Notebook Review (and Giveaway): Baron Fig Savor

I hadn’t invested in any of the Baron Fig guided notebooks to date as I didn’t really see a need for them. My notebooks tend to be a lot more haphazard. I have trouble reserving notebooks for one specific task. My brain is a permanent brain dump. That said, when I recently discovered that I am lactose intolerant AND decided to go vegetarian (again.) I realized I needed a notebook to compile recipes and recipe modifications in one place. Voila! A use case for the Baron Fig Savor notebook ($24).

As is true of all Baron Fig hardcover notebooks, the Savor comes in a lovely paperboard box (these make great pen trays so don’t throw them away!). The box is white with tomato red ink and gold foil accents.

Inside the box, the tomato red fabric cover is debossed with a graphic of plate, fork and knife. The book includes a white fabric pagemarker and a matching red elastic for closing the book.

The inside end papers are picnic blanket, red plaid with a space for your name or other annotation.

The first page of the book has an explanation for the icons and how to use the guided pages.

I’ve entered several of my recipes already (using fountain pen) and discovered a couple plusses and minuses. The three columns for ingredients provide lines that are short for most ingredients, even with my small handwriting. Longer or more complicated recipes really require using two pages. So, something like the Mediterranean Sweet Potatoes recipe shown above would work much better if I had started it on the left hand page for the main potato part and used the right hand page for the sauce and garnish. As it is, the recipe is a little cramped on the page.

I like the guides along the edge but I would redesign the placement to provide a space for oven temperature (where applicable) and a bit more space for more recipe types — soups/stews, salads, and maybe baked goods/breads that is separate from desserts… because with the current icons, where am I supposed to put cornbread? It’s not a dessert, main dish or appetizer… so it’s a side dish? Hmmm….

I love the icons at the bottom for dairy-free, vegetarian, gluten-free and low carb.

My next recipe to try is this Tofu stir fry. I found it in a magazine and cut it out and pasted it into the Savor notebook. I was able to add a diagram for cutting the tofu for frying (which I messed up the first time I drew it… smart, Ana!). Once I make it, I’ll add in my star rating.

I also have some print outs jammed in the back of the book of recipes I’m still adjusting. I am still trying to find the perfect vegan pancake/waffle recipe. I’ve tried a lot and none of them have been “just right.”

That said, the Savor is giving me the perfect place to put recipes I love, with notes and adjustments and keep them all in one place. Recipes are definitely something I want ALL in ONE PLACE. For me, this notebook is a great start on my new (accidentally) vegan diet.

If you also need to collect your recipes in one place, Baron Fig sent me an extra Savor guided notebook to giveaway.


Giveaway Details

TO ENTER: Leave a comment below and tell me your favorite recipe is — vegan recipe ideas are most appreciated and yes, cocktails count (there’s an icon for that!). Play along and type in something. It makes reading through entries more interesting for me, okay? One entry per person.

If you have never entered a giveaway or commented on the site before, your comment must be manually approved by our highly-trained staff of monkeys before it will appear on the site. Our monkeys are underpaid and under-caffeinated so don’t stress if your comment does not appear right away. Give the monkeys some time.

FINE PRINT: All entries must be submitted by 10pm CST on Friday, February 14, 2020. All entries must be submitted at wellappointeddesk.com, not Twitter, Tumblr or Facebook, okay? Winner will be announced on Monday. Winner will be selected by random number generator from entries that played by the rules (see above). Please include your actual email address in the comment form so that I can contact you if you win. I will not save email addresses or sell them to anyone — pinky swear. If winner does not respond within 7 days, I will draw a new giveaway winner. Shipping via USPS first class is covered. Additional shipping options or insurance will have to be paid by the winner. We are generous but we’re not made of money. US and APO/AFO only, sorry.


DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Baron Fig for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

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33 comments / Add your comment below

  1. Blueberry Pancakes:

    1.25 Cup Flour
    2.5 teaspoon baking powder
    3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
    .75 teaspoon salt
    1 egg (beaten is better, but optional)
    1 cup of milk
    3 Tablespoons melted fat or oil
    approxiamtely .5 Cup of blueberries, but this is to preference

    Stir it up and pour it on the griddle

    My oldest girlie would LOVE this journal!!

  2. My favorite recipe is a chicken and sausage gumbo that I took from Emeril Lagasse. On a vegetarian note check out the food network kitchen app. It has many vegetarian options.

  3. I tend very heavily toward simple steamed or stir-fried veggies with my meat, so I have no real food recipes.
    However, I ADORE Rum and now present you with my fav Recipe–Dark and Stormy:
    2 oz Goslings rum (our FAV rum, and is vegan)
    Fill glass with ginger beer (we use fever tree, which is also vegan)
    Stir.
    Squeeze fresh lime over the drink to taste.

    ::crossing fingers for book:: I have tons of loose recipes that need corralling. None are vegan, unfortunately.
    8)

  4. My favorite recipe is the sausage casserole that my mom gave me. Unfortunately, it’s neither lactose-free nor vegetarian.

  5. I once conjured a soy free/nut free mix of grains that I used for burritos. It included quinoa and I forgot the rest. It had the texture of meat and that’s all that mattered.
    This was 5 years ago.

  6. My favorite recipe is one I can’t exactly recite on command. It’s an old family breakfast staple that is essentially the Swiss version of crepes. It was my favorite breakfast as a kid and one of the most important things I (tried) to learn from my mom. A simple dish made with love and tradition. Always hits the spot.

