539708 Thu Jul 17 10:22:52 -0700 2008 17 31 Home Cooking 0 3877372 Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything is my go-to cookbook. I'm wondering whether it's worth any of his other books - i.e. Best Cooking in the World and his new vegetarian book. I'm wondering whether there's a lot of overlap between How to Cook Everything and his other books, either with the exact same recipes or similar recipes. What do you think? Alison Thu Jul 17 10:22:54 -0700 2008 12002 Reddyrat 1 4539711 I have Best Recipes in the World and I don't notice a lot of overlap. Thu Mar 26 06:36:31 -0700 2009 3877372 277070 another_student 2 4539728 I have Best Recipes too but cannot speak to the overlap because I have not seen his How To Cook Everything. I will say of about 7 recipes from Best that I have cooked we've liked only two. He does have a daily blog at the NYTimes site and features a recipe of the day so you ought to look at that. I have made many recipes from that blog and they have been pretty good. Here's the link: http://bitten.blogs.nytimes.com/ Thu Mar 26 06:41:35 -0700 2009 4539711 75332 Gio 1 4539737 I have How to Cook Everything Vegetarian and I love it. I've made many recipes from the book and loved them. It's got lots of interesting veggie and grain recipes and they are usually pretty easy to adapt based on what's in the fridge. One of my favorites is the Marinated Chinese Celery. Not sure if there's a lot of overlap, but this is one of my favorite cookbooks- the stains on the cover can tell you that! Thu Mar 26 06:44:51 -0700 2009 3877372 217807 cheesecake17 1 4539773 I have "How to Cook Everything" and "The Minimalist Cooks Dinner" and haven't found any overlap at all. Must say, I use the former far more than the latter, but there is one recipe in Minimalist that I love and make often. ETA: The Minimalist is a collection of his NYTimes recipes, so I'm sure that most of them are online. Thu Mar 26 06:57:24 -0700 2009 3877372 11407 JoanN 2 4545668 What is this new coyness, JoanN? You're not going to tell us the ONE recipe in The Min. Cooks Dinner? Fri Mar 27 22:34:55 -0700 2009 4539773 10245 oakjoan 3 4545934 It’s called “Simplest Chicken Sautéed in Garlic.” Although I said I make it often, it would have been more accurate to say I've made it many times, since for me it’s almost as a addictive as fried chicken and probably just about as caloric. It’s just a whole, cut up, chicken sautéed in a very well seasoned skillet in its own fat. You start the cooking in a cold pan (quite unusual) and cook over moderate heat turning frequently. It’s seasoned only with s&p and paprika, for which I substitute ground ancho chile. Minced garlic is added to the skillet just before the chicken is finished browning. I tried to look for a link to both this recipe and another one in the book that I like but couldn’t find either. I was obviously in error when I said that since these recipes were from the NYTimes they must be online. Evidently, the recipes published in the book were taken offline so as not to thwart book sales. Sat Mar 28 06:00:59 -0700 2009 4545668 11407 JoanN 4 4547091 Well, maybe they have it at the library. My house is just not big enough for another 50 lb. Bittman! Thanks for the recipe, sounds both interesting and glorious. Sat Mar 28 16:17:28 -0700 2009 4545934 10245 oakjoan 5 4547223 Just fyi, "The Minimalist Cooks Dinner" is not by any means another 50 pounder. It's just over 200 pages I'm not suggesting you go out and buy it, though. It has lots of quick, simple recipes and I think is very much for those who keep asking how to get dinner on the table for their families within a half hour of coming home from work. Not even sure any longer why I bought it, except that it did have a few recipes I'd cut out of his column. And I'm sure I didn't pay much for it. Sat Mar 28 17:12:34 -0700 2009 4547091 11407 JoanN 1 4547105 I like Bittman a lot, but wasn't impressed with his vegetarian book. The biggest issue I had (and probably stopped me from really getting into the rest of the book) came from the chilaquiles recipe. On his NTY blog, he talked about making "migas" (in relation to adding more whole grains at breakfast), which he described as stir fried bread with chorizo. I've always know migas (and have had it verified by a co-worker from Mexico) as eggs and corn torilla strips. In the book, his chilaquiles recipe was...eggs with corn tortilla strips. Which is nothing like chilaquiles (again, as verified by a native) which is traditionally made of layered torillas, chicken, salsa, etc. These are pretty basic level ethnic dishes, and I was really put off by them. That said, I enjoyed Food Matters, and read his blog. But I don't cook much from his recipes. Sat Mar 28 16:21:32 -0700 2009 3877372 19113 Pylon 2 4547193 I agree: I've been making chilaquiles for many years, and have never included egg. Have never seen this, and believe it's just plain wrong. Sat Mar 28 16:59:26 -0700 2009 4547105 11995 pikawicca 3 4547216 It's not just that his includes eggs. It is literally a classic migas recipe. I