Customer Reviews

The Everything Cooking for Two Cookbook: 300 Creative Ideas for Making Relaxing Meals at Home

5 star:		(3)
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3 star:		(1)
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Written by a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, The Everything Cooking For Two Cookbook features 300 recipes for making relaxing, romantic recipes for two people that do not create immense portions or require an excess of kitchen time. Mouth-watering recipes such as Japanese Spicy Tuna Tartar, Mustard-Crusted Filet Mignon, Easiest Scalloped Potatoes Ever, Oven-Roasted Baby Artichokes, Mexican Hot Chocolate Float and more combine flavor, variety and convenience. A brief introduction will prime novice cooks in the basics of kitchen equipment, and an index allows for quick and easy lookup of favorite recipes. The Everything Cooking For Two Cookbook is an excellent and practical meal preparation guide which is ideal for couples.

I am really enjoying this cookbook. So far, everything that I have made is really delicious. The recipes are a little nicer than basic cooking, but simple to make and straightforward. I highly recommend this cookbook.

When I saw this book on a "reduced for sale" table at the book store, I almost passed it by. The cover and the title certainly aren't catchy. Inside, however, is a wealth of recipes proportioned for 2. As one of the other reviewers noted, a CIA graduate wrote this book, and it shows. The recipes are inventive and creative. Many different types of dishes are included, for example, stews, whole meals cooked on the grill, side and whole-meal salads, breakfast and brunch dishes, and lots of fish selections. The author has also offered up Greek, Italian, Moroccan, and other regional dishes. Although there are a number of recipes that call for 1/2 red pepper or 1 cup of canned tomatoes, thereby requiring using up the other 1/2 of whatever, I never have a problem using the left-over ingredients. My partner and I both work long hours, and the greatest pleasure of the day is often preparing and enjoying dinner together. I have been cooking for years out of Gourmet's Short Order and Quick Kitchen (each of which is filled with really good, quickly prepared 2-servings recipes), this book came into our home like a fresh breath of life. Buy it!

While I've enjoyed all the recipes I've tried in this cookbook, a number of them call for fairly oddball ingredients: clam juice, special Asian sauces, exotic fish. The author is clearly a fan of fresh grated ginger as well since it's in a lot of recipes (what do I do with the rest of the ginger before it spoils?). Perhaps I just don't stock my kitchen the same was as the author. Unfortunately for internet buying, I think it's good to thumb through the book to see if you keep on hand the ingredients listed. Other than that, the variety and quality of the recipes is good and I've been happy with the results.