The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook: 650 Recipes for Everything You'll Ever Want to Make (The Complete ATK Cookbook Series)
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At a glance
- Condition
- New
- Dimensions
- 8.5 x 1.1 x 10 in
- Weight
- 3.26 lb
- Publisher
- America's Test Kitchen
- Publication date
- April 1, 2014
- Edition
- Illustrated
- Language
- English
Description
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. Read more
Specs 10
| Publisher | America's Test Kitchen |
|---|---|
| Publication date | April 1, 2014 |
| Edition | Illustrated |
| Language | English |
| Print length | 440 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1936493837 |
| ISBN-13 | 38 |
| Item Weight | 3.26 pounds |
| Dimensions | 8.5 x 1.1 x 10 inches |
| Part of series | Complete ATK Cookbooks |
No specs match.
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Top Amazon Reviews
Lose Weight and Save Money!
Format: Paperback
I got this cookbook for 2 key reasons: 1) so my husband and I could cook together and 2) to learn better, time saving techniques. The benefits I ended up reaping were weight loss and a smaller grocery budget. I have a couple of the other ATK cookbooks including the Slow Cooker one and Cooking School. After making a few of the recipes, I shelved the cookbooks because we just ended up with too much food. Cutting recipes in half wasn't always practical (and still produced too much food) and sometimes they could be more labor intensive than is worth it for 2 people. And forget about baking, the dessert recipes just made too much and the temptation to eat more than I should was too great. I didn't want to give up on ATK because their cookbooks have clear instructions and consistent results. With illustrations and a central reference, my husband, who does not cook, is able to help out in the kitchen. I was so happy to discover Cooking For Two!! Cooking For Two isn't just the regular ATK recipes cut in half or third. They've actually re-engineered their recipes to use smaller cookware and streamlined techniques to minimize appliances and overall number of dirty dishes. There are a number of dishes that start in a skillet and go into the oven, in the skillet, where the larger recipe would require transfer to a baking dish. Probably my number one favorite recipe in this book is the Skillet Pizza. We used to spend about $50 a week on high end takeout pizza. I use store-bought pizza dough and making that recipe actually takes *less* time than ordering takeout. A lot of the recipes using tomato sauce have you make your own by running a can of diced tomatoes in the food processor which is significantly cheaper than buying premium ready-made sauce, and tastes better too. Another one of my favorite recipes uses fresh ravioli or tortellini from the refrigerated section and you cook the pasta in a single skillet with a watery sauce that thickens as the pasta cooks. Again incredibly easy and even faster, and cheaper, than delivery. Every recipe I've tried has taken 15-30 minutes of hands on prep time max and has come out perfectly every time. I'm watching my calories (I don't do "low fat" or "low calorie" because that's an express ticket to a midnight ice cream binge) and my husband is a light eater. The recipes say they serve 2, for us it's usually 3-4 servings. The regular recipes average about 500-600 calories per ATK-size serving, so even if I do eat a full serving, it's not that big of a deal. And when you're cooking a lasagna in a 9"x 4" bread loaf pan, half of that looks pretty huge. Compare that to a 13" x 9" lasagna pan where a 4" x 4" slice would look pretty measly. Desserts are no longer off the menu for me as I can eat a half serving without having to throw away half a cake (thus removing the temptation to eat too big of a serving). Quick breads are baked in mini-loaf pans, miniature layer cakes are 6" in diameter, cookies are by the dozen, and pies are 6". I love the mini bundt cakes. All of the desserts are easily 4 small servings which don't break my daily calorie bank. And if I'm tempted to overdo it, well, there isn't that much to overdo it on. Breakfast options are also scaled down, for instance to 6 total pancakes (3 servings for us). Seriously, Cooking for Two does a lot for your portion size perspective. I've already lost almost 20 lbs and cook almost exclusively from this cookbook. For a household for 2, we used to spend about $1000 a month on food (both groceries and restaurants/takeout). Since using this cookbook, we spend about $500 a month on food including restaurants and takeout. If you're just one or two people, or even 3, and you want to lose weight, save money, cook really good food from scratch with minimal fuss, and/or make cooking a spending quality time together activity, then I highly recommend this cookbook. It's been a real lifesaver for me. UPDATE: I've now lost 65 lbs since I wrote this review! I'm still using this cookbook regularly. It's a great reference for cutting down their other recipes. I am such a fan of their cookbooks, I've managed to pick up a few more. I highly recommend Make Ahead Cook, One Pan Wonders, and Cook It In Cast Iron, all of these are pretty easy to scale down. If I'm not sure the best way to halve something