The Book Depository Super Food Family Classics by Jamie Oliver

Author: KM

Rating: 5

Review: To start my review with a summary, this is a great book for Jamie Oliver fans and also for those who want some fairly fuss free recipes that are a bit more health conscious than your regular books (note Jamie says the word ‘family’ to him means food that’s “cosy, comforting and made for sharing”). If looking to quickly understand if this book is for you or not, I would recommend glancing at the RECIPE LIST at the end of my review, the book for me is a great combination of classic recipes as well as new and different dishes, which I personally like but I appreciate these may not appeal to everyone. I own Jamie’s other ‘Everyday Super Food’ book and this one is a great addition to my cook book collection, the meals are all relatively easy to make, and the large majority of recipes contain foods / flavour combinations that my family and I love. So to start with a few basic points about the book: - It’s excellent quality (as regular JO readers most likely come to expect) – the pages, recipe layouts, photos are all great - Every recipe has a photo – big bonus points from me, and the fact Jamie has taken the photos himself adds to that feeling you know these recipes are tried and tested - Every recipe has nutritional information of: calories, fat, sat far, protein, carbs, sugar, salt, fibre and “fruit / veg” portion - There are almost no sweet / dessert recipes in the book (just fruit ice lollies and some sweet breakfast treats) - Every recipe gives serving sizes clearly and time to make (again so useful) - Some recipes have a “get ahead” tip for parts of the recipe you can make ahead - All recipes in the ‘breakfast’ section are under 400 calories, all others are 600 or less per serving. - Each meal contains at least 2 portions of fruit and veg The book has 9 main recipe sections (for a full recipe list please see the end of my review): Breakfast Quick fixes Healthy Classics Salads Curries and stews Traybakes (all savoury) Pasta and risotto Soups Kitchen Hacks There is one additional section of the book called “Health and Happiness” which contains Jamie’s advice on things such as ‘how to nutritionally balance your plate and other life tips such as ‘why fibre is cool’ and ‘the genius of chewing’. I have yet to get through all these tips but this is something I always feels adds to Jamie’s books, and you can always ignore this section if you’re just after the recipes. So how do the recipes fare in practice? Well both of the recipes we have tried so far were super tasty but one was a little more time consuming than the other (but still very easy to do). At the time of writing there are three recipes available to trial online, again I would recommend you do this if still unsure if the food is for you (I can’t link from my review but if you do a quick search you will find them!). The first recipe we tried was the Mango teriyaki salmon (with brown rice & chilli cucumber pickle). The ingredients were all things we had in or were all easy to come by, the recipe advised 50 minutes to prep and me and my wife prepping together took around 35 minutes (so longer than advertised if working alone) – but I know the next time we do it will be quicker. But the dish tasted wonderful, and was very different to anything we’d ever have been able to improvise with ourselves. The other much easier recipe ‘proper chicken nuggets’ went down so well with everyone and these will be added to the family ‘usuals’ – just sweet paprika, wholemeal bread, garlic and a few other bits, coat some chicken and pop them in the oven. Very nice indeed. So as per usual I am really pleased to own another Jamie Oliver book, I feel his recipes never fail and he is up there with Delia for me in terms of reliable recipes. This book is jam packed full of tasty healthy recipes, and as I work my way through them I will update this review. What me (and family) would love next is a Super Foods book for those with a sweet tooth… or perhaps that defeats the point – and maybe that’s what his book ‘Comfort Food’ is for? All in all very highly recommended for Jamie fans and those that want to eat right with uncomplicated recipes. Thoroughly recommended. ----------------------------------------- FULL RECIPE LISTING ----------------------------------------- BREAKFAST ----------------------------------------- Chocolate porridge – Greek Yoghurt & Fresh Seasonal Fruit Brilliant boiled eggs – 4 delicious & balanced ways Breakfast donuts – honey, jammy blueberries and yoghurt Toasted popeye bread – eggs, vine tomatoes and chilli sauce Healthy balanced smoothies – super purple, super creamy, super choc, super green Strawberry Buckwheat Pancakes – greek yoghurt and rosemary maple syrup Magic poached eggs 2 ways – truffled mushroom / herby smoked salmon Pineapple pancake mess – yorghurt, coconut, cashews and lime English Breakfast Frittata – bacon, mushrooms, spuds and tomtatoes Roasted stone fruit – coconut, date and oat crumble Crispy rice pancakes – curried chickpeas, eggs and coconut slasa Mango lassi bircher – ginger, nuts, turmeric and fennel seeds Avocado on rye toast – loads of inspiration parts 1 & 2 QUICK FIXES ----------------------------------------- Chicken lollipop dippers - pea & mint couscous, charred asparagus Japanese miso stew - tofu, seaweed, greens & chilli oil Pasta pesto - green beans, broccoli & asparagus Sri lankan prawn curry - tamarind, baby corn & pineapple rice Chicken goujons - pitta, little gem, tomatoes & avo sauce Pasta & 7 veg tomato sauce - 4 super-simple ways: Asparagus, pea & mint / Bacon bits, rosemary & balsamic / Ricotta, rocket & pine nuts / Flaked tuna, capers & lemon Veggie fried rice - sesame, tofu & chilli eggs Grilled beef kebabs - shredded crunch salad, feta & pitta Cheat’s pea soup - smoky ham, pasta, mint & feta Crispy trout, oats & thyme - horseradish yoghurt, spuds & veg Pesto mussels & toast - baby courgettes, sweet tomatoes & peas Sweet & sour stir-fry- loadsa sprouts, pineapple & noodles Creamy chopped salad - grapes, tarragon, chicken & croutons Sesame butter'ied chicken - peanut sauce, asian slaw & rice noodles HEALTHY CLASSICS ----------------------------------------- Super shepherd’s pie - smashed neeps & tatties Italian super-food burgers - balsamic onions, mozzarella & slaw Chicken fajitas - smoky dressed aubergines & peppers Salmon & prawn 'sh pie - sweet potato & spud mash Healthy chip butty - cheesy sweet potato, avo & ketchup Chicken tacos - black beans, avo, corn & cherry toms Smoky; veggie chilli - sweet gem & cheesy jacket spuds Healthy chicken kiev - new potatoes, carrots & green veg Sweet potato 'shcakes - chopped salad, feta & red pepper salsa Cheat’s pizzetta - fennel, rocket & prosciutto Ratatouille pie - 'lo, ricotta, basil & almonds SALADS ----------------------------------------- Super tuna pasta salad - feta & crispy cayenne crumbs Tandoori chicken salad - minty yoghurt dressing & poppadoms Jamie’s italian super-food salad - grains, grilled avo, broccoli & harissa Prawn noodle salad - passion fruit dressing & sesame seeds Moorish crunch salad - couscous parcels, orange & harissa Chopped charred veg salad - couscous, wraps, feta, mint, nuts & seeds Super brussels sprouts slaw - citrus, 'aked salmon, feta & nuts Korean bibimbap bowl - rice, veg, pork & hot chilli sauce Prawn & avo cocktail salad - new potatoes, crunchy veg & cress Warm smoked trout salad - new potatoes, beets & soft-boiled eggs Super salad platter - avo, sweet potatoes, broccoli & beets Salmon crudo & crispbreads - fennel, apple, broad beans & avocado CURRIES & STEWS ----------------------------------------- Chicken jalfrezi - blackened peppers & tomato rice Sag aloo korma - sweet potatoes, chard & chickpeas Thai green chicken curry - aubergine, baby corn, cashews & lime Veggie gurkha curry - aubergine, sweet potatoes & chickpeas African prawn curry- scotch bonnets & sticky okra basmati Baked tarka daal - cauli'ower, split peas & chapatti Chinese steak & tofu stew - sticky rice & beans, Szechuan sprinkle Chicken korma - cauli'ower & brown rice Spring chicken stew - loadsa lovely veg, bacon & barley Balinese chicken curry - purple kale rice, chilli & lemongrass Beef & Guinness stew - English mustard pearl barley TRAYBAKES ----------------------------------------- Chicken & chorizo bake - peppers, sweet potatoes & spuds Mango teriyaki salmon - brown rice & chilli cucumber pickle Giant meatballs - sweet tomato & jalapeno sauce Persian veggie pilaf - saffron, blueberries & borlotti beans Sicilian 'sh bake - aubergine, tomatoes, pine nuts & raisins Garlic & thyme chicken - mushrooms, cherry toms & asparagus Pork meatballs - sweet onion & apple gram, bread buns Jerk aubergine & peppers - rice, beans, coconut & coriander Brazilian 'sh bake - peppers, chillies, tomatoes & paprika PASTA AND RISOTTO ----------------------------------------- Veggie Bolognese - loadsa veg, lentils & parmesan Jools’ tuna pasta bake - sweet leeks, fennel & tomatoes Squash & sausage risotto - radicchio, thyme & parmesan Spaghetti rosso - golden chicken & charred green veg Scrum winter lasagne - savoy cabbage & creamy chicken stew Tomato risotto - Garlic basil sauce Garlic mushroom pasta - creamy thyme & truf'e sauce Pasta agrodolce - sweet peppers, salted ricotta & basil Super greens cannelloni - creamy ricotta & basil sauce Sausage pasta - broccoli, chilli & sweet tomatoes Spinach pici pasta - baby courgettes, tomatoes & pine nuts Spaghetti cake - sweet aubergine & tomato Pea & spinach risotto - mint, cottage cheese & parmesan Squash mac ’n’ cheese - crispy crumbs & popped beans Prawn & fennel risotto - crispy pancetta & chilli sprinkles Squash & ricotta ravioli - z-veg tomato sauce, rocket & parmesan SOUPS ----------------------------------------- Alphabet tomato soup - fresh basil & cheddar cheese Spinach, mushroom & risotto soup - shattered parmesan & hazelnut crisps Peruvian sweet potato soup - corn, peppers, chicken & quinoa Black bean soup - poache

Author: Sunshine

Rating: 2

Review: Not a fan unfortunately. Felt like the recipes were too complicated and a hash of everything with no structure, consideration of costs or ideas on meal planning. I also think the food is a bit too fancy for midweek meals for fussy children. This is not family cooking in my eyes. Family meals (5 of us) are difficult, trying to satisfy everyones likes and dislikes, can be expensive and take 1-2 hours each night from start to finish for a simple meal. The word 'Superfood' may be suitable in the title but not 'family classics.' The best few pages are the 'kitchen hacks' at the back but only 7 of these recipes so not worth buying the book for those (and you can find these recipes in other books of his anyway). My favourite books of Jamie's are still Save with Jamie and Ministry of Food and I think both of if those books have much more down to earth cooking, ingredients and more useful for the kind of cooking I do every day to feed my family.