Rating: 
Summary: Intriquing Introspective
Review: In a world of take-out food, culinary maven takes us back to a simpler, more beautiful place of home cooking. The history of these recipes are fascinating, and just as in her "The Fanny Farmer Cookbook," Ms. Cunningham breaks them down to approachable, user friendly creations. Thes recipes are sure to become new classics.
Rating: 
Summary: Just got this
Review: Just got this book so I can't rate the contents - It is packaged really nicely, but should have been spiral bound - or a hardback. The spine will break. I suppose this ought not to matter to a real cook, but it bothers me a little.
Rating: 
Summary: Attractive Package, Good Recipes, Failed Premise
Review: Marion Cunningham is in the first rank of cookbook writers with Jean Anderson, Barbara Kafka, and the Rumbauers ('Joy of Cooking') specializing in general recipes for the American kitchen. Like Barbara Kafka, she is a student of the great James Beard, and quotes his opinions often in this book. She is the most recent editor of 'The Fannie Farmer Cookbook', a position she obtained on the recommendation of James Beard. For all of these reasons, this book is a disappointment.The book does not disappoint because the recipes are poor. In fact, they are all both good and simple. One would expect nothing less from a cookbook published by Alfred A. Knopf and edited by that most famous cookbook editor, Judith Jones. One Knopf trademark is an very attractively designed artwork all wrapped up in an exceptionally pleasing cover, all for a modest list price of $22.50. The disappointment is in the failure to fulfill the premise of the book embodied in the very clear title. One expects recipes that are simply not made anymore, and we are poorer for their neglect. The fact is, almost every recipe in the book is alive and well, thank you. In the chapter on soups, Gazpacho, Vichyssoise, Corn Chowder, Seafood Stew, and Ham and Bean Soup are present in more cookbooks than I care to mention, and I make three out of five of these soups more than once each year. I just recently ran across a recipe for Mulligatawny Soup in a new cookbook. Of the 19 soups, only Oatmeal Soup is totally new to me. In the chapter on breads, I commonly make Boston Brown Bread from a James Beard recipe. Jim Villas has just published a whole book on biscuits, Martha Stewart features Monkey Bread on one of her programs, and sticky buns are in virtually every book on baking that I own. Out of 16 recipes, one or two such as 'salt rising bread' seem a bit unusual. In the chapter on vegetables, I have recently made colcannon and scalloped potatoes. Candied carrots were featured in a recent issue of 'Saveur'. I have done onions as a side dish on several occasions. The Vegetable cobbler may be new to most, but this is only one out of 16 recipes. In 'Yesterday's Side Dish', it seems almost a joke to call Spanish Rice, Pilaf, Fried Rice, and Vegetable Frittata 'lost recipes'. It's true that Welsh Rabbit and Yorkshire Pudding are not made as often as they may once have been, but I often run across both in new cookbooks. In 'One Dish Meals', I am surprised to find the New England Boiled Dinner, as John Thorne recently did a rather long essay on this dish. I am doubly surprised at the appearance of Meatloaf, as Jim Villas devoted a whole chapter to this dish in his recent book of columns, 'Stalking the Green Fairy'. I am truly tired of seeing Food Network recipes for Shepherd's Pie and Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. In 'Real Salads', I am surprised to find Coleslaw with Boiled Dressing, as this is my favorite type of slaw, based on a James Beard recipe. I also often make Potato Salad, Waldorf Salad, and Salad Nicoise. I have even recently made Green Goddess dressing. Some may claim that I am missing the point, especially since I am certainly not typical. I have all the time I need to shop and cook, while most people do not. This is why I cited some published sources for many of these examples, to show the weakness in the book's premise is not simply based on my experience. Some may argue that the true meaning of 'Lost Recipes' is not that this excellent recipe is no longer being prepared. In fact, the author's introduction tends toward that interpretation when she states surveys of between 30% and 40% of American families actually cook at home. The fact is, I simply do not believe these statistics and I believe they are trotted out to provide a justification for a weak book premise. In the total absence of any documentation, my first basis for skepticism is the cost of eating out. A family of four can eat a good meal at home for three dollars a head. A far less nutritious meal out probably averages twice that. I concede this figure probably puts people using frozen or deli-prepared convenience foods eaten at home in the 'not home cooked' category, but this leads to another objection to this book. My second basis for skepticism is the great popularity of cooking shows on both the Food Network and PBS. Even if neither of these arguments hold water, the book still does not hit its mark, as it is no solution to family meal providers who are pressed for time. If the object is to draw more people into home cooking, what you need is something like Rachael Ray's approach of fast meals from common ingredients. Coleslaw with Boiled Dressing is great, but it takes a long time to make and it is dangerous outside the fridge for very long, as it contains raw eggs. Marion Cunningham is a very good, very important cookbook author, but I think this book is misguided. A new, paperback edition of 'The Fanny Farmer Cookbook' would have far more effectively served the object of the book with highlights on fast and on neglected recipes. Buy 'Fanny Farmer' and give this book a pass. If you get the book as a gift, don't take it to the church bazaar. It has good recipes and will look very nice on your bookshelf. It is a perfect refutation of the books premise when another reviewer says this book gives her all her favorite recipes in one place.
