The New Elegant But Easy Cookbook

A completely revised and updated edition of the cookbook that set thestandard for entertaining, featuring new recipes and old favorites with allthe great taste, convenience, and ease of preparation that has made itthe entertaining bible for more than 500,000 cooks.

We all know that stirring risotto in the kitchen while your guests are gossiping in the living room is no fun. That's why the recipes in The New Elegant but Easy Cookbook can be prepared in advance and refrigerated or frozen until your party. While sharing all-new recipes for delectable dishes like Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Goat Cheese, Mediterranean Couscous Salad, Michele's Corn Pudding, or an astonishing Prepare-Ahead Chocolate Soufflé, Burros and Levine have also included fifty favorites from the original cookbook, like Sherley's Parmesan Puffs, Baked Imperial Chicken, Green and Gold Squash, and Lois's Original Plum Torte (the most requested recipe ever reprinted in The New York Times).

To make your life even easier, the book has an ingredients list with mail-order sources and lists of recipes for specific needs and occasions. Best of all, there are ten foolproof menus, from an Old-Fashioned Casual Dinner for 6 to a Brunch for 16 to a Cocktail Party for 24, each with a shopping list and a two-week "countdown game plan" that will take the fear out of entertaining for even the first-time host.

The track record of the Elegant but Easy Cookbook speaks for itself. Almost 40 years and 500,000 copies in print is the figure of best-selling novels, not cookbooks. Yet co-authors Marian Burros and Lois Levine have endured, and The New Elegant but Easy Cookbook is destined to continue the tradition. The concept for the book hasn't changed: it's filled with recipes that can be prepared ahead of time so the cook can enjoy the party instead of hovering over the stove. However, the old book had become dated, often relying on canned and prepared ingredients that--while perfectly acceptable in 1960--did nothing to reflect more modern tastes. The New Elegant but Easy Cookbook manages to maintain the integrity of the original while taking a new culinary approach with more emphasis on fresh ingredients and world cuisine. Only 50 favorite recipes are included from the original volume (including Lois's Original Plum Torte, the most requested recipe reprinted in the New York Times, ever), while the rest are a dynamic new approach to simple and easy cooking. Dishes like Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Goat Cheese or Couscous are elegant, yet still sturdy enough to be prepared in advance. Burros and Levine have done their homework, and it shows. None of the recipes are to be underestimated because they are simple or can live in a refrigerator until mealtime. The authors have also provided ten foolproof menus, planning guides for large dinner parties, and ingredients lists with mail-order sources. In an age where time has become a precious commodity, The New Elegant but Easy Cookbook provides a resource to help free the chef from the kitchen to enjoy the ritual of the meal. --Mark O. Howerton