Customer Reviews

The Ultimate Cook Book: 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

`The Ultimate Cookbook' by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough is a title which figuratively sticks out its chin and invites one to criticize it for overweening pride. I am happy to say that this book lives up to the promise of its title as well as any 692 page book is able to do. For starters, the authors get an initial allowance for having already written ten other `The Ultimate...' this, that, and the other thing cookbooks, all of which (at least those of which I've reviewed) are, I can say, very decent manuals on their respective subjects, even if I did fail to find a good blueberry muffin recipe in their `Ultimate' muffin book. Thus, they are simply enlarging their franchise on this title. They also deserve much credit for pointing out and delivering on their `all new recipes' claim. This means that they have not just `phoned in' this book by reproducing all the material from their other books. So far, this at least makes them eligible for four stars.
But there is more. Much, much more. I have always believed that one can detect a very good or a very bad book within two minutes of opening the covers and browsing about in the Table of Contents and the Introduction. The symptoms of quality showed up almost immediately, when I saw two sections in the `Fish and Shellfish' chapter on `Thin White-Fleshed Fish Fillets' and `Thick White-Fleshed Fish Fillets'. These are obviously guys who have browsed the fish counter and wondered if the flounder and haddock fillets (thin and thick respectively) can be cooked in the same way.
My mind was made up even before I got past the Introduction, where I read the `Thirty-One Examples of Culinary Shorthand'. This is exactly the kind of section I always thought would be a good idea, but have never seen anyone do it really well, until now!
On the one hand, this is a very good general purpose reference cook book, similar to `The Joy of Cooking', Mark Bittman's `How to Cook Everything', and James Beard's `American Cookery'. It has fifteen (15) chapters on all the essential topics. These are:
Breakfast and Brunch
Appetizers, Nibbles, and Snacks
Salads
Soups
Pasta and Noodles
Bread
Chicken, Turkey, and Other Birds
Fish and Shellfish
Beef, Pork, and Other Meats
Vegetables
Grains, Beans, Lentils, and Tofu
Cakes
Cookies
Pies, Tarts, and Fruit Desserts
Puddings, Custards, Mousses, and Souffles
Now the fact that Maida Heatter alone has written about 1200 pages worth of books on cakes demonstrates that there is no way our fair authors can cover every detail of all these subjects. But, they go about each subject which is demonstrably more thoughtful than many, many other cookbook authors. Their ideal audience is one step up from the Rachael Ray 30 minute meal level (note the four chapters on baked goods) where the reader is willing to read through a goodly portion of the book to get the lay of the land before rushing out to the supermarket. On the other hand, the book is not written for the dedicated foodie who follows the advice of high end chefs and does not decide what they will be making until they see what is good at the market that day. To paraphrase the authors, `you don't want to be guessing what you want to make at 6:30 in the evening as you walk down the supermarket aisles.
So, in addition to the very common advice to read a recipe through carefully before beginning, they add the suggestion to read the recipe(s) before and after the one you want, in the event that something similar looks even more interesting.
I was never a big fan of the authors' technique of giving a master recipe and lots of one sentence variations. If I want my blueberry muffin recipe, I want one that someone has tested, not one which is a fourth afterthought to some generic muffin recipe. The authors do NOT take this approach in this book; however they DO many recipes where they give you a template from which you can create dozens of different results from the same recipe. An excellent example is `A road map for The Ultimate Granola'. Granola has lots of ingredients, most of which retain their particular character in the mix, and many of which are on a lot of people's `least favorites' list. Peanuts and milk are two ingredients which many people need to avoid. And, like me, there are some who don't like either coconut or oatmeal. With this approach, you can concoct exactly what you want, and have it come out better than anything from Kellogg's or Post.
For the more traditional recipes, their descriptions of techniques are virtually perfect. My two favorite touchstones of recipe writing quality are scrambled eggs and omelets, and Weinstein and Scarbrough get these perfectly right. There is even a tip on omelet plating here I have never seen after reading at least 20 omelet recipes. The list goes on and on. Every chapter has its sections full of insights you rarely see elsewhere. And, the book is perfectly willing to get into `difficult' subjects such as recipes for fresh pasta, including six different flavored varieties. I was even surprised to discover they include a recipe for Spaetzle, a very specialized German cross between Gnocchi and dumplings.
So, the book is an `Ultimate' in the sense that it covers everything the average `good' home cook may want to know, given the ingredients available in their local supermarket. It will not replace dozens of other cookbooks, because there are thousands of popular dishes such as Basil pesto, tortilla Espanola, or even classic Caesar salad which are not here, but the book appeals to the person who already has books which include these recipes. If you have to own just one cookbook, this should probably be the one to get!

