From My Kitchen – Page 2 – Book Reviews by the Reluctant Retiree

The Science of Good Cooking

Master 50 Simple Concepts to Enjoy a Lifetime of Success in the Kitchen (Cook’s Illustrated Cookbooks)

Unlock a lifetime of successful cooking with this groundbreaking new volume from the editors of Cook’s Illustrated, the magazine that put food science on the map. Organized around 50 core principles our test cooks use to develop foolproof recipes, The Science of Good Cooking is a radical new approach to teaching the fundamentals of the kitchen. Fifty unique experiments from the test kitchen bring the science to life, and more than 400 landmark Cook’s Illustrated recipes (such as Old-Fashioned Burgers, Classic Mashed Potatoes, and Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies) illustrate each of the basic principles at work. These experiments range from simple to playful to innovative – showing you why you should fold (versus stir) batter for chewy brownies, why you whip egg whites with sugar, and why the simple addition of salt can make meat juicy. A lifetime of experience isn’t the prerequisite for becoming a good cook; knowledge is. Think of this as an owner’s manual for your kitchen.

Let me start with my humble opinion, you are going to love this book! After my hubby bought this book for me, we both took a quick look through it. Just that quick I found a recipe for shrimp that has become my “go to” for a quick weeknight meal. If you’ve never been able to get a pie crust to come out right, try the Foolproof Pie Crust in the back of the book. I tell you, it works for both myself and my friends. What makes for interesting reading is the explanation of “Why” it works.

Pokin
5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read to improve the results of your food!
Reviewed in the United States on September 22, 2012 Verified Purchase
Having relied on Cooks Illustrated recommendations for many of my favourite kitchen tools, buying this book was a no brainer. Needless to say I had high expectations going in, and this book did not disappoint.

I'm an avid cook, and while I've had great success with certain types of food, I've been frustrated by inconsistent results in others. (I can't seem to get a consistently moist pot-roast -- reason: my cooking temperature was probably too high; wrong cut of meat + oven braising is better than stovetop since it heats more evenly in more directions)

The Science of Good Cooking breaks down why food cooks a certain way, and which techniques are best for what purpose. The book is organized into 50 concepts with recipes reinforcing each concept. There's a section called "why this works" following each recipe, which breaks down the science behind each step -- for instance why use a certain type of marinade, cooking technique, take extra steps, etc to achieve a desired outcome. It's nice that it's not just a list of recipes.

Experiments back each concept. Meats were weighed, measured, smashed to determine tenderness, and moisture loss. They came up with a range of ideal resting times for various meats based on actually measuring the amount of juices lost at various times, and they sent food to the science lab to analyze their structure. They even stuck bones on mashed potatoes to test out whether keeping bones on makes food taste better. This book debunked some assumptions I had (acid does not actually make food more tender), and helped me understand other ones better - why salt directly applied on skin makes it more crispy, but if you brined the skin you'd get a different outcome. I also learned that the direction you cut your onion affects its taste - obvious in retrospect, but I never thought about that!

I was disappointed I couldn't see a table of contents before purchase, so here are the 50 concepts you will find within the book -

1. Gentle Heat Prevents Overcooking
2. High Heat Develops Flavor
3. Resting Meat Maximizes Juiciness
4. Hot Food Keeps Cooking
5. Some Proteins Are Best Cooked Twice
6. Slow Heating Makes Meat Tender
7. Cook Tough Cuts Beyond Well Done
8. Tough Cuts Like a Covered Pot
9. A Covered Pot Doesn't Need Liquid
10. Bones Add Flavor, Fat, and Juiciness
11. Brining Maximizes Juiciness in Lean Meats
12. Salt Makes Meat Juicy and Skin Crisp
13. Salty Marinades work best
14. Grind Meat at Home for Tender Burgers
15. A Panade Keeps Ground Meat Tender
16. Create Layers for a Breading That Sticks
17. Good Frying is All About Oil Temperature
18. Fat Makes Eggs Tender
19. Gentle Heat Guarantees Smooth Custards
20. Starch Keeps Eggs from Curdling
21. Whipped Egg Whites Need Stabilizers
22. Starch Helps Cheese Melt Nicely
23. Salting Vegetables Removes Liquid
24. Green Vegetables Like it Hot -- Then Cold
25. All Potatoes Are Not Created Equal
26. Potato Starches Can Be Controlled
27. Precooking Makes Vegetables Firmer
28. Don't Soak Beans -- Brine 'Em
29. Baking Soda Makes Beans and Grains Soft
30. Rinsing (Not Soaking) Makes Rice Fluffy
31. Slicing Changes Garlic and Onion Flavor
32. Chile Heat Resides in Pith and Seeds
33. Bloom Spices to Boost Their Flavor
34. Not All Herbs Are for Cooking
35. Glutamates, Nucleotides Add Meaty Flavor
36. Emulsifiers Make Smooth Sauces
37. Speed Evaporation When Cooking Wine
38. More Water Makes Chewier Bread
39. Rest Dough to Trim Kneading Time
40. Time Builds Flavor in Bread
41. Gentle Folding Stops Tough Quick Breads
42. Two Leaveners Are Often Better Than One
43. Layers of Butter Makes Flaky Pastry
44. Vodka Makes Pie Dough Easy
45. Less Protein Makes Tender Cakes, Cookies
46. Creaming Butter Helps Cakes Rise
47. Reverse Cream for Delicate Cakes
48. Sugar Changes Texture (and Sweetness)
49. Sugar and Time Makes Fruit Juicer
50. Cocoa Powder Delivers Big Flavor

