Help! My Apartment Has a Dining Room Cookbook: How to Have People Over Without Stressing Out (Paperback)

~ Nancy Mills (Author), Kevin Mills (Author) "A LOT HAS HAPPENED SINCE I WROTE Help!..." (more)
Key Phrases: wash the cilantro sprigs, appliance bowl, heating over high heat, Mom Tip, Mom Warning, Dining Room (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The point of entertaining is simply to feed people and be relaxed. In Help, My Apartment Has a Dining Room, Kevin and Nancy Mills, the son-and-mother team who wrote Help, My Apartment Has a Kitchen, apply their wit and wisdom to just that. Targeted to students and newly independent twentysomethings, this user-friendly cookbook offers tips and menus to help the novice host weather nerves and wobbly cooking. First, cook ahead as much as possible. And make several dishes--the variety helps please everyone, avoid disaster from inevitable kitchen failures, and cope with vegetarians and individual allergies. Beginners can follow recommended menus (for example, Creamy Mushroom Soup, Chicken Kiev, Gingery Carrots, and Chocolate Fondue) or compose their own from recipes rated Very Easy (Thousand Island Dressing: three ingredients, five minutes) to Not So Easy (Beef Bourguignon). The authors explain everything, even how to hold a knife to chop nuts. The Mom Tips and Mom Warnings that follow recipes add more reassurance, like what stew meat and wine to buy for the Bourguignon.

Helpful to the last detail, the Millses explain how to make coffee and tea, and how to set the table, suggesting you use one rather than assembling around the sofa. A perfect shower gift, this book can save parents a fortune on phone bills and help your friends (or you) survive entertaining without emotional meltdown. --Dana Jacobi --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

"When I'm cooking for friends, I tend toward Very Easy recipes. It's just like when I read a collection of short stories -- I'll always read the shortest ones first." -- Kevin Mills

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (May 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618711724
• ISBN-13: 978-0618711727
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #796,743 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm an amateur chef and loved this book!, January 21, 2000

By	Nicole Dueffert "ndueffert" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Help! My Apartment Has a Dining Room: How to Have People Over for Dinner Without stressing Out (Paperback)

My cooking experience includes making boxed macaroni and cheese and toast. I received this book as a gift last year but just recently put it to use. Over the last month, I have worn it out! I am a vegetarian but also wanted to cook for friends who are meat-eaters. The book includes many receipes for everyone. The receipes are easy to understand and fun to read. Kevin and Nancy Mills have a fabulous sense of humor. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to start cooking but is intimidated and doesn't know where to begin.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have For Your Cookbook Collection, December 29, 1999

By	Leslie A. Butler (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Help! My Apartment Has a Dining Room: How to Have People Over for Dinner Without stressing Out (Paperback)

I received Help! My Apartment Has a Dining Room Cookbook for Christmas this year. I am what they call a "Cookbook Junkie", but this is by far one of my favorites. I have only had this book for a couple of days, and I have not been able to put it down! I really enjoy the little anecdotes preceding several of the recipes. Also, the mom tips and warnings are tremendously helpful and great time-savers. The prologue to this cookbook is quite comical, and the tips for throwing a stress-free dinner party will definitely come in handy. My mom has already gone online and purchased Help! My Apartment Has A Kitchen Cookbook for me. I can't wait until it arrives!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just for guests . . ., November 23, 1999

By	Colleen in California - See all my reviews

This review is from: Help! My Apartment Has a Dining Room: How to Have People Over for Dinner Without stressing Out (Paperback)

This is a wonderful cookbook, even if you are not having people over for dinner! More than once I have simply halved a recipe to make a quick and tasty meal for two. The recipes use common ingredients and are simple and well-explained in an entertaining fashion.