The Dinnertime Survival Cookbook: Delicious, Inspiring Meals for Busy Families
This cookbook from an East Coast restaurant chef turned caterer is simple and sophisticated. Ponzek emphasizes using the best ingredients in straightforward ways, often with enough of a twist to keep things interesting. The zucchini that’s part of a summer harvest, for example, is transformed into a tasty curried soup, while crab becomes Thai crab cakes with mango sauce or a Cajun crab burger. The introduction, in which she explains that easy doesn’t always mean quick, and her several sidebars (the do’s and don’ts for a perfect roasted chicken is one) support her contention that evening meals for families, couples, and singles don’t have to be something microwaved. Any level of home cook, from novice to professional, can relax and execute these 125 recipes, which are full of goodnesses and local seasonal ingredients. --Barbara Jacobs