I’m a foodie and Food Fest 365: The Officially Fun Food Holiday Cookbook by Yvan D. Lemoine gives me cause to celebrate!
At our house we’re always looking for a reason to celebrate. My kiddos read the calendar and want to celebrate everything written on it. Now, with Food Fest 365! every day is a National Food holiday! I love it!
When it arrived, Li’l Man and I giggled and wowed our way through it. I was thrilled to see such a random mix of recipes and I love that everyday is dedicated to a new recipe! The book is filled with full-color photos and in colors that are bright and delightful.
Today, February 21, is Sticky Bun day. I’ve already shared my family’s tried and true sticky bun recipe and now this book gives us a story to include:
Sticky buns a.k.a. cinnamon rolls, seem to have started with the Pennsylvania Dutch. Eighteenth-century settlers recreated a German pastry called Schnecken, loosely translated into snail because when the pastries were rolled they resembled snails. In Venezuela, where I was born, we make a variation of these with fresh cheese on top called golfeados. I’ve actually changed the syrupy gooey sticky caramel and made it with rum and a touch of molasses. I think they make the sticky buns extra sticky, which I love. –page 43
I love this. My great grandfather uses to tell me we were Pennsylvania Dutch. Maybe our recipe has been around longer than we thought!
Every day a new recipe with a little bit of history or fun facts makes for a great cookbook. I love the step-by-step instructions and the recipe is organized on the outside of the page for easy reference of ingredients.
Some of the names of the recipes sound complex, but as I read through them I found them to be very easy to understand and replicate without a lot of cooking knowledge.
The book has great selection with recipes like:
* Fresh Spaghetti with Sage Butter for Spaghetti Day, January 4
* Mac & Cheese Empanadas for Empanada Day, April 8
* Escargot Hush Puppies for Escargot Day, May 24
* Gingerbread Ice Cream Sandwiches for Gingerbread Day, June 5
* Classic Cake Doughnuts with Maple Bacon Glaze for Buy a Doughnut Day, Oct. 30
Li’l Man got the idea that we should discover what Food Holiday we were born on. It was great fun to look everyone’s birthday up and see if the food was one of their favorites.
Our family’s food holidays include:
Jan. 17-Hot Buttered Rum Day
Feb. 2-Heavenly Hash Day
April 30-Raisin Day
May 2-Truffles Day
June 26-Chocolate Pudding Day
Nov. 3-Sandwich Day
Nov. 16-Fast Food Day
Nov. 17-Baklava Day
Dec. 31-Champagne Day
I should give you fair warning that once they determined their food holiday, the kiddos then went through and wanted to know why I didn’t have them on Vanilla Milkshake Day (June 20), Greasy Foods Day (Oct. 26), Blueberry Popsicle Day (Sept. 2) and so forth. What great fun to explore a cookbook with children!
This is a fun cookbook filled with some great recipes and information that would be great for starting a conversation. It’s based on my all-time favorite thing…food!
About the Author:Yvan D. Lemoine came to the U.S. from Venezuela at age thirteen and has since earned credits as a pastry chef, chef, bartender, spokesperson, and consultant with his business, iFoods Studio. In 2000, he helped Cyril Renaud open Manhattan’s famed Fleur de Sel. Among many TV and radio spots, he most recently appeared on The Food Network’s Challenge and Chopped.
I received a copy of Food Fest 365! in order to facilitate an honest review. No other compensation was received. The opinions, where expressed, are my own and were in no way influenced by the sponsor. Others experiences may vary.