The only thing I would have loved was a trouble shooting / Q&A section - e.g. How do you keep meat from cooling too much when you rest it?

Overall a great book if you want to improve your cooking technique, and also if you just want to learn more about why things behave the way they do!

Update: Looks like "Look inside" is now available for this book so there's finally a table of contents! 🙂 Since I've been cooking with the new concepts in mind, I'm happy with how my meat dishes (especially the stews) are turning out. I also tried using vodka instead of water to make pie crust (with the tip of putting a heated pan under the pie pan) and the pie crust turned out flaky and delicious as promised.


Maggie S
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reference
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2016 Verified Purchase
I have four shelves of cookbooks in my kitchen with classics such as Julia Child's originals all the way to glossy offerings from 3-star Michelin restaurants. Despite this, one can be an excellent cook using only two cookbooks: "Cooks Science" and the "Joy of Cooking". Cooks Science is comprehensive and the discussions help make you a better more informed cook than the usual recipe-oriented fare. I give it four and not five stars only because some of the recipes seem to be "tacked onto" the broader technical discussions rather than drawing upon them. For example, a discussion about the importance of slow cooking pork is followed by several recipes that seem to ignore that counsel. It's not an exhaustive cookbook like Joy of Cooking, but does offer recipes in most areas and manages to hit most of the biggies. Still, these seem to be a minor quibbles with an othewise excellent text.

J. Boyd
5.0 out of 5 stars Choose your own adventure -- Excellence in Ebook format!
Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2014 Verified Purchase
This is a fantastic cookbook. It's also a wonderfully entertaining education on the hows and whys - the science - of cooking. Every recipe I've tried has turned out well - and has taught me something. I own a hard-cover copy, and it has a place of honor on my kitchen bookshelf.

Then I bought the Kindle edition. Whoever formatted this book for Kindle has done a superlative job. The formatting actually enhances the reading experience.

For example - you are reading an early chapter entitled The Science of the Senses. In the first section (The Five Tastes) there's an interesting discussion of the fifth "taste," umami flavor. You can just read this and go on to the next section on How Taste Works. Or, if you want to understand umami a little more, you can follow the links in that first section to an in-depth discussion of glutamate and nucleotide levels in foods. This is Concept 35 - a section that is more than half-way through the book and yet meshes perfectly with what you read in that introductory chapter. The Concept ends with three recipes specifically engineered to show the best use of glutamate and nucleotides to produce rich meaty flavors -- AND with links to two additional recipes from yet another section of the book that also illustrate techniques associated with enhancing meaty flavors. It's a seamless reading experience that has you wandering through all different parts of this book.

When I first did this, I became a little alarmed. How was I ever going to find the recipes again? Have no fear. There is a complete and interactive table of contents. You can readily navigate to each of the "Science of.." chapters, or pick out one of the 50 Concepts and go directly there. In addition, there is a specific page of links that just lists all the recipes. So if you want to cook - hey, it works as a cookbook!

The Ebook version of The Science of Good Cooking reminds me of those "Choose your Own Adventure" stories - each time you dip in, you can follow a different path through. Kudos to the editors at America's Test Kitchen.

Edited to add:
The images in the book were clear, dark enough, and large enough be viewed very easily on my Kindle paperwhite. Tables were always correctly formatted, and fit the pages. The whole thing looked amazingly NICE and professional. Would that other ebooks looked so good!
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Planning for Canning!

Are you one of the many people who took up canning last summer as we were all home due to Pandemic? I noticed that there was an absolute run on all the canning supplies in every store that I checked. Now luckily I bought my equipment back in 2017 after Hurricane Irma knocked power down and I didn’t get it back for a week!

Folks, I’m Pennsylvania German and was raised to can with a Water Bath, that’s what my mom used. But if you are trying to can vegetables or soup, you need a Pressure Canner. My oldest daughter called me last year trying to find one for sale. At that time, they were selling for several hundred dollars!