or the recipe seems too labor intensive I just refer to a similar recipe in this one. When scaling down the Dutch Oven recipes, I use a half sized dutch oven (3 qt). I recently purchased a Wolf Gourmet Countertop Oven and switched from non-stick skillets to using Lodge cast iron skillets with loop handles (instead of long handles) so they fit in the smaller oven easily. If you do a lot of smaller scale cooking, I highly recommend this appliance. While it only fits up to a quarter sheet pan, I was already using a quarter sheet pan for most of the recipes in this book. Probably my most made recipe in this book is the "Ravioli with Meat Sauce" recipe. I use Barilla dried cheese tortellini with no other adjustments, and just cover the pan for the recommended cooking time in the recipe. My main complaint is that I run into a recipe here and there that is literally a normal recipe cut in half. Also the serving sizes are a bit all over the map. Some recipes really do serve 2 while others can feed 4. I usually assume I'll get 3-4 servings out of the recipes and just plan on an extra side for the ones I know make less (like the Teriyaki Steak Tips). Another thing I wish they'd have included is scaling down on grilling. I have an 18" Weber Jumbo Joe because for 2 people it makes no sense to use a full size 24" grill. The recipes in the Grilling chapter work great on my smaller grill but the charcoal amounts didn't. Cook's Country only recently published an article discussing this, they suggest scaling the number of briquettes down by 25%. They also recommend putting water in a large (7x5ish) loaf pan instead of the 13x9 pan, and reducing the water by 25% (but keep the amount of wood chips the same). I still use a full sized chimney starter but for 2 people it just makes sense to have a smaller setup and use less briquettes. Hopefully a future version of this cookbook will have a better grilling section!! Finally after using the book so much, it's fallen apart. I wish they made a spiral bound version with waterproof pages!
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Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2016 by Augustina
Another winner from one of my most trusted recipe sources
Format: Paperback
It's no secret that America's Test Kitchen is one of my most trusted cookbook/recipe sources. I have made (and blogged) so many of their recipes with success. I own many of their cookbooks, and subscribe to Cook's Illustrated and Cook's Country-- AND have online subscriptions to their videos and recipe library. So, yeah, I'm a fan. I'm also a new empty nester. My grown son (who could eat the equivalent of two hungry people) moved halfway across the country. So, here I am, loving to cook-- and realizing that my husband and I do not need such big portions! I'm pretty good at reducing recipes to be smaller portions. But, as of late, I found myself lacking inspiration. Then, this book arrived and I was smitten. I usually skip past prefaces and all the "things you need to know about cooking tips" so I can jump right in to reading recipes. But, this time, I paused to read the first chapters. I was hooked, even though I'm an experienced cook. I learned some new tips, and that's priceless. I and really enjoyed the section about how to use up common leftovers-- like bread, or cooked potatoes, or feta cheese and bookmarked those. I usually keep small page marker tabs on hand, when I read a cookbook. Let's just say that this book is packed with all kinds of tabs sticking out in every single section. The soups, stews and salad section was interesting-- and I realized that I've made many of these recipes already (albeit in larger portions) and they are really good. I really got revved up to see a lot of Thai influenced recipes... a lot of Asian, too. The grilling section is terrific and I'm fired up (pun intended) to make the grilled pork, seafood, beef and chicken recipes. Even the desserts were great, and I can't wait to make smaller versions of cakes, puddings and cookies. This morning, I made the fried eggs. Yeah, what's so hard about that? Well, when you learn ATK's little secret of how to get them crispy on the outside, and tender in the middle with perfectly cooked egg yolks... halleluiah! I have a feeling this book is going to become my newest obsession for inspiration. There aren't pictures for every single recipes, but that would make this a very big book. There are over 650 recipes! There are plenty of mouthwatering photos, though, so I am not disappointed at all. There are great "how to" tips that any cook would find helpful. I've thought about buying a copy of this book for my son. He has learned to appreciate good home cooking (from his mama), and is wanting to learn how to cook. Some of the recipes might be a bit challenging to a beginner. Then again, I learned to cook by trial and error. I just think that learning to cook comes from a desire to learn. If you read the "why this recipe works" first, then prepare all your ingredients ahead of time (mis en place) and follow the directions-- it will turn out. People who say they hate to cook, haven't really tried. This book would be a great starting point. I'm a happy cook/baker! Great purchase/investment for me.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2015 by Foodiewife
