Member Reviews
A beautiful cookbook but not necessarily in the style of cuisine I’m accustomed to. Very American cookbook feel to it.
Beautiful cookbook with personal stories and authentic recipes that are accessible. I enjoyed my NetGalley copy so much that I purchased the Kindle edition for my personal collection.
5/5 Stars
I adored this cookbook so much so that I have gifted it to several of my friends.
I loved the way the recipes were written and the dishes themselves. It's a must for a lover of mexican food.
What a celebration of food, culture and family. If you ever need to acquire the skill to make a great sauce that’s nuanced with true Mexican flavors and still have enough for that latte , pick up this book. If you know a fan of Mexican cooking who like to get his face in his work , remember this book for their birthday.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Mamacita was just a wonderful and heartfelt cookbook. Broken down into the following chapters...
<b>Salsas</b>
<b>Ensaladas y Verduras</b>
<b>Sopas</b>
<b>Arroz</b>
<b>Harinas</b>
<b>Where Are the Tacos?</b>
<b>Carnes</b>
<b>Mariscos</b>
<b>Postres</b>
There is also a forward and short story about the author "embracing her roots" ❤️ The recipes themselves are well laid out and easy to follow. The Tortitas de Papa (potato pancakes) was especially yummy! As was the Tortas Guacamayas (Macaw Sandwiches). Most recipes have photos accompanying them. Which i was pleased to see. None of the recipes you'll find in this one are groundbreaking. They are a collection of simple and tasty comfort foods that are accessible to even the most novice of cooks. 👍🏻👍🏻
**ARC Via NetGalley**
This is a beautiful cookbook to add anyone's collection - the recipes are accessible and authentic, and the photography is lovely. The story is even better - an interesting conversation piece this book makes in being an immigrant story that is one of struggle, passion and success. Loved this - thank you for the ARC, NetGalley!
This was a love letter to the authors family and heritage. The recipes are incredible but honestly my favorite part was the family. You can tell how much the author adores her parents. It was so lovely.
This is a great addition to any library's cookbook collection. Andrea Pons' story is a beautiful story and one that with resonate with many of our readers. The photography is beautiful and the recipes are easy to follow. Definetely an addition to our collection!
This was a very amazing book When she wrote this book she need to because she was facing deportation out of this country. Her recipes are amazing and especially like little stories when she puts them Before the recipe is made. Her fish recipes are very elegant and very simple I love that. She also ran a restaurant here in white center which is in Seattle Washington. And how she had a very positive attitude as she wrote this book because she knew when it was published someone this money would help her stay in this country that's a very great thing to do And very brave.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions are my own.
I have a few Mexican cookbooks that I adore, and this one is a worthy companion. Especially since Andrea Pons is a recent American citizen and is using the profits from this book to help her parents achieve their own citizenship. The photography was incredible, and the stories that went along with the dishes were fascinating to read.
When you're reading a cookbook, always read the authors stories if you can. It gives you a greater appreciation for the dishes when you have an understanding as to where it came from, and why it's important enough for the author to include it in their book.
As for the recipes, so far everything I've made has been fantastic, especially the refried beans and the steak and guacamole. I'm currently having a great time working my way through the salsa section!
5 STARS I had so much fun going through this cookbook!
Let me start with the beginning. I loved reading Andrea Pons' immigrant experience. When we lose everything, including our place of origin, food continues to connect us to our roots.
"The food I made offered a new identity, creating a path back to myself as a Mexican Immigrant."
It's always so interesting to me to hear the stories of different parts of the Mexican diaspora. I'm Mexican but my family were never immigrants, we became citizens by Annexation when Arizona stopped being Mexico. So I'm American for generations, but food has continued to connect my family to our motherland.
So now onto the food! 🥑
I am proud to say that this Salsas Roja y Verde are now in my repertoire (with minimal personal adjustments) I don't know which one I like more, but the Roja strained goes so well with everything!
I learned a lot in the paragraphs before each dish, like how guacamole comes from the Aztecs! I can't wait to make more of the dishes, and have actually picked up all the ingredients to make her cuernitos recipe.
Este libro es muy bueno!
Thank you NetGalley and Princeton Architectural Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review!
A wonderful family cookbook filled with stories about the author and her family and her rocky journey toward citizenship. A fascinating documentary about life across borders enlightened by the kitchen and favorite family recipes from salsas used every day to desserts like conchas and arroz con leche, with soups and luscious dishes between the two. There is a marked preference for avocado oil in the cooking, a more recently available product in the US, often used by cooks for its ability to cook at higher temperatures without smoking. A wonderful addition to your cookbook collection.
I loved this cookbook. It had everything necessary to make it a must read: a distinct, likable voice and POV, gorgeous food photography to go alongside the easy-to-follow delectable sounding dishes. This is one the library will certainly buy - and so will I! Thanks for the opportunity to read Mamacita. :) A few of these will likely find their way into my monthly dinner rotation.
After an introductory autobiography that I didn’t find it necessary to read (I seldom care where these dishes come from to that extent, let alone the author), I found a very satisfying-looking Mexican-American cookbook. While not the fattest one around, it seemed perfectly complete to me, with salads, appetisers and street food snacks, rice dishes, some most typically Mexican take-away ideas, and so on. A picadillo is certainly not just Mexican, it seems, but looks a very tasty melange – and chicken curry is certainly not typical Latin American fodder. Except it must be, for typical Latin/American people are cooking it and passing the recipe down.
Here is adobo coming out our ears, more pepper types than you might have wished for, and of course as many recipes in the national colours of red, white and green as you’d get in Italy. Many people might have reason to object to the ‘woke’ aspects of the book talking about the status of refugees, but if they’re open to this food at least they’ll have a fine tasty time with their polemic side.
This was a nice book for people who are just starting out with this cuisine. I've read quite a few at this point, so this one didn't stand out as much for me, however it is well put together. I prefer it when every single recipe has a photo to go along with it, that's just my own personal preference.
Although a fine cookbook with interesting achievable recipes, I enjoyed the story of the author even more. It reads like a cross between a memoir and a recipe book. Thank you for providing me with an advance copy of this delightful book.
I love the tender atmosphere of this book, the melancholia associated with being an immigrant, not quite fitting in after having been so excited about moving. The expectation vs the reality is such a shock and it is so very well talked about in the preface.
I really wanted to love that cookbook. The recipes all sound very tasty and are steeped in love and nostalgia... maybe a little too much nostalgia for me. I found the photos had this 70s look, the choice of cold colours made it less appealing than many of the Mexican cookbooks I have seen in recent years, and while the food is totally authentic and delicious sounding, I sadly didn't find the photos appealing enough to tempt me to cook. It's a visual choice, in line with current retro trends, but not one I love. In that case, I think I would have preferred to just have illustrations.
I highly recommend this cookbook to people looking for Mexican home-cooking recipes and who have nostalgia for what their mother or grandmother used to cook. If you like the retro aesthetic, this is for you.
The introduction to this book is moving and sets the tone for the recipes that follow. I love cookbooks with a personal connection, and that's what Mamacita is.
The recipes, and the stories sprinkled within them, seem to be authentic and meaningful to the author. I appreciate reading the back story behind each one and learning more about Mexican culture and food. There are tons of recipes packed into this book and most of them seem tasty! Love the photos, too.
This is the kind of cookbook that I would buy and keep as a reference in my kitchen, as someone who loves Mexican food. I also learned something about tacos!
A really great cookbook from a Mexican-American. This book made a lot of these recipes seem a lot more possible than I had previously thought they would be. I've saved a few of these and I'm looking forward to trying some of them!
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.