So if you are planning to continue canning, now is a good time to start gathering your supplies. Besides the obvious jars, you will want/need:

Water Bath Canner – I found out the hard way that you can’t pressure can jelly and a pressure canner isn’t deep enough to do water bath with quart jars!
Pressure Canner – Note that I said canner, not Cooker. The USDA warns against trying to use a Pressure Cooker due to variations in pressure. This may not be a problem for cooking, but you need the consistency to kill all the toxins.
New lids – This is something else that can’t be stressed enough. When you opened that jar, you bend the rim to break the seal.

Recipe Books

The most trusted resource in home canning for over 100 years, the 2015 release of the Ball Blue Book is its largest update since the first edition in 1909. Expanding 56% from the previous edition, the 37th edition of the Ball Blue Book includes 75 new recipes, pictorial step by step guides for beginners, a special section for Meal Creations and unique “You Choose” and “Our Tip” recommendations where creative variations and helpful techniques are listed for creating your own signature foods

Canning Essentials is a go-to beginner’s guide that will take you step-by-step through the different processes of canning fruit and produce. From canning vegetables, like tomatoes and squashes, to preparing homemade jam, salsas, relishes, and so much more, this book simplifies food preservation so that even today’s busiest people can find time to do it themselves. Emphasizing cost-saving and sustainable food safety, you’ll learn methods for both freezing, canning, pressure canning, and water-bath canning, then discover over 60 delicious recipes for homemade jelly, chutneys, pickles, and more. With helpful charts throughout to detail methods with specific timings, temperatures, and required equipment, this book will teach you everything you need to know about preserving and canning fruits and vegetables.

Canning perfected the America’s Test Kitchen way.

The art of preserving produce by canning and preserving has come full circle from grandmother’s kitchen to a whole new generation now eager to learn it. This detailed guide to home preserving is perfect for novice canners and experts alike and offers more than 100 foolproof recipes across a wide range of categories, from sweet jams and jellies to savory jams, vegetables, condiments, pickles, whole fruits, and more. Let the experts at America’s Test Kitchen show you how to do it right with detailed tutorials, troubleshooting tips, equipment information, and insight into the science behind canning.

From the author of The Homestyle Amish Kitchen Cookbook comes a great new collection of recipes, hints, and Plain wisdom for everyone who loves the idea of preserving fresh, wholesome foods. Whether instructing a beginning canner or helping a seasoned cook hone her skills, certified Master Food Preserver Georgia Varozza shows people how to get the very best out of their food.

These are just a few of the books available to you. I should warn you, they will all cover the basic principles of canning safely .

Mediterranean Instant Pot: Easy, Inspired Meals for Eating Well

Bringing together the #1 diet and the #1 most popular kitchen appliance, this Instant Pot-authorized cookbook makes it more convenient than ever to cook the Mediterranean way, incorporating more vegetables, grains, beans, and seafood into your diet, and exploring the healthful, authentic flavors of cuisines ranging from Turkish to North African in everyday one-pot meals.

Made in the Instant Pot, succulent meals such as Chicken Tagine, Lamb Meatballs with Couscous, Pickled Onions, and Tahini, Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto, and Gigante Bean Soup with Celery and Olives become hands-off affairs for the busy cook. The Instant Pot also takes the waiting game out of cooking dried beans and sturdy grains so it’s easy to enjoy them more often. And vegetables get star billing, both as main dishes (Braised Whole Cauliflower with North African Spices), and sides (Marinated Artichokes and Baba Ghanoush). Recipes embrace the tenets of the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid, translating its less-meat-and-more-vegetables approach into vibrant, healthy one-dish meals that take the guesswork out of balancing portions and multiple dishes. Most recipes are ready in under an hour. And full nutritional information is provided.

I bought this book when I first got my IP. I love how America’s Test Kitchen pays attention to the details. I have to admit that the first time I did more than just leaf through it was just recently. I wanted to make shrimp and was looking for a new recipe. I don’t make rice because my husband has problems with it. To my delight, there was a recipe using Orzo! Turned out really well. I plan to try other recipes as well.

J&J
TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars Top 5 Cookbook
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2019 Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )
I am virtually speechless... at how Amazing this book is, for All.
I mean, it's America's Test Kitchen, which if you don't know,
has made a living out of literally testing everything, in a kitchen, from appliances to recipes to store bought items.
If you want to know the best store bought chili mix to the best butter to bake with, ATK has tried it out.
They have a show on PBS around 8pm if you want to hunt it down.

So when they make a cookbook, and there is a new edition every year, you can trust it's right.
And this Instant Pot version is. Oh so right.
I dare say, it qualifies as a "Desert Island" cookbook.
One of only 5 you'd need for the rest of your life & the rare good for gifting cookbook.

