book groups the authors interviewed as much as the recipes." --USA Today

“Part cookbook, part celebration of the written word, [The Book Club Cookbook] illustrates how books and ideas can bring people together.” — Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher; 2 Rev Upd edition (March 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585429244
• ISBN-13: 978-1585429240
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #388,335 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Book Lovers and Book Club Members alike must have this book! March 1, 2012

By Sheila A. Dechantal

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

What if there was a book that not only recommended GREAT book club reads with synopsis, but also recipes to go with the books from well-known authors and book clubs? For a book club gal, and a book lover - this is a GREAT FIND! Books such as Cutting For Stone, The Book Thief,The Help, ROOM, Reading Lolita, Bel Canto, Water For Elephants, Snow Flower And The Secret Fan, Jane Eyre, Freedom, Devil In The White City, etc...

The book is filled with many wonderful book selections that would make for great discussion. The book choices are new as well as older titles... a few like Water For Elephants, Snow Flower and The Secret Fan, Ahab's Wife, Anna Karenina, Life Of Pi, House Of Sand and Fog, Jane Eyre - and so many more. Each title follows a synopsis of the book, occasionally author thoughts, review suggestions, and book club recipes that go along with the theme. A true treasure!

Many years ago I discovered the first edition of this book. I loved the concept and used it religiously when planning out books to read for our group as well as food to go with the book. In fact, as I write this now, I think the first edition of this book was the beginning of our book club, The Bookies, introduction to food made to go with our reviews.

To this day, this very book sits in my front sitting room, in an honor spot on a stand next to the rocking chair.

Book Club members, book lovers, and food lovers will all appreciate this book! Not only does it list a wonderful group of books that make for wonderful discussion, but the food and the ideas to go along with the books will put that little extra into your discussion and have people waiting to get into your book group!

And of course I loved it!... Each book gives a full page synopsis as well as publishing information, followed by food that would go well with the book, sometimes by the author, and always ideas from a book club as well. If anything, this book is dangerous as I drank in all the books I have yet to read and delicious food to go with them. The ideas were already forming in my mind....

I want to do a Bel Canto party... dress up the whole works.... maybe I can talk the Bookies into doing this one for our October classic read..... and I would love to do a Chocolat by Joanne Harris review as well with melt in your mouth chocolates.... maybe we could follow-up with the movie..... AND....

See what did I tell you? The book is dangerous!

This is a book I will keep close and refer to time and again, not only do I get a good taste of wonderful book club reads... but ideas to go along with the reviews! Read more ›

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun cookbook for book lovers March 1, 2012

By bookreader "Melanie"

Format:Paperback

Many times readers, especially in book club discussions, are interested in learning why authors incorporate certain foods into their books. This Book Club Cookbook features 100 book titles and at least one or two recipes that come from the pages of those books.
Even if you are not in a book club and just enjoy reading, this will be a great cookbook to have in your collection.
It includes classic and older, popular books like Anna Karenina, Chocolat, Life of Pi, The Grapes of Wrath, A Fine Balance, Memoirs of a Geisha.... It also has newer books such as Water for Elephants, A Visit from the Goon Squad, Room, The Help, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, etc.
I look forward to trying recipes such as Griet's Vegetable soup from the Girl with a Pearl Earring, and Honey Cake from the Secret Life of Bees.
Their is a few paragraphs before every recipe explaining some background about it's origins in the novel. Some of the recipes are also followed by novel thoughts.
This cookbook is worth owning.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Food, books, and fun served up under one cover? What a novel idea! March 13, 2012

By Lisarenee from Seduced By A Book

Format:Kindle Edition

This is the revised and updated edition of 'The Book Club Cookbook'. I managed to snag a copy of the old version, so I'll let you know how it differs from the original. The cookbook offers a wide range of both books and recipes. Recipes include drinks, desserts, entrées, soups and salads. Books range from classics like 'Jane Eyre' and 'The Grapes of Wrath', to some of the more recent book club hits like 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' and 'The Help', to books which have won awards, such as 'The Life of Pi', to memoirs like "Angela's Ashes'. There are many books I've heard of and others I probably should have. The authors also included in this edition a smattering of pictures, which was lacking in the first book. The book is not only a cookbook, but a virtual smorgasbord for the literature loving individual or book club.

