Food magazine editor, food stylist, television personality, and recipe developer, Tara Teaspoon knows what she’s doing. Having owned and loved her previous cookbook, Live Life Deliciously with Tara Teaspoon: Recipes for Busy Weekdays and Leisurely Weekends , I knew that the recipes in her second cookbook would be fabulous, and I wasn’t wrong. I am very impressed with Delicious Gatherings: Recipes to Celebrate Together

As is her style, the recipes she chooses are for dishes that real people actually want to make. She doesn’t try to make them complicated like some chefs; rather she makes them cook-friendly for both beginning to advanced cooks. Her food stylist background shines in the beautiful photographs that are included in this excellent cookbook, and there are dozens of recipes that are already in my “must make now” queue. Teaspoon has a great imagination when it comes to food and knows how to put menus together that won’t be too hard on the cook but will be amazing. Her recipes are written in traditional form and are easy to follow. Most call for easy-to-find ingredients and her dishes will appeal to both friends and family, even children.

Good entertaining cookbooks are not easy to find, but this one is exceptional. The recipes are unique, yet tempting. Many of her recipes will draw raves from everyone. The cookbook is well-organized and it is nice to have full menus presented along with several other recipes that can be substituted if necessary. This is a great cookbook to add to the kitchen cookbook shelf and would also make a nice gift. Tara Teaspoon has outdone herself.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

My love language is feeding people, so a cookbook called “Delicious Gatherings” is right up my alley. This cookbook is perfect for people who love to impress a bit when they entertain or who want to add a little flair to their weeknight meals. Jam-packed with recipes to please any foodie; some simple, some more time and ingredient intensive, but all looking absolutely delicious!

This cookbook is cleverly organized, with the first section containing complete menu plans for a variety of meals: Mediterranean, Mexican, BBQ, Sunday roast dinner, and a holiday dinner that’s sure to be a hit at Thanksgiving. Obviously you don’t have to follow the entire menu, but it’s great for cooks like me who struggle to put together complementary main courses and sides. After that come sections for Serious Sides, Main Events, Breakfast & Brunch, and Baking & Sweets.

Nearly every single recipe is accompanied by a scrumptious-looking full-page photo. The further I paged through, the more recipes I found that piqued my interest. Many of the recipes elevate or add a new flavor twist to well-loved favorites – creamy tomato soup that incorporates white beans, white pesto that uses ricotta instead of a basil-based sauce, Fontina and Gruyere cheeses in a breakfast hash brown bake. This is the kind of cookbook you’ll reach for over and over again when you’re entertaining or looking for something a cut above the ordinary.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for providing me an advance copy of this cookbook.

Delicious is absolutely correct. These recipes are easy and look amazing. I will absolutely be making so many of these recipes!

Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for accepting my request to read and review Delicious Gatherings.

Author: Tara Teaspoon
Published: 09/06/22
Genre: Cooking Food, & Wine

"Memories are made up of smells, tastes, and meal moments" according to the author. After reading and examining her cookbook I see the need for a Kitchenaid Mixer, in addition to the various kitchen accoutrements she mentions. The author grew up enjoying being in the kitchen and cooking. I grew up knowing my job was chief hand dishwasher. Cooking has never been an enjoyable part of my day.

I appreciated almost immediately she writes success secrets; reading and familiarizing while visualizing the recipe, have everything in place, and start with a clean environment and clean equipment. With these simple tips, I agree with her. I learned anxiety and stress is lower when the measuring cups and spoons are clearly marked and laid out. It filled my heart seeing her success secrets section kindly written. (I would like to see those as well as tips from her other cookbook (mentioned below) printed as one unit without recipes.)

In all fairness, she does make her case on having nice equipment. Knives, a mandoline, an Instant-Pot, etc. Shamelessly, she mentions her first cookbook, Live Life Deliciously, and refers the readers. I am carry this on as she gives detailed recommendations of equipment in that book. Personally, I'm going to try and locate it, being cautiously optimistic that the recommendations are written as clearly as in this book.