Too many details to cover so, I'll highlight my faves.
One, adding a hand towel under the cover after you quick release your grains, like rice or quinoa,
and resealing while it sits, makes professional quality fluffy rice move from side dish to main course.

Two, it's not just Instant Pot items.
Simple recipes, like salsa verde, pesto, tzatziki, and of course spices but,
for those you need grinder/ food processor.

The cooking times are spot on.
Including the beginning pages with a cheat sheet for grains, beans, vegs & proteins.
Even a trouble shooting guide if you're new to, Instant Pot or, just cooking in general.
Ps, the foil sling for the salmon was The Best salmon ever,
including my addiction to Costco's pesto salmon. As easy to clean up as well.

As a no meat eater, in a meat loving household (yes, I do seafood but that's it),
the recipes with chicken broth translated so easy by subbing veggie broth.
Yes, there is a recipe to make your own but, Walmart's brand of Organic Veg Broth is the best I tried.
Obviously, I tried a lot. It's the only one with a rich veggie flavor, not salt, pepper or carrots.
So for under $3 @ quart, that's my staple, not making my own.

This is a book rich with winter comfort foods, light summer fare and a wonderful variety of flavor.
But the best part, and No, it's not the quick ease of the Instant Pot, is
with America's Test Kitchen attention to detail, you can be confident, even as a novice,
your recipe will come out right the first time.

JnJ love
4.0 out of 5 stars America's Test Kitchen is the best
Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2020Verified Purchase
I like how they explain why a recipe works and now I can use my instant pot more. the only problem I have with their recipes is some ingredients are hard to find or you might only use a small amount and be lefty with the rest and not use it. So I just omit some of those and it is fine.

Ladyfingers
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Of Both Worlds--Greek/Turkish/North African Cooking Made Easy In An Instant Pot
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2019Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )
I couldn't wait for America's Test Kitchen to combine one of my favorite ways of cooking with some of our family's favorite foods. Mediterranean Instant Pot is chock-full of one pot meals, and the ingredient range is diverse enough to satisfy anyone's palate. We love lamb--this cookbook allows me to experiment with different cuts. The first recipe we tried was perfect for our cold Michigan winter day--Moroccan lamb and lentil soup. The addition of harissa makes it wonderfully spicy, and no need to head out to the store to purchase. The recipe for this condiment is also included, as are many others like hummus, baba ghanoush, basil pesto and tzatziki.

One unique feature common to all America's Test Kitchen cookbooks is format--every recipe is fully explained, starting with an introductory paragraph explaining why it works and where to get ingredients, to ending with detailed recipe directions and beautiful photo accompaniments to assure mistake-free end results. I'm a seasoned cook--the recipes found in this book are as suitable for me as they are for beginners. Besides great Mediterranean meals, the beginning of the book is loaded with helpful tips about instant pots as well as successful rice, bean, vegetable and protein cooking methods.

I couldn't be more pleased with these Mediterranean recipes, and using an instant pot makes them almost effortless.

The extravagant one
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful book with some superb looking recipes, but....
Reviewed in Canada on May 9, 2020Verified Purchase
Every single one of them seemed to include beans - which I intensely dislike - pasta or potatoes.
The latter I like but my husband and I are both diabetic, so guess what I am careful with and am trying - after nearly 20 years - to get him to cut back on: beans - which he loves - pasta and potatoes!
One person found this helpful

The Complete Diabetes Cookbook: The Healthy Way to Eat the Foods You Love

2019 IACP Award Winner in the Health & Special Diet Category

2019 James Beard Award Finalist

Take control of managing diabetes with a one-stop cookbook of 400-plus creative diabetes-friendly recipes. Meticulously tested recipes deliver exceptional flavor and maximum nutrition and provide a healthy way to cook and eat that truly benefits everyone but especially those battling diabetes. Complete nutritional information is provided with every recipe for easy reference.

Diabetes is a health crisis. America’s Test Kitchen’s urgent mission is to provide a path to healthier eating for anyone cooking for diabetes and encourage home cooks to get into the kitchen with a complete collection of great-tasting recipes. Vetted by a dietician and a doctor, all of the more than 400 inspired recipes maximize healthy ingredients and flavor while adhering to specific nutritional guidelines. Enjoy every meal with fresh and creative recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, including options for entertaining, snacks, and occasional sweet treats.

