The serious cook is always delighted to hear the words ''superb" and "delicious" or even an occasional "bravo," but the ultimate compliment received at any table is a question: "May I have a copy of your recipe?" Whether it's Cream-Filled Crêpes Flamed in Cointreau or Grilled Knockwursts with Honey Mustard, if your audience likes the dish well enough to ask for the recipe, then it's a success. Fearless Cooking for Company includes ten years' worth of Michele Evans' "most requested" recipes, more than 300 of them, and they are truly special. Most are her own, but there are also contributions from family, friends, and chefs in restaurants around the world who have generously shared their secrets. The recipes offer a wide range of choices for every course and every taste, from instant dishes made from fresh and some prepared foods to elaborate presentations that require time and totally fresh ingredients. There are special sections on cooking for crowds, with recipes and menus that serve 12 or 24 people any time of the year. All entrées in the book are accompanied by menu suggestions, and some basic recipes are included to remind the reader of important techniques, procedures, and timing. Organization is as important to the home cook as it is to the chef in the largest restaurant kitchen, and it is one of the critical keys to good cooking and elegant, anxiety-free entertaining. A chapter called Mise en Place—putting everything in its place—suggests ways of organizing the preparation of a recipe in the most efficient manner possible. Whether you entertain every night of the week or cook only when the mood strikes you, the recipes in Fearless Cooking for Company will become part of your own treasured collection—recipes that you will be asked for again and again and that you will pass on to others with pleasure.

Michele Evans knows there is nothing so satisfying to a hostess as a happy, well-fed crowd. She also knows that even the most confident cook might easily be intimidated by the idea of cooking for more than a handful of guests. The thought of a buffet dinner for sixteen can bring visions of pots bubbling out of control or a menu of tired standbys such as roast beef and three-bean salad. With Fearless Cooking for Crowds, all that is changed. Evans has created more than three hundred foolproof recipes specially developed for entertaining groups of eight to fifty. Whether you are planning a formal dinner for eight or a buffet brunch for fifty, you will find delicious, unusual, uncomplicated recipes for every course from hors d’oeuvres to quick and easy desserts. Michele Evans believes that cooking for fifty is not ten times more difficult than cooking for five. The secret is organization, organization, organization—from invitations and menu planning to working with large quantities of food. You will never again feel frantic trying to multiply your favorite dish for six for a crowd of 24. Evans has designed perfect recipes for groups of 8, 12, 16, 24, 36, and 50. There are accompanying charts on cooking large amounts of pasta and rice and detailed instructions for assembling a recipe for a large crowd, a seemingly daunting chore. Evans also never forgets that beautiful, delicious cooking for crowds need not be expensive. The luscious recipes for casual or elegant meals, include: Indonesian Pork and Pineapple Ragout with Peanut Sauce for 8; Boneless Breast Coq au Vin for 12; Mixed Berry Crepes with Cassis Sauce for 12; Potato Salad with Fresh Pesto Dressing for 16; Brussels Sprouts with Red Pepper Butter for 24; Grilled Chicken and Vegetables Kebabs for 36; Ricotta, Mushroom, and Sun-Dried Tomato Strudel for 50. Fearless Cooking for Crowds acknowledges America’s growing appreciation for large-scale entertaining, and with every recipe shows how exciting, original, and delicious cooking for crowds can be.

NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • Celebrated food blogger and best-selling cookbook author Deb Perelman knows just the thing for a Tuesday night, or your most special occasion—from salads and slaws that make perfect side dishes (or a full meal) to savory tarts and galettes; from Mushroom Bourguignon to Chocolate Hazelnut Crepe. “Innovative, creative, and effortlessly funny." —Cooking Light Deb Perelman loves to cook. She isn’t a chef or a restaurant owner—she’s never even waitressed. Cooking in her tiny Manhattan kitchen was, at least at first, for special occasions—and, too often, an unnecessarily daunting venture. Deb found herself overwhelmed by the number of recipes available to her. Have you ever searched for the perfect birthday cake on Google? You’ll get more than three million results. Where do you start? What if you pick a recipe that’s downright bad? With the same warmth, candor, and can-do spirit her award-winning blog, Smitten Kitchen, is known for, here Deb presents more than 100 recipes—almost entirely new, plus a few favorites from the site—that guarantee delicious results every time. Gorgeously illustrated with hundreds of her beautiful color photographs, The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook is all about approachable, uncompromised home cooking. Here you’ll find better uses for your favorite vegetables: asparagus blanketing a pizza; ratatouille dressing up a sandwich; cauliflower masquerading as pesto. These are recipes you’ll bookmark and use so often they become your own, recipes you’ll slip to a friend who wants to impress her new in-laws, and recipes with simple ingredients that yield amazing results in a minimum amount of time. Deb tells you her favorite summer cocktail; how to lose your fear of cooking for a crowd; and the essential items you need for your own kitchen. From salads and slaws that make perfect side dishes (or a full meal) to savory tarts and galettes; from Mushroom Bourguignon to Chocolate Hazelnut Crepe Cake, Deb knows just the thing for a Tuesday night, or your most special occasion. Look for Deb Perelman’s latest cookbook, Smitten Kitchen Keepers!

Fried food is crispy, juicy, golden, and tasty. It's food that inspires passion, and no matter what anyone says about health you're going to find a way to eat it. But wait, even the health news isn't so bad-if food is fried properly. Hoppin' John Martin Taylor, well-respected food writer and author of Lowcountry Cooking, first shows how food that is cooked in clean, hot oil can be virtually greaseless. Hoppin' John's collection of over 125 fast, easy-to-prepare recipes not only includes the essentials-from fritters to corn cake, Smothered Steak to Pan-Fried Pork Chops-but offers lots of unexpected treats, too, with Asian, Mexican, Indian, and other influences. There are Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Italian Zucchini Pancakes, and Whole Fried Fish with Spicy Thai Sauce.

One of Food52’s most popular columnists and a New York Times bestselling author, top food stylist Erin Jeanne McDowell shares her baking secrets and the science behind them “Erin’s fierce understanding of the science of baking makes her one of the most trustworthy bakers that I know. But what’s even more special is that she does it all with the exact kind of friendliness and warmth that you want when you’re about to tackle laminated dough or French macarons for the first time. The recipes here are as encouraging and thorough as they beautiful and delicious. This book is an absolute must-have for bakers of all levels.” —Molly Yeh, author and blogger, My Name Is Yeh" When people see Erin McDowell frost a perfect layer cake, weave a lattice pie crust, or pull a rich loaf of brioche from the oven, they often act as though she’s performed culinary magic. “I’m not a baker,” they tell her. But in fact, expert baking is not at all unattainable, nor is it as inflexible as most people assume. The key to freedom is to understand the principles behind how ingredients interact and how classic methods work. Once these concepts are mastered, favorite recipes can be altered and personalized almost endlessly. With the assurance born out of years of experience, McDowell shares insider tips and techniques that make desserts taste as good as they look. With recipes from flourless cocoa cookies and strawberry-filled popovers (easy), through apple cider pie and black-bottom crème brûlée (medium), to a statuesque layer cake crowned with caramelized popcorn (difficult), and “Why It Works,” “Pro Tip,” and make-ahead sidebars with each recipe, this exciting, carefully curated collection will appeal to beginning and experienced bakers alike.

The handbook of Southern hospitality—with over one hundred recipes and tips on making guests feel at home! Food writer Nicki Pendleton Wood has gathered recipes from more than one hundred Southerners that they prepare when company is coming. These are the show-off recipes hosts pull out when guests are on the way, whether for an intimate evening with another couple, a party for a big crowd celebrating a milestone birthday, or anything in between. In addition to the recipes, contributors share their secrets for making guests feel at home with ideas for entertaining and table setting. Dishes include: Crunchy Fried Field Peas Collards with Citrus and Cranberries Lemon Miso Sweet Potatoes Purple Hull Pea Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette Cuban-Southern Pork Roast with Chimichurri “Barbecue” Sauce Chocolate Whiskey Buttermilk Cake with Praline Topping, and many more

