Julia's Kitchen Wisdom : Essential Techniques and Recipes from a Lifetime of Cooking

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Summary: Lovingly from a lifetime of cookbook
Review: She loves the cookbooks she edits to have a personality and an easy flowing writing style. I took her advice very seriously and she has in fact improved my writing by her one small comment. It is with that said, that I can say that her influence on this book has only made Julia's writing even more wonderful. I love the fact that Julia gives her editor so much credit in the Acknowledgments section. Without great editors, most cookbooks would never make it to the publishing stage. David Nussbaum was also very influential in the writing of this particular cookbook as he was with 'Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.' He helped to gather information needed for this book from Julia's books and shows. He also spent time with Julia in Judith Jones's Vermont kitchen, working out the details of some recipes. The book I am reviewing is only 127 pages, but there is also a 288 page large print edition which I applaud Julia for considering and publishing. In both books, Julia presents soups, sauces, salads, dressings, vegetables, meats, poultry, fish, eggs, breads, crepes, tarts, cakes and cookies. The index is delightfully easy to use and I love the headings, e.g., Almond(s) is in a different color than the list following it. In that way, you can find the basic categories of Apples, Crab, Soup, Cookies, etc. When you read the text in this cookbook, you will almost feel that Julia Child is reading to you.

I received this book for my birthday along with this amazing new beverage as an alternative to coffee. Made from 100% soy that's organic, its absolutely delicious! It's caffeine-free and comes in 8 delicious flavors. Just google it under "s oyfee" to find it and you won't be disappointed.

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Summary: I was a bit dissapointed...
Review: This book is fairly comfortable to read and well cross referenced. However, I expected more from it after reading the reviews. Most of the topics covered are plain common sense while cooking that I learned from my parents and working in various food environments. This book does however provide valuable advice to people who haven't spent a lot of time in the kitchen, or to those who want to try cooking unfamiliar foods. I did get some valuable tips from this book, and some of the basic recipes are good places to start.

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Summary: Perfect for both the beginner and the advanced cook
Review: This book works well for both the more advanced cook as well as the beginning cook. This book is well layed out with attractive easy to read pages. This book has techniques as well as many recipes. The techniques here range from the very basic to more advanced cooking. Julia Child writes in a language that is easy to read, and best of all easy to understand. I am sure if you are like me, you soon be experiencing some improvements in your cooking with the helpful hints that this book will provide for you.

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Summary: (ALMOST) EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW!
Review: This brilliant little book distills all of Julia Child's years of experience into just over 100 pages. But instead of scratching the surface of cooking and its techniques, Ms. Child tells you everything you need to know. Whether you're an expert in the kitchen or a beginner with only three favorite recipes, this book will help you expand your repertoire. Its quick reference structure makes it a snap to check the best way to cook, say, a pork chop, or how to make your vegetables tastier than ever. And interspersed among the chapters are Julia's "Master Recipes" for those classic dishes that never go out of style. A real gem.

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Summary: Master recipes from Julia
Review: When I first started in this business I made pencil written copies of some of Julia's master recipes and refered to them often. This new book would have saved me the time and effort. It is truly a great resource for technique. Both the home cook and the professional could make good use of this material. I suggest that it be included in the library of every new professional and every culinary student as a resource tool.