The Best of the Best
Format: Paperback
What an awesome collection of recipes, and general food prep, storage information. I collect cook books and this one will definitely be at the top of my go to references. It has simple recipes for just two people, and you won't find canned soup or boxed bisquick in the ingredients. I reviewed it with my neighbor and then ordered one for her. Can't wait to start cooking. There are many standard meal recipes, but also some for vegetarians, slow cooking and for grilling as well. I have tried cutting down recipes to serve one or two but it just isn't worth it. And I am tired of cooking, then having to portion, freeze larger recipes. Now I can enjoy a meal and have the other for lunch tomorrow. I did have to order a few smaller baking pans for the desserts so now I can have a piece of fresh cake without wasting a whole cake that I can't and shouldn't be trying to eat in just a few days. This book incorporates many of the same cooking science in the other. book: The science of Good Cooking from Cook's Illustrated, very informative. 2-25-15 Now I have made the Classic beef stew, tomato/mozarella salad and the apple crisp. Each was great. Tomorrow I am making Smothered pork chops. I only needed two short ribs for the stew so froze the other two for next time. I am dividing a chuck roast so I can make pot roast next week and still have a portion in the freezer for another meal. I see the stores are selling flank steak now that beef prices are so high and there are recipes that use it also, just low and slow. You need to know that for some of the recipes red or white wine is needed, found small bottles at local grocery/liquor aisle-perfect. Also bought minced clams, bottled clam juice for New England clam chowder which I plan to make over the weekend. I think these extra ingredients elevate the final dish and are a small price to pay for very tasty food. It is so nice to see that I won't be swamped with a huige amount of extra food to freeze and I can have a variety of good food throughout the week. Small meatloafs are on the horizon also. I had to get the meat dept to grind some veal to go along with grd pork and beef. I was able to divide these up into two packages to pull out when I am ready for meatloaf.. I was already growing my own baspil, rosemary, parsley and basil and is nice to use fresh if you can swing it. I have chive seeds sprouting also, patiently waiting for them to grow. Its fun to cook with these smaller portions. I also use Better than boullion for stock as it is cheaper in the long run than paying for flavored water in broth boxes- just cut out the salt in your recipe. Great book! UPDATE 3/13/15 made the meatloaf yesterday, was fine though I prefer a little more salt, made stew twice now, and also made the free form tarts with peaches, nice when you have a taste for peach pie but don't need a huge pie. Nice to only cook every other day for myself and seem to not be wasting as much as I only buy veggies or fruit as per the next recipe, love this book. The pot roast was great. I. bought some 1/2 cup silicone prep cups so I can get things cut up in advance like onion, garlic, fresh basil, etc. This is my go to book so I can get more variety in meals without excess leftovers.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2015 by DobeLady
Excellent Recipes for Two, Poor Construction of Hardbound Book
Format: Hardcover
I have made many of the recipes in this book and they have all been excellent! Perfectly portioned for two people and many are easily doubled for more. Since I have used this cookbook more than any other, I’m very disappointed to report that the binding is so poor that most of the pages have fallen out, mostly in small chunks. Since I love the recipes and plan to explore more of them, I plan to put the entire contents in a 3 ring binder. I have tried to contact the publisher to no avail.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2026 by Mzz Scilla
Superb Cooking For Two
Format: Kindle
America's Test Kitchen always provides the best recipes and cooking/baking advice whether in cookbook or on their PBS television series. Their recommendations are true to form, and I have every cookbook they have written. Now, we come to one of the best. This is touted as a Cookbook For Two, and it delivers. I can see this as a wonderful Wedding Shower gift or for anyone who is cooking for one or two. This cookbook has 650 Recipes for everything you might want to make. America's Test Kitchen has reengineered 650 of their best recipes to serve just two. Over the years they have 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 cookbook takes the guesswork out of cooking for two so you can be sure that anything you want to make, will come out right every time. 150 recipes can be on the table in 30 minutes or less. For those times when you want healthier fare, there are more than 100 recipes labeled "Light" each with nutritional information listed in an easy-to-read chart in the back of the book. And there are 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 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. In looking at the recipes, I want to make everyone. We start with Soups and Chowders; Stews, Curries