Sunday, May 30, 2010

America's Test Kitchen best recipes - in one handy magazine!

America's Test Kitchen, the PBS TV show and publisher of the cooking magazines Cook's Illustrated and Cook's Country, recently released its collection of 10th anniversary best recipes.
   I snatched this up the minute I saw it. I've found America's Test Kitchen recipes to be extremely reliable, and was thus intrigued about what it considered to be its best recipes from the past 10 years.
   Many of the recipes in the collection are meticulously re-created versions of classics such as filet mignon, chicken soup, brisket, turkey, spaghetti and meatballs, potato salad, french fries, brownies, chocolate mousse and lemon meringue pie.
   There are two recipes in the collection that I have already tried, and they were definitely deserving of a place in a "best of" collection.
   One is Cincinnati Chili, an extremely family-friendly dish partly flavoured with, of all things, cocoa powder and ground cinnamon. I highly recommend serving this over spaghetti as the recipe suggests.
   The other was Quick Cheese Bread. It was definitely quick, and delicious. It's one for a cold winter night along with a warm bowl of soup.
   I found several other recipes I'd like to try, especially in the desserts section.
Here are the ones I want to take for a whirl:
- Roast Beef Tenderloin. This actually looks incredibly easy. It's a matter of cooking the tenderloin in the oven and then slathering on some shallot and parsley butter.
- Well-Done Burgers. The recipe promises burgers that are cooked all the way through yet are juicy and tender. Sign me up!
- Cider-Glazed Pork Chops. I'm always on the lookout for quick weeknight recipes and this one looks like it delivers, with a simple glaze of apple juice, Dijon mustard and vinegar.
- Grilled Bone-In Chicken Breasts. With grilling season upon us, this recipe, which calls for submerging the chicken first in salted water, looks like a potential winner. It comes with two glaze options: soy-ginger or orange-chipotle.
- Spaghetti and Meatballs.
- Creamless Creamy Tomato Soup. Rather than cream, this recipe relies on white sandwich bread to thicken it.
- Hearty Lentil Soup.
- French Potato Salad. A welcome variation from the usual picnic variety, this recipe uses white wine vinegar and fresh parsley, chives and tarragon.
- From the desserts section: Blueberry Scones; Classic chocolate chip cookies; brown sugar cookies; chewy, fudgy brownies; blondies; key lime bars and summer berry pie.

1 comment:

Val said...

I am heading out ASAP to purchase this book. If you recommend it, I know it is worthwhile owning