McCullough Fran - Great food without fuss: simple recipes from the best cooks

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Contents

Introduction

This book grew out of many hours of passionate talk about food between two friends who love to cook. One of us is a cookbook editor whos been lucky enough to work with some of the great cooksDiana Kennedy, Paula Wolfert, and Deborah Madison among themand the other is a self-taught cook who founded one of the most interesting restaurants Washington, D.C., has ever seen: The Big Cheese in Georgetown. The editor, whos not a particularly inspired cook and has less and less time to devote to the kitchen, had been collecting some favorite recipes, which just happened to be fast and simple, from the best cookbooks. The cook, whose culinary imagination is always in overdrive, was fascinated by these recipes and could immediately think of dozens of ways to play with themvariations, different ways of serving them, little tricks that could speed the process even more.

Both of us agree that we want above all else to eat well, to get dinner on the table every night and to have it be an imaginative, satisfying meal that sustains soul as well as body. And for company, we want to serve memorable meals with a minimum of fuss. Its not just the time in the kitchen we begrudge; its the concentration, the claim on our total attention that complex food requires. These recipes are not only a snap to put together, theyre also forgiving if you dont follow them slavishly. Of course there are dozens of quick cookbooks on the market, but we find that recipes developed specifically for speed tend to come up short in taste, usually because they dont allow time for the flavors to deepen and develop. Some of the recipes in this book take what may seem like a long time, but theyre all extremely easy in terms of the actual attention you give them. The secret is in perfectly balancing flavors, and thats the province of the great cooks. They are our source for a collection of very simple, unusual recipes and bright ideas that we think other cooks with limited time and big culinary ambitions will find useful.

One look will convince you that this is not an ordinary cookbook; in fact, you can use it in several different ways. The recipes from the experts are designed so that you can use the book simply as a cooks scrapbook. Or you can use our serving suggestions and tips as a basis for your own improvisations. If you want to plan a company dinner, look first at the Main Dish section, which is the heart of the book. Once you have your main dish under control, the rest of the meal is easy to work out. Remember that we are beginning to cross the line between family and company farea simple home-cooked meal thats absolutely delicious is a great treat, especially for people who dine out frequently. There are times, of course, when only something extraordinary will do, but even then, the simpler the better. The luxury can all be in the basic ingredients.

Another way in which this isnt an ordinary cookbook: The serving sizes of each dish are extremely variable since they come from so many different sources. Not to worry; all the dishes multiply well, but do check the serving sizes when youre putting together an entire menu from the book so you wont be caught short.

Among the special features of the book are tips weve gathered from the experts over the years. These little tricks are soon forgotten when you read them in a cookbook, but they are invaluable. Another feature is pertinent notes on microwaving. We all have these gizmos, and few of us use them to good advantage. We hope youll get into the habit, if you arent already, of thinking of your microwave not as a substitute for your stove but as your personal R2D2 for many kitchen chores. We havent been too specific about microwave times because they vary from oven to oven, but youll quickly get the idea.

Because this food is so simple, it doesnt require much fancy equipment. We assume that you have a food processor and a blender. In our kitchens we couldnt do without a zester (to strip the colored peel off citrus fruit in seconds), a handheld wooden lemon juicer (it looks like a darning egg and saves hauling out the artillery every time you need a little fresh lemon juice), and a Mouli rotary cheese grater. But our hands-down favorite timesaver is the string-pull salad spinner, which dries the greens thoroughly in a matter of moments.

Mainly because we cant restrain ourselves, weve offered some recipes from our own kitchens in the book, favorite dishes weve been cooking for years that can be brought to the table in minutes. And there are also some mini-recipes, such as cocktail snacks that need little or no cooking at all, and dessert tidbits that go with dessert wines.

A cautionary note: Salmonella scares come and go, but if you have the slightest doubt about the safety of your egg supply, pass by the raw egg recipes .

And how did we choose the recipes? We looked in hundreds of cookbooks, tested and tested and tested, and finally it came down to what tasted best to us, tempered, of course, by considerations of balance and availability. Virtually every good cook we know has a similar secret inventory of simple recipes to use in a crunch, the result of years and years in the kitchen. In the end ours is a very personal and quirky collectionwere fond of both old classics that are unsurpassed, like spoon bread and corn fritters, and new exciting tastes that derive from the exotic produce coming into our supermarkets as well as condiments from the far corners of the world. We trust that you, too, have both an adventurous palate and a fondness for the great nostalgic dishes that have appeared on American tables for decades.

Starters

We often hear caterers remark that their clients seem to remember the beginning and end of their meals with great clarity, while the main courses remain a little vague. And there are those who judge a restaurant by the quality and style of the bread and butter, the very first presentation from the kitchen. Weve never had a memorable meal that didnt both begin and end very well indeed.

But do you really need to serve an appetizer? Arrigo Cipriani, of the legendary Harrys Bar in Venice, doesnt think so, on the grounds that starters actually dull the appetite. That may be true, but appetizers can be so appealing that many would prefer making an entire meal of them. If you are such a dedicated nibbler, try eliminating the seated first course and offer three or four successive taste-teasers with aperitifs. Good choices would include crisp croustades topped with marinated vegetables, such as roasted peppers, mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes, or bits of previously grilled eggplant, leeks, or red onion. Follow with a smoked fish and/or miniature kebabs of spicy cooked meat. Expand the array with a dish of special olives, or your favorite flavored roasted nut, or one or two of the myriad new crispies in the specialty food stores. This approach works particularly well with ethnic meals because it heightens the drama of what follows and allows you to offer a wider range of flavors than the entree alone can present.