Amalia's Guatemalan Kitchen - Gourmet Cuisine with a Cultural Flair

I married into a Guatemalan family, and my mother in law moved to the states very young and never learned to make her family's recipes. I'm the only one the family that really enjoys cooking, but I struggled to find Guatemalan recipes that were easy to make, had ingredients we could get in the states, and were from an actually Guatemalan chef. When I found this cookbook, I bought it without knowing what to expect.We've since made about 15+ recipes from this book, and just made 3 tamales, a dessert and an appetizer for the holiday season. Without fail, every single recipe we've made has been incredibly delicious, easy to follow and very authentic. Many of the tamal recipes follow almost exactly the same instructions as my wife's abuela, with only a few changes that make it healthier or use higher-quality ingredients.Thank you Amalia for bringing my in-laws a taste of their home and making our holidays and every-days much more delicious!

I can't thank Amalia enough for writing this cookbook! I first saw it two summers ago at the Latin American Heritage Camp for Adoptive Families in Colorado then went home and bought a copy for my daughter's 12th birthday. My daughter was adopted from Guatemala at a young age. We use the fabulous recipes from the cookbook for my daughter's Adoption Day, for her birthday, and other times as well, it is truly wonderful! Our favorite is the Carne Asada Con Chirmol, what a delicious combination of flavors!I have been using the cookbook even more in the last 4-5 months since I am co-chairing a fundraising dinner on May 2nd. We need the funds to send a group of 10 teens and 5 adults on a mission trip from our church to Guatemala to work with Safe Passage for one week. My older biological daughter is going on this trip. Her cookbook has been absolutely instrumental in preparing for this dinner. I would not have thought of suggesting to our church that we do a dinner without it. I am excited to have people attending experience Guatemalan food and learn more the country. We have paired up the teens and they made posters on a topic about the country. When people check in they get a list of 5 questions about Guatemala and then have to stop at the teen presentations to get the answers. We will also have your delicious appetizers at each table, too, to lure them in! This way we get different generations interacting, a goal at our church. We are decorating with some huipiles on the walls, Guatemala table cloths and each person will have a worry doll to take home. All this because of Amalia's cookbook! Also, one person I have worked closely with to plan the event with is a very skilled cook. She has marveled at the cookbook's recipes, lovely layout, and pictures. I will have to get her a copy for her help! It would not be the first time I have given as a gift, that honor went to my daughter' Godmother.And, if the above isn't enough to convince anyone to purchase this cookbook my Guatemalan daughter's recent experience using it will. She left the house late last week with her middle school cultural fair poster project. There was an array of topics kids could pick from and of course she picked ethnic food. Again your cookbook was instrumental in this project. It wasn't the just recipes, it was also the extra information provided about the cultural context of a variety of foods and their importance today to Guatemala as well as a wealth of other important information about the country. This past weekend we made a meals worth of dishes including tamales and took pictures of her preparing the different recipes at each step. Later this week all the kids doing the project will display their posters and most will bring in a dish to share. We will bring the black bean rice, another favorite, and she will be proud to serve it. Amalia's Guatemalan Kitchen cookbook is truly doing what she intended it to do; teach people more about Guatemala and its unique cuisine, and provide a wonderful cultural connection for those Guatemalans now residing outside the country. It is a job well done!

My husband is Guatemalan so i got this book to make some of his home cooked meals. Its not his grandmas cooking but he is very happy with the recipes we have tried so far.

I just bough this cookbook last week and I have already made 4 recipes. I love my culture and due to COVID we have not been able to visit family all year, which means I have not gotten to eat my favorite meals. I have 3 Guatemalan cookbooks but I cannot get half the ingredients or use the traditional cooking methods.I also love that this cookbook not only has the recipes I love but some are healthier versions - ie I hate cooking with lard so I am glad none of the recipes include it. My mom has tried so many different ways to replicate the flavor of paches without lard and now I have a recipe that comes close.

This cookbook is amazing! We have made so many of the recipes! I love how there is so much information on Guatemalan culture! We also attended Amalia Moreno-Damgaard’s remote tamale class last week. My daughter just watched and soaked up the info during the actual zoom. Friday she made the tamales!! They were absolutely amazing! We truly love Amalia’s virtual classes!! This is the second one we have participated in. It has given our daughters tons of info on culture, local foods and traditions! I can’t recommend her enough!! And my husband can’t wait till the next batch of tamales 😉

I love this cookbook because it's beautiful, inspiring, and easy to follow. In the Preface, Amalia writes that it’s her “modern take an an ancient cuisine that is not known outside Guatemala,” and we are the beneficiaries. The 170 recipes are a mix of traditional dishes and Amalia’s own creations–from her grandmother’s kitchen to her own classical education in French cooking. Selections range from breakfast, tapas, and street food to Guatemalan barbeque, Mayan stews, and holiday cuisine. Salsas, sweets, and “the Guatemalan bar”: this cookbook has it all, including a helpful section titled “Guatemalan-isms.” A great addition to any kitchen shelf. Buen provecho!

The book did what I look for all regional cookbooks to do - traditional recipes adapted to a modern presentation and palate with easy combinations and substitutions included to assist with anything from dietary restrictions to ease of sourcing localized ingredients to simple personal preference on choice of protein. I appreciate the information it gave on each recipe and its origins. Highly recommend if you are in the market for Central American cuisine that goes beyond Mexican food.

My mother is Guatemalan and this helpede to recreate many of her dishes and those that I have eaten whilst visiting family in Guatemala. Thf book is very attractive and has a wide range of recipes. Thoroughly recommended.

Bought this for my husband who is from Guatemala.He thought it was really cool! Lots of info on the culture and foodie slang throughout the book.Well worth the price as there must be hundreds of recipes in here!

Am very happy with this book! Amelia's is a very good resource for Guatemalan cooking! It's the only Guatemalan cookbook written in English that I am aware of.