The cookbook has beautiful pictures of finished recipes. There are no references shown or implied as to breakdown of calories, etc. The title states Gatherings, and if you splurge at those events she has a variety of foods. I read through each page, looked at the picture and scanned the recipes. For many I would be overwhelmed. They are easy to read, lots of ingredients in conjunction with several new to me spices, foods, etc.

My favorite part of the cookbook was the explanation on unsalted versus salted butter. Success secrets ran a close second with encouraging a little preparation goes a long way. Realizing that my kitchen is not setup currently for these recipes, around the Main Events section through the end, I was bored.

Cookbooks are like wallets, I need to pick my own. However, I will refer to her equipment recommendations, giving the author props. I also believe the bowls, spoons, cups, mandoline, etc would make great gifts for graduations and birthdays.

I’ll start out by saying that I only looked through this book, I didn’t try to make any of the recipes. After looking through the book, I realized that this one is for people who really enjoy spending a lot of time in the kitchen, creating fancy dishes. If this describes you, I think you’ll enjoy this cookbook. If you’re more like me, and prefer 5-ingredients or less, 30 minutes or less type of recipes, this might not be the book for you. There were a handful of recipes that looked like something I would enjoy, so i might give those a try in the future.
My star rating for this book is based on the quality and pictures of the food.

This is a beautiful book with photos for nearly every recipe. You can tell the author worked for magazines and web sites like Martha Stewart as these are definitely meals for ladies who lunch. Almost none of the recipes would work for any of the crowds I cook for as I cook for loved ones who are gluten free, vegetarian, keto, etc. I was honestly surprised that dietary issues were never mentioned once as today’s family meals, brunches and dinner parties are highly likely to have at least a few guests who have special dietary needs. These dishes are very heavy on wheat, meat, dairy and sugar. They are also very high end with things like smoked Gouda in the mashed potatoes. There are many specialty ingredients even in the simplest dishes but then she does things like makes a simple marinara from canned tomatoes and her chicken enchiladas just call for canned green salsa. Some recipes call for making another recipe as an ingredient.

Minus one star for me for the lack of recipes for those on special diets and another for the lack of nutritional info. Those who enjoy fine dining cookbooks are likely to really love it though.

This is not a healthy cookbook, it is a comfort and festive food celebration - even the pictures showcase the tempting food!
The recipes are thorough and some of them are time consuming - so be sure to have all of your ingredients and kitchen tools laid out ahead of time!
You will enjoy the mezze (small entrees chapter) with soft pita bread and harissa tomato confit (vegetables braised in olive oil), baba ghanoush with eggplant and tahini, and crispy felafel chickpeas. The sweet and savory stuffed dates with cheese and oregano.
You will find a classic turkey dinner - (the turkey is cut in pieces so it cooks faster), silky soft dinner rolls, (made with tangzhong ) so they taste like those made in an Asian bakery, and fresh orange cranberry sauce.
Enjoy preparing blackened salmon tacos, fresh green salsa and red Mexican rice. You will be creating roasted carrots with lemon feta dip, pepper jack nacho cheese, chili cheese fries and blackberry and lemon curd swirled ice cream.

Best piece of advice I can give you (besides buy this book)? Don’t read on an empty stomach.

Pros:
* Realistic meals (this isn’t a complicated cookbook in the best possible way)
* Actual whole meal ideas. (I’m southern so a meat and three is common here. It’s nice to have a main & sides planned out for you)
* Pictures with every recipe
* Amazing tips.
* Little to no hard to find ingredients.

I don’t have a single con. I didn’t know this author before but I’ll definitely be looking into her other cookbook.

I LOVE the recipes in this book! And the photos are fantastic! The book feels super user friendly and I can see myself making so many of these recipes for friends and loved ones!

This may be my favorite cookbook I've ever had the pleasure of going through. Tara Teaspoon has done a wonderful job of bringing together the perfect cookbook for any level of cook. There was a variety of easy recipes, with bases of meals you're likely already familiar with, like salsas, marinara, and dinner rolls. My favorite types of recipes in here were the twists on food from other cultures. I am the biggest fan of Bahn Mi's, and I'm so excited to try Tara's version to see how she puts her own personal twist on it.

