Sheila Lukins (1942–2009)

I was trying to understand why I kepy this when I rated it only two stars.

Well, probably because there are a lot of interestingrecipes with some of my favourite ingredients.

Then why only two stars? Because of the overwhelming number of recipes that have misleading titles, peculiar mixtures of ingredients, recipes that call for specific brand products ... I won't go into the things they call 'curry'. Sometimes they mention what changes they have made to ethnic recipes, but sometimes they show more just offer up their altered version without a comment. If you feel tempted to roast a goose, be aware that it will release a lot of (wonderful) goose fat. Vegetables that have been cooked in the pan will be overladen with it. A waste of both the fat and the veggies.

And of course all the cutesy ideas for a party.

I think I will rip out a few of the interesting recipes. The rest of this will land in the paper recycling. show less

This is not a new cookbook, but there is a reason why it is has remained popular since it first appeared in 1982. As far as I’m concerned, the main reason is the cakes. Yes, the ratatouille is wonderful, and the Tarte Saint-Germain is delicious, but who offers cake recipes like this in these calorie conscious times? That is to say, it does not exactly seem like you could eat a lot of their cakes without showing some effects, but if you just exercise self-control (ha ha, a little humor show more there) you won’t regret it!

For example, ordinarily, I wouldn’t pick banana cake out of a pile of cake. But their banana cake is moist and lush and covered in scrumptious cream cheese frosting. The same frosting goes on their carrot cake, which is the best I’ve ever had, even though I omit two of the ingredients, coconut and pineapple. (You can easily find the recipe from the cookbook for this popular cake online, such as at this site. And by the way, it calls for pureed carrots. As if I would use, and therefore have to wash, the food processor. I buy baby food carrots. That counts as pureed, right?)

Most of the recipes are accompanied by something extra: a color photo, a suggested menu, or a quote (“...I had but one penny in the world, thou shouldst have it to buy gingerbread” from William Shakespeare’s “Love’s Labor’s Lost” and my sentiments exactly. Well, maybe not the sharing part, but definitely the gingerbread part.) There are also intermittent sections with background information about food, such as an explanation of the different kinds of olive oil, or a review of the differences among various mushrooms or salad greens. Occasionally there are anecdotes by the authors about a recipe or advice on cooking techniques, such as cooking bacon or making the perfect omelet.

Evaluation: There is a wealth of information in this colorful cookbook, and everything I have tried in it has been outstanding. show less

As a newly married wife, I learned a great deal from this classic 1980s cookbook. The recipes had a knack for introducing unfamiliar dishes through familiar flavors, great for cooking for children or unadventurous adults. The instructions are clear, and every recipe I tried turned out great. I loved the raspberry chicken (needs raspberry vinegar that you can make or buy from Whole Foods. Get one that has more fruit than vinegar in the ingredients.). Also really liked the lime mousse and the show more potato soup. show less

If I want to cook a special meal, this is the first cookbook I turn to. At least one dish, often the whole meal comes from the recipes in this book. I have been using it since 1986, and over the years have tried the majority of the recipes.. some recipes 30 times (like the chocolate mousse:-). The recipes have all been tasty, most are moderately complicated / time consuming, but executable by someone with basic skills. The biggest downside is that some of the ingredients can be hard to find.