From the legendary editor of some of the worldβs greatest cooksβincluding Julia Child and James Beardβa passionate and practical book about the joys of cooking for one.
Here, in convincing fashion, Judith Jones demonstrates that cooking for yourself presents unparalleled possibilities for both pleasure and experimentation: you can utilize whatever ingredients appeal, using farmersβ markets and specialty shops to enrich your palate and improve your health; you can feel free to fail, since a meal for one doesnβt have to be perfect; and you can use leftovers to innovateβin the course of a week, the remains of beef bourguignon might be reimagined as a ragΓΉ, pork tenderloin may become a stir-fry, a cup or two of wild rice produces both a refreshing pilaf and a rich pancake, and red snapper can be reinvented as a summery salad. Itβs a fulfilling and immensely economical process, one perfectly suited for our timesβalthough, as Jones points out, cooking for one also means we can occasionally indulge ourselves in a favorite treat.
Throughout, Jones is both our instructor and our mentor, suggesting basic recipesβsuch as tomato sauce, preserved lemons, pesto, and homemade stockβthat all cooks should have on hand; teaching us how to improvise using an ingenious strategy of building meals through the week; and supplying us with a lifetimeβs worth of tips and shortcuts. From Childβs advice for buying fresh meat to Beardβs challenge to beginning crΓͺpe-makers and Lidia Bastianichβs tips for cooking perfectly sauced pasta, Jonesβs book presents a wealth of acquired knowledge from our finest cooks.
The Pleasures of Cooking for One is a vibrant, wise celebration of food and enjoying our own company from one of our most treasured cooking experts.
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