Craft Of Cooking

Tom Colicchio, chef/co-owner of New York’s acclaimed Gramercy Tavern, offers inspriation to cooks of any skill level with 140 simple recipes and technical tips. Realizing that his own culinary style had grown increasingly unembellished, and gambling that New York diners were experiencing that same kind of culinary fatigue (brought on by too much “fancy food”), Colicchio set out to prove that the finest food didn’t have to be the most complicated. So in March 2001 he opened a new restaurant, Craft, that offered diners simple, soulful dishes centered around single ingredients that went on to shake up many people’s ideas of what “restaurant food” should be like. Craft of Cooking leads you through Colicchio’s thought process in choosing raw materials—like what to look for in fresh fish, or how to choose the perfect mushroom—to show that good food is available to anyone with access to a good supermarket, farm stand, or gourmet grocery. The book also features “Day-in-the-Life-of-Craft” portraits, which offer a fascinating, behind-the-scenes glimpse at areas of the restaurant beyond the dining room. These segments allow you to peer into the fast-paced prep kitchen, to witness the high drama of reservations, and to get a taste of the humor and empathy necessary to serve New York’s colorful visitors and foodies. Using Tom’s straightforward and friendly voice, Craft of Cooking offers recipes suited to any purpose—from a quick family meal to a festive dinner party for twelve.

Michael Ruhlman’s groundbreaking New York Times bestseller takes us to the very “truth” of cooking: it is not about recipes but rather about basic ratios and fundamental techniques that makes all food come together, simply. When you know a culinary ratio, it’s not like knowing a single recipe, it’s instantly knowing a thousand. Why spend time sorting through the millions of cookie recipes available in books, magazines, and on the Internet? Isn’t it easier just to remember 1-2-3? That’s the ratio of ingredients that always make a basic, delicious cookie dough: 1 part sugar, 2 parts fat, and 3 parts flour. From there, add anything you want—chocolate, lemon and orange zest, nuts, poppy seeds, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, almond extract, or peanut butter, to name a few favorite additions. Replace white sugar with brown for a darker, chewier cookie. Add baking powder and/or eggs for a lighter, airier texture. Ratios are the starting point from which a thousand variations begin. Ratios are the simple proportions of one ingredient to another. Biscuit dough is 3:1:2—or 3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid. This ratio is the beginning of many variations, and because the biscuit takes sweet and savory flavors with equal grace, you can top it with whipped cream and strawberries or sausage gravy. Vinaigrette is 3:1, or 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar, and is one of the most useful sauces imaginable, giving everything from grilled meats and fish to steamed vegetables or lettuces intense flavor. Cooking with ratios will unchain you from recipes and set you free. With thirty-three ratios and suggestions for enticing variations, Ratio is the truth of cooking: basic preparations that teach us how the fundamental ingredients of the kitchen—water, flour, butter and oils, milk and cream, and eggs—work. Change the ratio and bread dough becomes pasta dough, cakes become muffins become popovers become crepes. As the culinary world fills up with overly complicated recipes and never-ending ingredient lists, Michael Ruhlman blasts through the surplus of information and delivers this innovative, straightforward book that cuts to the core of cooking. Ratio provides one of the greatest kitchen lessons there is—and it makes the cooking easier and more satisfying than ever.

A dazzling celebration of the art and craft of baking from the award-winning author of Baking by Flavor and ChocolateChocolate. Popular food writer Lisa Yockelson—whose articles, essays, and recipes have appeared in the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, and Gastronomica—presents what has fascinated her during a lifetime of baking. With 100 essays and more than 200 recipes, along with 166 full-color images, Baking Style is infused with discoveries, inspirations, and exacting but simple recipes for capturing the art and craft of baking at home. Baking Style combines the genre of the culinary essay with recipes, their corresponding methods, and illustrative images, revealing Yockelson’s uniquely intimate expression of the baking process. In these pages, she explores bars, hand-formed, and drop cookies; casual tarts; yeast-raised breads; puffs, muffins, and scones; waffles and crepes; tea cakes, breakfast slices, and buttery squares; cakes and cupcakes. “A collection of cakes, cookies and breads that will gladden the heart of any baking enthusiast. It’s an encyclopedic book from an author whose recipes really work!” —The New York Times Book Review

Discover new ways to savor your favorite beer with 60 traditional and inventive recipes. In the age of craft beer, the varieties seem endless. From floral IPAs to rich porters and stouts, and tart lambic ales to gluten-free options, there is a beer for every taste. Food on Tap is an accessible guide to using these delicious brews to add complex flavor and exciting twists to classic and new recipes such as: Sausage Crusted Helles and Kale Quiche Summer Saison Tomato Bisque Barleywine Beef Short Rib Stew Chocolate Pecan Coconut Porter Cake Beautiful original photography will have your mouth watering, so pour a draft and get ready to cook with beer.

Transform your dishes with the tremendous flavor of craft beer! The Craft Beer Cookbook doesn't think you need to wait until five o'clock to pop the cap off of a quality beer. From tender pork chops marinated in a bold and citrusy IPA to apple fritters drizzled with an amber ale caramel sauce, the recipes in this book are not only delicious, but they also capture the complex notes and flavors of a perfectly balanced brew. Filled with a diverse selection of varieties, each dish transforms everyday fare into top-shelf plates that are sure to satisfy even the most discerning fan of craft beers. A toast to the world's finest brews, this cookbook highlights inspired dishes like: Sausage and pale ale frittata Roasted mushroom and brown ale soup Salmon with dijon beer cream sauce over drunken couscous Slow-roasted maple stout baby back beef ribs Chocolate stout cake with chocolate raspberry ganache and whipped cream Complete with 100 imaginative craft beer recipes and dozens of four-color photographs, The Craft Beer Cookbook shows you how to incorporate your true love--beer!--into every meal.

