Recommendation for cooking, food and wine

You don’t have to order take out every time you don’t feel like cooking–now there’s an easier way to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner (not to mention dessert) right at your fingertips! The Everything Meals for a Month Cookbook is the perfect tool to help you save time in the kitchen (and money in your wallet!) with practical shopping tips and food handling tricks for buying and cooking in bulk. Learn how to plan your menu, assemble the ingredients, and store and freeze a month’s worth of dinners-without losing any freshness or taste.

In addition to 300 mouth-watering recipes, The Everything Meals for a Month Cookbook explains how you can organize your kitchen for once-a-month cooking. Thanks to the easy-to-follow bulk-cooking model provided, it’s easier than you think!

Features family-friendly recipes such as:

If you really find food fascinating–the idea of food, working with food, and the eating of food–then Culinary Artistry should be on your bookshelf. There are two books at work here. One is What Chefs Have to Say About the Foods They Create. The other is Fun with Food Spread Sheets. A cynic might suggest that after putting together Becoming a Chef, the authors had so much leftover interview material that Culinary Artistry was but the natural outcome. The chef’s point of view, however, would be to make use of everything passing through the kitchen, to throw nothing away. In other words, if Becoming a Chef is an entrée, then Culinary Artistry is the special of the day.

The book is divided into sections that discuss and reach out to chefs to join in that discussion of such ideas as the chef as artist, dealing with sensory perception in food, composing with flavors, putting a dish together, putting together an entire menu, and standing back to admire the growth of a personal cuisine. This is thoughtful material. It is not how-to material. These guided conversations are made practical for the home cook by charts such as which foods are in season and when, the basic flavors of foods (bananas are sweet; anchovies are salty), food matches made in heaven (lamb chops with aioli or ginger or shallots), seasoning matches made in heaven (dill and salmon), flavors of the world (Armenia means parsley and yogurt), common accompaniments to entrées (beef and potatoes), and, most fun of all, the desert-island lists of many of the chefs quoted so extensively throughout the text. Many recipes accompany the text.

How this will affect any individual’s own culinary art, be that professional or personal, remains unclear. It may be as private an experience as reading. For the uninitiated, this book will prove that there’s a lot more going on with food and restaurants and chefs than they may ever have imagined. –Schuyler Ingle

From Booklist
In this ambitious guidebook to the current state of culinary art in American restaurants, the authors offer a comprehensive flavor catalog of comestibles that constitutes a palate-pleasing palette of the spectrum of gustatory stimuli. They flesh out long lists with reflections and observations on the craft of cooking by some of the world’s most illustrious chefs, both historical and contemporary. These philosophical ruminations give the up-and-coming chef an understanding of the evolution of taste in the past half century by comparing the classic tastes of France’s Fernand Point with the tastes of current celebrity chefs, such as Alice Waters and Rick Bayless. Although short on prescription (hence, the paucity of recipes), the book is exhaustive in its rosters of flavor complements. So extensive are the volume’s lists that the book is useful as a reference tool for only the most serious chefs and die-hard foodies. Mark Knoblauch
–This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

In its many publications and on TV, Cook’s Illustrated/America’s Test Kitchen offers exhaustively tested “best” recipes, tips, and product evaluations. Among its cookbooks, The Best Make-Ahead Recipe offers over 300 formulas that can be prepared in advance, held, and finished later. The recipes range widely from pre-prepared oven-ready dishes like Baked Fish Provençal; “double-duty” recipes, such as Mexican-Style Pork and Chorizo Stew, that use leftovers imaginatively; slow-cooker items like Tuscan white bean soup; and desserts, such as a chocolate soufflé that can go from freezer to oven successfully. In addition, the fully illustrated book offers helpful charts like How to Reheat, which provides advice according to portion size and heating method; special-occasion menus that can be started up to a month ahead; and discerning product and equipment advice.

