August 7, 2017
Roman, former senior editor at Bon Appétit and BuzzFeed, brings restaurant experience and her joy of cooking at home to this debut cookbook. The 125 recipes are down-to-earth but far from ordinary, incorporating trending ingredients and flavors inspired by a pantry stocked with salty, spicy, crunchy, fatty and tangy “stuff” and key make-at-home condiments such as seed mixtures, brines, spicy oils, salsas, and romesco; lemony relish, dressing, and pickles; and bread crumbs. Incorporating these “sidekicks,” Roman builds a stable of dishes packed with pizzazz. There are large, colorful nests of “knife and fork salads,” such as red cabbage and beet-brined pickled turnips drizzled with lemon-tahini dressing and a tangy fennel grapefruit salad with lime juice, honey, and mint. Savory breakfasts of chickpeas, tomatoes, and chorizo baked eggs along with family secrets for perfect matzo brei are featured. Grain bowls and pasta options are plentiful as are quick, flexible seafood recipes. Meat dishes include cumin lamb chops with charred red onions and peanuts and short ribs with kimchi. Roman’s pastry-chef prowess (she’s worked in the kitchens of Momofuko Milk Bar and Quince) is showcased in shortbread, biscuit, pie, and cake recipes. There are also “make ahead options” along with technical advice. Throughout this gallery of good eats is Roman’s amusing narrative of food memories that invite cooks to hang loose in their own kitchens.
Starred review from December 1, 2017
While reading the introduction to freelance food writer Roman's joyous first book, you'll want to cheer. "I would never ask you to toast nine different hard-to-locate spices on a Monday after work," she reassures, right before unveiling an abundance of craveable cuisine. Even gourmets and frequent restaurant-goers will want to stay home for recipes such as butter-tossed radishes with fresh za'atar, clam pasta with chorizo and walnuts, fennel-rubbed pork chops for two, and sorbet in grapefruit cups. These varied recipes are relaxed, doable, and anything but pedestrian. Striking color photographs and punchy writing further heighten the book's appeal. VERDICT Filled with page after page of delights, this work is as much fun to read as it is to cook from.
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