Anne
5.0 out of 5 stars Very similar to The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook with overlapping recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2018 Verified Purchase
As is Cook's Illustrated's pattern,there are many repeated recipes in their books. Still, I think it is worth having both the Mediterranean and Diabetes cookbooks as guides for more healthful eating. The major difference is that the Diabetes Cookbook's recipes include per 1-cup serving information (Cal, Total Fat, Sat Fat, Chol, Sodium, Total Carbs, Fiber, Total Sugar, Added Sugar, Protein, and Total Carbohydrate Choices). I am not a fan of diet books and their claims, however, the Mediterranean way of eating makes sense and for me is easy because I like the foods it promotes: a lot fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes and seeds; fish and seafood; poultry, eggs, cheese, and yoghurt (in moderation); wine and a lot of water.

The book(s) is well designed and provides a lot of helpful side-bar information. These recipes take well to everyday meals. None are overly complex and most are easy and good information is provided for the novice cook. Unlike most previous Cook's Illustrated cookbooks these are in paperback with a lot of colored photographs of finished dishes or information on certain ingredients or techniques.

If you want to become more adventurous and prepare more authentic Mediterranean meals (which I reserve for dinner parties due to the time involved) I recommend seeking out Elizabeth David, Paula Wolfert, and Joyce Goldstein's books.


Kris Abrahamson
5.0 out of 5 stars Great recipes! Too many carbs?
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2018 Verified Purchase
Many great looking recipes for diabetics or those who just like good, healthy food. I agree with the reviewer who said many meals appeared to contain too many carbohydrates, so use judgment with how many carbs you actually eat based on your specific medical plan. The idea that 25% of a diabetic meal could be carbs is common, but probably not a good idea for everyone. For those interested in halting the progress of diabetes, I recommend THE END OF DIABETES by Dr. Joel Fuhrman.


WIAPilot
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the BEST Diabetes and Low-Salt Cookbooks!
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2019Verified Purchase
My fiancé was recently diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure. He is recovering now, but also is on dialysis, is a diabetic, and has high blood pressure. For him to have any quality of life at all, he is going to need to DRASTICALLY change his diet. We typically would eat out in restaurants or have fast foods. I didn’t cook that often, although I am a very good cook. This has to change and I ordered about 10 Lower-Salt Cookbooks and Diabetes Cookbooks. It was somewhat frustrating because I want to learn to cook with spices and herbs rather than with salt and sugar. This cookbook is absolutely one of the very best! I look forward to trying many of the recipes! It is laid out very well and has beautiful pictures! I cannot recommend it enough!


Steve W. Bonds
3.0 out of 5 stars Higher than expected carbohydrate content in recipes
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2019Verified Purchase
While this book does make some effort to use foods where the carbohydrate might be absorbed more slowly than usual, there are still a number of recipes in here that may not work well for many people with Type 2 Diabetes. Use your glucometer to be sure the foods work for you-- don't rely on the recipes alone to create healthy and safe meals.


LOL
5.0 out of 5 stars Healthy, quality recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2018Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )Verified Purchase
The recipes in this book live up to the reputation of ATK. No question. There is a lot of variety and they choose quality ingredients. My only small issue with this book is because of some differences in opinion on how diabetics should eat. If you are on the super low carb side of the argument, you might find that this is too carb heavy (in terms of grains and starchy carbs). If you fall in the moderate carb camp, you will find plenty of options. Many of the recipes could be easily adapted to a lower carb lifestyle. I will use this a lot.

Wanda E. Brunstetter’s Amish Friends From Scratch Cookbook

New, from New York Times bestselling author of Amish fiction, Wanda E. Brunstetter–
A must-have cookbook that goes back to the basics of cooking from scratch!

Why does nothing compare to the memories of Great-Grandma’s food? Could it be because she made everything from scratch? Amish and Mennonite cooks contribute recipes that celebrate the value of skipping the factory-made shortcuts and cooking from scratch. Over 270 recipes are organized into traditional categories from main dishes and sides to desserts and snacks. Also included are kitchen tips and stories about growing up around an Amish kitchen. Encased in a lay-flat binding and presented in full color, home cooks of all ages will be delighted to add this cookbook to their collections.


Tala'
4.0 out of 5 stars Great recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2020 Verified Purchase
I was delighted to get this cookbook as I love cooking from scratch - about the only way I know so looking forward to new recipes! But to be honest, I was a bit disappointed as I found things like cans of cream of whatever soup along with velveeta cheese, Italian seasoning blends, etc. which is not cooking from scratch!
To be fair, most of the recipes are not like this but I really wanted to know how they got the finished food without that processed food product. That's why only 4 stars!
She does , however have a recipe for making velveeta cheese and cream of whatever soup at the very back of the recipes.


