Good Food, Great Film & Talented Women: Reel Food from Reel Women, Cookbook Review & 2 Free Recipes

(Two recipes included at article’s end)

Food, Glorious Food!

I have spent the past several weeks eating the most delicious, mouth-watering food from filmmaker Nina Knapp’s Reel Food from Reel Women cookbook.

Now this is not your typical cookbook.

For instance, every recipe within came from a successful A-list woman in the film and entertainment industry today. There are recipes from actress Deborah Stewart, movie director Linda Andersson, comic Michele Balan, not to mention the other 30-plus female contributors and each recipe seems to get better the further you read.

Reel Food is divided into four basic sections: the Feature Presentation (Main Dishes), the Supporting Cast (Soup & Salad), the Concession Stand (Desserts) and the Wrap Party (Appetizers, Beverages, Dips and Salsa), each with a plethora of delightful confections and meals.

While I could never pick just ONE dish to call my favorite (there are too many favorites here!), some of my ultra-favorite recipes (in no particular order) include:

Adrienne’s Slammin’ Vegetarian Collards (by singer/performer Adrienne Fishe, aka Mz. Fishe, Page 3)

Mood Swing Meatless Chili (by writer/director/producer Linda Andersson, Page 31)

J.D.s Happy Making Corn and Avocado Salad with Cilantro (by gay rights activist and lesbian filmmaker, J. D. Disalvatore, Page 61)

African Chicken & Squash Stew (by Wolfe Video’s Maria Lynn), Page 5

Stacy’s Pool Side Lemonade (with optional Vodka) (by Stacy Codikow, Executive Director of POWER UP, Page 107)

Reel Food from Reel Women not only delivers hot, delicious food which you'd expect from a cookbook, but the thoughtfully written bios on each contributor and her respective (and highly valuable) websites and contact information, make this book a Hollywood-insider must-have.

And outside of the book’s tasty dishes, (pun intended), Reel Food author Nina Knapp also donates a portion of her cookbook’s profits to "non-profit charities of (the author’s) choosing, of local as well as international origin."

Now that’s something you can sink your teeth into.

(Two recipes follow at end of article below.)

For more information: Reel Food from Reel Women.

***N. E. Francis is an established news journalist, specializing in arts and entertainment features and is a radio correspondent for the weekly LGBTQ radio program, Alternative Perspectives, every Tuesday on WRFG.org. She also writes Tales from a California Blonde, a weekly column published every Saturday exclusively at Examiner.com.

Ms. Francis is also a published poet, ghostwriter, film & theater critic and upcoming children’s author. She owns an online art gallery featuring women artists around the world. Contact her at ArtExaminer@comcast.net.***

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Lemon Lavender Sugar Cookies, (by Ty Beh, pg. 83)

1 tablespoon dried lavender flowers
1 cup butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
2 cups unbleached flour
2 eggs
1/8 teasponn salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grind lavender flowers into a fine powder. Cream together lavender, butter, sugar, flavorings and eggs. Stir in flour and salt. Put in refrigerator for at least one hour. Roll out on a lightly floured surface and cut into shapes, or roll into balls and coat with sugar. Bake 12 to 15 minutes.

Chicken Curry Salad, (by Andrea Whittaker, pg. 54)

Ingredients:
4 large boneless chicken breasts
1 large can mandarin oranges
2-3 cups red seedless grapes (amount to individual tastes)
½ - ¾ cup slivered almonds (according to tastes)
1 cup raisins
1 large red apple, chopped
½ - ¾ cup coconut
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ - ½ tsp. curry (to tastes)

Instructions:
Boil chicken breasts in water until done then refrigerate for approx. ½ hour. Remove and cut into bite size chunks.

Almonds are best if roasted in the oven for approx. 6 min. at 300 degrees. But not so long that they turn brown. You will need to keep an eye on them.

Mandarin oranges and grapes can be cut into smaller bites if preferred. Apple should be cut into small chunks.

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients except mayonnaise and curry.

In a small bowl, mix mayonnaise and curry according to your own tastes. Mix this mixture with ingredients in the larger bowl and stir until mayonnaise/curry is evenly distributed.

Refrigerate for approx. ½ hour before serving.

This dish can be served on a bed of lettuce, with bread rolls or bread sticks.