and Chilis; Side Salads and Dinner Salads; Burgers, Sandwiches, Pizza and More; Chicken; Beef, Pork, and Lamb; Fish and Shellfish; Vegetarian Mains; Pasta and Asian Noodle Dishes; Grilling; Slow Cooker Favorites; Vegetable Side Dishes; Rice, Grain, and Beans; Eggs and Breakfasts; Quick Breads; Fruit Desserts, Pies, and Tarts; and ending with Cookies, Cakes and Custards. Nutritional Information for the Light dishes are listed, Conversions and Equivalences, and the Index finishes this 440 page cookbook. With over 500 color photographs, it is very impressive. This may be one of the best cookbooks I have seen. Fudgy Brownies For Two Makes 8 brownies Everyone loves brownies, but a full pan of brownies for two is way too much for even the most ardent brownie lovers. To scale back our batch of fudgy brownies, we ditched the large baking dish in favor of a loaf pan, which made just eight brownies--perfect for two people to enjoy over a few days. Two types of chocolate--semisweet chocolate and cocoa powder--gave us plenty of fudgy flavor. To make our batter easy to mix by hand, we melted the semisweet chocolate quickly in the microwave. A whole egg plus an extra yolk made our brownies rich, moist, and chewy. The deep sides of the loaf pan made it hard to cut the brownies neatly, so we lined the pan with a foil sling that allowed us to lift the brownies out in one piece before cutting. 1. Place 2 sheets of aluminum foil perpendicular to each other in loaf pan, pushing foil into corners. Smooth foil flush to pan. 2. Use foil handles to lift baked brownies or bars from pan. Be careful not to overbake these brownies or they will have a very dry, cakey texture. The test kitchen's preferred loaf pan measures 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inches; if you use a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, start checking for doneness 5 minutes earlier than advised in the recipe. 3 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (4 1/3 ounces) sugar 1 large egg plus 1 large yolk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Make foil sling for 8 1/2 by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum foil; first sheet should be 8 1/2 inches wide and second sheet should be 4 1/2 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Grease foil. 2. Microwave chocolate, butter, and cocoa in bowl at 50 percent power, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth, 1 to 3 minutes; let cool slightly. Whisk sugar, egg and yolk, vanilla, and salt together in medium bowl until combined. Whisk in melted chocolate mixture until combined. Stir in flour with rubber spatula until just combined. 3. Transfer batter to prepared pan; spread batter into corners of pan and smooth surface. Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 24 to 28 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Let brownies cool completely in pan on wire rack. Remove brownies from pan using foil, loosening sides with paring knife, if needed. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares and serve. (Brownies can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.) Highly Recommended. prisrob 04-04-14
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Reviewed in the United States on April 4, 2014 by prisrob
UPDATE! Efficient but also adventurous cooking for two
Format: Paperback
UPDATE*** As of now, I have had this book over a year and is now my go-to! As you can see from the attached picture, I've used it so much pages are coming out! It just amazes me how well these recipes come out (how many times did someone test the glazes and determine what to use to make them perfect??). New favorites include Salmon Fillets with Soy-Mustard Glaze, Skillet Tortellini with Crispy Prosciutto and Spring Vegetables, Lemon Pudding Cake, Ice Box Strawberry Pie, Teriyaki Chicken, Grilled Glazed Pork Chops. Other great recipes are Sesame Noodles with Shredded Chicken, Chicken and Rice, Skillet Pizza (Basic Pizza Dough is so easy), Weeknight Baked Chicken with Lemon and Thyme, Barbecued Dry-Rubbed Chicken. I'm also learning to read the recipes carefully (read the recipe, not the ingredients once you have everything) and why certain procedures are used. I have definitely become more confident in cooking (hello, grill!) and am doing something almost everynight (I try to alternate between heavy and light, easy recipes). Some recipes that I have really enjoyed (like the Skillet Tortellini with Crispy Prosciutto and Spring Vegetables, Icebox Strawberry Pie and Lemon Pudding Cake) I have found the full-sized version to make for a larger group. I have barely touched the sides and vegetarian mains, which will be on my radar next and may be my next update! Original Review*** As of this review, I have tried around 20 of the recipes in the book and pretty much followed the recipe as is (unless there was a reader error, which happened frequently). I get most of my other recipes from Epicurious.com and Food Network and, as with other reviews, I was looking for smaller portions for my boyfriend and I which helps with the waistline and if a recipe is a dud, no major loss and unwanted leftovers (I'm the one who ends up eating them). Overall, the recipes have been good and fun to put together - I have used techniques and