want to think it was an oversight, but his migas recipe was so off base, I'm not sure how it happened. Sat Mar 28 17:10:07 -0700 2009 4547193 19113 Pylon 2 4547237 Bittman is not as far off as you think. Migas is also a traditional egg dish in Spain. Tex-Mex migas is made with tortillas, while Spanish migas is made with bread (and often chorizo and/or peppers). In "The Foods and Wine of Spain", Casas mentions that the Spanish word for "migas" actually means crumbs or small pieces of bread. I agree, though, I've never made, or heard of chilaquiles made with beaten eggs mixed in either. But there are many variations served in Mexico, maybe it's regional? A fried or poached egg on top, however, is a traditional variation. Chilaquiles is really a way of using up stale tortillas, which can be cut into strips, fried into chips, etc. In our house, we eat chilaquiles rojo the way my husband (who is Mexican) grew up with - a casserole of fried tortilla chips layered with a red chile sauce and a little queso, and served with a fried sunny-side egg on top for breakfast. Hmmmm...now I'm hungry. I've given his "How to Cook Everything" as a gift, and own "Bittman Takes on America's Chefs", and "The Minimalist Entertains", but have never cooked out of them. Maybe I'll look through them tonight for something for dinner... Sat Mar 28 17:18:01 -0700 2009 4547105 10271 Rubee 3 4547399 The tortilla strips and eggs is a Tex-Mex dish, and is usually called migas (same as the Spanish bread crumb dish). While this might not be normally called be chilaquilas, you'll have to admit there is an overlap in concept. Around about now we should be seeing threads about a Jewish version using matzo (matso-brie or something like that). There's a segment in the Spain, On the Road Again TV series, where Bittman observes a Spanish chef make migas in the shadow of those windmills that Don Quixote fought. That Spanish version supposedly originated as camp food of shepherds. His 'Best Recipes of the World' has a significant number of Spanish dishes. Also, in Mexico chilaquiles is a way of using stale tortillas. A such it is a breakfast/lunch/late night snack dish, and could vary widely by cook and region. Some versions try to achieve just right balance between crisp chips and soggy ones; others enjoy the soggy mass that it becomes after sitting the pot half the morning. D Kennedy, writes regarding chilaquies "There is no hard and fast rule about ingredients. Use up whatever you have handy." In "Best World" his Chilaquiles comes in 4 versions. One has the eggs stirred in, and the whole thing is baked. Another serves eggs separately, fried. Another has meat such as chicken. Sat Mar 28 18:35:58 -0700 2009 4547237 12139 paulj 1 4548192 Best Recipes of the World is my go-to book, much more so than How to Cook Everything which I rarely use these days. I haven't found much overlap with his books however the Minimalist books do nothing for me. I have checked them out from the library a couple times but never am inspired to do much with the recipes. In the Best Recipes of the World I have made countless fantastic meals and found some favorites (particularly Indian and Asian dishes). Only one recipe I have encountered in that gigantic book is a total dud in my opinion - pasta with fennel. Bland and boring. Sun Mar 29 07:48:40 -0700 2009 3877372 19634 mels 2 4549858 I tried the pasta with fennel, though I used the recipe more for inspiration than for the details, so my measurements may be different. Ingredients are pasta (bowties in my case), currents (I substituted raisins), pine nuts, onion, fennel, fennel seeds, oil, s & p. The main flavor contributers are the salt, pepper, and olive oil. The currents (raisins) provide some sweetness that complements the mild fennel flavor. Under salting could be the major cause of blandness. Adequate salting of pasta water has been discussed in other threads. The fennel provides, more than anything else, a texture contrast. As do the pine nuts. If your standard for a pasta dish is spaghetti with meat balls and strong tomato sauce, this will be bland. But if you are happy with Italian pasta dishes that use a lighter sauce (as simple as olive oil in some cases), it should work - as the pasta course or American side. Sun Mar 29 20:20:14 -0700 2009 4548192 12139 paulj 3 4554477 I actually prefer lighter pasta dishes. My fav is simple olive oil and a fresh grate of Parm Regg.! The pasta/fennel recipe just did absolutely nothing for me. Tue Mar 31 10:27:06 -0700 2009 4549858 19634 mels 2 4551376 1000 Italian Recipes, Scicolone, has a Sicilian recipe for pasta with fennel - but it also has fresh sardines (pasta con le sarde). In this version the fried sardines are layered with the pasta. It also has some bread crumbs, anchovy fillets, and dill. (currants, pine nuts, onion and fennel overlap with Bittman's version). Perhaps closer to Bittman's recipe is Pasta Arriminati, also Sicilian. It has almost all the same ingredients as Bittman, but uses cauliflower instead of fennel. Mon Mar 30 11:34:38 -0700 2009 4548192 12139 paulj