Notes about Recipes in this book

• Beef stew with bacon, mushrooms, and pearl onions

  • ashallen on October 12, 2019

    Good beef stew. Flavor profile is basically a simplified version of Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon - similar ingredients, but flavors aren't as deeply developed or complex as either the JC recipe or the "Modern Beef Burgundy" recipe that Cook's Ill. initially published in 2013 (one of my favorites!). This recipe's less involved than the JC recipe, however, which is nice. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine/Cook's Ill. Cookbook.]

• Linguine with walnut, garlic, and herb sauce

  • ashallen on September 06, 2019

    We love this pasta and have made it many times. As written, the recipe makes a light, elegant pasta with a nubbly texture from the walnuts. Wonderful combination of flavors that's strong on walnut. The basic recipe handles modifications very well. Over the years we've "intensified" it by adding an extra 1/4 c walnuts and grinding the walnuts finely in the food processor (gives the sauce a much creamier texture), doubling the parmesan, bumping up the parsley to 1/2 c, using anywhere from 1/2-2 c basil, and using anywhere from no garlic up to amount called for in the recipe. This approach makes a stickier sauce that we like better on a chunky pasta (e.g. fusilli) vs. strand pastas. Excellent as-is or with diced fresh tomato mixed in. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine.]

• Steamed mussel sauce with lemon and white wine

  • mfto on May 30, 2011

    We serve this with spaghetti and sourdough bread. I use cilantro rather than parsley and I use more wine than called for. Julia Child's first book recommended using dry vermouth for white wine and that always works for me. Great, easy meal.

• Madeleines

  • TaffyDeb on December 30, 2019

    Perfect companion to making marshmallows, as one uses up the yolks leftover from them.

• Quick-cooked carrots with butter and parsley

  • ashallen on December 11, 2019

    A very easy and wonderful way to make carrots - they come out tasting very "carrot-y." Easy to tweak to taste - cook longer (adding a bit more water as needed) if you want carrots to be more tender. We prefer these to be less rich than specified in the original recipe and have cut back the butter from 2 tbsp to 1/2 tbsp. Great with 1/2 teaspoon or so minced fresh thyme instead of parsley. Using various types of less refined sugars (e.g., muscavado, maple syrup) adds a slightly different flavor. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine.]

• Simple chicken pot pie

  • Lee on April 22, 2015

    Excellent, straightforward chicken pot pie

• Fluffy buttermilk biscuits

  • Lee on April 22, 2015

    Nice biscuit topping for pot pie

• Roasted red bell peppers

  • ashallen on December 12, 2019

    Good method for making basic roasted red bell peppers. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine/Cook's Ill. Cookbook.]

• Sweet and spicy roasted red pepper dip

  • ashallen on November 29, 2019

    This is a really delicious version of muhammara. Recipe calls for 2 tbsp molasses or pomegranate molasses. I start with 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses and add more to taste since 2 tbsp has sometimes been too sweet for me. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine/Cook's Ill. Cookbook.]

• Braised cabbage with parsley and thyme

  • Brikl on January 28, 2017

    Sept/Oct pg 9

• Cream-braised cabbage with lemon and shallots

  • Brikl on February 05, 2017

    Sept/Oct Page 9

  • Brikl on February 05, 2017

    Good if you're desperate to find something different to do with cabbage, but nothing special.

• Bacon-wrapped meat loaf with brown sugar-ketchup glaze

  • mfto on May 30, 2011

    This is my go-to meatloaf recipe. I first made the recipe with either the bacon or glaze but we prefer it without either. I do not use a loaf pan but just form it into shape on a foil lined pan. I use my own fresh bread crumbs instead of crackers which is an option in the recipe. I omit the hot pepper sauce if I am cooking for children. It is a never fail recipe for me.

  • ashallen on October 12, 2019

    This is a very good, classic meatloaf recipe - I particularly like the suggestion for using quick oats instead of bread crumbs and the sticky ketchup glaze. The bacon didn't crisp by the time the meatloaf was done - I ended up popping it in the oven by itself after the meatloaf came out to finish cooking it. Cook's Illustrated published another recipe for "Glazed Meat Loaf" in 2006, however, that I usually use instead of this one. Instead of using a bacon wrap to self-baste the meat loaf, it includes finely shredded Monterey Jack cheese in the meat mixture for extra moisture - very nice! [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine/Cook's Ill. Cookbook.]

• Simple stovetop rice pudding

  • ashallen on November 27, 2019

    This is my favorite rice pudding recipe - I "retired" my other stovetop rice pudding recipes after finding this one! Creamy, nicely thickened, tender rice, and great flavor. The recipe's great as written, but I've found that there's a fair amount of flexibility around the ratio of milk to half-and-half, so it can be made richer or leaner to taste. A mixture of heavy cream and milk also works well as a half-and-half substitute. When the pudding's come out thicker than I'd like, I stir in some fresh cream or half-and-half to thin it a bit - this also gives it a wonderful fresh cream flavor on top of the cooked cream flavors. When eating the pudding plain, I like it to be a bit sweeter than specified in the recipe and bump up the sugar to 3/4 cup. Making a half-batch works fine. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine/Cook's Ill. Cookbook.]

• Multipurpose butter cookie dough

  • ashallen on August 31, 2019

    My husband loves these classic butter cookies - I've made them many, many, many times. Excellent butter flavor and crisp. Unlike some other thinly rolled cookies, these are sturdy enough to pack well and survive road trips intact. They maintain their shape very well during baking, staying flat and keeping any details along their edges. I've had better luck browning them evenly in my oven by using insulated cookies sheets vs. single layer sheets. Even if they overbrown, however, their flavor's still delicious! [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine.]

• Pureed carrot soup with nutmeg (Master recipe for pureed vegetable soup)

  • ashallen on December 02, 2019

    This is a great soup - easy to make, smooth texture, and a great combination of flavors. I've tried just about all the variations specified in the recipe (e.g, using white wine vs. sherry, shallots and/or leeks vs. onion) and they've all been good. Making a half-batch works fine. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine.]

• Pureed butternut squash soup with ginger

  • ashallen on December 01, 2019

    This is a solid butternut squash soup. Fresh ginger instead of ground ginger might have been nice in this recipe. Cook's Illustrated magazine subsequently published a new recipe in 2011 which I like even better than this one, however. I love butternut squash/milk-cream combinations in desserts, but in soups it seems to blunt the squash's flavor for me. The 2011 recipe uses chicken or vegetable stock instead of dairy. [Cross-post for Annual Edition/Magazine.]