New cookbook explores international flavors, but it's not really for beginner cooks
If you love to cook as much as I do, you will instantly recognize the name: Christopher Kimball. No?
How about Cook's Illustrated or Cook's Country magazines or America's Test Kitchen television show? Ahhh, now you know, since Kimball founded and appeared in them all.
In 1980, Kimball's genius idea was to take just about any recipe (like roast chicken or lasagna or chocolate cake), find the quintessential version of that recipe, tweaking the ingredients and preparation techniques until it was the best it could be, and then sharing the journey and resulting recipe.
Kimball's Cook's Illustrated magazines are my second most collected magazine; Gourmet magazine, with aging issues handed down to me by Grandmother Mauer, still holds first place.
Folks either loved Kimball's aw-shucks, country-style sense of New England goodness, or not.
Kimball moved on and founded Christopher Kimball's Milk Street, about which his bio states is: " … a food media company dedicated to learning and sharing bold, easy cooking from around the world."
Kimball's new work is very different from his past creations. Last year his new cookbook: "Christopher Kimball's Milk Street: The New Home Cooking" ($40, Little, Brown and Company) appeared. Inside the cover, he writes: "Milk Street is changing how we cook by searching the world for bold, simple recipes."
There's mostly truth and some slight exaggeration there. The recipes have an international flavor (Korean Scallion Pancakes, Peruvian Pesto or Filipino Chicken Adobo with Coconut Broth). Simple? Easy? Not so much.
Kimball's Chicken Tagine with Apricots, Butternut Squash and Spinach lists 20 ingredients, and Quinoa Pilaf with Dates, Almonds and Carrot Juice has 15 items. Yes, those ingredients are all available in a supermarket, but not necessarily in your pantries; like Greek green olives or ground coriander or white quinoa or fresh dill.
Some recipes have fewer ingredients, like Slow-Roasted Tomatoes with six, or Skillet Charred Brussels Sprouts with Garlic, Anchovy, and Chili with seven.
The photography is beautiful. Kimball's recipe instructions are clear and concise. However, this is not a beginner's cookbook; although it may be a cookbook for beginners to aspire.
For years, Kimball was known for perfecting familiar recipes. These new recipes are definitely one-of-a-kind.
He begins with nine pages of what he sees as necessary pantry items for his food, such as olive oil, unseasoned rice vinegar and plain and smoked paprika.
He then moves through chapters covering: eggs, soups, vegetables (17 recipes), grains, suppers, dinners, breads, small sweets (like Tahini Swirl Brownies or Rye Chocolate Chip Cookies), desserts, and, finally, staples, sauces and seasonings (such as Green Goddess Tofu Dressing).
Kimball brings his years of extensive cooking experience and depth of knowledge to this book. It would be surprising if any recipe, where the reader exactly follows the directions, somehow failed. The variety of unique dishes will inspire many to head for the kitchen (and possibly the supermarket first) to cook like Kimball.
Here's a sample from "Christopher Kimball's Milk Street." It should take about 35 minutes to prepare.
• Don Mauer welcomes questions, comments and recipe makeover requests. Write to him at don@ theleanwizard.com.