Review: Sugar and Spice by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra

madnad

The author of this book, Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra, has a unique background. Ethnically Indian, she was born in Guyana, educated in US and Spain, and now lives with her husband in the Netherlands.

The content of the book reflects this varied background, with recipes influenced by Spain, North African, India and the Americas.

All the recipes are sweet, although some use ingredients more familiar in savoury dishes. Pretty much all of them are vegetarian except perhaps the marshmallow, and most are also gluten free.

The opening pages of the book detail in the author’s own words how her love of sweet things developed. Growing up on a sugar plantation being instrumental. The next few sections include an introduction, and a brief summary of commonly used ingredients and equipment. It is well worth reading these chapters if you are new to making your own confectionery.

Following this are twelve chapters of recipes; caramels and toffees, magical marzipan, and brownie bites to mention a few. I was delighted to note that the recipes are in metric, imperial, and cups – truly international treats that can be made by anyone anywhere, regardless of your preference of measurement.

The recipes contain clear instructions, with details from the author detailing how something should look, or what stages to expect it to go through. It’s not as good as having Gaitri in the room with you, but it’s almost as good. Some of the ingredients I would say are quite exotic, and not necessarily found in your average supermarket. Most can be got easily online or from ethnic stores. My only criticism here is that the font is a little small.

The recipes vary from simple chocolate discs topped with sprinkles, to fudges, toffees and marzipans. There is enough for novices to try, but also enough to challenge a more experienced confectioner.

My favourite recipes were Pistachio Marzipan, Double Chocolate Shortbread, and the Pecan and Caramel fudge. The author claims that sweet making should be a pleasurable experience, and following the recipes in this book has been just that.

Available now from Pavilion Books
ISBN: 1862059373

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