HALAL COMFORT FOOD BY M.K. JOHNSTON … BOOK REVIEW
Halal Comfort Food – The New Muslim’s Guide To Going Halal
BY M.K. Johnston
I was super thrilled to have been offered the opportunity to review, my 1st ever COOKBOOK, on Foodeva Marsay. On the Very onset I would Like to give THANKS to Djarabi Kitabs Publications, for affording me this privilege once again, Do take a look at my review of BLOOM , also a Djarabi Kitabs Publications novel, and I look forward to many more such collaborations. Even though I was probably the only Blogger on their Blog Tour Review for Halal Comfort Food, that hasn’t as yet received the actual paperback book, all thanks to South Africa’s Post Office systems, Sister Papatia (From Djarabi Kitabs Publications), put my worries about my review at ease, by forwarding me an e-book (PDF) of this unique cookbook? SUBHANALLAH.
NB…READ RIGHT THROUGH TO THE END FOR SOME EXCITING NEWS…
What makes this Cookbook any more unique from all the rest out there???
Author M.K.Johnston is an American-born revert to Islam. There are many things that can be very daunting on a new Muslim, and even with many born muslims, even the foods we eat these days, need to be scrutinised, as there can be loads of non-halal additives being added to food. I quote this Forward from Halal Comfort Food by M.K Johnston, as she sums this up in a few lines, at the beginning of the book …
“ There are an awful lot of things for a new Muslim to learn. It seems simple at first, accepting Allah is the one and only true God, and then accepting and agreeing to live by the five pillars of Islam and following the straight path. But as you read and learn and grow in your faith, you find that there is a lot more out there than you had originally thought! Reverting to Islam can seem complicated and overwhelming, but it is important to take things slowly and only make a few changes at a time, rather than diving in headlong and getting overwhelmed.
Likewise, following a halal diet seems pretty simple when you look at the guidelines in the Quran. But due to the way foods are processed in modern times, those few simple guidelines can become much more complex when put into practice. To further complicate things, there are a multitude of differing opinions on what is and isn’t halal, depending on what school of thought you belong to. Being a revert to Islam, and not having been raised in a particular school of thought and taught to think and act Islamically, one can feel pretty torn hearing and reading so many different opinions on what is and is not the correct way to eat/dress/think/pray/etc!” M.K.Johnston
After the initial forward, Halal Comfort Foods is basically made up of 2 parts..
Part 1 focuses on… EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT HALAL DIET
I love how simple it is to understand, and M.K. Johnston does this part justice, in going into detail about everything a new muslim would need to know about Halal. She explains the general meaning of halal, the types of food that are haraam, enlightens about zabiha and halal butcheries, you can find her discuss about animal products and alcohol. It’s refreshing that little bits of Ayat and Ahadith are also mentioned and general behavioural ways that should be adopted. With travel becoming lots more accessible, the author also then explains what one should look out for regarding halal eating while travelling. Another great input was what can be substituted for certain ingredients that, I’m sure, many of us still get stumped with. This part 1, is all inclusive information that is sure to help not just new reverts to islam, but also those of us that need are refresher or better understanding of simple things we take for granted.
Whilst Part 2… focuses on RECIPES.
These are recipes that are old school American recipes, or recipes from around the muslim world, that have been tried and tested by M.K. Johnston . How many of us have wished to try a certain Western Recipe, but always got put off by ingredients that were being used. Or If you have friends/family that are new reverts to islam, many would be under the impression that eating foods they have been accustomed to is not allowed anymore. Comfort foods like pasta/Pizza or breakfast fry ups, Halal Comfort Food, teaches you to make these dishes, with halal ingredients.
The recipe part is divided into different sections for breakfast,appetisers/starters, beverages, breads, entrees and dessert. The cover pics to each section of recipes is very smart.
However, the only negative I think I have, of this cookbook, would be the actual pictures attached to some of the recipes. I would love to have seen a lot more clearer and composed pictures, especially for a cookbook.
You will also find an afterward About The Author, towards the end of the book, with a wonderful interview as well of M.K Johnston with Papatia Feauxzar, as well as some Scrumptious Ramadaan recipes.
OVERALL…
This is a very Easy to read and understand Cookbook. The recipes too, are simple to follow and well structured. There are some recipes I would love to try out soonest, like the interesting take on chocolate chip cookies, is something I’d try. This would make a perfect book for family/friends, that may be new reverts, or even born muslims that like to try new foods of old western classics.
Wishing M.K. Johnston and her Halal Comfort Food, the very best and may only success come your way, AMEEN.
FOODEVA MARSAY Rating
??? and 1/2 STARS out of 5
YOU CAN PURCHASE THIS BOOK FROM ANY OF THESE PLATFORMS mentioned below, DON’T DELAY…DJARABI KITABS PUBLICATIONS ARE ON SALE FOR THIS PARTICULAR BOOK..YAYYYY
Djarabi Kitabs Publications (It’s on SALE @ $15.99 here )
DISCLAIMER: This post has been Sponsored, BUT ALL VIEWS ARE SOLEY MY OWN.
???????????????????????????
NOW FOR THE EXCITING NEWS…
DJARABI KITABS PUBLICATIONS, HAS KINDLY COLLABORATED WITH ME, AND WE ARE THRILLED TO BE GIVING AWAY 1 COPY OF THIS COOKBOOK,
HALAL COMFORT FOOD – The new muslim’s guide to going halal BY M.K. Johnston.
ALL YOU HAVE TO DO, IS DROP ME A COMMENT HERE ON THE POST OR VIA FACEBOOK (FOODEVA MARSAY PAGE) ,
AND
~ LET ME KNOW WHY YOU THINK THIS BOOK WOULD BENEFIT YOU, OR
~ WHY YOU WOULD LOVE TO WIN THIS BOOK.
1 LUCKY WINNER WILL BE RANDOMLY CHOSEN, AND YOUR BOOK WILL BE POSTED TO YOU NEXT MONTH, IN SHA ALLAH.
SO GO ON…WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR…ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY NOW, AND SHARE THIS POST SO YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS TOO CAN WIN WITH FOODEVA MARSAY AND DJARABI KITABS PUBLICATIONS.
THIS GIVEAWAY RUNS FROM 23RD AUGUST 2017 – UNTIL 6TH SEPTEMBER 2017
##############################################################################################
UPDATE >>> THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED <<<
CONGRATUALTIONS TO OUR WINNER, MARIAM KOLIA.
THANK YOU TO ALL THAT HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THIS GIVEAWAY.