With the holidays around the corner (including Halloween), I have pulled out one of my favorite cookbooks and I am drooling over all of the fantastic fall and winter recipes in Ree Drummond’s book, “The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays.” These step-by-step recipes, complete with pictures for reassuring guidance, might just provide the inspiration you need for your up-and-coming holiday table.
This cookbook is a great guide for any cook from beginner to expert. Most of the ingredients in Ree’s recipes are everyday ingredients and are certainly perfect for any time of the year, not just the holidays. Ree’s stories about her own family and holiday traditions are disbursed throughout the book for added fun.
The book’s recipes are divided up by holiday from Valentine’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, and Fourth of July to Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Some of my favorites that I make throughout the year include the lemon-rosemary scones, eggs in hash brown nests, broccoli and cheese soup, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, bacon-wrapped filets, dulce de leche brownies and caramel apple sweet rolls. There are also recipes for traditional holiday favorites, like soul sweet ‘taters (sweet potato casserole), pumpkin and pecan pie, giblet gravy and cranberry sauce. This cookbook is by far one of the favorites in my household. My husband has even attempted making a few of Ree’s recipes with great success claiming that his accomplishment is due to all of the pictures depicting all the steps within a recipe.
Check out the rest of our offerings by Ree Drummond, all of which can be accessed here in our library collection. If you are short on time, there are several other cookbooks available in our eBook collection, which you can download from the comfort of your own home. Don’t be afraid to try some new dishes this holiday season, it might just become a yearly tradition.
Photo courtesy of flickr user Satya Murthy.