Customer Reviews

Small Plates: Appetizers as Meals

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I was given this book as a gift just a few weeks ago and it has since become my favorite cookbook. The recipes are accessible to even average-skilled cooks and are absolutely trustworthy, meaning that if you follow the author's directions, you will end up with delicious, impressive dishes that are exactly as she describes. She offers a broad range of recipes, but nothing so esoteric that you can't find the ingredients at your local market. Although the book is about small plates, each of the recipes can stand alone as a meal or a course. I find myself picking it up in the morning and selecting a dish to cook for dinner. I'll pick up whatever fresh ingredients I need on the way home from work and then in under an hour I'll have a masterpiece ready to serve. I have a lot of cookbooks, some that I keep for only one or two favorite recipes that I got back to regularly. What makes this cookbook different is that there are dozens of recipes I know I'll use.

When a cookbook gives me at least one really great recipe, it is worth the money. This book provides page after page of scrumptious fare! It is for those with adventuresome tastebuds and willing to invest a little time preparing a tasty meal. Do not buy this book if you are looking for appetizer recipes in the typical sense. The recipes in this collection feature flavors from around the world. They run the gamut from bread based tasties to flavorful soups, unique salads, vegetables, pasta, meats and seafoods with a nice assortment of sauces and salsa. Each dish typically provides about 4 - 6 small servings. Make several for a little party, or prepare one just for yourself with leftovers. Enjoy!

Wow, love this book. It's full of very simple recipes, easy to follow, and delicious. The photography is also very beautiful. I'm not a cook by any means, but I found this book very friendly to the non-chef. I've ordered several copies and am giving them away for Christmas, they make a fantastic gift.

I was surprised at the large quantities proposed in these recipes, but many are delicious and worth repeating even if I do have to reduce the recipe. The book is divided into the customary sections with an intro that defines 'small plates' as 'unpretentious bites of robust and intense flavors, more substantial than a cocktail snack, not as hearty as an entree. They are ideal for diners who are curious about flavor, adventurous about taste and who want to vary their dining experience. . .' This was partly what I expected, but I also expected small quantities and these recipes are from 4-6 healthy servings up to 15, with sauce recipes making from 1-3 cups in most cases. But wait--I am not serving an army--I'm usually serving one or two. I can see the value of the larger quantities for people who intend to use them for entertaining, but otherwise excessive and more complicated than necessary (having to reduce the recipe).

My theory is that small quantities of really delicious food is as good for the waistline as it is for the palette and I hoped this book would help me with that. In the flavor department, I am delighted with many of these recipes. One salad, for example, was a combination I'd have never thought to try until I had it in a gourmet restaurant and was shocked by how incredible it was--watermelon, cantaloupe and cucumber with a light vinegar and oil type dressing. I couldn't get over it and was eager to repeat it at home, so when I found this combination as a recipe in the book (different dressing but close enough) I was enthusiastic about trying others.

So far I haven't been disappointed with any of the recipes. The 'Holiday Spiced Game Hens' includes cranberry or pomegranate juice, honey, coriander, cinnamon, allspice and garlic and produces a heavenly warmth that combines elements of international cuisine with more traditional flavors for something really special. I look forward to making the Grilled Salmon with Mushroom Pinot Noir Sauce and the Fireworks Vegetable and Seafood Salad (includes toasted sesame oil and soy sauce with crabmeat and scallops). I ended up turning down so many pages with recipes I want to try, I sort of defeated the purpose :).

The pictures are really beautiful and offer ideas for presentation. Happily for me, there are not many recipes that include red meat, which I'm allergic to, so I am getting more value from this book than many that are heavy on meat dishes. Even most of these could be made with poultry like the Beef Tenderloin Kebobs with Roquefort-Rosemary Sauce. The seafood recipes are to-die-for good like the Sesame-Coated Tuna with Wasabi Mayonnaise.

Although there are some more exotic ingredients used in these recipes, most can be found in a well-stocked kitchen or are readily available.

Bottom line: I am very pleased with the fare in this cookbook, but disappointed that I'll have to calculate recipes to get smaller quantities since I expected `small plates' to mean small quantities, hence my purchase. This is not meant as a speed cookbook, but I didn't find the prep daunting in any recipes I've made so far. I do wish there was storage info included should I want to make the larger quantity and freeze some for later use. I recommend this cookbook for those who want something a little unusual for themselves (and are willing to get out the calculator to adjust the recipes), but especially for those who regularly entertain a crowd of sophisticated diners.

This cookbook is my new favorite! The recipes are easy to make and they actually come to the table looking just like pictures in the book! The fresh elegance and crispness that shines through from the beautiful snapshots on Henderson's pages easily allows me to make any party a success! I have cooked several of these "small plates" now and each time I come to the table with something new, my family is eager to try and always ask for more! Enjoy!!

Marguerite's second cook book, Small Plates, is just as good as her first, Savor the Memories. I have used the first one so many times that every page is stained with olive oil and tomato juice. This second book is fabulous. I have already made four recipes and each one has been better than the last! I served the Grilled Chicken and Fresh Herb salad to my friends and they called it the "Flavor Explosion" salad. I am sure that this book will get just as much use, if not more than the first. WOnderful!!!

Marguerite Marceau Henderson, Small Plates: Appetizers As Meals (Gibbs Smith, 2006)

An intriguing idea for a cookbook, this; appetizer-style recipes quirked into meal form. I'm not sure it's entirely successful, concept-wise; too many of these seem more like scaled-down entrees than scaled-up appetizers, which makes me wonder how it differs from your basic cookbook. But the recipes themselves are solid, so I can't be all that hard on it. Pick it up from the library and give it a look before deciding you want it in your permanent collection. *** ½

If you are looking for tapas, or mini meals, or good tasting food that can be easily prepared, this probably isn't what you are looking for. However, if you have lots of time, a giant pantry (and a chef at hand would be cool), this could be an amazing collection to add to your already-great repertoire.

I'm giving this book one star only because I can't give it zero. It's a collection of recipes, period. Nothing to do with small plates or appetizers. I don't consider an entire cornish hen an appetizer unless perhaps you're feeding a football team. This is a collection of recipes pretending to be something it is not. It will go into a white elephant Christmas drawing.

I bought this after seeing Marguerite on a cooking segment and fell in love with the Nutty Caramel Baked Brie. I take it to showers and it is always the hit of the party. I have yet to try other recipe's but I have enjoyed looking at the beautiful photos of the 'plates'. Marguerite's way of describing appetizers as "intense and robust flavors" is brilliant!