Customer Reviews

The River Cottage Preserves Handbook

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

 

 

This is a great book for some basic recipes. I am a novice "canner" and this is not a begginer book. The layout is nice and I will be trying several of the recipes. If you want to be inspired to explore and think outside of simple cherry, raspberry, and strawberry jam, this is an excellent book.

The book itself is fine with some interesting recipies -- HOWEVER -- if you are also considering buying the second book on preserves from River Cottage (ie River Cottage Handbook No 2 - Preserves), please be aware that the content is pretty much identical (ie same recipies, photos and layout). Wish I had known this before I bought both books -- could have saved some money.

A friend of mine gave me this book as a gift, and just from flipping through, the recipes look intriguing and make me want to get into the kitchen. I've only made one of the recipes from this book (the chili pepper jelly) and I'm kind of disappointed. On the one hand, the jelly tastes fantastic and was easy to make. However, I think there might be an error in the recipe as it only calls for 2 tsp of pectin. All of the other jelly recipes I've looked at call for a minimum of 2 oz of pectin when using the equivalent amount of sugar. It would certainly explain why my jelly didn't set properly, despite the fact that I followed the instructions precisely and checked with a thermometer. I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt that this is just an unfortunate typo and will try out some of the other intriguing recipes. Now I also have to find a use for 4 half-pints of runny jalapeno jelly!

I've only just received this book, so this review is a bit premature, but I thought I would get down my first impressions now, and update later.

I must admit this was a complete impulse buy, rather unusual for me who usually likes to make sure I really really would use a cookbook before adding it to my overflowing collection. However, something about the pictures promised inspiration, and as I've already canned (but by no means an expert), I was intrigued by some of the unusual recipes. Looking through this book one afternoon, I found much that makes this book look promising: there is an engaging author with a nice voice permeating the text, there is some good solid explanation that I think will serve beginners and intermediate canners alike, and there are lovely lovely photos that just make you want to start canning immediately.

One thing I did notice, in looking through some of the recipes, was the very regional quality of their ingredients. Brambleberries and other fruits and nuts from the British Isles are called for in many of the recipes; and while I enjoy learning about these flavors and ingredients not readily available in my northern California area, I wondered if this might make the book a little more useful in the armchair than the kitchen. However, there appears to be plenty of recipes that showcase flavors and ingredients that I am familiar with, so it will be more accurate to discuss usability after I've tried a few of those.

Until I actually get in the kitchen though, this book is still delighting me, allowing me a little peek into the kitchen of an expert canner in England. It also makes me very curious to check out the other River Cottage cookbooks that I've heard so much about but have yet to investigate.

I have this book for a year now and I have tried many recipes. I like it because it uses a lot of ingredients local to the River Cottage. It is very interesting, but I would not recommend this book for a beginner. The author assumes the reader is familiar with preserving. The canning process does not include water bath processing for the jams. The recipes are still usable but I used Complete Guide to Home Canning and Preserving (2009 Revision) to determine processing times.

This is a great book, but...... It is EXACTLY the same as the River Cottage Handbook NO.2!!! One might (mistakenly) think that an original book and then a No.2 would have different recipes. If you have one or the other, you definitely don't need them both! Otherwise, this is one of my favorite preserving books. Much different that my Ball Complete canning, or any of the 8 or so other canning books I have. Very English and wonderful!

I purchased this book for my son's birthday. Both he and his wife do preserving and they like to make different types of jams.
This book was beautifully illstrated with photos and not just you regular run of the mill recipes.

GREAT BOOK