Martha Stewart's Hors D'Oeuvres Handbook by Martha Stewart

Thu, 06/29/2017 - 4:58pm -- JDavanza

On December 19, 2016 the library’s cookbook club met for dinner with Martha Stewart’s Hors D’Oeuvres Handbook published in 1999.

The cookbook features 300 recipes, each photographed in full-color and is a comprehensive guide to throwing great parties with great hors d’oeuvres. The book is divided into ten chapters based on the type of hors d’oeuvres. All of the photos are grouped together in one half of the book and the recipes make up the other half.  You will also find menu and equipment guides and a pantry and sources for ingredients and equipment.

Martha Stewart was raised in Nutley, New Jersey in a family with six children. This is where she cultivated her passions for cooking, gardening, and homekeeping with the teachings of her mother and father. Martha went on to graduate from Barnard College and to become a stock broker on Wall Street, where she gained her business skills. This proved useful for her when she moved to Westport, Connecticut to start a catering company.

Her eye for gourmet food design and presentation helped her to get her first book published in 1982, titled, Entertaining. Since then, she has gone on to author over 77 cookbooks.

In 1991, Martha’s business Martha Stewart, Inc., became Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia with the release of her magazine, Martha Stewart Living. Over the next decade, her company grew furiously and is credited with two magazines, a TV show, syndicated newspaper column, a series of how-to books, a radio show, and website with a well-stocked recipe database.

Martha spent 5 months in prison and 5 months on home arrest for charges relating to conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements in a securities fraud indictment from 2003. Not letting her sentence get in the way of her business, Martha launched a daytime talk show in 2005 called “Martha,” shortly after she was released.

In 2012, she partnered with PBS for “Martha Stewart’s Cooking School,” which won a James Beard Award for Outstanding Series in 2014.

In 2016, she partnered with VH1 to air her latest venture with Snoop Dogg for “Martha and Snoop’s Potluck Dinner Party,” which debuted to 3 million viewers.


Club Rating: 3.8

Club Comments:

“A little too sophisticated for my taste. Did like the baked goods–crackers, etc.” A.W.

“Actually, the food was really good (but I thought the cookbook seemed dated). Didn’t like how the pictures and recipes were separate.” L. W.

“Very fussy, not quite on target for results. Lots of steps, time. Liked having 1/2 the book photos and 1/2 recipes.” T. H.

“Beautiful and exciting. I wanted to make many of the recipes. The jerk chicken with fried plantains and celeriac potato pancakes with apple onion relish were outstanding.” K. M.

4 out of 5 reviewers would recommend this cookbook to a friend. It’s Martha, so of course, everyone has heard of her before.

Martha Stewart lives in Katonah, New York and summers on Mount Desert Island, near Acadia National Park in Maine.

 

Selected Recipes


Chapter 2: Layered & Stacked

Chapter 3: Wrapped, Rolled, Filled, Folded, and Stuffed

Chapter 4: Tea Sandwiches, Classic Canapes, and Simple Crostini

  • Curried Egg Salad Tea Sandwiches p. 319 
  • Prosciutto and Port-Fig Butter Tea Sandwiches p. 320 
  • Tapenade and Goat Cheese Canapes p. 323 
  • Shrimp, Cucumber, and Dill Butter Canapes p. 329 
  • Toasted Goat Cheese and Shredded Beet Crostini p. 331 

Chapter 5: Skewered and Threaded

  • Classic Crab Cakes p. 352

Chapter 6: Bits & Pieces

  • Oil Cured Olives p 356 
  • Blue Cheese-Pecan Icebox Crackers p. 365 
  • Pretzel Bites p. 370 
  • Orange, Pistachio, and Black Olive Biscotti p. 373 

Chapter 7: Dips, Spreads, Sauces, Relishes, and Salsas

  • Roasted Red Pepper and Eggplant Dip p. 390 
  • Scallion-Soy Dipping Sauce (for Mock Drumsticks) p. 395 

Chapter 9: Sips & Drinks

Chapter 10: Classics

  • Gayla’s Orange-Raisin Muffins p. 445 
  • Mock Chicken Drumsticks p. 461 
  • Savory Palmiers p. 463 
  • Chicken Liver Pate on Apples p. 464 

 
Cookbook Club, December 2016. We’d just finished our first Yankee Swap with a favorite kitchen gadget!

 
Beef Empanaditas p. 295

 
Celeriac Potato Pancakes with Apple-Onion Compote p. 262

 
Mock Chicken Drumsticks p. 461

 
Tapenade and Goat Cheese Canapes p. 323

 

Sources:

Biography.com
https://www.biography.com/people/martha-stewart-9542234

Business Insider
http://www.businessinsider.com/martha-stewart-and-snoop-dogg-potluck-dinner-party-vh1-2016-12

PBS.org
http://www.pbs.org/food/chefs/martha-stewart/

Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Stewart

 

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