Tasty Temptations

Connie Bandstra
Specific House (2005)
ISBN 0967458668
Reviewed by Shalley Malchior for Reader Views (10/06)

Simply delicious.  Delicious made simple. Connie Bandstra's new book, "Tasty Temptations," explores how you can easily make some delectable, truly tempting delicacies, such as you might find in an exclusive tearoom, right in your own kitchen.

Bandstra is the owner of the world famous Teacups and Tiaras Tearoom and Trinkets cafe in Des Moines, Iowa. In her new cookbook, she offers the reader a chance to concoct some of the very same recipes she offers in her shoppe. For those of us who live too far away and rarely have a chance to visit Teacups and Tiaras in Des Moines, this book provides an excellent opportunity for us to enjoy the same dishes that have people coming from far and near to visit Teacups and Tiaras.

I sampled a few recipes presented in the cookbook, and it earns a high mark of approval from me. I tried the recipe for Bow Tie Pasta, a pasta salad that is a bit more high-class than your everyday pasta salad.  With Feta cheese, Kalamata olives, colored peppers, and other fresh ingredients, it is a dish that will be perfect for any occasion, from a casual picnic in the park, to your Red Hat luncheon, to your backyard BBQ, to a dinner party to "butter up" your boss for a promotion!

For dessert, I tried both the Sour Cream Coffeecake and the Lemon/Raspberrry bars...both were amazingly delicious! So good...and wait until you try the Scrambled Eggs and Wild Rice in Phyllo Cups! I've never been a huge fan of wild rice; yes, I do prefer the minute white rice, believe it or not, but, I have to say, made in this way, I enjoyed it a great deal. And, the best part, unlike most recipes including phyllo dough, this recipe is very simple to make. A real plus in my book!

Also, besides the delicious recipes included in this book, Bandstra has included quotes and random thoughts opposite each recipe. Many of these quotes will make you laugh, and some will make you laugh until tears stream down your face! And the book lacks nothing aesthetically. I enjoy the departure from the normal cookbook. How many other cookbooks on your shelf are hot pink? This is the one cookbook you will be pleased to leave out on your countertop!

Connie Bandstra is certainly qualified to pen this book. She has been a chef from a young age when she baked pies and sold them to customers in her mother’s beauty shop. As they were leaving, they would pick up their pies, made to their specifications, from Connie, and then would place their orders for the following week.

In short, "Tasty Temptations" will perfectly fill that space on your cookbook shelf. Don't be without it!

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