Pitkinchick
5.0 out of 5 stars Vibrant, Colorful, Classic!
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2020
I love cookbooks and have a vast collection. I was excited to see this cookbook and couldn't wait to try the recipes. When thumbing through it I read the stories inside and they made me think of days when I was growing up. I learned how to cook at my grandmother's knee. She would cook cornbread in a cast iron skillet and she taught me how to make many of her recipes. This cookbook reminds me of those days. Many of the recipes are similar to the recipes I knew when I was growing up. I have gotten too busy to cook, but this book reminded me to take time for the simple things in life. The pictures are vibrant and colorful, the content is well organized and easy to find. There is a vast amount of recipes included in the book from breakfast to breads to main dishes and many in-between. There are the tried and true favorites and there are some new twists on some old classics. Everything you could want can be found in this book. I would definitely recommend it!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Barbour Publishing for allowing me to preview this cookbook!


MJG
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2020
Some of my earliest memories are being in the kitchen with my family. Everyone had a job to do no matter how small we were. Nothing compares to enjoying a good home cooked meal from scratch, eaten around a large table. Amish Friends From Scratch Cookbook is reminiscent of copying those favorite recipes by hand on a three by five inch card to share. My box is overflowing still with treasures from my family and friends. This new collection of recipes gathered by Wanda Brunstetter is full of recipes that have been tried and tested.

One recipe to note especially, is Coffee Shop Brownies....from one chocolate lover to another, they are quite good! The Buttermilk pancake recipe conjures up memories of my dad on a Saturday morning making his special pancakes. Other recipes that are noteworthy are Delicious Cream Cheese and Marshmallow Creme Fluff. Those are two things I thought were found only in the grocery store! If you are looking for tried and true recipes for your family, I recommend this cookbook. Consider adding this to your gift list for budding cooks in the family. You may benefit by an invitation to enjoy one of these good recipes around the table.


Terry Biehl
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoy wholesome, yummy food!
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2020
You will enjoy the gorgeous pictures that accompany and complement these delectable recipes!
You can make your own yogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese and cheese balls using everyday ingredients from your grocery store or bulk food store!
You can also make trail bars, no-bake bars and pumpkin bars with peanut butter, oats, flour and canned pumpkin!
If you like homemade noodles, you can whip some up in 20 minutes with egg yolks, flour and water, that are tastier than packaged products.
Make your own healthy brown bread with wheat flour, honey, yeast, oil and salt in a few hours! (Dough rising time included) You can even make homemade cream cheese with yogurt, milk, sugar and salt in a day!
Taco salad making is easy with ground beef, Doritos, kidney beans, lettuce and cheddar cheese - mix it up in a bowl and serve it with homemade dressing!
There's a cappuccino mix and a hot chocolate mix that are wonderful for cold days - and iced coffee for those hot summer days!
For main dish entrees, there is grilled chicken with buffalo chicken or hot pizza dip, you can serve this with homemade croissant rolls and a cool broccoli salad with Hawaiian cheesecake bars for dessert -enjoy!

The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook

650 Recipes for Everything You’ll Ever Want to Make

Because smaller families shouldn’t have to rely on recipes built for four or six, America’s Test Kitchen has reengineered 650 of our best recipes to serve just two. Over the years we’ve discovered that scaling down a recipe isn’t as simple as cutting the ingredients in half—cooking times, temperatures, and equipment need to be adapted as well. This comprehensive cookbook takes the guesswork out of cooking for two so you can be sure that anything you want to make—from Classic Beef Stew to Lasagna to a mini batch of Fudgy Brownies or a Fluffy Yellow Layer Cake—will come out right (and perfectly proportioned) every time. We’ll also give you options when you’re short on time. 150 recipes, including Chicken Saltimbocca and Pan-Seared Rib-Eye Steaks with Sweet-Tart Red Wine Sauce, can be on the table in 30 minutes or less. For those times when you want healthier fare, we’ve provided more than 100 recipes labeled “Light” such as Provencal Vegetable Soup and Poached Shrimp Salad with Avocado and Grapefruit, each with nutritional information listed in an easy-to-read chart in the back of the book. And we include chapters on for-two slow cooking, grilling, and baking pies, quick breads, cakes, and cookies. A 25-page manual teaches the basics of cooking for two, including clever shopping strategies to reduce waste, smart storage tricks help extend freshness of key ingredients, and our picks for the most useful kitchen equipment for any two-person household.

The reason given in the forward for this cookbook is really quite sweet. A neighbor, a man and his daughter, complained that about having too many leftovers after he cooked. After receiving hundreds of requests along the same line, the editors decided answer the requests. Then they discovered that cooking for two people required much more than just dividing the recipe in half!

This cookbook is the result of their work. I’m an empty nester so it was perfect for my husband and myself. I was so impressed I bought copies for both of my daughters! It was so great to see a cake recipe that wouldn’t leave me with enough cake to eat every day for a week!