As with other Cook’s Illustrated projects, Make-Ahead includes recipes that have appeared previously in its other works, though a majority of these have been amended with make-ahead or scaling-up data. Almost all the recipes are prefaced with their trademark testing “diaries,” exhaustively detailed accounts of the recipe-making process (“With the onion shells figured out, we focused next on the filling…,” gives the flavor), which some readers will find enlightening, but others will think excessive. Of course, certain recipes, or recipe classes, like that for desserts, are necessarily made wholly or partially in advance–but the book’s point is to provide formulas designed to yield superior results even when the uncompleted dishes are held, as most can be, in the refrigerator or freezer. Mission accomplished. Readers will find the book a consistently reliable resource for superior make-ahead dishes for everyday and special-occasion cooking. –Arthur Boehm

From Publishers Weekly
The thorough, ever-reliable experts at Cook’s Illustrated (The Best 30 Minute Recipe, The New Best Recipe) return with definitive make-ahead recipes for a number of classic dishes. Busy cooks will find recipes for standards such as Lasagna and Twice-Baked Potatoes as well as Slow-Cooked Barbecued Brisket and Lamb and Eggplant Moussaka. It should be noted that while the final steps-thawing a dish or throwing a prepared casserole directly in the oven-are easy, preparation often requires some planning. The authors’ well-known compulsion to test recipes multiple ways before declaring a “best” version leads to text-heavy introductions for each dish, but readers are frequently rewarded with helpful tips and tricks. Flat no-bake lasagna noodles make fine stand-ins for the titular pasta in Baked Manicotti, and flank steak frozen for twenty minutes firms up the fibers before it’s sliced to accommodate a cheese and spinach stuffing. Combined with a plethora of recommendations for everything from dutch ovens and hand blenders to “the best dark chocolate,” this title makes a helpful resource for cooks with a passion for doing their “best.”
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The leading guide to the professional kitchen’s cold food station, now fully revised and updated

Garde Manger is one of the most important courses culinary students take—and it’s often the first kitchen station that a new chef will encounter. This definitive guide has been thoroughly revised to reflect the latest garde manger trends, techniques, and flavors, including new information on topics such as brining ratios, fermented sausages, micro greens, artisanal American cheeses, tapas menus, “action” buffet stations, and ice carving. With over 540 recipes, including 100 created new for this edition, and more than 340 all-new photographs illustrating step-by-step techniques and finished dishes, this new edition of Garde Manger is an indispensable reference for culinary students and working chefs everywhere.

About the Author
Founded in 1946, The Culinary Institute of America is an independent, not for profit college offering bachelor’s and associate degrees in culinary arts and baking and pastry arts. A network of more than 37,000 alumni in foodservice and hospitality has helped the CIA earn its reputation as the world’s premier culinary college. Courses for foodservice professionals are offered at the college’s main campus in Hyde Park, NY and at The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, in St. Helena, CA. Greystone also offers baking and pastry, advanced culinary arts, and wine certifications.

About the Author

For his first book, The Making of a Chef, hands-on journalist Michael Ruhlman attended the most prestigious cooking school in the U.S., the Culinary Institute of America. He also earned his chef’s whites and began cooking professionally. Ruhlman ventures further into the secret lives of chefs with his second book, The Soul of a Chef. This enthusiastically researched report is divided into three parts: The first concerns the Certified Master Chef exam, a brutal weeklong cooking marathon that measures the skill levels of professional chefs. The second and third parts of Ruhlman’s book are devoted to the careers of two different chefs, Michael Symon of Cleveland’s Lola Bistro and Thomas Keller of Napa Valley’s legendary French Laundry. The thread connecting these three tales together is Ruhlman’s quest for culinary perfection: Does it exist? Is it possible? How is it even measurable? Ruhlman does indeed stumble onto the realization of his high-minded ideal, serving up a palatable conclusion for hard-core foodies equally obsessed with the perfect meal. –Sumi Hahn Almquist
–This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly
In this follow-up to his cooking school odyssey, The Making of a Chef, Ruhlman examines what causes chefs to seek absolute perfection. The book is divided into three parts: in the first, Ruhlman observes the arduous Certified Master Chef exam at the Culinary Institute of America, which was the setting for his first book. The second segment focuses on Michael Symon, a rising star at Lola (in Cleveland) who was recently dubbed one of the 10 best chefs in America by Food & Wine. The third is dedicated to Thomas Keller, chef of California’s esteemed French Laundry. While Ruhlman’s play-by-play descriptions of chefs struggling to cook exactly as Escoffier dictated 90 years earlier can be exciting (and the stories of those who failed heartbreaking), they strongly echo his previous book’s account of culinary education. The author fares better in his portrait of Keller’s development into an exacting perfectionist. But even here Ruhlman often slips into simply writing about the process of working on The French Laundry Cookbook, to which he contributed the text, or repeating stories that appear in it. Overall this book makes a fine introduction to Ruhlman’s writing, but readers of his previous books will be disappointed to find the chef reheating leftovers. (July)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
–This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

