Customer Reviews

In & Out of the Kitchen: In 15 Minutes or Less

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Anne Willan's In & Out of the Kitchen in Fifteen Minutes or Less is without question the single best cookbook I have ever read. (I haven't read La Varenne yet). Each of the 100 recipes for four is clearly presented, most often on a single page. Necessary ingredients and tools are shown in a list at the left of the page, with instructions anyone can follow to the right. A brief summary of all the steps is shown at the bottom, so an experienced cook can save even more time the second time through. My only complaint? the font that shows the fractions is small enough to make it sometimes hard to tell if the measure was, for example, 1/2 cup or 1/3 cup.

The book is also one of the most beautiful I have seen. The astonishingly well-designed color photographs of the food do so much more than decorate the text. They enhance your understanding of how to prepare the meal, and lead you to consider what a meal can truly be. Although not a chef at all, (and I'm certainly not), you may find yourself asking "am I the kind of person who can make this delicious and magical trout with fennel and herbs en papillote?" and answering "heck, if it only takes 14 minutes, then why not?"

Indeed, even if you never make a single one of these easy and surprising recipes, one of which has only two ingredients (sorry, that would be telling, and no it's not loaves and fishes), you will be happy that you have read this book. If you want to see what a busy director of a cooking school makes when she cooks for herself, then join her in the kitchen and listen to her tell you thoughtfully exactly how she does it. In 15 minutes. Or, of course, less.

Admitedly, I was a little skeptical when I ordered this book--it sounded too good to be true. Well, it was. In all of my years of cooking, I could only think of a handful of complete, well-balanced meals that I could fix in 15 minutes or less. I was hopeful this was a compilation of her tried and trues that really did work. I was disappointed to find so many shortcuts. There were many recipes that gave additional instructions to complete the meal if more time allowed. I could take any recipe and do only to half of it, but I want a perfectly finished dish in a short amount of time without sacrificing quality and taste. A better approach would have been for Anne to compile dishes that are, by their nature, fast, easy, and tasty, and ditch the 15 minute time limit. It came across as if she were throwing things together just to adhere to a rigid limit of time. I would recommend instead, "How to Cook Without a Book" by Pam Anderson for truly fast, wonderful, REAL meals for everyday eating.

I have had this book for a few years and although I haven't made every recipe - the ones I have prepared were absolutely delicious and easy to execute. If anyone says otherwise, they either have no taste and/or don't know how to cook in the first place. I like that she gives 2 versions of instructions - one is more detailed and the other is an abbreviated version for when you've made the recipe before. I have a few favorites from this book that I make over and over again. The Indonesian stir fry is EXCELLENT as well as Bow Ties with wild mushrooms.

If you want to eat food that tastes better than what you can grab at a take-out joint and if you have realistic expectations, this book won't disappoint. But I've never found a quick minestrone or spaghetti sauce recipe which tastes as good as one that cooks slowly, letting the flavors "marry" and blend...and the recipes in this book fall short of my time-tested favorites.
On the other hand, most of the recipes aren't bad and, if you're tired and hungry, odds are you'll find plenty to satisfy here. In fact, the minestrone in this book (which does indeed take about 15 mintues to cook) is far superior to any canned or fast food soup I've had, containing a subtle blend of zucchini, plum tomatoes, kidney beans, Parmesan cheese and other fresh vegetables and spices. It smells and tastes yummy and is plenty satisfying - if not perfect (I admit it; I have high expectations). Ditto for the spaghetti sauces, desserts and salads. They're fine, just not superior.
Most of the recipes in this book fall into the Gourmet or Exotic category, so steer clear of this one if you don't like to try unusual combinations or flavors (examples include Fettucine with Coriander & Ginger and Salad of Fig-Stuffed Chicken with Blue Cheese). Most kids wouldn't like the recipes here, unless they're budding gourmands. Who does that leave? Well, there's plenty here for the vegetarian who wants to expand his or her horizons, so this might be a good gift choice for veggie lovers on your list - as well as for more experimental cooks who are short on time.

i picked this up at borders in the bargain area and i'm thinking about going right back to give more as gifts. this a one of the most beautiful books, but more than beautiful great ingredient combinations. i love the european streak in this book. i find there are so many of the recipes i definitely want to try and i almost didn't buy it because it said 15 minutes or less, which i thought i would be discouraged about because i don't skimp on recipes, usually i don't care how long it takes as long as the food is memorable. this is a great cookbook.

Anyone could make these recipes! Without the fuss and only a handful of ingredients you get a flavor wallop in each dish. It's all about knowing what works with what and Anne Willan does. Love this book.

I found most of the recipes in the book hard to prepare... definitely takes more than 15 minutes from start to finish! They aren't that good even when you do it right. I totally regret my purchase of this book.