Alie and Lisa had lunch today at the America's Test Kitchen studios where they got a taste (literally!) of the new books being published this fall by the ATC folks, the ones behind Cooks Illustrated magazine and the Best Recipe cookbook series. Normally I would be very jealous, but they brought me back so many goodies that I am grinning like an idiot.
First was a slice of chocolate cake that did, indeed, take the cake. Alie told me there was a secret ingredient--sauerkraut! The recipe came from their new cookbook America's Best Lost Recipes, which I have been looking forward to since they began their Heirloom Recipe Reservation Project through their Cook's Country magazine. (link takes you to a story about the project from NPR--with the Chocolate Sauerkraut Cake recipe!).
Alie told me they had runzas for lunch (the recipe was a runner-up in the lost recipe contest), which she had never heard of before. I hadn't either until I became best friends with a girl from Nebraska. So I guess it's just as well that I wasn't at lunch--I'm sure the runza recipe in the cookbook is fine, but I'm also sure that it can't compare with my friend Kari's family recipe!
Alie also brought me a galley of a new book in the Best Recipe series--The Best International Recipe, coming out in November. This is one I didn't know about, and after looking at it I am super-psyched! It reminds me of Mark Bittman's The Best Recipes in the World but in Cook's Illustrated style--fewer recipes, but each is accompanied by a fantastic essay on its development, testing, and refinement. Though Bittman is usually my go-to-guy, I have to say the ATC folks take this round. Definitely check it out!
No comments:
Post a Comment