Rating:
Summary: Attractive Package, Good Recipes, Failed Premise
Review: Marion Cunningham is in the first rank of cookbook writers with Jean Anderson, Barbara Kafka, and the Rumbauers (`Joy of Cooking') specializing in general recipes for the American kitchen. Like Barbara Kafka, she is a student of the great James Beard, and quotes his opinions often in this book. She is the most recent editor of `The Fannie Farmer Cookbook', a position she obtained on the recommendation of James Beard. For all of these reasons, this book is a disappointment. The book does not disappoint because the recipes are poor. In fact, they are all both good and simple. One would expect nothing less from a cookbook published by Alfred A. Knopf and edited by that most famous cookbook editor, Judith Jones. One Knopf trademark is an very attractively designed artwork all wrapped up in an exceptionally pleasing cover, all for a modest list price of $22.50. The disappointment is in the failure to fulfill the premise of the book embodied in the very clear title. One expects recipes that are simply not made anymore, and we are poorer for their neglect. The fact is, almost every recipe in the book is alive and well, thank you. In the chapter on soups, Gazpacho, Vichyssoise, Corn Chowder, Seafood Stew, and Ham and Bean Soup are present in more cookbooks than I care to mention, and I make three out of five of these soups more than once each year. I just recently ran across a recipe for Mulligatawny Soup in a new cookbook. Of the 19 soups, only Oatmeal Soup is totally new to me. In the chapter on breads, I commonly make Boston Brown Bread from a James Beard recipe. Jim Villas has just published a whole book on biscuits, Martha Stewart features Monkey Bread on one of her programs, and sticky buns are in virtually every book on baking that I own. Out of 16 recipes, one or two such as `salt rising bread' seem a bit unusual. In the chapter on vegetables, I have recently made colcannon and scalloped potatoes. Candied carrots were featured in a recent issue of `Saveur'. I have done onions as a side dish on several occasions. The Vegetable cobbler may be new to most, but this is only one out of 16 recipes. In `Yesterday's Side Dish', it seems almost a joke to call Spanish Rice, Pilaf, Fried Rice, and Vegetable Frittata `lost recipes'. It's true that Welsh Rabbit and Yorkshire Pudding are not made as often as they may once have been, but I often run across both in new cookbooks. In `One Dish Meals', I am surprised to find the New England Boiled Dinner, as John Thorne recently did a rather long essay on this dish. I am doubly surprised at the appearance of Meatloaf, as Jim Villas devoted a whole chapter to this dish in his recent book of columns, `Stalking the Green Fairy'. I am truly tired of seeing Food Network recipes for Shepherd's Pie and Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. In `Real Salads', I am surprised to find Coleslaw with Boiled Dressing, as this is my favorite type of slaw, based on a James Beard recipe. I also often make Potato Salad, Waldorf Salad, and Salad Nicoise. I have even recently made Green Goddess dressing. Some may claim that I am missing the point, especially since I am certainly not typical. I have all the time I need to shop and cook, while most people do not. This is why I cited some published sources for many of these examples, to show the weakness in the book's premise is not simply based on my experience. Some may argue that the true meaning of `Lost Recipes' is not that this excellent recipe is no longer being prepared. In fact, the author's introduction tends toward that interpretation when she states surveys of between 30% and 40% of American families actually cook at home. The fact is, I simply do not believe these statistics and I believe they are trotted out to provide a justification for a weak book premise. In the total absence of any documentation, my first basis for skepticism is the cost of eating out. A family of four can eat a good meal at home for three dollars a head. A far less nutritious meal out probably averages twice that. I concede this figure probably puts people using frozen or deli-prepared convenience foods eaten at home in the `not home cooked' category, but this leads to another objection to this book. My second basis for skepticism is the