Get creative in the kitchen using your favorite brew. Barely a week goes by in which a small brewery is not founded somewhere across the world. Craft beer has become a phenomenon. Cooking with Craft Beer is an ode to this modern brewing culture and shows what and how to cook with beer—making the most of the flavor profiles of particular beer types, including pale ale, pilsner, and lager varieties—in a diverse range of accessible recipes. Aside from the sixty brilliant recipes, which cover snacks, hearty main meals, and desserts, Cooking with Craft Beer also profiles craft-beer makers from around the globe, including California’s Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, and contains great, straightforward information on all the different types of beer in informative break out sections. This is the perfect gift for all lovers of the delicious brew: for newcomers to craft beer, it’s a brilliant guide; for those who already know their saisons from their dubbels, the book shows how to use your favorite tipple in your cooking.

James Beard Award—winner Karen DeMasco, who first came to national attention as the pastry chef of Tom Colicchio’s Craft, Craftbar, and ’wichcraft restaurants from 2001 to 2008, approaches the art of baking in a unique way. Building on the savory cooking philosophy of using seasonal ingredients to create dishes with pure flavors, Karen makes acclaimed desserts that are both simple and elegant. Now, she shares her secrets and techniques in her first cookbook, The Craft of Baking, designed to help home bakers think imaginatively in order to expand their repertoires with new and fresh combinations. Using the bounty of the seasons as inspiration and Karen’s clear instructions, both beginners and experienced bakers will find it easy to let their creativity take the reins. Learn how to make Karen’s celebrated sweets, such as Apple Fritters with Caramel Ice Cream and Apple Caramel Sauce, White Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream, and Raised Cinnamon-Sugar Doughnuts. Then check out the tips on "varying your craft" to transform Grandma Rankin’s Cashew Brittle into Pumpkin Seed Brittle and to alter a cobbler recipe to make Rhubarb Rose Cobbler in the spring or Mixed Berry Cobbler in the summer, for example. Karen’s suggestions for "combining your craft"–such as serving Almond Pound Cake with Apricot Compote and Lillet Sabayon–reveal how easy it is to take desserts to the next level. Karen’s ingenuity is boundless. All types of sweets, from muffins and scones to pies and cakes to ice creams and custards, are her mediums for exploring flavors. With Karen’s simple techniques, unique flavor combinations, and inventive ideas, The Craft of Baking will change the way you think about baking and equip any home cook with the skills and creativity to create amazing, one-of-a-kind desserts.

The first canning manual and cookbook authored by Michelin-starred chef and Vie restaurant owner Paul Virant, featuring more than 100 recipes Pairing science with art, Paul Virant presents expert preserving techniques, sophisticated recipes, and seasonal menus inspired by the award-winning fare at his restaurant, Vie, in Western Springs, Illinois. Imaginative tangy jams, brandied fruits, zesty relishes, cured meats, and sweet and savory conserves are the focus of the first half of this book, while seasonal menus pairing these preserves with everything from salads and cocktails to poached fish and braised meat compose the second. Brandied Cherries used in Cherry Clafoutis, or as a garnish for the Beer-Jam Manhattan, are a sweet reminder of the summer harvest. And the Chicken Fried Steak with Smoked Spring Onion Relish anticipates warmer days when you’re still deep in winter. Alongside recipes and menus, Virant draws on his extensive technical knowledge and experience to provide detailed and comprehensive guidelines for safe canning practices, testing pH, pressure canning, water bath processing, and storing. But no matter how precise the science, Virant never forgets the art in each handcrafted preserve and thoughtfully developed recipe. His unique approach re-imagines seasonal eating by harmonizing opposite or unusual partnerships: the brightness of summer fruit may be tempered with the earthiness of meats and winter produce, or the delicacy of spring vegetables might be enriched by the robust herbs and spices more typical of fall. The Preservation Kitchen not only demonstrates and instructs, it encourages and explores the limitless possibilities of capturing the seasons in a jar.

With Think Like a Chef, Tom Colicchio has created a new kind of cookbook. Rather than list a series of restaurant recipes, he uses simple steps to deconstruct a chef's creative process, making it easily available to any home cook. He starts with techniques: What's roasting, for example, and how do you do it in the oven or on top of the stove? He also gets you comfortable with braising, sautéing, and making stocks and sauces. Next he introduces simple "ingredients" -- roasted tomatoes, say, or braised artichokes -- and tells you how to use them in a variety of ways. So those easy roasted tomatoes may be turned into anything from a vinaigrette to a caramelized tomato tart, with many delicious options in between. In a section called Trilogies, Tom takes three ingredients and puts them together to make one dish that's quick and other dishes that are increasingly more involved. As Tom says, "Juxtaposed in interesting ways, these ingredients prove that the whole can be greater than the sum of their parts," and you'll agree once you've tasted the Ragout of Asparagus, Morels, and Ramps or the Baked Free-Form "Ravioli" -- both dishes made with the same trilogy of ingredients. The final section of the books offers simple recipes for components -- from zucchini with lemon thyme to roasted endive with whole spices to boulangerie potatoes -- that can be used in endless combinations. Written in Tom's warm and friendly voice and illustrated with glorious photographs of finished dishes, Think Like a Chef will bring out the master chef in all of us.