Bowl Food: Comfort Food for People on the Move (Laurel Glen Little Food Series) [Paperback]

Editors of Laurel Glen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Laurel Glen Little Food Series | Publication Date: September 11, 2002

In a nutshell, bowl food is relaxed eating. Depending on your mood, you can slow simmer a fiery curry, put together a luscious pasta dish, or simply toss a few fresh ingredients in a wok. Take the tedium out of salad and pasta without all the mess. All that remains is to lift your spoon and eat with pleasure.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Laurel Glen (September 11, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 157145831X
• ISBN-13: 978-1571458315
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #867,466 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Recipes for Those with Time on Their Hands, June 5, 2006

By 

Cathy "of the band, Cathy and the Wuthering H... (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bowl Food: Comfort Food for People on the Move (Laurel Glen Little Food Series) (Paperback)

I was delighted with Bowl Food from the moment my sister brought it home, with its adorable concept and full-color pictures for every recipe. I immediately flagged multiple recipes to try, and have found several that have become staples for dinner parties (the Sweet Potato Salad is particularly impressive when trying to win over non-vegetarians) and for every-day dinners as well (the asparagus risotto is a tasty recipe and easy for those making their first foray into risottos). There are plenty of vegetarian recipes (I'd say at least 25%) and many others can be converted to vegetarian with a few easy substitutions. However, be aware that the majority of these recipes call for time-consuming prep and exotic ingredients. This book as a whole is not for the everyday home cook with a fulltime job--it's for weekend experimentation. While some recipes can still be explored without all the prep if you have a good local market (for example, if you can buy paneer cheese instead of making it!), many require a search for ingredients you may have never heard of.

If you like adventurous eating and spending hours in the kitchen is sometimes fun for you, you'll like this book. If not, buy it for a friend who adores cooking, and then borrow it to copy down the quick and easy recipes.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best eclectic recipe book, March 28, 2004

By 

Traxis (Alberta Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bowl Food: Comfort Food for People on the Move (Laurel Glen Little Food Series) (Paperback)

This book is fantastic. With pictures for every single recipe, and over 200 dishes, it has become one of my favourites to flip through to decide what to have for dinner.

Recipes are easy to follow, have clear instructions for special ingredients, mostly can be prepared in less than an hour, and most rely on easy-to-obtain ingredients. Greatly appreciated that they wrote tips like to obtain 1.75 lbs pounds prepared squash, you'd need to by 3 lbs at the store. Several ingredients can easily be replaced with similar items.

Excellent variety of asian-inspired and mediteranian dishes. EVERYTHING has turned out really well in this book. I have not yet been disappointed.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing, but relies on many non-staple ingredients, February 28, 2005

By 

K. Kasabian (Silicon Valley, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bowl Food: Comfort Food for People on the Move (Laurel Glen Little Food Series) (Paperback)

This book was recommended to me by an employee at LA's famous Cook's Library bookstore, a haven for cooks and cookbook lovers. I had been searching for a well-rounded book emphasizing one-dish entrees for midweek cooking. Though the subtitle suggests just that (Comfort Food for People on the Move), many ingredients can't easily be found at supermarkets.

The recipes are divided into soups, salads, pasta, rice, wok dishes, curries and one-pots. For the most part, the recipes are inspired formulas featuring cuisines from many parts of the world, with a decidedly Asian bias.

I've prepared many of the dishes, but on weekends only, since most recipes call for at least one non-staple ingredient. During the week, the thought of having to stop at one or two stores on the way home in search of galangal, kaffir lime leaves, saffron threads, ponzu, brown bean sauce or mirin is a little overwhelming. The above mentioned ingredients and many others called for in this cookbook usually require a bit of searching, something I only have time for on a luxurious Saturday. That said, the recipes are quite good and appeal best to those with somewhat ambitious palates.

One more thing: Bowl Food is small (appx. 7.5" x 5.5") but is nearly 400 pages. The binding is so thick, it's impossible to keep the book open while cooking, which I find annoying.