I've never done a review on a cookbook before so this was a fun experience for me. The recipes included in the book sometimes have a direct link to the stories they are in, such as Glogg is a drink that Mikael Blomkvist drinks in the 'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' by Stieg Larsson:
"Berger and Malm were taking care of the annual Christmas arrangements while Blomkvist sat in Erika's chair, drinking glogg and looking on."(page 633 of the paperback)

And Kipferl cookies were mentioned in Markus Zusak's book 'The Book Thief':
"They were Kipferl left over from Christmas, and they'd been sitting on the desk for at least two weeks. Like miniature horseshoes with a layer of icing sugar, the ones on the bottom were bolted to the plate." (page 459)

Other recipes truly had no direct link to the book, such as both the recipes listed under 'The Da Vinci Code', Rosemary Spaghetti and John Hornburg's Death by Chocolate.... The cookbook authors, however, cleverly attempted to link them to the books by other means. The Rosemary Spaghetti was linked by "extending the story's symbolism to the palate. Rosemary is one ingredient that evokes the symbols in The Da Vinci Code. Rosemary symbolically weds icons of the rose and of Mary, an incarnation of the divine feminine, both of which are integral to The Da Vinci Code." Well, I don't know about that, but John Hornburg's Death by Chocolate definitely had me thinking of heavenly thoughts after eating a slice of his dessert. *smirk* For your information, John Hornburg's recipe was served at a the Milwaukee School of Engineering's Great Books Dinner and Discussion Series. John is a noted chef. Heck, after sampling this dessert, I'd buy this cookbook just so I could have this recipe. It's soooooo good. Yum! lol So, if you hadn't already surmised, some of the recipes included in the cookbook are those which were used by book clubs who meet in real life (as opposed to online) and were served at their meetings.

Most of the ingredients are fairly easy to find, but some take a little leg work in order to get them. The Harry Potter series inspired Treacle Tart recipe requires Golden syrup, for which I could find no substitute. Luckily, Amazon carries the product but while the price of the item is fairly reasonable, the shipping will cost you a pretty penny. 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' inspired Glogg requires cardamom pods which I managed to snag for a reasonable price at Williams Sonoma. Thankfully, one resides a half hour from my home. I was caught a off guard as I went to buy the ingredients for the recipe which was inspired by 'A Fine Balace', The Taal Restaurant's Chicken Biryani (Basmati Rice with Chicken), which required red chili powder. Apparently, the spice has a different flavor than regular chili powder found in the US, and I'll have to find a Indian grocer in order to obtain the spice. This recipe will need to go on my 'to make' list.

Books and their associated recipes not included in the new version:

- Douglass' Woman by Jewell Parker Rhodes (Banana Cream Pie)
- The Emperer of Ocean Parks by Stephen L. Carter ( Crab Cakes with Spicy Remoulade)
- Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith (Lee Smith's Pimento Cheese and Pasty Hopkin's Pimento Cheese)
- Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science and Faith by Dava Sobel (Lemon Ricotta--Goat Cheese Cake)
- Getting Mother's Body by Suzan-Lori Parks (Rhonda's Haney's Greens)
- Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years by Sarah Louise Delany and A. Elizabeth Delany (Pound Cake with Fresh Coconut Frosting)
- A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to Ivy League by Ron Suskind (Mama's Popular Trial-And Error Potato Salad)
- I Capture the Casle by Dodie Smith (Singapore Sling)
- Milk in My Coffee by Eric Jerome Dickey (Lemon Cheesecake)
- My Soul to Keep by Tanaraive Due (Doro Wat (Chicken Stew) with Injera (Flat Bread), Niter Kebbeh (Spiced Butter), & Berbere Paste)
- October Suite by Maxine Claire (Kathy Galligan's Deviled Eggs, Balsamic Vinaigrette, Pink Lady, & Sour Mix)
- The Secret History by Donna Tartt (Northern Trust Bank's Grilled Portobello Mushrooms)
- Sugar by Beatrice L. McFadden (Great-Grandma Olivia's Sweet Potato Pie & Sweetened Whipped Cream)
- A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley (Baked Corn Casserole)
- Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, And Life's Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom (Paul Shipley's Egg Salad)
- Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts (Banana Bread)
- Winter Wheat by Mildred Walker (Irina Shved's Borsch (Beef Soup))

