Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

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Summary: Bring Back The Essentials
Review: I recently purchased "Essentials..." from Amazon. I use it almost every day, and read it for pleasure. The recipes are accesssible,with simple ingredients, clear instructions. I also love the historical commentary. I wanted to send the book as gifts for several of my friends and relatives-but alas, I find it now out of print. How can that happen to such a wonderful and useful book? Please bring it back!

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Summary: This Cookbook is a Culinary Treasure
Review: Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is by far the best cookbook I have come across in over forty years of cooking. Every recipe I have tried has been outstanding. You don't have to like Italian food to like what Marcella Hazan has to offer.

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Summary: Simply the best.
Review: I got to know Marcella Hazan's book via a selection in Dutch, and even in this truncated version it became one of my favorites. Now I that have the real article, I can only say that this book is an alltime classic. Its chapter on fundamentals is required reading for anyone who loves coocking. It ranges far beyond Italian cuisine. The 115-page chapter on pasta and pasta sauces is treatise - and a treat- that would in itself justify the purchase of this book. The recipes in this book start with good ingredients and many work miracles by just combining three or four of them in the right way. This is coocking - and writing about it- at its very best.

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Summary: Lovely book - marvelous recipes
Review: Ms. Hazan writes with flair and interest in her subject. I especially like her recipes and techniques for making pasta. The book would be better with a greater emphasis on vegetarian (ovo-lacto ok) recipes.

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Summary: great, stupendous!!!!!!!
Review: This is clearly one of the best cookbooks written in years. The recipes are concise and not like those which are like like reading a novel. Hats off!!!!!!

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Summary: Better than all the italian cookboks I've ever seen
Review: I'm italian and I can tell that this book is by far better that any italian cookbook as far as clarity of exposition is concerned. Brava Marcella!

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Summary: If you buy only one cookbook buy this one.
Review: This is simply the best cookbook I have ever read or used. I bought it because my attempts at Italian food were always too fussy and complicated. The recipes in this book are clear, simple and easy to follow. The results are astonishing. Every dish I have made tastes right. If I have no idea what to make for my family I page through this book for suggestions on how to use whatever is on sale. She has never let me down. I have given this book to my cooking friends and it makes a great shower gift.

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Summary: The Best chicken Recipe
Review: Put two lemons in a chicken and you'll go right to the happy eaters place. I didn't eat chicken until Maria made this for me.

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Summary: Superior text! The best Italian cookbook ever!
Review: If you are really interested in Italian cooking, this is the text for you! Written in such a manner that the advanced cook can pick up some new tricks, while the novice or hobbiest can learn the fundamentals and basics of fine Italian cooking. It is a real educational text, not just a recipe collection! Using this text has been a great pleasure for me.

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Summary: How to Prep an Artichoke
Review: I owned both of Marcella's previous books in paperback; a friend for whom I had prepared many of these meals (veal stew, baked semolina gnocchi, Roman style artichokes) rewarded me recently with this new volume. What I appreciate in the author are her unyielding standards ("hmmm, blindfolded, Marcella, I'd like you to tell us which is the Kraft 'grated topping' and which is the parmagianno reggiano..")and her clarity. Her step-by-step instruction on prepping artichokes is the best example of clear, instructional writing that I can name (and one that I've seen re-packaged and uncredited by other food writers).