  7. I’m a big fan of simple side dishes that can be dressed up as a main or use it as a side. One example is this Quinoa with Peas and Onion I got from a magazine years ago. I now can make it without the recipe.

    Ingredients:
    1 cup of quinoa
    1 small onion, chopped
    1 tablespoon olive oil
    1-1/2 cups frozen peas
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 teaspoon pepper
    2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
    dash of lemon juice (optional)

    Directions:
    1. Make the quinoa according to package. Fluff with a fork when done.
    2. In a large skillet, saute onion in oil until tender.
    3. Add peas – cook and stir until heated through.
    4. Stir in the cooked quinoa, and add salt and pepper.
    5. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts.
    6. Dash of lemon juice. (Optional – I like to add a bit of tartness depending on how I plan to use this dish.)

    Sometimes I replace salt with garlic powder, or instead saute 1/4 teaspoon of minced garlic with the onions and skip the salt.

    To turn it into a main meal, I add high protein like grilled/saute meat or to keep it vegetarian, some black beans or chickpeas and fresh avocado chunks. I’ve also used this recipe as a side for a baked fish dish too. So many possibilities!

  8. In Spanish, “Sabor” means flavour, which is adequate for a notebook dedicated to recipes, but it spells with a b, not a v.

  9. German potato pancakes with applesauce or jam! You won’t miss regular old breakfast pancakes at all! Some of them call for flour but they hold together fine without it if you fry them in hot enough oil.

  10. One of my favorite vegan and frequently made items is pretty easy

    In a decorative glass mix…
    2oz Jefferson Reserve Bourbon
    ice

    serve and sip leisurely 🙂

  11. I’ve got a recipe for a quick & hearty snack that I learned in Cub Scouts ages ago, and it’s stuck with me through the years. Simplest recipe ever, so much so that writing it down is almost overkill – but I’d love a copy of this lovely notebook, so here it is:

    1 cup honey
    1 cup peanut butter
    2 cups powdered milk
    2 cups instant oats

    Throw everything into a sealable plastic bag & mash until thoroughly mixed. Then enjoy.

  12. my fav recipe is basil pesto, not vegan but you can probably sub the Parmesan with some nooch concoction
    ½ cup pine nuts
    3 oz. grated Parmesan
    2 grated garlic glovesr
    6 cups basil leaves
    ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
    1 tsp. kosher salt

  13. My favorite vegan recipe so far is a Olive and Pepper Couscous Salad from I love my instant pot vegan cookbook. Its quick and great at potlucks.

  14. I think this book might work for me. My current favorite recipe is my vegetarian chili. It includes quinoa, V8 juice, Ortega diced tomatoes with green chiles (or some version of that), among other things. The key to good chili, in my opinion, is, for god’s sake, don’t overdo the chili powder. It’s supposed to enhance the flavor of the dish, not disguise it. It’s a spice; no one is supposed to wonder if it’s the main ingredient.

  15. It’s so hard to choose one favorite, but my go to base salad for nearly all my lunches is massaged raw kale: chop up a bunch of clean, dry kale, place in a large bowl, add a drizzle of good olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and then gently massage the kale with your clean hands for 5 minutes. I then use this base to build beautiful and delicious lunch bowls for the week, by starting with the kale salad in my lunch container, and adding fresh and colorful raw, grilled or roasted veggies (grilled butternut squash is a fave) and/ or fruits (strawberries, clementine sections, or dried cranberries, etc.), pickled red onion (just cut up a red onion, put it in a jar, and top with vinegar of choice), seeds and nuts, chopped herbs, home grown sprouts. Leftover grains and other appealing bits and bobs are fair game as additions. Because I’m not vegan, I usually add a sliced hard-boiled egg, but chickpeas, grilled tofu or other protein of choice can be used. I then season to taste and top with a balsamic glaze.

    Thanks for hosting this giveaway!

  16. Best Martini Ever !
    Ingredients
    • 1.25 oz. Stolichnaya Vodka
    • 1 oz. Cranberry Juice
    • Top with Champagne
    Directions
    1. Combine Stoli vodka and cranberry juice in a shaker and shake vigorously. Strain into martini glass and top with champagne.
    2. Garnish with Orange Slice
    Enjoy ! ! !

  17. I love ice cream and used to have ice cream for breakfast. I am trying to be mindful of what I eat and can no longer indulge like I used to. When I crave something cold for dessert, I add truvia to silken tofu and gently stir until the consistency of pudding. So good. Hits the spot every time.

  18. I make a Death by Chocolate cake every Christmas that is the highlight of the holidays 🙂 Includes chocolate liquor, chocolate pudding, chocolate chips, chocolate cake mix, sour cream, cream cheese, and eggs. SO GOOD!

  19. My favorite recipe is a pork carnitas recipe invented by my husband, and he just shared it with me this morning (FINALLY!!!!). The recipe is absolutely amazing and it is the reason I want this notebook 🙂

  20. Not quite a recipe, but I recently started making small portions of roasted vegetables in my toaster oven and I like it way better than dealing with a full sheet pan worth of prep and cleaning

  21. My favorite recipe is a chocolate chip cookie recipe I found in the early days of the internet and I now have memorized. Good thing, because the site i found it on is now defunct.

  22. Here is a link to black-eyed pea cakes. The recipe I’ve used is at myrecipes.com

    e Black-Eyed Pea Cakes and Beer-Braised Turnip

    I followed the recipe at first. But later versions I put all the black-eyed peas in the food processor. These are on my menu list to shop for.

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