I bought both the books Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seingfield and the Sneaky Chef by Missy Chase Lapine. These books are very similar even though both were published around the same time this year. I have tried a few of the recipes from Deceptively Delicious and they have been a hit with my 2 1/2 year old and my husband. I like the information on nutrition in both the books.
The Sneaky Chef has many make-ahead recipes which I really like. She puts an emphasis on make-ahead purees which is the corner stone for 'sneaking' the veggies into regular recipes. Both books have some unique recipes and some that overlap. The Sneaky Chef has a whole chapter on snacks that gave me new ideas verses Deceptively Delicious one page of snack ideas that are common ideas.
Over all it is design and function of the actually book that wins me over to Deceptively Delicious. Deceptively Delicious is a very pretty book with a nice color palate that attracts me to want to use it. It is wire bound which I love. It is so much easier to use a wire bound book in the kitchen and the front cover is a vinyl that is easy to wipe clean . I like pretty things and this book is pretty. The layout of this book is nice with cute caricatures. I enjoy the visual design and layout of pages and the smooth texture. Again, this makes me want to use Deceptively Delicious more than Sneaky Chef. Sneaky Chef is more to the point and text book in presentation. The pages are porous so not good for the kitchen and the book is hard to keep open. Instead of a picture with a recipe, the Sneaky Chef put a center section of pictures. I have never liked that option in cook books because I don't like flipping from picture to recipe. Deceptively Delicious features a picture with the recipe on most - not all- recipes.
The Sneaky Chef has good information so it is one I will use for reference. Deceptively Delicious is the book I will have on my counter top. I will use the recipes out of Deceptively Delicious first and I will apply the make-ahead techniques from Sneaky Chef to the Deceptively Delicious recipes.
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Great reviews! Thanks! Each time I've gone to Barnes & Nobel since the Oprah appearance they've been sold out of the Deceptive book. I'm going to keep checking back. I want to check it out but I don't feel compelled to order it. But I think it's a great way to get more veggies in - something I really need to do!!!
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