I always appreciate when recipes from other cultures do not claim authenticity. I am Mexican and grew up cooking so many Mexican dishes like carnitas, red rice, and varieties of salsa. Tara includes typical ingredients like el pato, serrano chiles, and cotija, but puts twists on classic recipes that I would have never imagined trying.

What really draws you immediately into this cookbook is how visually stunning it is. Every photo beautifully showcases each meal and its ingredients. The recipe pages are organized in a few user friendly format where everything is clearly listed. Plus any recipe book that includes writers personal tips, and FLOUR MEASUREMENTS BY WEIGHT automatically have my vote.

A perfect cookbook to pick up for anyone looking to add some variety to their meals, while still having a balance of some usual favorites.

5 stars! Cannot wait to grab my own copy

Thank you Netgalley, Tara Teaspoon, and Shadown Mountain for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Gorgeous cookbook with great, warm photography and easy to understand content. Would recommend for you collection or even for a Fall coffee table book

Can I tell you my favorite thing about Tara Teaspoon cookbooks? It's the presentation. I already know the food is going to taste amazing, but every recipe is a showstopper and perfect for a family meal at home, potluck, or dressed up occasion!

I love the extras that come with this cookbook-I'm talking about the tips and tricks and notes from the chef! It makes me, a novice at-home chef, feel like a celebrity chef! I also love the range of difficulty this cookbook encompasses. It allows my talent to grow and not make me feel completely out of my league for every single recipe! There is a lot of encouragement throughout so if you're looking to start somewhere...pick this one as your starting point!

The variety I found in this cookbook is unparalleled! There is something for EVERYONE in this cookbook and I can't wait to dive in deeper and turn some of these recipes into family favorites!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

I love cookbooks with pictures and the photos in this book are stunning. The books focus is on gatherings and meals to share. Sections also include series sides, main events, breakfast and brunch and my favorite baking and sweets. This isn’t a beginners cookbook, but it gives clear directions with ingredients that are readily available. It enhances traditional foods like mashed potatoes by adding smoked gouda and scallions. I appreciated that tricks and tips as well. This would be a welcome addition to any cooks library. Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the temporary ARC.

This book is broken out by meal types and gives mains, sides, and everything in between. Some highlights are the sweet- and- savory grilled chicken sandwich with bacon and pepper jelly, this was so good and well balanced in flavor. I loved the sweet heat from the pepper jelly. The creamy pepperoncini sauce was delicious and oh so easy to make. We also had the pleasure of making the miso honey brussels sprouts, they are sweet and savory; so good.
I have bookmarked many more recipes to try. This is a great book with lots of pictures to show you what the final product looks like.

Social gatherings centering around food are multi sensory and all encompassing. Passionate cooks create with love and joy and those served revel in it. Tara Bench (founder of Tara Teaspoon) writes about such gatherings and incorporates insanely beautiful photography, practically lickable. Including a photo index is thoughtful. Hospitality and relaxed long meals where I live part time in Europe are a very big deal and are often mezze style. Food is reflective of culture and traditions and there is no reason it should not be delicious. This book takes all of this into account.

Tara Teaspoon discusses equipment, the unsalted versus salted butter cooking controversy having everything ready and in its place and offers tips throughout. She uses (mostly) easy-to-find ingredients, none of which I do not commonly use. And then there are the swoon worthy recipes...

Recipes have various components but you can use one or all of them as inspiration for your own dishes. For example, Cashew Hummus with Lemon-Marinated Mushrooms together would be awesome but I had mushrooms to use up and no chickpeas on hand. Very nice with grilled steak. Same idea applies for Roast Carrots with Lemon Feta Dip, both brilliant separately but even better together. Marinating mushrooms is underrated, as are many marinated things, so simple and impactful. Sweet and Savory Stuffed Dates are on my list...for some reason I hadn't used harissa in them before.

