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Photo: Amazon.com
Recipes by Emeril Lagasse
Photography by Steven Freeman
Harper-Collins Publishers -- 2009
Buy it on Amazon
Emeril Lagasse needs no introduction. The Bam! man is arguably one of the first chefs ushered into celebrity stardom as a successful restaurateur and a long tenure on the Food Network.
This time, the world-famous chef brings his fun and approachable cooking to the family on the go.
See what we tested and find out whether the book's worth buying after the jump.
Takeaway tips: Emeril's philosophy behind the book is: "Make the meals you want in the time you have." As the title suggests, the book is divided into three chapters: "20 Minutes or Less," "40 Minutes or Less" and "60 Minutes or Less" -- proving no matter what time you have, you don't have to forfeit a freshly prepared, flavorful meal.
In his introduction, Emeril offers steps home cooks can take to get a hot meal on the table in less than an hour. His tips include making stocks in big batches, keeping a well-stocked pantry and having plenty of frozen fruits and vegetables on hand. Interspersed with corresponding recipes are image-led, step-by-step tips on how to segment an orange for the Orange, Walnut and Goat Cheese Salad and how to properly carve a roast chicken for the Roast Chicken with Shallot-Garlic Butter recipe.
Quality of pictures: Seventy five pictures grace the pages of the approximately 140 recipes included in the book. Many are close-ups of simple and beautiful ingredients like golden olive oil and vine-ripened tomatoes. The pictures of the prepared recipes are vivid closeups. No fancy backgrounds or props, just food -- real food -- screaming to be eaten. It's a comfort food edition of Feast Your Eyes. We just wish there were a few more.
We tested: Oven-Crispy French Fries with Paprika-Parmesan Salt and Broiled Salmon with a Warm Tomato-Lemon Vinaigrette
Oven-baked French fries are nothing new -- but all too often they don't crisp up like we'd want. We followed Emeril's recipe exactly -- roasting oiled and seasoned 1/2-inch-thick fries in the oven turning them over halfway through. This time, the potatoes came out crisp and brown. As if that pleasant surprise wasn't enough, the potatoes get sprinkled with a mixture of Parmesan, paprika, garlic and onion powder and Essence (we substituted Creole Seasoning). One word: Bam!
Marjoram-kissed lemon zest is sauteed with halved tomatoes and lemon juice until the tomatoes just begin to pop. Salmon fillets were simply seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil before being broiled until cooked through. The refreshing lemon-tomato vinaigrette turned a simple broiled fish dinner into something beautiful that only took 15 minutes -- but don't tell your family or friends.
Worth the investment: After 13 cookbooks, 11 restaurants and multiple television cooking shows, we all know Emeril knows how to cook. While no groundbreaking recipes here, the New Orleans chef focuses on homestyle recipes that fit into the now-hectic-schedule of the average home cook. If you're a fan of Rachael Ray's "Thirty Minute Meals," but want to kick up the family table a few notches, Emeril's your man.
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12-05-2009 @12:07PM Leslie said... I'm in complete agreement. I was prepared to dislike the book--not a big fan of the show--but found the recipes to be something I'd actually cook at home. Simple yet satisfying.
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