Moulton's first book, a delightful family scrapbook hidden in a cookbook, met with some hand-wringing from fans who bemoaned the fact that there wasn't enough time to put together a meal (a nice way, I suppose of saying one of "her" proposed meals). Always attentive to her fans however, she then came out with the streamlined "Sara's Secrets for Weeknight Meals" and accompanying TV series. After that, Food Network, for reasons only known to insiders, did not renew the contract of one of the few who brought them to where they are today. Then Gourmet magazine shut its doors.
Sara makes a good case in the intro to her new book: with tons of recipes and advice on the internet, how does one decide which ones to follow? I myself have gone down that path many a new dishes. What you get in this book is years of hands-on experience, professional expertise, and an American angle -on Moulton's fascination with American and ethnic foods (don't worry, an appendix for finding more obscure ingredients online - even though substitutes are given- are provided). True to the title of the book, the dishes were tested out on her husband and kids. ("The Meathead Husband" has been promoted to "The Husband" since the last book) You'd be surprised how many cookbooks and recipes out there appear good on paper, but have never been tested in a kitchen. No so here: Sara has worked as executive chef and in the test kitchen of this country's most prestigious culinary magazine for 23 years, so is it any surprise that you can take Sara out of Gourmet, but you can't take the gourmet out of Sara?
The book also features an innovative "leftovers" chapter (two-for-one), giving recipes that can act as a lead-in to the next night's dish (which is provided as a next recipe). Side dishes with star quality, the usual categories of soups, spectacular salads, sandwiches, vegetarian dishes, carnivorous delights, brisk dessert recipes, and the chicken stock, pizza dough, nachos and basic sauces devoted Moulton fans are already familiar with. And yes, there is a 5-ingredient Main dish chapter as well, which Sara admits made her feel as if she were in a straitjacket.
I'll be honest, there are a few classic mid-recipe occurrences here and there of "use xx sauce, see pg. 35 for prep time and instructions" that is feared among novice cooks. And for folks out in the midwest, some of the ingredients may sound unfamiliar. If you don't live in a big city -(Moulton lives in NYC) - fresh Wasabi root, Papadam bread, Korean Kimchi, Sriracha chili sauce, Italian Giardiniera - may sound intimidating, but fear not. In Sara's kitchen, we are encouraged to substitute, experiment, and try new variations. This is one of the things that make Moulton's instructions so unique: we are told it is okay to let your imagination take over and create new dishes by remembering the ones we have fallen in love with. Moulton makes no secret about the fact that she dreams up Spanish-style burgers, or Americanized the British Ploughman sandwich, turn a Nicoise salad into a sandwich and invert a 'Nawlins Muffeleta sandwich into a salad. Kimchi, Falafels, Isreali Coucous are all Moultonized into a new fusion of dishes.
There are also helpful FYI boxes on storing spices, cooking beans, how to choose clams, balsamic vinegar, potatoes, eggplant, cooking shrimp and catfish the right way, thickening a sauce, and shaping a burger patty. There are things people argue endlessly about on the internet. But here, you're getting it straight from the source.
As always, Sara advises against the mis-en-place technique of getting everything placed, chopped, and ready before you start cooking. She has always reasoned that you can multitask and prep while something else is cooking. So the ingredients are listed without instructions on how they should be cut. Those instructions are then described in the recipe steps. This serves an additional task of forcing the cook to become acquainted with the recipe before he or she starts out cooking.
You can teach people how to make a dish, or you can teach people how to think dynamically, and "see" the potential of a new dish within a dish they are making. I've always believed Sara's ability stay loose and improvisatory on the ingredients, while still being strict on carrying out the process in the right way, puts her many cuts above the current batch of perky tv personalities.
Now with her new book, a new generation of foodies- raised on attention-deficit shows with shaky camera work, and cooks who battle more than they cook - will rediscover the importance of finding one's palette, taking the time to do things right, and carrying on the tradition of culinary craft.
We miss you Sara!!!!
