The Semi-Reformed Nomad

You can't take the pie from meeeeee.... I am a big fan of many of the franchise affiliated cookbooks, and I have been particularly appreciate of Chelsea Monroe-Cassel, who writes a lot of them, including this one.  I was first introduced to her with a Feast of Ice and Fire; she also did Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the original World of Warcraft, and the Shire cookbook, which are all enjoyable.  Among those of her popular works I don't have are the Elder Scrolls cookbook, the updated World of Warcraft cookbook, and the now official "Game of Thrones" cookbook.  She also runs a blog that updates with recipe and addresses any errata in first editions at the Inn at the Crossroads. But I digress.  You browncoats are here for the grub. The book is organized as Kaylee building a cookbook using both ideas from Serenity's crew, along with sample recipes from Blue Sun's expansive catalogue of foodstuffs and sundries, since no settler can head off to the outer planets w

 I am a huge fan of America's Test Kitchen and their books.  For starters, they put the "TEST" in test kitchen.  A lot of those recipes that look so good in magazines, that you try to make, and they turn out bland, horribly, cakes don't set, glazes run down the sides of cakes, etc, and you feel like a failure as a home chef. But a lot of those recipes aren't TESTED or lack critical steps.  Thus anyone following step by step without modification (like adding the necessary 30-40 minutes needed to caramelize onions rather than the 5-10 minutes most recipes lie that it takes) would have the same disappointing result. Not so with ATK.  Their youtube video series are also good. One issue with their cookbooks is that there is quite a bit of overlap.  As someone with a lot of their cookbooks, I see that.  A book in the "make ahead" compendium with show up as an identical item in the Autumn/Winter cookbook, and so forth.  But enough stays on theme and has enough