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guk's review against another edition
5.0
I needed this book 30 years ago! The basics of cooking introduced in a nice way, through the teaching of other culinary challenged women. I've tried a few recipes from this book and it has inspired me into further reading about technique and philosophy which helps me more than just trying to read a recipe.
Borrowed from PVLD then purchased.
Borrowed from PVLD then purchased.
aclaybaugh's review
4.0
Enjoyable memoir of an experiment in basic cooking lessons and great tips to use in the kitchen. I learned many new things and plan on incorporating them into my own cooking!
sparklingreader's review
3.0
I had a little trouble getting into this book. The beginning is a memoir-like history of Kathleen and her background. I'm glad I kept at it as the more I read, the more I enjoyed it.
This is a book about cooks and cooking. It's also about life and lessons. Kathleen Flinn is a writer and graduate of Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. Though she doesn't own a restaurant or is a chef in one, she writes about food and knows food and other chefs. All this is to say, she does know what she's talking about when she tells you about food.
While grocery shopping one day, she noticed a woman loading up her cart with nothing but overprocessed fake food and an idea hit Kathleen. What if she took ten cooking novices and taught them the basics of cooking? Thus began six months of teaching - everything from chopping onions to tasting salt to learning about cuts of meat. Her nine volunteers started out as fast food and processed food junkies to people who could braise, saute, bake and simmer with the best of them. Kathleen wasn't the only teacher for her classes as she brought in chefs and nutritionists to show her class specific lessons. Along the way, Kathleen discovered what many teachers already know - that in teaching, you also learn.
At the end of the experiment, the students were more confident, more selective of what they bought and ate, and healthier as they found out that cooking from scratch is not only better for you, but also better for the environment and for your pocketbook.
I've been cooking for fifty years and I learned more than a few things in this book. In addition to the tips, there are also great basic recipes and tips for you to learn to make things on your own. Though Kathleen does promote good cooking, she also admits it's not for everybody. According to her, "not every meal has to be from scratch, nor does everything you consume have to be organic, locally sourced and pasture raised. Try to find a comfortable place somewhere between Tuna Helper (registered trademark) and Top Chef. If you burn, scorch, drop, boil over, overcook, undercook, underseason or other wise put a meal together that's less than a success, in the end it doesn't matter. It's just one meal."
Definitely a good book to read if you skip the first few pages. I recommend it for anyone who is a novice or afraid to pick up a knife and slice an onion. Grab your pots and pans, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Follow her tips and recipes and soon you'll be cooking with the best of them too.
This is a book about cooks and cooking. It's also about life and lessons. Kathleen Flinn is a writer and graduate of Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. Though she doesn't own a restaurant or is a chef in one, she writes about food and knows food and other chefs. All this is to say, she does know what she's talking about when she tells you about food.
While grocery shopping one day, she noticed a woman loading up her cart with nothing but overprocessed fake food and an idea hit Kathleen. What if she took ten cooking novices and taught them the basics of cooking? Thus began six months of teaching - everything from chopping onions to tasting salt to learning about cuts of meat. Her nine volunteers started out as fast food and processed food junkies to people who could braise, saute, bake and simmer with the best of them. Kathleen wasn't the only teacher for her classes as she brought in chefs and nutritionists to show her class specific lessons. Along the way, Kathleen discovered what many teachers already know - that in teaching, you also learn.
At the end of the experiment, the students were more confident, more selective of what they bought and ate, and healthier as they found out that cooking from scratch is not only better for you, but also better for the environment and for your pocketbook.
I've been cooking for fifty years and I learned more than a few things in this book. In addition to the tips, there are also great basic recipes and tips for you to learn to make things on your own. Though Kathleen does promote good cooking, she also admits it's not for everybody. According to her, "not every meal has to be from scratch, nor does everything you consume have to be organic, locally sourced and pasture raised. Try to find a comfortable place somewhere between Tuna Helper (registered trademark) and Top Chef. If you burn, scorch, drop, boil over, overcook, undercook, underseason or other wise put a meal together that's less than a success, in the end it doesn't matter. It's just one meal."
