Healthy Living Books Books

Rating: - This book lives up to its name!
I am a huge Annabel Karmel fan and each of her books is eagerly awaited by myself. This particular book is the most used out of all the recipe books in my kitchen, so much so that I had to order another copy as the first one fell to bits! I know there are a couple of fiddly recipes in the book (such as the basketweave chicken breasts, which I don't even look at!) but the others more than make up for it. All the pasta recipes in particular have been staple meals in my household for the past three or so years. The cake section is also fantastic as I do a lot of baking, the ideas for decorations are excellent. I urge you to try the Divinely Decadent Fruity Dark Chocolate Bars, they are gorgeous.

---

Rating: - not just for children
I now have three of Annabel Karmels books. No I am not a mother of young children but a Nan living on my own (gosh that makes me sound ancient). I use her books constantly, the food is great, easy to prepare and unlike a previous critic I find the ingredients handy and normally on the shelf and the recipes uncomplicated. If it was something i wasn't sure about i'd just not use that recipe. Yes there are marinades but these take no time at all to whip up and can get on with other things while they work and then the item is really quick to cook. Recipes that can be frozen are clearly marked and so far everything i have cooked has tasted wonderful.. I even cook some to take for the rest of the family when i visit... and i normally hate "wasting time" in the kitchen. Think i'll have to buy them their own copies soon

---

Rating: - Disappointing
I was really disappointed with this book. After reading other positive reviews I was expecting a lot more.

Many of the meals are not quick and easy to prepare - they require at least an hour in the kitchen, marinades to be prepared in advance, etc. One recipe item requires the cook to basket weave slices of vegetable around a chicken breast. Many of the supposedly basic or staple ingredients are far from basic - hoisin sauce for example.

There is a lot of repetition too - more than one recipe for burgers with chopped apple inside; too many skewer/kebab alternatives; too many sweet and sour sauce recipes; etc.

The appearance and layout of the book was poor. Aside from the garish orange cover (which gives me a slightly queasy feeling whenever I see it), too many of the recipe items are not photographed, and instead there are too many self-satisfied photos of the author and her family.

Finally, the layout of recipe items is confusing. It's all centrally aligned and italicised, making it hard to tell where one item stops and another begins. Not easy to read at a glance when you're preparing a shopping list.

As a Dad who works full time and enjoys does all the cooking for his family (2 adults and 3 kids), this book has singularly failed to inspire me.

---

Rating: - wonderful family cookbook
Annabel makes life so easy for families. Her recipes appeal to everyone in our family and are so easy to follow. They are so tasty and nutritious - it makes for a contented mum knowing the family are so well fed. Thank you, Annabel.

---

Rating: - Annabel Karmel's Favourite Family Recipes
Superb book, very easy to follow and more importantly great recipes that the family particularly children do enjoy. My daughter now includes food in her lunchbox for her friends at school!