"Claire is a clever cook who writes recipes, which are useful, affordable and practical (not as easy as it sounds). This is a book filled with recipes which you WILL cook, new ideas and twists on old friends. Bravo Claire, a lovely book in every way." – Anna Jones Most of us buy the same ingredients week in, week out, and cook the same old recipes. Cookery writer Claire Thomson wants to encourage people to ditch the boring chicken stir-fry, the all-too-predictable spag bol and dreary fish pie, and enliven their cooking and eating. Claire takes our 10 favourite supermarket ingredients and reinvents them as modern classics. With sections on chicken, tomatoes, eggs, cheese, minced meat, pasta, potatoes, salad, lemon and chocolate, each chapter covers the basics about that ingredient, then offers recipes using each in ways that will brighten up mealtimes. Claire's cooking is simple yet imaginative, and her kitchen expertise and knowledge of flavour combinations mean that these dishes will become your new standby meals. This is the new essential cookbook, a modern solution to the eternal question: "What shall I cook tonight?"

Most of us buy the same ingredients week in, week out, and cook the same old recipes. Cookery writer Claire Thomson wants to encourage people to ditch the boring chicken stir-fry and the all-too-predictable spaghetti, and enliven their cooking and eating. Claire takes our 10 favorite ingredients and reinvents them as modern classics. With sections on chicken, tomatoes, eggs, ground meat, pasta, potatoes, salad, lemon and chocolate, each chapter covers the basics about that ingredient, then offers 12 recipes using each in ways that will brighten up mealtimes. Claire's cooking is simple yet imaginative, and her kitchen expertise and knowledge of flavor combinations means that these dishes will become your new standby meals. This is the new essential cookbook, a modern-day solution to the eternal question: "What should I cook tonight?"

Designed to reflect changing tastes and preferences, as well as new kitchen and culinary styles, this 950-recipe cookbook covers all sorts of dishes, with tips on setting up shop, buying and storing food, and more

Best Kitchen Basics beats the revolutionary drum in the domestic kitchen - no longer are high-end techniques or recipes the sole domain of award-winning restaurants. Here, Mark Best breaks it down, putting the individual elements of each recipe into the home cook's hands and empowering them to think differently. It includes 100 original recipes built around 30 accessible ingredients - from eggplant to pumpkin to chocolate and eggs. Best Kitchen Basics ups the ante on the familiar. Best insists that it is not a question of luxurious ingredients, simply the knowledge and wherewithal to unlock the beauty of some of the most basic elements of cooking. In the case of mushrooms, for example, he starts with a basic recipe for classically stuffed mushrooms, and develops to the next step requiring a little more application of fermenting mushrooms. And then, for the enthusiastic cook with a little more time on their hands, a mushroom ravioli in mushroom consomme. In addition to recipes, Best takes readers on "skills sessions". He unpacks the building blocks of the best chefs, includes step-by-step guides and shares snippets of technical detail. The book does not aspire to be comprehensive, rather an enjoyable - and useful - insight into one man's craft. Originally inspired by a well-thumbed recipe collection left to him by his beloved grandmother, Best has set the tone for an accessible, engaging book that will prompt cooks to take their skills and mindset to another level.

