Customer Reviews

Simply Classic: A New Collection of Recipes to Celebrate the Northwest

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(0)
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I got this book as a door prize and it was the best prize that I have EVER gotten. My mouth watered as I flipped through the book. The meals are simple to make and don't use a lot of hard to find ingredients but they taste magnificient! It will seem like you spent hours in the kitchen but you didn't. There is a wide assortment of interesting recipes, perfect for company and the family. It is a testament to the great food of the Pacific Northwest.

I loved it so much I bought copies for my whole family. Though, I did think twice about sharing my amazing cooking secret. This book is beautifully illustrated and worth much more than the price. It also supports a great organization (the Junior League). I am very picky when it comes to cookbooks and this is one of the best ones I have (and I have MANY). You will turn to it again and again. Treat yourself to this book, you will thank me for it!

I turn to this cookbook again and again when it comes time to entertain. I think I've tried just about every recipe in the book, and they are all terrific. Even though the focus is on ingredients generally associated with the Pacific Northwest, the recipes are truly universal and you can find most of the ingredients anywhere. The food isn't trendy or pretentious, it's simply delicious. I particularly recommend the Sesame Salmon - an elegant presentation that is surprisingly easy to prepare. It is my absolute favorite way to prepare salmon, and that means alot coming from a Seattlite.

An avid cookbook collector and hostess who loves to entertain, from casual get-togethers to elegant affairs, this is far and above the best cookbook that I've ever had. I've had the opportunity to try out most of the recipes in the book and haven't found even one that falls beneath "superior". If my house caught on fire and I had to run back in to grab one thing...it would be this book!

I can't believe there are so many amazing recipes in one book. This is the cook book I reach for time and time again. I use it every week. The recipes are simple to make, and delicious. Pick any random recipe in this book and you will be pleased. The Champagne Chicken is the best chicken dish I have ever tasted, and it never fails to impress even the most discriminating guests. The salmon dishes are to die for, and there is an entire chapter devoted just to salmon. My friends and family think I am a great cook, but I really am not, it's just this book.

Absolutely everything in this cookbook is incredible! These are recipes that all of your friends will be asking you for when you bring one to their potluck. I'm not kidding, they are just SO good, and usually pretty easy to make too. The salad section is to die for, the pasta and chicken sections I use all the time too, I just can't say enough about my favorite cookbook. It is the only one I go consistently back to at least once or twice a week!

Hands down, this is the best cookbook I own. (Believe me, I own MANY.) Every recipe I've tried has been absolutely delicious. People who come over for dinner rave about each and every dish. I can't give myself any credit though - it's definitely the book!

As a 25 year old with a new found passion for cooking, this book deserves a lot of the credit! Someone recommended it to me and I continue to recommend it to all my friends. Great variety for any occasion whether it be dinner for 2, hors d'oeuvres for your book club, or a picnic with friends. Easy to follow recipes, that are well-balanced, extremely tasty and will impress your significant other. I'd be lost without it!

I've had this cookbook for years, and it remains at the very top of all the cookbooks I own for being used again and again. I can't even count all the recipes I make regularly from this book (we're talking weeknight meals!): Mount Rainier Chili, Harvest Bisque, Spinach Salad with Warmed Shallot Vinaigrette, Blue Cheese Potato Salad, (extensive salad section - all amazing), Tortellini Picnic Salad, Pasta with Grilled Chicken and Peanut Sauce, Salmon and Salmon Chowder, Salmon with Cilantro Pesto, Rosemary Walnut Chicken, Apple Blackberry Crisp... I could go on and on, and I just picked a few of the recipes we use all the time. Rarely is there a cookbook where you actually cook most of the recipes in it. The recipes are all sophisticated and unique and so yummy. They are not full of difficult ingredients, just good basic stuff with a better twist. This is pretty much my desert island cookbook - if I could only take one cookbook with me to a desert island, this would be it. The only problem is that around here, almost everyone I know owns and worships this cookbook. I once brought Tortellini Picnic Salad to a potluck lunch, and someone else brought it too!
Bottom line: Amazing, amazing cookbook. You will never regret having it. I predict it will become your favorite!

(By the way, it is much better than Celebrate the Rain, the Seattle JL's next cookbook - which is good, but I don't think anything could live up to Simply Classic.)

I was given this cookbook as a wedding gift and it has become one of my favorites. Whenever we are having company or I just need new ideas for a delicious meal, this book is the first one off the shelf. I have found most of the recipes to be fairly easy, healthy and absolutely delicious!

I have been the proud owner of the Simply Classic Cookbook for over 10 years. My copy is worn out, splattered and the binding is splitting. I will be purchasing my SECOND personal copy shortly. But aside from that, I've purchased at least 2 dozen copies and presented them as gifts to numerous friends and relatives. To echo other reviewers, this cookbook never fails to deliver. I've made countless recipes out of this book and have never been disappointed. My 16-year-old has grown up on the Northwest Autumn Salad (page 82) and hands down, loves it more than any other. Glazed pecans is a staple of our holiday season (and year round too) and my friends and co-workers would be disappointed if I didn't deliver. If you can only have one cookbook, I'd recommend Simply Classic. Thank goodness it's not out of print!