Quick and Easy Entertaining

Arlene Gryfe is a Toronto-based professional nutritionist and home
economist.

This three-in-one cookbook is simply a binding together of three of Jean
Paré’s original books—The Beverage Book, Starters, and Sweet
Cravings—perfect for the person who wants all entertaining suggestions
close at hand.

 “The Beverage Book” has almost 200 recipes for hot and cold
drinks, from morning starters through kids’ drinks to nightcaps. There
are suggestions for appropriate glassware for alcoholic beverages, and
many clever serving ideas. “Starters” includes recipes for breads,
dips, hors d’oeuvres, rolls and wraps, snacks, and spreads. All are
easy to prepare and many can be made ahead and frozen. Serving ideas
can be gleaned from the beautiful coloured illustrations. “Sweet
Cravings” covers the gamut from candies and confections to snacks,
desserts, and sweet beverages.

All three books have a starting comment and nutrient analysis
(calories, fat, sodium, protein, carbohydrate, and fibre) for each
recipe, helpful tips sprinkled throughout the texts, and a
well-cross-referenced recipe index. However, only “Sweet Cravings”
has a useful “tip index.” All measurements are given are in both
metric and imperial units, with ingredients in bold font.

Although the three books are coil-bound together, each book is
separately indexed and numbered. Oddly enough, “Starters” uses
American spelling while the other two use Canadian.

Most people will find Quick and Easy Entertaining a handy entertaining
cookbook, since the recipes are easy to prepare and use commonly
available ingredients.