With only a few weeks of ownership, this cookbook has had lots of use by me with various meritorious food spots to prove it. Evey recipe I've used has been easy to follow and produced a fine product. So many recipes, so little time!

I have hundreds of cookbooks but none can compare to the delight of the recipes and techniques found here. Bruce and Mark's writing style is as engaging as their recipes are easy and flavorful. I heartily recommend this book to both novice and experienced cooks. It truly is the Ultimate Cookbook.

I have tried only the hummus recipe on pg 43. The only changes I made was to reserve some of the juice from the canned chickpeas since this recipe is a bit dry and I didn't want to add any more oil. My husband loves this recipe. It's easy with my Kitchenaid mega processor. I also add about 1tsp of cayenne pepper. Yummy.

I would give the book 5 stars based on this, but I don't think that's fair.

Things I like about what I've read:
1. easy to read and user friendly
2. instructions on how to store the food
3. variations ****I love this option!**** the main reason I bought the book
4. definitions of terms on the same page as where you see it used.
5. tips on buying items
6. appears to be well bound and stays open easy

Things I don't like:
1. No pictures, but then the book would be even BIGGER and about the size of the family Bible that seldom moves!
2. No nutrition information. Although, I understand it would have been a HUGE cost jacking the price up to out of my range until clearance rack time. Therefore I recommend [...]
3. no tips are what to serve the food with. I always appreciate those suggestions.

I have a feeling I've finally found the cookbook that will stay with me forever.

10/2011 I hardly ever use this book. I even found another hummus recipe. I found I need pictures to inspire me and tend to gravitate towards magazine recipes. I pop them into a sheet protector and that is much easier to handle than a book cookbook. I do intend to actually read through the recipes so I may add another f/u in the future.

This is basically a collection of simple and standard recipes that allow you to expand on. It's great if you're a creative person and feel comfortable tweaking them.

I recently bought Weinstein and Scarborough's Cooking Know How and devoured it from cover to cover. When Amazon recommended the Ultimate Cook Book I thought I knew what to expect. I must say that this book surpassed my expectations. I especially like the fact that they suggest variations or ways to combine portions of one recipe with other recipes in the book.

The Ultimate Cook Book is more of a straight forward cook book than Cooking Know How, however, it does contain it's share of "know how" on technique and even more on ingredients and flavor combinations.

For someone who has recently taken on family cooking responsibilities. I truly appreciate this book. Thank you, Weinstein and Scarborough for sharing your know knowledge and passion, and thank you Amazon for a great suggestion!

Cooking Know-How: Be a Better Cook with Hundreds of Easy Techniques, Step-by-Step Photos, and Ideas for Over 500 Great Meals

The Ultimate Cook Book: 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas

Weinstein and Scarbrough never cease to amaze me with their repertoire of cooking know-how and recipes. I always enjoy the conversational style of their cookbooks as well. The Ultimate Cook Book will become a favorite with 900 recipes that include classic dishes followed by variations to add a fresh twist to the traditional.