A few recipes may seem daunting but break them down into components and steps and they really aren't. Smoked Gouda and Scallion Mashed Potatoes are awesome...using cheese in potatoes are not a new idea but smoked gouda is lovely indeed. The Sheet Pan Potatoes are another simple idea to change up a side. I have not yet tried the Green Beans with Shallot Dressing but can tell from the ingredients/ratios they will be pretty amazing. Bean harvest can sometimes be akin to plentiful zucchini season so something a bit different is lovely. Jammy Onions are delectable (I've made similar often...what a fabulous accompaniment in so many situations). The Creamy Pepperoncini Sauce is on my to make list. Amazing how one uses these ingredients so often but doesn't necessarily think of putting them together! Though I have celiac disease, most recipes can be adapted somehow...easy to do in Creamy Garlic-and-Herb Mac and Cheese. It was a wee bit bland so I just added what my family likes. We all have different tastes! I am itching to make Italian Gnocchi, Bacon and Cheese Soup and White Pesto Pasta with Spicy Broccoli. The Greek Chicken Meatballs with Lemon Orzo and Tzatziki looks incredible, too. I love the oatmeal idea. But what I plan to make next is Blackberry and Lemon Curd Swirled Ice cream (using homemade ice cream).

Homey comfort foods are conducive to gathering with loved ones. Tara Teaspoon's cookbook is just that...pure comfort. Not pretentious but approachable. Have to mention how much I love the paperclip tip and will use it from now on. There are not a lot of original ideas here for experienced cooks but there are definitely "aha" moments and old fashioned recipes which many people are besotted with, a lovely mix.

Cooks and bakers of all skill and experience levels ought to experiment with this book. So trite but true...there is inspiration here for everyone.

My sincere thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for the privilege of reading and cooking from this mouthwatering book.

Poorly formatted and most recipes were pretentious. In my opinion not a great cookbook.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I really enjoyed Delicious Gatherings and will definitely go back to the recipes I've tried so far. Photos in this book are beautiful. You will get hungry just looking at them. I made the spicy maple sweet potatoes. This one is a true keeper and the cinnamon pepitas on top are to die for. I've made them repeatedly just for snack/dessert! This book has given me fresh desire to entertain a crowd and these recipes provide an excellent starting point to plan it all out. Overall, there are a wide variety of recipes inspired by different cultures in this book, but with an overall American feel. Instructions are clear and ingredients are easy to source. This is a well done book that I would recommend it to home cooks and think it would make a great gift.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are entirely my own.

I love the description that this book aims to bring joy, flair, and amazing taste to all your get togethers. I think that is exactly what will be accomplished when you embrace what is within these pages. There are so many recipe types to choose from, such as mezze, holiday, Mexicana, Sunday meals, and meals for your grill. You can’t miss the sides and sweets that are shared too! This amazing resource is also chock full of extras and tips and tricks. The photos (one for each recipe!) show just how delicious each recipe can be. In fact, what made this cookbook stand out to me were all the great photos and the ease of the instructions. Ingredients are not hard to find and there are more than just traditional meals. I like the creativity expressed and shared. I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

Nice well written recipe book I loved this book a lot and used the suggestion for two summer party with friend
Two less for netgalley app way of showing pages really annoying I was back and forward pages a lot trying not to open pictures and to turn page !!!!

I love to entertain and often spend hours online trying to put together the perfect menu and find the perfect recipe. Honestly, this book couldn't have come along at a better time. There were so many things that I loved: the perfect meal plan (and the variety presented), pictures with each recipe (something I always appreciate), easy (but not basic) ingredient list, and the most important thing: great results. I've already made a few dishes. Funny enough, not as part of a dinner party or brunch, but simply because the recipes just looked so good. I made the pita bread, a first for me, and I was absolutely thrilled with the results. I also made the smoked gouda and scallion mashed potatoes because I love gouda and I couldn't resist. I can't wait to actually make an entire meal for friends and family. I know that I will revisit this book often.