The Sassy Squid

Note: I received a digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Soul food--oh, where do I begin? So homey, unpretentious, flavorful, and eclectic. I've loved it ever since I was a kid growing up in the South. Todd Richards evidently does to, as he establishes from the first few pages how deeply soul food runs through his veins. An award-winning, James Beard-nominated chef from Atlanta, he brings his passion for this often overlooked cuisine to the table with a dense cookbook of recipes that elevate it to an art form.

Seriously. Forget your standard fried chicken, collard greens, and biscuits. Try Collard Green Ramen, Candied Bacon with Turnip Hash; and Curried Cauliflower, Crab, and Sweet Potato Gratin. The recipes are fun and ridiculously creative. It's clear Richards has some serious chef chops and isn't about to slow down for the reader. He's cooking like your grandmother would cook if she trained at Le Cordon Bleu. In the process, he challenges everything you thought you knew about soul food.

Note: I received a digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I remember the first time I saw the rolling hills of Tuscany on a bus to San Gimignano. Sun, olive groves, and perfect fields as far as the eye could see. I fell in love immediately. 8 years later, I'm about to leave for my honeymoon in Tuscany in a couple of months, and I came across this book on Netgalley, which is like every one of my fantasies come to life.

Sheryl Ness captures what it's like to fall in love with this beautiful land, but with the added twist of also falling in love with an Italian chef in the process. She has a love story fit for a Hollywood movie. She set aside her conventional life in the US for a sabbatical in Tuscany, and while asking a small town chef for his hot chocolate cake recipe, she made a connection that would turn into a passionate romance and a happy marriage. It's the stuff of dreams, but it's also her real life. What a lucky lady!

Note: I received a digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't know what to make of this cookbook when I first found it on NetGalley. The title is bizarre alone, and then the premise of two Texans cooking in Siberia? I've certainly never read anything like this before.

What I came to realize was that this was a deeply personal account of a couple of food lovers who find themselves on the adventure of a lifetime in Siberia. Not only do they make do with what they can scrounge up in that cold, barren land--they thrive, make friends, and find a way to incorporate their new surroundings into their collective palates.

Sharon and Tom Hudgins are two extraordinary people who seem to have taken their love of international cuisine all over the world with them. It's inspiring to read about their day-to-day lives in Siberia and how they adapted to what was evidently a big culture shock. The stories are entertaining, interesting, funny, and unexpected. They capture the essence of Siberian culture in a way that I've never seen documented before.