For example, the reader not only learns how to roast a chicken to perfection but also how to use the leftovers ten different ways (that can also be done using a prepared rotisserie chicken from the grocery store). There are more than 30 ideas for preparing boneless, skinless chicken breasts. In the pasta section, we are introduced to making stuffed pasta using shells, manicotti, ravioli, etc., then are given ten different recipes for fillings.

This book has it all from breakfast and appetizers to entrees to desserts, and everything in between, plus a nice section called "Tools of the Trade" with helpful hints, charts, and references.

I've been cooking as a homemaker for over 30 years and wish I had a book like this early on. It definitely makes my list as a great gift idea for newlyweds or anyone in any stage of life who loves to cook and needs some fresh ideas no matter what level of cooking experience.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher to review but the opinion stated is my own and was not solicited. If I didn't like the book I would say so.

900 Recipes in all Categories (breakfast to dessert). This cookbook may very well replace my dog-eared Joy of Cooking which was given to me when I went off to college. The Ultimate Cook Book: 900 Recipes may be the cookbook that I send with my kids when they go off to college.

The philosophy behind this cookbook is to take basic, solid recipes and allow/help you customize them (endlessly) to your own taste. As the authors' state, "you get the best of both worlds: hundreds of recipes from two established food writers, combined with thousands of ways to make the dishes exactly as you want them." Plus, they prefer foods that can be prepared quickly. These two things alone made it my reason to purchase this cookbook.

Let's face it, because of habits, we tend to purchase the same things at the grocery store because we inherently know what suites our taste buds. However, we also get "tired" of the same dinner foods over & over & over. This book has allowed me to break out & try new things but "twist" them my way. I either experiment using what I have on hand or follow the "variation" suggestion that is at the end of most recipes.

At the beginning of each chapter, the authors do a good job in their introduction. For instance, in the Beef, Pork, and Other Meats section, " This chapter takes on the essential problem of meat: too much fandango ruins a good cut...." Within the chapter, the authors continue to explain how to handle the meat, how to select it and how to cut it. On top of that there are the recipes and side notes for sauces - something for the beginner cook, the rushed cook & the cook who wants to experiment a little but not go down the Gourmet/Fancy pan path.

Overall, this is a great cookbook for most cooks because of the solid base recipes, and especially for cooks who appreciate a base recipe and then like to deviate because he/she isn't very good at following recipes. It is the perfect cookbook for me, the cook who keeps throwing things into the pan until the meal tastes good. Next on my list to purchase is Cooking Know-How: Be a Better Cook with Hundreds of Easy Techniques, Step-by-Step Photos, and Ideas for Over 500 Great Meals by the same author.

I first bought a copy of this book for my Kindle. I then decided I wanted a hardback copy. I have made several things, the latest being chicken salad. The book is very thorough. I can pick something from my kindle while I am at work, make an ingredient list, pick up items on the way home and then prop the hardback copy open to cook from.

I love this Kindle download! I download the sample while sitting in my car at the grocery store and did a quick browse. Wow! Recipe for The Ultimate Granola. Terrific, I only need a few ingredients and cereal was on my list anyway.
The authors give you the basic recipe and then offer numerous suggestions of complimentary ingredients to change up the finished product. Nice! And I haven't even bought the book yet!

From learning how to make the perfect scrambled eggs for breakfast burritos, sandwiches, and migas, or just to enjoy "plain". Right there in that section I already have twelve suggestions for different breakfasts using scrambled eggs. Cool.

I bought the book and glad that I did. Contents include breakfast and brunch section (try out the peanut butter smoothie), Appetizers from dips to pizza, Salads (read up on the ultimate Salad Bar), Soups, Pastas, Cassaroles, Breads, Fowl, fish and shellfish (huge section), to meats, vegetables, grains, beans, tofu, to cakes, puddings, cookies, pies.

A huge amount of info and all right there on your Kindle (also available in print) so whenever and where ever you are, you can check out recipes, and stop by the store on the way home and get the ingredients. How great is that!