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • With 165+ recipes, Bobby Flay opens up his home and shares his bold, approachable style of cooking for family and friends, along with his no-nonsense, essential advice for home cooks. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR AND FOOD NETWORK Welcome to Bobby's, where powerhouse flavors rule the day. In his most personal cookbook yet, Bobby shares over 165 bold, approachable recipes he cooks at home for family and friends, along with his well-earned secrets for executing them perfectly. Everyday favorites--from pan-seared meats and hearty pastas to shareable platters of roasted vegetables, bountiful salads, and casual, homey desserts--go bigger and bolder with Bobby's signature pull-no-punches cooking style. Expect crowd-pleasing classics taken to the next level with exciting flavors, such as Spanish-style shrimp and grits, pumpkin pancakes with apple cider syrup, and sticky-savory-sweet Korean BBQ chicken. Riff on go-to dishes just as Bobby does with his master recipes for essentials, along with creative variations that take the base recipe in a range of directions to suit your mood, such as crispy bacon glazed with pomegranate molasses, deviled eggs topped with fried oysters, and mussels steamed in a heady green curry broth. With Bobby by your side, cooking at home just got a lot more exciting.

Join the food revolution! Learn to be fearless in the kitchen! Home cooking is making a comeback, whether for health, entertainment, economy, or the simple joy of learning. Fast & Fearless Cooking for the GENIUS offers kitchen secrets, stories, and free-wheeling kitchen moves. For anyone who forgot to learn how to cook, this is a chance to learn at the knee of a knowledgeable, opinionated, and funny nana. Even the most reluctant of cooks will be enticed into the kitchen after reading this. The book is a boon to those who have not yet learned their way around a kitchen but who need to get food on the table with no delay. Long-time cooks as well will find new tricks and tips to encourage efficiency and improvisation. Built on umpteen years of experience in the kitchen and the constant practice of preparing three meals a day, this book lovingly presifts all of that knowledge and lays it out for the reader in a catchy style. This is more than cooking wisdom; it is also a tight little stash of timeless kitchen secrets. Constantly inventive, Ann Tudor shares her revelations and shortcuts and revolutionary ideas, pulling readers into the warmth of her kitchen and her life. Here are meals and dishes that you can prepare when you get home (exhausted) from work. Dishes that are delicious and nourishing, yet much less expensive than a diet of take-out and restaurant meals. When you are rushed and hungry, you don't have the energy to leaf through the pretty pages of a traditional cookbook looking for a quick and easy recipe whose ingredients you happen to have in your pantry. Fast & Fearless Cooking for the GENIUS teaches you to fly by the seat of your pants, to cook without a net-to riff, in short. Rich with ideas and tastes, the book captures Ann's life of cooking for family and friends. Her point of view is like that of an authoritative yet gentle Home Ec teacher who wants you to cook well and without fear whether you are dealing with a scant teaspoon of baking powder, a pot of boiling water, or a whole, raw chicken. She wants to improve your skills and make you a capable, confident cook, to develop your innate ability to cook so that you can eat well and be well. Fast & Fearless Cooking for the GENIUS outlines basic and easy principles and techniques for cooking. Using ingredients and methods that are sometimes idiosyncratic yet always approachable and time-tested, Ann presents her credo: Don't be afraid, have a basic larder with some normal ingredients and some that are new to you, and approach the whole business in a spirit of play. Let new ingredients become everyday additions to your repertoire-without stressing. Her life in food is yours to enjoy. Use Fast & Fearless Cooking for the GENIUS as a sort of spirit guide. Pick it up often and turn to any page for ideas or for one of the many great and well-rehearsed base recipes that will help you form your culinary repertoire. Ann Tudor speaks from a position of having planned, shopped for, prepared, and cleaned up after more than 40,000 meals, in the course of which she has learned a thing or two about kitchens and cooking. In this book she shares everything she can remember. Reading this book is like eating potato chips: once you start, you don't want to stop! Grab an apron and start stirring! About the For the GENIUS Series The For the GENIUS(TM) series is a line of how-to books about any topic that people want to learn. Though written in a conversational style, GENIUS books are thorough and authoritative treatments of the subject. They are written by experts in the subject who want to share with others what they've learned. Pure genius!