Definitely a good book to read if you skip the first few pages. I recommend it for anyone who is a novice or afraid to pick up a knife and slice an onion. Grab your pots and pans, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Follow her tips and recipes and soon you'll be cooking with the best of them too.
okiegirl4's review
5.0
I really enjoyed reading this book. I decided I needed this book for my bookshelf so I purchased a copy. I loved how by the author teaching her volunteers she taught me. Her passion of teaching comes thru her writing. I highly recommend this book!
sybrasays's review
4.0
The beginning worried me- as a working mom of 3 who doesn't enjoy cooking or feel confident in many cooking skills, I worried this book would feel shame-y. I don't have the desire, skills, knowledge, or mental bandwidth to make many things from scratch. I didn't get that feel from the book though, I got the impression that the author enjoyed helping these people. The book read like fiction but was nonfiction (a style I enjoy). I didn't pay close attention to many of the actual cooking tips, and read for entertainment rather than cooking improvement, which I think helped me enjoy it more.
pattydsf's review against another edition
3.0
“If you want to save money and eat well, worry less about buying in bulk or what's on sale, Jenny stated. The number one way to save money on your grocery bill is to not waste food. You can buy in bulk, within reason, on nonperishables, but for the fresh stuff, just buy less and shop more often.”
Thank you to my friend Candice for suggesting this title to me. Flinn is a good writer and an even better cook. Although I can cook and like to, I appreciate what Flinn is trying to do in this story. Making people better cooks is a worthy task. I am amazed that Flinn took this on.
I am even more amazed at the women who were willing to take on the job of becoming better cooks. Most of us are not good at admitting we need help with anything. These women were strong enough to say that they needed help with their cooking skills. I would not have wanted to open my refrigerator and cabinet doors to a stranger. They also gave up a lot of time to take classes from someone they did not know. The women who completed the course deserve credit for what they did.
I did pick up some tips and reexamined my knife skills thanks to Flinn. I am grateful to her for writing this and to my friend for realizing I would like this book.
I also checked out An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler. I already read this cookbook once, but Flinn reminded me of Adler’s desire to use everything. Now I am working my way through that book. Cooking is a wonderful skill to have and I am glad that both Adler and Flinn have made me a better cook.
Thank you to my friend Candice for suggesting this title to me. Flinn is a good writer and an even better cook. Although I can cook and like to, I appreciate what Flinn is trying to do in this story. Making people better cooks is a worthy task. I am amazed that Flinn took this on.
I am even more amazed at the women who were willing to take on the job of becoming better cooks. Most of us are not good at admitting we need help with anything. These women were strong enough to say that they needed help with their cooking skills. I would not have wanted to open my refrigerator and cabinet doors to a stranger. They also gave up a lot of time to take classes from someone they did not know. The women who completed the course deserve credit for what they did.
I did pick up some tips and reexamined my knife skills thanks to Flinn. I am grateful to her for writing this and to my friend for realizing I would like this book.
I also checked out An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler. I already read this cookbook once, but Flinn reminded me of Adler’s desire to use everything. Now I am working my way through that book. Cooking is a wonderful skill to have and I am glad that both Adler and Flinn have made me a better cook.
beatniksafari's review
4.0
Flinn's lessons to a group of reluctant cooks made me think back to my own culinary evolution, from a "box and bag" girl in college to a confident home cook some fifteen years later. My own transformation hinged on a desire to be healthier and to save money. I collected recipes from various sources, and tried out one a week, then two, then more, becoming a little more daring each time. In a watershed moment, I remember listening to "The Splendid Table" on NPR and realizing that it was possible to improvise on a recipe and still produce a vibrant, enjoyable meal with fresh ingredients. What a revelation!
I liked Flinn's honesty, and her simple, easy to follow advice about ways to move towards independence in the kitchen. The additives in prepared food (the Pasta Roni and such that I was so addicted to in college) are truly nauseating. How much we'd all benefit from adding more home cooked meals to our weekly repertoire. As Flinn assures us, it's not that hard, and is tremendously rewarding!
I liked Flinn's honesty, and her simple, easy to follow advice about ways to move towards independence in the kitchen. The additives in prepared food (the Pasta Roni and such that I was so addicted to in college) are truly nauseating. How much we'd all benefit from adding more home cooked meals to our weekly repertoire. As Flinn assures us, it's not that hard, and is tremendously rewarding!
ghostrachel's review against another edition
4.0
This book is a little like a cooking reality show without the creative editing that makes everything into a big fake drama. I enjoyed following the progression of the basic cooking courses the author was presenting to her kitchen-skill-challenged volunteers. It's a quick read, you probably won't fall asleep reading it, and you will probably learn a couple of things before it's over. Decent book. I rated the book itself four stars, however if you look carefully, you will see I "read" the audio book. Yikes. Half of the time the reader sounded completely zoned out and had a repetitive cadence that didn't seem to be affected by the sentences she was actually reading outloud. She mispronounces many words throughout the book and not even consistently (for instance she says both "Ass-PART-a-may" as well as "Ass-per-tame" for aspartame). In the middle of the book she sounded drunk and was slurring and mis-reading words. Maybe I've just been spoiled by tremendous readers in other audio books but I felt that the performance could be made into some kind of drinking game.