Come to the Table: Food, Fellowship, and a Celebration of God's Bounty

by Benita Long and Steve Wingfield

Book Overview

Celebrate God's Bounty Every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor'it is the gift of God. Ecclesiastes 3:12 God intends for us to enjoy his blessings in abundance. Come to the Table is a threefold feast: For the body, we have hearty and delectable recipes. For the mind, there are thought-provoking quotations from great poets and thinkers. And for the spirit, stunning photographs and inspirational Scriptures transport you to...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1401603858
• ISBN13: 9781401603854
• Release Date: October 2008
• Publisher: Harper Horizon
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 2.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 9.4" x 12.3"

Customer Reviews

Great for Gift Giving!

This is such a beautiful book. There are many wonderful recipes and decorating tips, but most importantly, the pages of this book serve to remind us that all of our bounty and blessings come from our Heavenly Father. This book makes a lovely conversation piece, but it is certainly meant to be used! I ordered 3 copies - one for myself and the other 2 for my sisters. We are all so pleased!

PRAISE & WORSHIP IN THE KITCHEN!

This is a cookbook unlike any other! Yes, every cookbook, by definition, must include its share of original, tantalizing and scrumptious recipes, but here, Benita Long has taken things a glorious step further. Come To The Table introduces you to great step by step recipes along with inspiring scripture from the Holy Bible, Ms. Long's commentaries and a grand selection of heartwarming, thought provoking quotations from various individuals including, Rachel Carson, Robert Louis Stevenson and William Wordsworth. Mr. Sammy Anderson is the photographer for this book and his expertise literally makes this volume a living, breathing work of art, so enjoyable to read. I almost feel as though I should carry this book with me to Sunday morning worship. As your fingers glide through this book and your mind absorbs its contents, you too will find the subtitle fitting, for it is indeed about: "Food, Fellowship, and a Celebration of God's Bounty." Prior to being captured by its recipes, you are cordially greeted by what Ms. Long calls: "An Invitation, A Welcome, and A Challenge" and from that point on, any cook, or aspiring Chef (like myself), will find each recipe relatively easy to execute. Every chapter is accompanied with scripture and no recipe is permitted to close without an enlightening quote, commentary or scripture. I own and have read many a cookbook, but until now, have not come across a more beautiful and inviting work. I applaud Benita Long and her staff for creating and presenting such a special cookbook; for me it's more than a cookbook; it's my daily devotional in the kitchen.

A Wonderful Surprise!

Confession: I almost never like this sort of book. Usually books like this are, well, way too kitschy and cute and sugary-sweet for my tastes. But Come to the Table is a wonderful surprise! The layout and photos are elegant. The recipes are truly inviting. The Christian touches (Bible verses, quotations, etc.) are well-done and very appropriate. This is a fine book. I'm planning on giving several of these as Christmas presents. Oh, I forgot to mention that this book is priced very reasonably for the quality of the photos and printing.

A Superb and Spiritually Enriching Choice for Gift Giving

My 30 years in journalism include a number of years of food writing and restaurant reviewing for the Detroit Free Press and Knight-Ridder newspapers. Anyone involved in the front lines of food writing knows that, whatever else you present: It's about the recipes, the recipes, the recipes. So, first and foremost, this is a yummy collection of heart-warming recipes and those terms "yummy" and "heart-warming" characterize nicely the array of foods you'll discover in this gorgeous book: Personally I'm drawn to the very simple version here of Tomato Gruyere Pie, the down-home Creamed Chicken on Cornbread, the easy yet elegant Grilled Asparagus with Blue Cheese, and that Glazed Salmon with Orange Salsa -- mmmm mmmm. How about you? Hungry yet? What's unusual about the design of this book is that these generally simplified recipes for foods that are likely to become family favorites are packaged in a large-format hardback book with inspiring photographs and reminders of sacred texts from the Bible -- as well as uplifting words from other sages and literary lights. In other words, this book earns an "A" for the recipes themselves. But it's really intended as an inspirational invitation to cooking and to gathering a household around you to enjoy these foods, not only for their great taste but also because the very act of cooking and eating together becomes a spiritual oasis. The biblical texts come from the Hebrew scriptures as well as the New Testament. This is a Thomas Nelson book, so there really isn't an interfaith diversity of sacred texts here. This is primarily a book aimed at Christian readers. Nevertheless, the words of sacred wisdom do come from various sources and the basic spiritual principle of meals as a spiritual resource is universal. Many people will enjoy owning the book or giving it as a gift. Even if you don't have a large household yourself, I can envision many of these fairly easy yet delightful recipes to wind up as mainstays at gatherings of friends, potlucks and other shared meals.