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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
I got a pile of long-awaited library books last week, and this was the best of the bunch. I didn't read every recipe, but I did read all the prose. Might not be everyone's favorite, but I loved the simple photography, the haiku-like tweets, and her story of how paying attention in the kitchen brought her back from a devastating blow.
Also, the simple recipes are exactly what my crew would love, oysters aside.
One to own.
Also, the simple recipes are exactly what my crew would love, oysters aside.
One to own.
Loved the recipes, but I was a bit annoyed with her melodramatic undertones about "having" to get a job to support their two houses.
I know that Ruth knows more about cooking than I ever will, but this cookbook is a bit inane. There's a two page rumination on pb&j sandwiches. There recipes are seasonal, which I love, but they don't even include full ingredient lists. You have to glean through the narrative of how the bacon sizzled in the pan as she gazed over a snowy upstate New York field.
Loved Ruth's earlier memoirs but in this book I couldn't relate to her struggles and also can't eat much of the food she prepares so didn't bother reading many of the recipes.
While I admit that I'm having trouble sympathizing with someone for whom economizing after losing a job means "downsizing" to a gorgeous country property in upstate New York to eat like a queen, I appreciate the story of being lost and finding direction, and her writing is so personal, intimate and sympathetic, that I find myself scoffing indulgently and following along. This book is part cookbook, part journal, and part tweet. And the recipes, so far, have been worthy.
Made so far: Chicken Fricasee (88)-o wow, yum, Gingered Applesauce Cake Glazed with Caramel (93)-amazing ginger content, I would personally do about half of the caramel sauce next time, but for those who want to indulge, it is creamy and gooey goodness, Basic Lemon Vinaigrette (181)-my favorite lemon vinaigrette recipe thus far, Crisp, Lemony Baby Yukons (251)- crispy outside, pillowy inside, a bright potato whose leftovers made a tasty frittata the following evening, Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi (108) fail! I must have done something wrong, but these were just barely saved from inedibility by smothering them in gruyere and baking them as a gratin (which Ruth herself suggests), & I made the Rice Pudding which had a layer of whipped cream baked on top that is such a revelation, delicious...
Next up: Beef, Wine and Onion Stew (111), & Lemon Panna Cotta (100)
Beware! The book has the tendency to snap shut at the exact moment one is bending over it to read the next step. Take care of noses and nearby open containers!
Made so far: Chicken Fricasee (88)-o wow, yum, Gingered Applesauce Cake Glazed with Caramel (93)-amazing ginger content, I would personally do about half of the caramel sauce next time, but for those who want to indulge, it is creamy and gooey goodness, Basic Lemon Vinaigrette (181)-my favorite lemon vinaigrette recipe thus far, Crisp, Lemony Baby Yukons (251)- crispy outside, pillowy inside, a bright potato whose leftovers made a tasty frittata the following evening, Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi (108) fail! I must have done something wrong, but these were just barely saved from inedibility by smothering them in gruyere and baking them as a gratin (which Ruth herself suggests), & I made the Rice Pudding which had a layer of whipped cream baked on top that is such a revelation, delicious...
Next up: Beef, Wine and Onion Stew (111), & Lemon Panna Cotta (100)
Beware! The book has the tendency to snap shut at the exact moment one is bending over it to read the next step. Take care of noses and nearby open containers!
Well bound, which is important for a cookbook. But none of the recipes were unique or inspiring enough for me to want to try. Moreover, they were sandwiched (read: lost) between biographical details of Reichl's effort to re-invent herself post job loss, and frankly she's not some one I care deeply about, and therefore I really didn't care about the five broken bones in her foot or the fact that she no longer had an expense account for eating out at expensive restaurants.