great popularity of cooking shows on both the Food Network and PBS. Even if neither of these arguments hold water, the book still does not hit its mark, as it is no solution to family meal providers who are pressed for time. If the object is to draw more people into home cooking, what you need is something like Rachael Ray's approach of fast meals from common ingredients. Coleslaw with Boiled Dressing is great, but it takes a long time to make and it is dangerous outside the fridge for very long, as it contains raw eggs. Marion Cunningham is a very good, very important cookbook author, but I think this book is misguided. A new, paperback edition of `The Fanny Farmer Cookbook' would have far more effectively served the object of the book with highlights on fast and on neglected recipes. Buy `Fanny Farmer' and give this book a pass. If you get the book as a gift, don't take it to the church bazaar. It has good recipes and will look very nice on your bookshelf. It is a perfect refutation of the books premise when another reviewer says this book gives her all her favorite recipes in one place.
Rating: 
Summary: Great idea; not so good package
Review: The idea of reviving the family meal is wonderful and noble, and this book deserves a lot of credit for this concept, if nothing else. I also love the quoted material from other food writers in praise of preparing good food and dining together. Combined with the very attractive collage graphics and the interesting cover design, the book is fun to look at, too.
The recipes are pretty basic -- as another reviewer pointed out -- and not all that "lost" if you have at least two or three other basic cookbooks. (If you don't, you will surely welcome these homey recipes. They are worthy of inclusion!)
My biggest complaint is that the art director -- albeit very talented -- is clearly not a person who cooks. The book does not stay open on the kitchen counter -- even cracking the spine doesn't help. You have to weigh down the corners with heavy objects to get the book to stay open to the recipe you are using. That's why I am giving it three stars and not five.
Rating: 
Summary: All my favorites in one place!
Review: When I received this book, I greatly enjoyed simply reading through it . . . the inserts about the value of simple family cooking were truly inspirational. Then I settled down to actually try out the recipes, and was delighted with every one that I tried! Even better, I found that the book is a virtual compendium of my family's "favorite dishes" . . . recipes that I had gradually searched out or serendipitously discovered by trial and error from a huge collection of cookbooks over the past several years. What a lot of trouble it would have saved had I simply ordered this cookbook in the first place! (Chicken and dumplings, Salad Nicoise, Corn pudding, New England Boiled Dinner, Monkey Bread, Strawberry Shortcake with a biscuit-type base . . . the list of simple, down-home style recipes goes on and on.) The book also includes very useful, concise advice for such things as cutting up a whole chicken or freezing bones for making homemade broth. It gives good ideas for ingredient substitutions according to what you have on hand or what is in season, and even helps you figure out what to do with specific sauces, chutneys, and side dishes once you have made them . . . what to serve them with, for example. For me, this book is a winner! However, I will have to agree with the reviewers who have complained about the odd physical format of the book. It is definitely not built to stand up well over long-term use. How unfortunate.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: While I am a great fan of Marion Cunningham, this is a disappointing book. First, the book is not actually a hardback, but rather it is a paperback which has been inserted into a cardboard outer binding. It will not last. More disappointing are the recipes - many of them I have seen in other volumes of Mrs Cunningham's. One would do much better buying her most-exellent Fannie Farmer Cookbook and get a monster book of well tried and proven recipes. The graphics in this book are perfectly lovely, but I would heartily recommend that the potential purchaser consider one of Mrs Cunningham's many other cookbooks.
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