Books and their associated Recipes newly added to this edition:

- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Markus Zusak's Vanilla Kipferls)
- Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese (Almaz's Ethiopian Doro Wot & Sister Marie Joseph's Praise's Cari De Dal)
- Freedom by Jonathan Franzen (Dorothy's Famous Christmas Toffee)
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (Annie Barrow's Potato Peel Pie & Non-Occupied Potato Peel Pie)
- Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeanette Walls (Cowboy Hash & Cornbread Fritters)
- The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Demetire's Chocolate Pie & Caramel Cake)
- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (Rebecca Skloot's Chicken Diable & Rebecca Skloot's Ceasar Salad)
- Infidel by Ayaan Hiris Ali (Angellows (Somali Pancakes))
- Little Bee by Chris Cleave (Post Colonial Pie)
- Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson (Helen Simonson's Toad-in-the-Hole)
- My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (Firehouse Marinara Sauce)
- Olive Kitteridge by Elixabeth Strout (Olive Kitteridge's Grandmother's Doughnuts)
- Room by Emma Donoghue (Jack's Sixth-Birthday Cake)
- Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay (New York-Style Cheesecake & Kir Royale Cocktail)
- The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Chorizo and Potat Spanish Toritilla Bites)
- Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (Lisa See's Deep-Fried Sugared Taro)
- South of Broad by Pat Conroy (Benne Wafers & Slightly North of Broad's Black Bottom Pie)
- A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan (Jennifer Egan's Oatmeal Fudge "Refrigerator" Cookies)
- Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (Oyster Brie Soup (The Grove Park Inn's Recipe))

Each book associated with a recipe has a brief synopsis included with it, so if you haven't read the book before, you'll have an idea of what it's about. The book includes explanations as to why the authors of the cookbook chose a particular recipe and some of the recipes come directly from the authors who wrote the book they're associated with. This is a very fun and unique cookbook and I feel it would make a wonderful gift for the book lover in your life. I'm giving this one 4 1/2 roses out of 5. All the recipes I've tried were delicious and I'll be adding some to my favorite recipes list. I would have liked more pictures, but I realize to include them would have increased the size of this book by a significant amount. Perhaps it should have been divided between two books? You definitely get your money's worth out of this one. I will definitely be picking up copies of this book to give as gifts to friends.

Notable notes:
- I didn't use all the frosting in the Death By Chocolate dessert so I ended up refrigerating it. It turned into a delicious fudge. Who knew?
- The Rosemary Spaghetti tasted even better the second day!
- I was afraid to try the Chicken Diable because it contains curry, a spice I'm not particularly fond of, however, I didn't notice the flavor, so it didn't overpower the taste. This was a super easy recipe to make.
- Don't forget to check out the website it's a great site: [...]

Thank you Penguin for letting me have an advanced copy of this edition. I feel like it was Christmas in February. :)

If you would like to see more of my reviews, please visit my blog at [...] I'd greatly appreciate it. Read more ›

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This one's no mystery! But is a blockbuster hit for lovers of books & food) March 12, 2012

By Louis Hemmi

Format:Paperback

Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp have brought us another hit! I and my bookclub buddies ([...]) feel it's only right that the host for the month provide food, and I don't mean just snacks. We all work hard and just don't have a lot of time to get off work, eat, and go to bookclub. Some of us have our favorite dishes, but we like to try new things, as well.

That's where the Book Club Cook Book comes in. We read "The Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara a few years ago, and the recipe for "Civil War Cherry - Apple Cobbler with Sweet Vanilla Custard" is simple enough, though it tastes as though it takes forever.

Something really satisfying is included in the book as a complement to "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay" by Michael Chabon is the delightful "Cocoa - Cinnamon Babka. If I only had a Jewish grandmother :)

Anyway, this is one of the best and most fun books in my collection, and I look forward to many happy hours exploring. As we like to say in my book club "We are all on a journey together. We don't know what is ahead, but it's the getting there that is fun!"