Martha Stewart's Cooking School: Lessons And Recipes For The Home Cook (2008) - Plot & Excerpts
Originally posted on sarahsbookshelf.com:You cannot be a serious cook without at least giving a little credit to Martha Stewart for her work getting people interested in the business of cooking at home. One of Stewart’s older cookbooks, Quick Cook Menus, was one of the first books that I purchased as a new cook. Completely out of my league, it was an eye-opening experience that cooking could be much more complicated than boiling water. Fast forward a decade and I’m much more comfortable not only with my ability to boil water, but also many other helpful kitchen tasks.Today’s book was a more comprehensive collection of instructions on the business of cooking at home. Just a step under professional instruction, this book has a great many beautiful pictures for you to see step-by-step instructions on how to make so many basic dishes. For example, Stewart explains how to make many types of stocks and sauces–many things that some cooks purchase for a variety of reasons. I’m not a favorite of the “weird” ingredient camp, of which this book belongs (at least a little), but Stewart does a great job of explaining why you should purchase one item over another, why you should purchase in-season items, and how you should plan out preparing a meal. I'm giving this book five stars. I want to make one thing clear though, I do think that the perfectionism that is characteristic of most Martha Stewart books is intimidating. However, there are very few books that focus on technique like this one does. No vague instructions in this book, it is concise and there are many pictures where cartoon Martha points at things for the illiterate cook. Just kidding. There are lots of pictures though.This book goes over many major techniques and ways to make base recipes that will really make a person a better cook and lessen their dependence of convenience foods while increasing their dependence on good food. The section on soups and stocks is great, probably one of my favorites. This is the book that taught me how to make killer macaroni and cheese, how to make a veloute, hollandaise, and a roux. Believe me, my life is better for this--these are skills that I take everywhere with me. Anyways, I love this book so much that I obliterated the dust jacket.If you think any recipe that contains a "French word" is "hard", or if you have never intentionally purchased an onion, this book is not for you.
What do You think about Martha Stewart's Cooking School: Lessons And Recipes For The Home Cook (2008)?
The section on meat, poultry, etc. is too big.
—crw1962