dishes I would not normally have known about or considered. My finest achievements were maple glazing a porkchop, serving two delicious lava style cakes (so easy) and preparing sole meuniere - all restaurant quality if directions are followed. One of the major challenges I had, though, is salt. I find most of the dishes do not add enough for me (which might be their intention). In October, I also followed Bon Appetit's 10 week Basically challenge, and they definitely emphasize salt, and I am doing my best to apply that to these recipes especially for red meat and pasta. A flat tasting recipe can really be a downer after so much preparation and fancy moves - I know, I know, just add salt afterwards but it isn't quite the same. I am getting better at taste-testing and seasoning, something I never did before, I just trusted the recipe's measurements. I found getting meat 'not' overcooked a challenge - my boyfriend has a gas oven which I have never used prior and cook times can be all over the place. I try not to check food too much since directions are pretty precise and I don't want to release heat from the oven if it might impact the final result. I usually end up with something overcooked and tough. Which leads to directions - many times I miss small details which can contribute to a recipe's success or missing the mark, such as a recipe calling for 2 tbsps of flour but you need to divide up the portion into 1/2 tbsp and 1 1/2 tbsps - which is hidden in a wordy sentence and you don't see until after you have thrown the whole portion in... I'm sure they can't bullet all of the steps due to book space and length but maybe they can find an innovative way to a better layout. Which leads to my other challenge is finding recipes with ingredients on hand - this book has a great index that is useful but I do miss being able to search by an ingredient (s) as you can on most websites. For me, trying new recipes is usually led by an ingredient I have leftover from a previous dish in order to reduce waste especially of a perishable food. I also miss reviews of a website, maybe a membership to ATK's website can be included with book purchase to provide more interaction. With that said, I am very pleased with the book and look forward to trying more recipes in the New Year (I already have some ideas reading other reviews). It's great having a full-flavored meal without compromises and not overeat. Below are the recipes I have tried, I rated them (1-5) and short comments (yes, I have a spreadsheet keeping track of my attempts, lol). *Warm Chocolate Fudge Cakes (5) -- After having a few recipes not quite hitting the mark, this was an incredible winner. I didn't think it would be sweet enough with 3 tablespoons of brown sugar and bittersweet chocolate but this so delicious - restaurant grade. Don't ever buy the cake in a cup when you can make this. Make sure a glass of milk is on hand. *Skillet-Glazed Pork Chops (5) -- Restaurant quality, boyfriend impressed. I used huge Costco boneless pork chops, I did not brine but did salt and pepper the meat well before cooking. *Sole Meuniere (4.5) -- I have tried a few of these recipes, to include Julia Child's and Ina's, and I would say perhaps using oil instead of strictly butter gave the fish a nice crust without sacrificing the distinct flavor of this classic. Again, a little more salt next time but otherwise a keeper! *Meaty Skillet Lasagna (4.5) -- This was definitely a winner, I should have gotten a proposal out of this one! I did the sausage version. *Wilted Spinach Salad with Radishes, Feta and Pistachios (4) -- I have made this twice, easy to throw together, spinach reduces nicely, great sauce. *Slow Cooker Weeknight Chili (4) -- Tasted like chili should, boyfriend definitely wanted more. *Garlicky Green Beans (4) -- Nice low carb side to just about anything. *Classic Rice Pilaf (pine nuts, basil and lemon) (4) -- Another sleeper, made this for fish, used pine nut and herb version, butter makes it a rice you want to eat. *Spinach Calzone (3.75) -- This was actually good. The pizza dough was a little tough but the filling inside was delicious and we were able to overlook the crust. A little labor intensive but could be made again. *Singapore noodles with shrimp (3.25) -- I have had Singapore noodles, in Singapore and this was good. I would add more curry and salt (or soy sauce), I overcooked the shrimp having to use smaller ones than the recipe calls for. Fun recipe using rice noodles. Portion was also perfect, I thought there would not be enough to fill us up (like the chili) but it definitely made enough for us to go back for seconds but not overstuff. *Crispy Sesame Pork Chops with wilted Napa Cabbage Salad (3.25) -- This was pretty good, I may have overcooked the pork and even though I brined it, I should have salt and peppered the exterior as well. *Sweet and Tangy Coleslaw (3) -- Ok, a nice, quick side to use up previous Napa cabbage and that can be thrown together with something else and not compete *Smothered Pork Chops (3) -- This was labor intense entree (1.5 hours in the oven) that produced overcooked pork chops. This was one instant where my extra salting was too much. I did use boneless pork chops which probably influenced the time and I really need to be better