Even better, IMHO, is the section in the beginning where they give some tips on buying for a smaller household. Tips for using up the leftover ingredients, smaller sized pans. These are all things I personally struggled with after my last daughter moved out!

Joe Gee
5.0 out of 5 stars Great explanations as to why the recipe works!
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2020 Verified Purchase
Great pictures, easy instructions, and really great recipes.


P. Warner
5.0 out of 5 stars Big Beautiful Book!
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2020 Verified Purchase
Lots of yummy recipes structured for one and two servings. Beautifully illustrated. Great for a gift so buy two...you will want to keep one.

Scott Barnard
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome cookbook, every kitchen should have one.
Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2020 Verified Purchase
A cook book that weighs 4 pounds, 450 pages, 650 recipes and information on everything from preparing food, the deferance between canned tomatos, how to cut meat and everything and anything that deals with cooking in between. If I could give it a 10 score I would. Funny thing is I have not made one recipes yet. By the recipes I've look at in this book, I will be making a lot of these recipes. And before I read a review of a reviewer that is complaining they have to send this book back because " it's to big, "there's no pictures", "to bulkie". I have this to say, stop your whining and do some COOKING!!!! This cook book uses common ingredients and common sense to make theses recipes. Yes it has common information that a beginning cook can use. And deeper information that over time a beginner can use. But the best part of this cook book is this. COOKING FOR TWO PEOPLE !!!!

Katie likes books
5.0 out of 5 stars Well thought out and informative
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 26, 2020Verified Purchase
Plenty of recipes and additional information regarding all aspects of food and cooking. Its complete in itself for 2 people wanting to stop waste.

Master of the Grill: Foolproof Recipes, Top-Rated Gadgets, Gear, & Ingredients Plus Clever Test Kitchen Tips & Fascinating Food Science

Part field guide to grilling and barbecuing and part cookbook, Master of the Grill features a wide variety of kitchen-tested recipes for meat, poultry, seafood, vegetables, pizza, and more. These are the recipes everyone should know how to make— the juiciest burgers, barbecue chicken that’s moist not tough, tender grill-smoked pork ribs, the greatest steak (and grilled potatoes to serve alongside). Regional specialties are included, too—learn how to make Cowboy Steaks, Alabama BBQ Chicken, and Kansas City Sticky Ribs. Colorful photography captures the beauty of the recipes and step-by-step shots guide you through everything you need to know. A section on grilling essentials covers the pros and cons of gas and charcoal grills and which might be right for you, as well as the tools you’ll use with them— such as grill brushes, tongs, vegetable baskets, and wood chips and chunks.

Do you know someone who loves to grill, but needs a little help? I bought this book for my husband. He loves to grill, but doesn’t always know how to make what he wants. This book is perfect for that. Besides all the wonderful descriptions that ATK is known for, they have step by step photographic directions! That makes it easier to understand what they are telling you do. I would point out, however, that’s better to only try one new recipe at a time!


Matthew
5.0 out of 5 stars Love it
Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2018Verified Purchase
I love cooking the recipes in this book. I find that even deviating from them still results in great success. This book however is a little strangely formatted, I was expecting each page to have a recipe and it sometimes has 4-5. Or one recipe and multiple alternatives of the same type of dish.
Each dish has been very good and the book has educated me in becoming a much more successful cook.

C. Little
5.0 out of 5 stars Thanks to this book my son is the perfect-er husband of all time!
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2019Verified Purchase
I bought this for my son and daughter-in-law's 5th anniversary and I'm sure they'll be married forever if he keeps using this book. They are so happy. Everything is rainbows and sunshine. They not only know what works on the grill, but why. Or I should say oh, he knows. She doesn't cook , she just loves him like no other. Especially since he is now the Grill Master. I'm his mom so I think he's perfect but now he really is perfect because he can cook recipes from this book while his bride and his Pugs look on adoringly.

Mark6936
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Info
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2018Verified Purchase
Look, this is a great book as far as the information goes. I would have rated it 5 stars except for the organization of the information. It's really not good. It's hard to find stuff. The little tips are scattered throughout the book making it impossible to find them. Then there's three sections (easy, medium and advanced) with each section having the same categories (chicken, steak, pork, ect...) It just could have been organized way better with a better index.

Kevin S. Parcher
4.0 out of 5 stars Great recipes - but it is a collection, not really a new book
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2016Verified Purchase
This book has many terrific recipes in it; I know because I have made and enjoyed many of them. As far as I can tell, all of these recipes have appeared in the magazines (Cook's Illustrated/Cook's Country). So, yes, I gave it four stars because the recipes are great, but I am returning it because I have a full set of the magazines - that is why I am writing this review, so that potential purchasers will know that if they have a full set of the magazines, they essentially have this book. IMO it would have been more accurate if ATK had subtitled this book "A Collection of the Best Grilling and BBQ Recipes from Cook's Illustrated and Cook's Country".

