Yumcious
Jenny Morris
MapStudio
Review: Sinazo Mkoko
I’ve always been one of those people who believed that a good cook and a great baker could never be the same person.
With me, I’m able to whip up a meal good enough to make people really happy but I can’t say the same about my baking.
In this cookbook, Jenny manages not only to take a trip down memory lane and share recipes from her childhood, but she also comes back to the present, speaking about the local and international travels during which she has found inspiration.
You will understand how she ended up being a chef because through the food and the aromas described, she paints a vivid picture of her warm and lovely home, from her granny’s orange poppy and caraway seed rusks to her mother’s Sunday lunches and father’s homemade brews.
My stomach growled and mouth watered as I was flipping through the pages.
I didn’t know what to try because everything looked delicious.
I enjoy quick, easy and tasty meals and the warm lamb and mushrooms with hummus recipe caught my attention. The ingredients were easy to find and it just begged to be tried. I invited a few of my girls (“food critics” who never decline an invite) and served it all up with pita bread. Judging from the way they devoured the dish, it is safe to say that this was one of the most lip-smacking meals I’ve ever tried.
Other recipes in the book I enjoyed included the ones for sweet and savoury snacks because, like Jenny says, there’s more to the day than just breakfast, lunch and supper. The brunch and light meals also look enticing.
She makes the salads from the veggies and herbs from her own garden, which makes me want to have a garden of my own. I don’t know how the idea of smoked chicken and grilled plum salad or chicken, beetroot, rocket and goat’s cheese salad came about but she’s changed the way I see beetroot, which has never been my favourite as I just hated the way it took over on a plate.
With this book, I’m slowly learning that one could find a good balance between baking and cooking. For now, I’ll stick to what I know and continue to improve my skills.
