CATEGORY

General cookbooks like Mitchell Davis's 600-recipes-packed Kitchen Sense can't help but raise a question--in a world with The Joy of Cooking and How to Cook Everything, to name two such tomes, is another such book wanted? On the yes side, Davis has provided a nicely edited selection of homey, easy-to-do recipes--old favorites like baba ghanoush, tuna casserole, frise aux lardons, and chicken cacciatore, plus more unusual formulas, such as Seared Scallops with Warm Pomegranate Vinaigrette, Chipotle-Rubbed Turkey Breast, and Grilled Lamb Chops with Salsa Verde. Sweets include the likes of Bourbon and Bread and Butter Pudding, Salty Chocolate Sabls, and Peach Galette and Pumpkin Chiffon Pie, as well as old standbys like strawberry shortcake and chocolate chunk cookies. Kitchen Sense's well-written recipes might easily form the backbone of any cook's repertoire. Present also are notes to help readers better understand ingredients and techniques, as well as advice on advance preparation and what to do with leftovers, among similar matters. Davis's approach is both casual and informed, which is exactly right for the kind of book he's aimed to write.

On the no side--well, we've visited many of the book's recipes many times before, and in versions that could be called, to the extent that it's possible, definitive. It remains for the reader to decide which book and author he or she feels most comfortable with--whose recipes jibe most closely with personal liking. For many, Kitchen Sense will offer just the right combination of good taste, technical ease, and recipe soundness to make it a trusted kitchen helper. --Arthur Boehm