Garten - Cook Like a Pro: Recipes and Tips for Home Cooks

Copyright 2018 by Ina Garten

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Garten, Ina, author.

Title: Cook like a pro / Ina Garten.

Description: First edition. | New York: Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2018 | Series: A Barefoot Contessa cookbook | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2018006753| ISBN 9780804187046 (hardcover) | ISBN 9780804187053 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Cooking. | Barefoot Contessa (Store) | LCGFT: Cookbooks.

Classification: LCC TX714 .G36434 2018 | DDC 641.5dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018006753.

ISBN9780804187046

Ebook ISBN9780804187053

Photographs by Quentin Bacon

v5.3.2

prh

For Barbara Libath, who has been my
partner in crime for the past twenty years.
Youll never know how grateful I am.

thank you!

Its amazing to think that after writing ten cookbooks, the eleventh can still be so interesting and fun! Its not just that I love what I do every day but also that I love the people who do it with me. First and foremost is my wonderful team: Barbara Libath and Lidey Heuck work on the cookbooks and television shows with me. Theyre such happy, smart, and thoughtful women and I look forward to seeing them every single day.

Next is my incredible publisher, Clarkson Potter. Weve been together since my first book contract in 1997yikes! My deep thanks go to some of the loveliest and smartest people in the business, which is why when most authors are moving from publisher to publisher, Ive stayed put for twenty years. Thank you to Maya Mavjee, the incomparable head of Crown Publishing; to David Drake, who has the best advice about all kinds of things; to Aaron Wehner, the head of Clarkson Potter, who is so wise about cookbooks; to my wonderful editors, Pam Krauss and Raquel Pelzel; my amazing publicist, Kate Tyler; and Marysarah Quinn, the head of design at Crown who so generously still designs all my books herself. Writing cookbooks is definitely a team sport and Im playing with the A team.

And this is yet another book photographed by the brilliant Quentin Bacon. This time, we had Cyd McDowell (with backup by Christine Albano) preparing beautiful food and Miguel Flores-Vianna, who so graciously agreed to take a break from his gorgeous photography, come back and style for us. We developed a slightly different in the kitchen style for this book and I hope youll like it as much as I do.

Thank you also to my amazing friend and agent, Esther Newberg, who takes care of business so I can do the fun stuff: write cookbooks. And finally to my friend Sarah Leah Chase, who writes her own cookbooks and who inspires me with new ideas and recipes all year long.

cook with confidence!

When I started my television series on Food Network called Cook Like a Pro and decided to write this book, I think a few people might have thought Id drifted away from what I love mostwriting recipes for simple, delicious home cooking. Maybe they imagined Id be showing you how to make a demi-glace base for a fancy sauce or how to carve a radish rose. Nope, thats never been what my cooking is about! What I think you will find, however, is that by following these recipes and pro tips, your food may taste a little more vibrant, your presentation may be a little more polished, and you may feel a little more confident in your cooking skills; in other words, youll be cooking the way pros cook! Its a funny paradox that when something from a bakery is delicious, we compliment it by saying, This tastes homemade! but when something we make at home is especially impressive, everyone says, This looks so professional! With that in mind, my goal with this book is to ensure that everything you cook looks and tastes like it was homemade by professionals!

Why is it worth learning to cook the way pros do? Because when you have the right knife and its perfectly sharpened, youll find prep work so much easier and more satisfying. When you measure your ingredients precisely (the difference between liquid and dry measures is more important than you think!) or know how to judge when your cake is done or your beef tenderloin is the right temperature for medium rare, youll find cooking and entertaining so much less stressful. Throughout this book youll find extra tips that will help you prepare these recipes exactly the way I do, and with fewer unhappy surprises.

In the early days, I taught myself how to cook from cookbooks; Craig Claibornes New York Times Cookbook was my undergraduate education and Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Becks Mastering the Art of French Cooking was graduate school. By making those recipes over and over again and persevering until I got them the way Craig and Julia intended, I learned a million things, from the easiest way to chop an onion to the right way to truss a chicken and how to make a perfect Hollandaise sauce. To this day, the scientist in me loves knowing how something works and that background in the classics was invaluable. But the practical side of me loves newer, fresher, simpler ways to do thingsways that ensure a recipe will come out right the first time you make it. Drawing on my experience as a caterer, a specialty food store owner, and of course a cookbook author, Ive devised a battery of time-tested tricks that I rely on in the kitchen to make flavors sing and presentation pop. I try to incorporate those tips into every recipe I develop, and I make these recipes dozens of times so that your results will always be just as good as mine.

Since those early days of teaching myself to cook, Ive spent years in professional kitchens and have learned so much from the chefs and bakers I worked with. When I ran Barefoot Contessa, needing to peel forty pounds of butternut squash one afternoon taught me the importance of sharp knives and the most efficient way to peel a squash for Butternut Squash Gratin (), I learned the fastest and best way to bake a cake that looks impressive without a lot of extra effort. When I started catering private events, I saw firsthand what makes the best parties. I learned that a happy, relaxed host is the most important ingredient at any gatheringand that small round tables with food served family-style or from a buffet are always the most fun.