Cook This: Dinner for Everyone by Mark Bittman
Twice a month, our writer cooks from the book and decides if these farm-to-table recipes are worth the investment.
The cover of Mark Bittman’s latest book claims “100 Iconic Dishes Made 3 Ways — Easy, Vegan or Perfect for Company.” I took that to mean 100 recipes, each with three variations, but I was wrong. Dinner for Everyone (Clarkson Potter/Publishers, $40) is actually 100 themes played out in three (very) different recipes. Choose a dish genre (chowder, baked pasta, Indian curry, pot pie) and decide whether you want something “easy,” “vegan” or “all out.” Easy recipes are typically on the table in 30 minutes or with minimum hands-on time and won’t use all the bowls in your kitchen. Vegan options are plant-based versions “inspired” by the classics. And all out recipes are for when you have lots of time and someone to impress. One quibble is that there’s only one photo per theme, and it’s not necessarily placed next to the corresponding recipe.
I flipped to the cacciatore section and considered my options: Drumstick Cacciatore (Easy), Hearty Vegetable Cacciatore (Vegan) and Rabbit Cacciatore (All Out). I decided on the drumstick version, which lived up to its “easy” designation. Drumsticks are seared, joined in the pan by garlic and button mushrooms and simmered with a sauce of tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, dried herbs, chili flakes and water. Next time, I might dial back the vinegar a touch, but served with a chunk of sauce-sopping sourdough bread, this made a simple and speedy supper.
The value of this book really depends on whether you would use all three recipe styles. It doesn’t really work for vegans because of the 200 recipes they’ll never touch, and likewise anyone who shies away from entertaining. But if you’re the sort of person who says “I feel like cassoulet” and then thinks about whether you might want a quick, vegan or fancy version, perhaps it’s worth the investment.
Excerpted from Dinner for Everyone by Mark Bittman. Copyright © 2019 by Mark Bittman. Published in the United States by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
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by Wendy Underwood, Modern Farmer
April 12, 2019
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Another good use of this cookbook is when you have a household of different types of eaters – vegetarian, fussy, and adventurous. The ideas here provide similar meals and make the process a bit easier.