Maida Heatter's Pies and Tarts Book

If I had to choose one word to describe this book, it would be "fine". And despite my insistence on using British quotation mark grammar, I found the heavily British nature of this book to be a bit much. As an Anglophile and someone who would move back to London IMMEDIATELY if given the chance, I found this to be a bit surprising.

First of all, many of the ingredients called for in these recipes would require a specialty shop or hunting expertise in the US. That is absolutely fine, and I love many of the recipes in which this is an issue, but it's not practical for me as a home cook. Secondly, the heavy focus on savory pies seemed to be a bit redundant. I began to feel like I was reading the same recipe over and over again.

I was pleased by the variety of pastry tips, however. There was a wide variety of recipes, as well as many tips and tricks to deal with possible problems with the pastry throughout the preparation and baking process. It was also refreshing to see the recipes written by weight instead of volume. My grandmothers were both pie purists, and that's how I was taught to bake. So, not only was it my version of proper, but it gave me that warm and fuzzy nostalgic feeling as I read.

Rating: Bottom line, I was bored and this was skimmable. I made it through in two hours and was not compelled to make a single note. For reference, my cookbooks usually have a full pad of post-its for 150-200 pages. Based on other reviews, I seem to be in the minority with this one, but it was definitely not for me.