The reference of choice for thousands of pastry chefs and home cooks
A favorite of pastry lovers and serious chefs worldwide, The Professional Pastry Chef presents comprehensive coverage of basic baking and pastry techniques in a fresh and approachable way. Now skillfully revised and redesigned to meet the needs of today’s pastry kitchen, this classic reference is better-and easier to use-than ever.
The new edition contains more than 650 recipes, which offer a new emphasis on American applications of European techniques with yields suitable for restaurant service or for entertaining at home. It shares encyclopedic guidance on everything from mise en place preparation and basic doughs to new chapters covering flatbreads, crackers, and homestyle desserts. Throughout, award-winning Executive Pastry Chef Bo Friberg explains not only how to perform procedures, but also the principles behind them, helping readers to build a firm foundation based on understanding rather than memorizing formulas. Illustrated step-by-step instructions demystify even the most complex techniques and presentations, while 100 vivid color photographs bring finished dishes to life with a sublime touch of visual inspiration. Whether used to develop skills or refine techniques, to gain or simply broaden a repertoire, The Professional Pastry Chef is filled with information and ideas for creating mouthwatering baked goods and tantalizing desserts-today and for years to come.

From the Inside Flap
A favorite of serious chefs and passionate home bakers worldwide, The Professional Pastry Chef offers comprehensive coverage of basic baking and pastry techniques, all presented in a fresh and approachable way. Now skillfully revised to address the latest developments in pastry making, this classic resource is truly the reference of choice for anyone looking to achieve true artistry in today’s pastry kitchen.

The Professional Pastry Chef contains encyclopedic guidance on the preparation and presentation of an abundant array of pastries and desserts––including breads, cakes, cookies, tarts, petits fours, croissants, Danish pastries, mousses, soufflés, ice creams, sorbets, and sauces, syrups, and fillings––plus a completely new chapter covering flatbreads, crackers, and rolls.

Moving effortlessly between the most basic puff pastry and such subtly contemporary creations as Mascarpone Cheesecake with Cassis Panna Cotta Topping and Meyer Lemon Tarts with Lemon-Verbena Whipped Cream, The Professional Pastry Chef puts a world of edible delights within reach. The Fourth Edition contains more than 650 recipes, which offer a new emphasis on American applications of European techniques with yields suitable for restaurant service or for entertaining at home.

Throughout, award-winning Executive Pastry Chef Bo Friberg explains not only how to perform procedures but also the principles behind them, helping to build a firm foundation based on understanding rather than memorized formulas. His clear explanations provide an easy-to-follow guide through ingredients and mise en place preparation as well as pastry equipment, techniques, and plated presentation. Chef Friberg’s step-by-step instructions are generously supplemented with illustrations that demystify even the most complex procedures, while ready-to-use templates are included to help save time and effort in the kitchen.

Finished dishes are brought to life with almost 100 vivid color photographs that add a sublime touch of visual inspiration, along with new Chef’s Tips and sidebars that offer instant access to key material where and when it’s needed.

Whether used to develop skills or refine techniques, to gain or simply broaden a repertoire, The Professional Pastry Chef is filled with information and ideas for creating mouthwatering baked goods and tantalizing desserts––today and for years to come.