Review: Cook Like A Rock Star by Anne Burrell

Cook Like a Rock Star by Anne Burrell
Publisher: Clarkson Potter
Published: October 4, 2011








 You may know her from Worst Cooks in America, Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, Iron Chef, The Next Iron Chef, and Chef Wanted.  Now Anne Burrell has added another feather to her cap with her first cookbook.  I loved her show Secrets of a Restaurant Chef.  I learned many tips that I fantasize  about using someday, so I was super excited to get a chance to review her cookbook.

Cook Like A Rock Star is basically Secrets of a Restaurant Chef - cooking tips and tried and true shortcuts - with recipes.  The first sections is basically a step by step to following recipes, her basic ingredients, and the tools need to create the foods. The book is then divided into recipes for hor d'oeuvres, starters, main courses, pasts dishes, side dishes, and desserts.  Each sections begins with a anecdote from Anne and segues into the recipes.  There are plenty of helpful hints throughout the books such as how to properly poach your food and how to bread food properly.  The best thing about the book is that even though she spells everything out you don't feel condescended too.

Cook Like A Rock Star is a great cookbook.  I actually tried a couple of the recipes.  The ingredients were easily found at a regular supermarket - no special trips to Whole Foods or some specialty shops.  All the cooking terminology is defined and explained and many handy tips are included.  Whether you're a novice cook or a lazy cook like me, Anne gives all the tools needed to make you feel comfortable making these recipes.  I can't wait to try  the Calamari noodles.

** This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion. **

Swag to the 4th Power

Miss Timmins School for Girls by Nayana Currimbhoy

From Amazon:

A murder at a British boarding school in the hills of western India launches a young teacher on the journey of a lifetime
In 1974, three weeks before her twenty-first birthday, Charulata Apte arrives at Miss Timmins' School for Girls in Panchgani. Shy, sheltered, and running from a scandal that disgraced her Brahmin family, Charu finds herself teaching Shakespeare to rich Indian girls in a boarding school still run like an outpost of the British Empire. In this small, foreign universe, Charu is drawn to the charismatic teacher Moira Prince, who introduces her to pot-smoking hippies, rock ‘n' roll, and freedoms she never knew existed.
Then one monsoon night, a body is found at the bottom of a cliff, and the ordered worlds of school and town are thrown into chaos. When Charu is implicated in the murder—a case three intrepid schoolgirls take it upon themselves to solve—Charu's real education begins. A love story and a murder mystery, Miss Timmins' School for Girls is, ultimately, a coming-of-age tale set against the turbulence of the 1970s as it played out in one small corner of India.


Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

From the author's website

With the opening line of Silver Sparrow, “My father, James Witherspoon is a bigamist,” Tayari Jones unveils a breathtaking story about a man’s deception, a family’s complicity, and the teenage girls caught in the middle.

Set in a middle-class neighborhood in Atlanta in the 1980s, the novel revolves around James Witherspoon’s families– the public one and the secret one. When the daughters from each family meet and form a friendship, only one of them knows they are sisters. It is a relationship destined to explode when secrets are revealed and illusions shattered. As Jones explores the backstories of her rich and flawed characters, she also reveals the joy, and the destruction, they brought to each other’s lives.

At the heart of it all are the two girls whose lives are at stake, and like the best writers, Jones portrays the fragility of her characers with raw authenticity as they seek love, demand attention, and try to imagine themselves as women.

Donatella Cooks by Donatella Arpaia
From Amazon

Dubbed "the hostess with the mostest" by Zagats, Donatella Arpaia is a ubiquitous and striking presence on the national food scene. Literally raised in the business, she knows precisely what makes a guest feel welcome, whether in one of her wildly popular restaurants or one-on-one in her home. Yet every day she meets would-be home cooks—sophisticated, confident, successful women with discriminating palates—whose confidence evaporates at the kitchen door.
For these discerning diners, Donatella has written Donatella Cooks, a sassy, spirited guide to cooking and entertaining with flair. Writing with humor, wit, and practicality, she covers every element of a great evening, from super simple yet delectable food to the perfect music, drinks, and décor. Her foolproof recipes are brimming with bold flavor yet so easy to prepare even novice cooks can pull them off without breaking a sweat. Whether it’s a romantic dinner for two or a cocktail gala for dozens, Donatella Cooks has the winning formula for the perfect evening.