|
The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, Heavy-Duty Revised Edition | 
 enlarge | Author: America's Test Kitchen
Creators: Daniel J. Van Ackere, Carl Tremblay
Publisher: America's Test Kitchen
List Price: $34.95
Buy New: $23.07
You Save: $11.88 (34%)
Rating:  108 reviews
Media: Ring-bound
Edition: 2nd,Har/Lslf R
Pages: 726
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 5.2
Dimensions (in): 10.1 x 9.4 x 2.5
ISBN: 193361501X
Dewey Decimal Number: 641.5
EAN: 9781933615011
ASIN: 193361501X
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
| |
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Over time, twin enterprises Cook's Illustrated magazine and America's Test Kitchen have published many books dedicated to providing exhaustively tested recipes--"best" versions of traditional dishes plus definitive takes on kitchen equipment and ingredients. Some series readers have complained of endlessly recycled or rejiggered recipes; others take each book at face value, finding the formulas and cooking insights good and helpful. America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, which calls itself a cookbook, cooking school, and kitchen reference in one, offers over 1,200 approachable recipes for a very wide range of dishes--from "weekday" fare like Creamy Rice Casserole, Cheesy Nachos with Spicy Beef, and Skillet Lasagna, to dressier recipes, including Pan-Seared Lamb Chops with Red Wine Rosemary Sauce, Roasted Trout Stuffed with Bacon and Spinach, and Chocolate Marshmallow Mousse. There are "specialty" chapters devoted to sandwiches, drinks, and slow cooker and pressure cooker dishes; a grilling section is a tutorial in itself. Unorthodox, "better-way" approaches abound. For example, a fried chicken formula instructs the cook to wet the bird's dry coating slightly before it's applied for an extra-crunchy crust. Predictably, side bars feature equipment and ingredient evaluations, on bottled salsa, for example; "good food/bad food" photographs show readers what to aim for when producing fare like holiday cookies; and there are tips, charts, and "Cooking 101" sidebars galore. Step-by-step photos offer more direction still. Though the majority of recipes are sound and yield tempting results, readers poring through the book will note gaffes and curiosities. The recipe for poached eggs, for example, offers the option of extra cooking for "firm yolks" (hard-boiled poached eggs, anyone?) and hamburgers receive an indentation before cooking to avoid "puffy" domed burgers, a novel problem that could, in any case, be solved by proper shaping. The addition of sugar to some savory dishes--for example, a pan sauce for steak--is misguided. Readers should also know that the book, which comes in loose-leaf form, requires some assembly, and that the pages themselves are quite thin, making them vulnerable to spills and tearing in daily kitchen use. These things said, the book delivers solid, family-friendly dishes with enough fully orchestrated "how- to" to make even novice cooks feel secure when tackling the basics or more ambitious fare. What's New in the Revised Editon?
First out in 2005, America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook was praised for its recipe ease, inclusiveness, and wealth of helpful information, but was also criticized for its physical production. A loose-leaf book with its pages included separately, readers found it inconvenient to assemble and its paper impractically thin. The revised edition is printed on heavier stock, and arrives with its pages already on its rings (there are two more now, for sturdiness) with only chapter dividers to insert, a simple task. In addition, new inside front and back covers provide information on emergency substitutions, roasting guidelines, equivalent measures, and more--and a "Light Recipes" chapter has been included. Without defining precisely what "light" means--fewer fats and carbs, or a combo?--the section offers attractive all-course recipes, such as turkey chili, veggie burgers, meat and cheese lasagna, and chocolate bundt cake. Some readers will welcome the "slimming" of familiar dishes while others will find some of the manipulations--using cornstarch to thicken the sauce in fettuccine alfredo or ricotta to add body to a reduced-fat pesto, for example--unappealing. The book, however, remains a valuable kitchen tool--and one with greater convenience and durability than before. --Arthur Boehm
Exclusive Recipe Excerpts from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook (Revised Edition)
More from America's Test Kitchen
Book DescriptionRepackaged to be easier to use and expanded to include a whole new chapter of healthy, light recipes, this revised edition of one of last fall's bestselling cookbooks remains the one and only basic cookbook you will ever need. Beautiful step-by-step photos illuminate every conceivable technique from chopping shallots and skinning salmon to cutting up a chicken and tying a roast. In fact, just about anything you want to do in the kitchen is explained in these pages in America's most popular test kitchen's approachable, no-nonsense voice. These recipes will keep you busy (and your friends and family happy) for years to come, since we've included hundreds of easy weeknight dishes (like Skillet Lasagna and One-Pot Chicken and Rice), company-worthy dinners (like Beef Burgundy, Roast Leg of Lamb, and Fresh Fruit Trifle), equipment ratings, shoppings tips, and more. |
| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 All my favorite dishes September 7, 2008
Linda Daniels (Oklahoma)
This is the first Test Kitchen book I bought and I am enjoying reading it like a novel. There are so many tips in it and I like seeing the finished dish in all of the photos. All of the recipes are familiar family food, just tweaked to be something better. I liked that. I have enough exotic cookbooks with odd ingredients, I didn't need another one. The only problem I have with it is trying to remember where I saw that tip because they're scattered throughout, not in one place. Even though I have been cooking for many many years I still like to perfect a dish. For a new cook I don't think you could beat this book as a present, better even than BHG classic big book.
Last cookbook you'll need! September 5, 2008
Lauren Kiesz (Woodland, CA)
This cookbook is wonderful! It is full of practical tips, product reviews, explicit directions, and yummy food. This will be my go-to cookbook for years to come!
Excellent cookbook! September 5, 2008
AFA mom (Dallas, TX USA)
I orginally bought this for one of my children as a college graduation present. I ended up keeping it and bought another. Excellent cookbook!
Great Book, Great Gift August 29, 2008
Jonathan J. Nesteruk (Brooklyn NY)
This is a great cook book. Very well organized. It is bound in a 3-ring binder which is perfect if you want to add your own content and notes. The equipment and ingredient suggestions make this a good first cookbook for young people.
 Good recipes, poor paper quality August 18, 2008
P Latzke (Mount Horeb, WI USA)
I own many Cook's Illustrated cookbooks, and I love them - except this one. The recipes are fine - great in fact! However, what good are fantastic recipes if you can't see them? I spilled water (WATER!) on the book, and now so many of the pages are stuck together, it is unusable. The paper quality is extremely poor, and very thin. (Not the hefty paper stock of their other cook books.) When I try to separate the pages that are stuck together, they just rip. At this point, I can't read at least a third of the book. I feel like I really wasted my money on this one. The ring binders also don't fit together like they should, so pages slip out at front and back. It was a huge disappointment.
|
|
|
|
| |