That being said, it is a beautiful book with great pictures, good tips and advice, and a fun format. I am a big fan of ATK, but I don't have room on my shelf for another book when I already have the recipes. BTW - For anyone interested in canning and preserving, check out ATK's new book that subject. It is great!

Meal Prep in an Instant: 50 Make-Ahead Recipes and 7 Prep Plans for Your Instant Pot

Make weekly meal prep in your Instant Pot easy with over 50 recipes and 7 weekly prep plans

Meal prep has never been easier with an Instant Pot. With it’s versatility and ability to cook quickly and efficiently, you can use your Instant Pot to cook meals for the week ahead, or prepare your meals on your prep day and just dump them into the Instant Pot for a quick and easy weeknight dinner. With seven customized prep plans, Meal Prep in an Instantwill show you how to use your prep day efficiently to prepare three lunch or dinner meals and one breakfast meal, package them up for the week ahead, and enjoy fresh, delicious meals without struggling to figure out what to make for dinner every night. Here’s what you’ll get:

•Over 50 recipes that will appeal to a variety of tastes and appetities
•Seven weekly meal plans, each featuring four primary recipes, three alternate recipes, and one dessert, and many of the recipes are dairy-free or vegetarian
•Detailed prep day plans for every weekly meal plan, each designed to help you maximize your time in the kitchen on your prep day
•Handy shopping lists and equipment lists to help you execute your plan perfectly and efficiently

This book is so good that I’m giving serious consideration to buying it for both of my daughters! I’m retired so I have the time to pick and choose my recipes. Both my daughters are working with a child to cook for. Anything I can do to make things easier for them, I’ll do. The organization of the preparations and the recipes are wonderful. I especially enjoyed the range of accessories that are utilized in the recipes.

Wanda E. Brunstetter’s Amish Friends Farmhouse Favorites Cookbook:

Ever feel as famished as a farmer and long for simple country cooking ideas? Find them in this new collection of recipes, tips, and stories from Amish cooks.

CUSTOMER
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Color Photos
Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2020Verified Purchase
This cookbook is a treasure for my collection! Color photos on heavy glossy paper. Includes Recipes, Time-Tested Home Medicinal Remedies, Cooking Tips & Wisdom, Condiments from scratch, Homemade Cottage Cheese, and has a bonus of natural bug and critter repellents, barnyard tips for animals, and garden tips. Just simple & just fabulous


Deanna Stevens, Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice collection of Amish recipes
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2020
I enjoy browsing through cookbooks and this sample cookbook was a nice example of what Wanda's Amish Friends Farmhouse Favorites contains. I tried a few and found many more I am wanting to try. Wanda's books are always a pleasure to buy or receive.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and Barbour Publishers my review is voluntary.

Kimberly S
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Cookbook
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2020
This cookbook is another wonderful treat from Wanda E. Brunstetter! It is packed full of easy recipes, wonders stories and advice. I love that anyone, of any age can pick this cookbook up and start cooking!
Filled to the brim with beautiful pictures and over 200 delicious recipes. The Breakfast Protein Cookies are a family favorite now!
I highly recommend this cookbook to everyone!
I was given an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review

Canning Essentials: Jam-Packed with Essential Tools, Techniques, and Recipes for Fruits, Veggies, Jams, Pickles, Salsa, and More

Full of useful information. The recipes are interesting and ones that I plan to try. I just wish that more of the recipes gave you some idea of the yield. It is very hard to make sure you have sufficient jars ready if you don’t know how much the recipe will yield. The Formatting in Kindle version was somewhat messy.

Having said that, I enjoyed the book enough to purchase a copy for my house.

T. Crane
5.0 out of 5 stars Healthy Food you preserve yourself
Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2020
This book could not being coming out at a better time. As we learned while dealing with a pandemic, you can not always count on a grocery store to have what you need. This is a must have for every household.
Great book full of great information for someone who is new to canning, and some stuff you may not have known if you have been canning a long time.
Great recipes with mouth watering pictures! It has information for freezing, pressure canning and tons more.
I was given a copy of this book for my honest opinion


cindy
4.0 out of 5 stars very very good
Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2020
This is a good solid book for a home canner. Especially if you are new to preserving foods.
There is discussion about freezing foods ( what you can and cannot ) along with how to do it.
As for the canning. She covers the supplies needed, helpful tips, how to pick and clean/prepare the item you are canning. Talks about things that can well and those that don't. Covers pressure canning vs. hot water bath canning.. And supplies many recipes.
A very good all round book