Book Club

I absolutely adored this book. It takes you through Hamilton’s personal life through her journey of becoming a successful chef and restaurant owner. Hamilton stresses the importance of resilience, focus, and dedication as they are key tools to success. One of the most standout quotes from this book that I will continue to carry with me was, “You are always going to face forces that can bring you to your knees. No matter how well set up you are, how early you came in, how tight and awesome your mise en place is, there will always be days, forces, events that just conspire to fuck you and the struggle to stay up-not sink down into the blackest, meanest hole- to stay psychologically uo and committed to the fight, is the hardest, by far, part of the day”(Hamilton 150). This quote is applicable to service in the kitchen, and to everyday life, there is only so much planning we can do, and at the end of the day, we have to keep pushing and working through the obstacles we are faced with. Hamilton’s writing is relatable, inspirational, and absolutely worth the read. I also highly recommend Hamilton’s cookbook, titled, Prune, which features recipes from Hamilton’s restaurant. This book, designed to look like a chef’s notebook, complete with margin notes and notes to scale the recipes up and down, will not only look beautiful on your shelf, but will also share so many wonderful recipes and techniques to grow your culinary skills.

I could not wait to pick up and start reading this book after being gifted it for my twenty-first birthday. In this book, Momosé thoughtfully describes everything in the Japanese cocktail world. She provides information to the reader about cocktail culture and etiquette, techniques for crafting and mixing drinks, and recipes to make classic drinks and her own signature recipes. Momosé also shares recipes she has modified and made better, and explains her reasons for each and every modification. The recipe section is divided seasonally, and then further divided into micro seasons such as the Autumn Equinox. The recipes are organized seasonally by ingredient and Momosé carefully explains why she chose each and every ingredient for each cocktail. She goes into extreme detail on how to prepare homemade syrups and concentrates needed to craft each drink. This is the first cocktail book I have studied and read cover-to-cover and it was a great place to begin this journey. This book provided me with so much knowledge, and has even empowered me to understand what is necessary to apply this knowledge and craft my own cocktails. I highly recommend this book if you are interested in japanese culture and ingredients and spirits and mixology. I was introduced to so many new ingredients and techniques! I will definitely be referring back to this book to further expand my knowledge and mix up some of the delicious drinks Momosé features.

In this book Niland teaches the reader how to think about and treat fish the way we think about and use meat. He inspires the reader to get creative with fish and abandon the idea that we should accept a 40-45% yield from fish and that we should learn to use all parts of the fish to create delicious food. The book is split into two sections, The Knowledge and The Recipes. In The Knowledge section of the book, Niland discusses reasons people are typically less likely to explore cooking with fish, he discusses proper storage and sourcing of fish, and introduces techniques to make the reader more confident with fish. He shares his philosophy of treating fish like meat and the basics of fish butchery with detailed instructions and photographs for breaking down fish. Niland also talks about using fish offals and provides recipes for utilization, along with techniques and recipes for curing fish. He finishes The Knowledge section of the book by presenting “fishues” or things that can go wrong when preparing fish, and how to remedy and prevent these issues. The second half of the book, The Recipes is broken into five sections separated by preparation method: Raw, Cured & Pickled, Poached, Fried, BBQ & Grilled, and Baked & Roasted. Each section of recipes starts with a list of fish best suited for that preparation method, and a basic sequence of steps essential for that preparation method. Each recipe is extremely detailed, and provides alternate fish that will also work well with the recipe, allowing the reader to modify the recipe based on their preferences. As someone who is trying to expand their knowledge on seafood preparation and who also wants to lessen my negative environmental impact in the kitchen, I absolutely loved this book. I will continue to return to the recipes, diagrams, and techniques this book provides. 

This was such an inspirational, thoughtful, and overall fun book. In this book, Gardner reaches out to many contributors and women in all areas of the culinary world to hear their thoughts on different topics. Interviews, recipes, memoirs, profiles, essays, and many other means were used to introduce these talented women and their contributions to the culinary world. I absolutely adored all of the gorgeous drawings Gardner used throughout her book.A standout quote from this book for me was, “Anything is possible as long as there is honesty and passion and you always listen to your gut feeling.” All of the women highlighted in this book have demonstrated this so clearly through their stories with the challenges, failures, and successes throughout their careers. Gardener also uses various stories and essays from many female chefs to demonstrate the idea that, “Placing students in kitchens run by women and showing them how kitchen culture can be positive while still demanding and exacting.” It was so eye-opening and inspiring to hear industry professionals killing it in their area of focus, who fully know and believe that kitchen culture does not have to be an intense and abusive environment to be an efficient one. It inspires me to see how the future female leaders of the culinary industry reshape and grow the industry. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has any interest in food, cooking, female empowerment, and growing as both a chef and a woman. This book is enjoyed read cover-to-cover, but can also serve its purpose if skimmed and used as a reference book for more casual reading. I have thought about this book every single day since picking it up and since completing it, it definitely deserves a place on your bookshelf.