Any book from Mark Bittman is good news, but one that compiles the recipes from his NY Times column is reason to celebrate. Bittman, known as "The Minimalist," is a home cook's best friend, his recipes so clearly written, so simple in execution that they empower even a new cook. They are sophisticated enough for the most elegant dinner party, yet simple enough for a last-minute family meal. As usual with a book by Bittman, the number of recipes is generous - 350 in all.
Mark Bittman cuts to the chase. Advocating quality ingredients, he disdains the complexity that obscures the true essence of a dish. At home in every great cuisine, Bittman prefers recipes that give us ease and flexibility. His philosophy emanates from his understanding that the great cuisines developed from use of what was at hand. Bittman clearly states his food philosophy: "Good, simple recipes are not trendy but timeless, or nearly so. Simple...need not mean simple-minded. As much thought and work may go into figuring out a great three-ingredient, thirty-minute recipe as one that includes thirty ingredients and takes three hours. The fact that the preparation and execution are faster and easier does not make the recipe less sophisticated, complex, or desirable - indeed, it may make it more so."
The cooking trends of today reflect our harried lifestyles, but too often rely on prepared, manufactured ingredients. Bittman offers speed without the sacrifice of taste or elegance. His recipes are simple but careful, the creation of his erudition and his hard work with no burden placed on the cook. And since the preparation is speedy, it is possible to slow down when eating to savor the brilliant tastes that shine through simplicity.
The recipes come with brief words of advice. For a Seared and Steamed Chicken Breast that takes but twenty minutes to make, Bittman offers advice on "how to keep a skinless, boneless chicken breast moist while giving it a crust." For a Rib-Eye Steak with Anchovy-Red Wine Sauce, Bittman says that " the combined ingredients (wine, garlic anchovy and thyme) will give you the complex tastes and a smooth finish in about the time it takes to preheat a grill." For Roast New Potatoes with Rosemary, he tells us to treat new potatoes simply, using what little work you need to do to highlight their fresh and full potato flavor. Happy to use premade quality dough for pizza, Bittman puts his creative energy in the combinations of toppings, offering Pizza with Zucchini and Sausage, Pizza with Green Tomatoes, Pizza with Four Cheeses and Basil. These are all forty minute recipes.
Bittman has a seemingly endless repertoire and each category is filled. There are quick pasta recipes, fish and meat and vegetable recipes, and a host of ten-minute recipes for sauces and composed butters. And when it comes to dessert, you can try a five-minute coconut sorbet (with freezing time additional) or make a 30 minute cookie dough that you'll use several ways. "Cookies are always easy to make, but even they can use streamlining. One solution is to whip up a single dough in a food processor and finish it in different ways." Needless to say, Bittman gives several different ways.
About the author: Mark Bittman is the author of the Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.
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