Last year friends and W&P Design founders Eric Prum and Josh Williams burst onto the cookbook scene with their debut Shake: A New Perspective on Cocktails. Now they're back with Infuse: Oil, Spirit, Water the result of experimentation and brainstorming in infusing oils, spirits, and water that began over a decade ago (according to their intro) with the team's peach bourbon creation.The cookbook pairs fresh ingredients with exactly what the title describes - oils, spirits, and water - to create fun and easy blends every home cook can enjoy. From the Olio Santo - a Calabrian chile infused oil they suggest using on pizza bianca - and overnight Limoncello to a refreshing post work out Pineapple Mint Coconut Water, Prum and Williams have created a collection of simply executed but brilliantly flavored infusions.
What I love about this book is how uncomplicated everything is. The most frequently required tool in making the recipes is a mason jar. That's it. A mason jar! Some of the recipes require muddling, others shaking, and others simply time. It's almost ridiculous how easy the recipes in this book really are - it kind of makes you wonder how you didn't think of some of them yourself!
Most of the infusions also include paired recipes for their use - a Seared Feather Steak using the Garlic Confit Oil and a Spiced Peach Bourbon Old-Fashioned using the famed Peach Bourbon, for example. Others, like the Sunday Morning Reviver and the Jalapeño Spiked Grapefruit Water, are complete as is.
After trying quite a few of the recipes including the fantastic Sriracha honey butter popcorn (which I topped with smoked salt!) and the blueberry maple syrup (over oatmeal rather than pancakes), I think I'm ready to even try some of my own infusions!
If you're a fan of jazzing up dishes with flavorful condiments, wowing company with unique cocktails, or are just looking for ways to use your summer herb garden bounty, Infuse is a great addition to your cookbook collection! (Psst, if you want to get a taste of the recipes inside, you can visit Prum and Williams's website here.)
Rating: 4/5
Per Blogging for Books requirements: I received this book for free from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.