Take your cooking skills to the next level while developing a knockout repertoire of 200 essential dishes that satisfy what our modern palates crave, from simple meals to dinner-party center­pieces. We've made improvements to well-loved dishes by incorporating innovative techniques in recipes such as Butter-Basted Rib-Eye Steak and added modern classics such as Vegetable Bibimbap and Olive Oil-Yogurt Bundt Cake. In this book, you'll find the perfect roast chicken and a killer banana bread but also a Turkish-inspired tomato soup, luscious Chinese braised short ribs, and a set of wholesome grain bowls. A chapter on weeknight dinners offers smart paths to great flavor--from Bucatini with Peas, Kale, and Pancetta that cooks in one pot to a pizza that bakes in a skillet--including plenty of vegetarian options. Other chapters turn up the volume on breakfast and dessert standbys; try the 100 Percent Whole-Wheat Pancakes and Brown Sugar Cookies and you may never go back to the regular versions. We'll also help you pull off your next--or even your first!--dinner party with recipes guaranteed to impress (and to work), such as Braised Lamb Shanks with Bell Peppers and Harissa, Miso-Marinated Salmon, and Roasted Zucchini and Eggplant Lasagna. Most of us--not just newbies--could stand to bone up on certain culinary basics, and our methods may surprise even more experienced cooks, from seeding fresh chiles (we use a measuring spoon) to hulling strawberries (a plastic straw works well). And that's just the tip of the iceberg of what these recipes teach. You'll discover how to "reverse sear" thick pork chops so they turn out juicy all the way through, grind meat in a food processor for the ultimate burger, and shape fresh corn tortillas without a tortilla press or rolling pin. As you progress through this book, you will also gain a deeper understanding of ingredients, better ­techniques, and the secrets we use in the test kitchen via sidebars called "Think Like a Cook," which offers insights that can help in your larger culinary life. For example: How to Be an Avocado Whisperer: Squeezing that avocado is just going to bruise it. Learn a better way to tell when it's ripe. Improvising a Pan Sauce: After searing a steak, chop, or chicken breast, don't clean the pan! We show you how to use these browned bits to make a rich, deeply flavored sauce. How Cheese Melts: Learn why some cheeses melt smoothly while others turn greasy--plus a trick to help cheddar melt without breaking. The Egg-Doneness Continuum: See the difference between soft-, hard-, and overcooked eggs and find a foolproof method for nailing it every time (and removing the shells more easily).

Hundreds of recipes designed to get exceptional meals on the table in under an hour With Kitchen Simple, James Peterson, one of America’s most celebrated cookbook authors and renowned cooking instructors, delivers a definitive resource for the busy home cook. Elevating routine, weekday fare into exciting culinary creations, Peterson proves unequivocally that great food need not be complicated or time-consuming to prepare. More than 200 recipes, such as Summer Steak Salad, Mexican-Style Gazpacho, White Bean Bruschetta, Red Cabbage with Bacon and Apples, and Ricotta Ravioli, are thoughtfully streamlined to require no more than thirty minutes of active prep time with delivery to the table in under an hour. For leisurely meals and celebratory occasions, there are also dozens of luxe dishes, like Red Wine Pot Roast, Eggplant Parmigiano, Duck Confit, and Profiteroles with Chocolate Sauce. And, from the master of sauces, comes a paired-down primer on making foolproof Mayonnaise, Caper and Herb Sauce for vegetables and chicken, and an easy Béarnaise to dress up grilled fish. Kitchen Simple presents creative possibilities for weeknight meals, quick-and-easy breakfasts, impromptu dinner parties, and inspired last-minute desserts. And with Peterson’s invaluable variations, cooks can confidently substitute harder-to-find ingredients with items already at hand. Additional advice on how to stock a pantry with staples to make everyday cooking even easier, plus an inventory of truly indispensable kitchen tools make Kitchen Simple a go-to source of inspiration for cooks of all persuasions: novice or experienced, time-pressed or laid-back, casual or serious.

Host of Cooking Channel's Kelsey's Essentials and fan favorite on season four of The Next Food Network Star, Kelsey Nixon shares the essential recipes, techniques, and tools that new home cooks need in their back pocket. A young food star and new mom, Kelsey is an invaluable friend in the kitchen to everyone settling into their first kitchen of their own. Her recipes, which are broken down into simple steps, teach readers how to cook, highlighting key tools and basic techniques everyone should know. And yet her flavors are anything but basic; Kelsey gives everyone the confidence to start with the 2.0 version of a recipe instead of the boring standards. For example, she makes her house pilaf with quinoa instead of rice, and her addictive fruit salad is a savory first course instead of a lackluster dessert. With 100 recipes and 60 color photographs, Kitchen Confidence brings home all of the energy and spirit of the Cooking Channel show of the same name, making it an excellent handbook for newlyweds, recent college graduates, and those discovering their kitchens for the first time.