about checking. Plus I am never sure if the cooking time is completely about the sauce or the meat. *Lemon-Herb Cod with Crispy Garlic Potatoes (3) -- Passable, the one good thing about this recipe is I finally had a meat not overcooked. *Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies (3) -- Fine, good to scratch a sweet itch, I would probably just scale down a regular cookie recipe. *Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes (3) -- Looked really good, still lacked salt, I would try again. *Balsamic Chicken (3) -- This was ok, probably more of a taste thing, I ended up using spinach with no swiss chard around and it was not great. Also another recipe that needed a lot of more salt and I ended up eating the leftovers. *Broccoli Salad (2.5) -- I made this quick with an amount of broccoli that needed to be used up (it was already a little wilted) so I didn't have good distribution of the sauce. May try again. *Campanelle with Roasted Garlic, Shrimp and Feta (2) -- My very first recipe, overcooked shrimp, undersalted in general. I almost gave up on the book but glad I didn't.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2019 by RLS
BEST AMERICA'S TEST KITCHEN SO FAR
Format: Paperback
This is my 8th America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country cookbook, I couldn't wait to open it. The first thing I did, was to familiarize myself with the small cake pan sizes required. There's a really nice yellow layer cake recipe with chocolate frosting, and a chocolate layer cake you can frost with chocolate or vanilla frosting, they require a set of 2 - 6" cake pans. I bought two of the following pans on Amazon, they look good quality. Fat Daddio's Anodized Aluminum Round Cake Pan, 6-Inch x 2-Inch I also bought a couple of small loaf pans to make the banana bread and the zucchini bread, which I made yesterday. They were very easy to make and tasted really delicious. I lined the bottoms, they stuck a bit at the sides, but soon cleaned up after a good soak. Fat Daddio's Anodized Aluminum Bread Pan, 5.5 Inch x 3.125 Inch x 2.375 Inch I bought these quiche/tart pans, they are just the right size for a hungry adult. I made two 'Zucchini, Tomato and Ricotta Tarts'. The pastry (made with butter) was really delicious, they looked so colorful. I ate them both, because I just couldn't help myself! I had to diet the next day. Wilton Perfect Results 4.75 Inch Round Tart/Quiche Pan, Set of 6 This book is larger and has more pages than my America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country books, with the exception of the really huge 'Complete America's Test kitchen TV Show Cookbook. I'm a vegetarian, and occasionally like to eat fish and seafood, there are so many tempting recipes to choose from, that are sure to please vegetarians and non vegetarians. There's not a picture for every recipe, but the ones it has, are very good, I'll definitely be using this book a lot. Apart from the tasty looking recipes, it also has a lot of helpful information, I like the hint for how to cut acorn squash, I never buy it because it's too tough to cut, they use a mallet and a knife. There are also quite a few diagrams explaining how to prepare the food. The recipes look healthy. There are some nice recipes with lentils, I made Dal today and it came out good. There are also recipes using quinoa, which I'm interested in at the moment, I was amazed to find a recipe with soy crumbles. It's not often I see a recipe with meat substitute. I'm not fond of tofu though, it is so bland, but there are some really nice looking pictures of recipes with tofu, which I may try. It's packed with tempting recipes. The fruit tarts look delicious. This is the first recipe book for two I've ever bought. I'm really looking forward to not having so many leftovers, less ingredients is also good. I'm so glad I purchased this book.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2014 by Amazon Customer
Very good book with some reservations
Format: Hardcover
Many recipes, only two of which I have made ( considering I got the book last week). You may not need to buy new dishes ( ie pots pans & the like except perhaps for baking). I made the blueberry muffins exactly to the recipe, but the batter seemed too much: I came out with four muffins baked in a large 6 cup muffin tin. Right now in the oven is the cheese bread: almost forgot to measure my bread pan & I’m lucky I had the right size one leftover from I don’t know what. I tweaked the recipe because “ someone” here had eaten the sharp cheddar I was saving. So I used, if all things which worked: cheddar cheese curds I cut into small pieces. I also a few bacon bits for s cheesy bacon bread. Whatever, it all worked & smells great. Yum yum, going to try more recipes. Don’t be afraid to improvise. Edited: in looking over more recipes I now realize that I’m going to need many different size pans if I’m going to make a lot of these recipes. I’m not happy about that because I can’t afford to buy all new stuff and since I have very good stuff now, I’m not about to just get rid of them. Do though the recipes are great as is the rest of the book it won’t be as useful as I first thought.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2023 by Forgotten middle child