Better From Scratch

From the James Beard Award-winning, New York Times-bestselling author. “Through the recipes for 10 classic meals, he covers how to cook almost anything.” —Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa From Scratch looks at ten favorite meals, including roast chicken, the perfect omelet, and paella—and then, through 175 recipes, explores myriad alternate pathways that the kitchen invites. A delicious lasagna can be ready in about an hour, or you could turn it into a project: try making and adding some homemade sausage. Explore the limits of from-scratch cooking: make your own pasta, grow your own tomatoes, and make your own homemade mozzarella and ricotta. Ruhlman tells you how. There are easy and more complex versions for most dishes, vegetarian options, side dishes, sub-dishes, and strategies for leftovers. Ruhlman reflects on the ways that cooking from scratch brings people together, how it can calm the nerves and focus the mind, and how it nourishes us, body and soul. “Like a master chef clarifying a murky stock into a crystal-clear consommé, Ruhlman detangles the complex web of technique, myth, and folklore that is cooking . . . The lessons are set up in such a way that you can decide exactly how deep a dive you want to take, though with a guide like Ruhlman at your side, that’s most likely a mouth-first leap straight into the deep end.” —J. Kenji López-Alt, New York Times-bestselling-author of The Wok “He’s like a good friend joining you in the kitchen, and this book will certainly become the home cook’s trusted companion.” —Thomas Keller, chef/proprietor, The French Laundry

Discover sixty delectable recipes inspired by everyday pantry and fridge staples like pickles, bacon, marshmallows, and sriracha chili sauce. From homemade granola and jams to condiments and kimchi, this cookbook is full of easy recipes, helpful tips, and clever ideas for making these favorite items at home. Armed with this collection of do-it-yourself recipes—easy to personalize and customize with the seasons—stock your kitchen with flavor and make delicious gifts for friends and family. You’ll start to rethink what goes into your grocery cart when you realize the endless possibilities, and health benefits, of making these favorite foods from scratch. Whether whipping up your favorite sandwich condiments, fermenting your own sauerkraut, or making beef jerky from scratch, so many kitchen staples are simply better and more nutritious homemade. This collection of do-it-yourself recipes will inspire you to stock your kitchen with made-from- scratch favorites without the added preservatives, sugar, and unpronounceable ingredients found in similar store-bought products. Organized by savory and sweet items, the recipes span classic to innovative and provide solutions for everyday items, inspiration for new creations, and ways to satisfy salty and sugary cravings. You’ll also find expert advice on storing foods, easy and seasonal variations on recipes, and how-to’s for DIY food gifts, trendy sodas and cocktails, and entirely homemade snack platters. These modern DIYs, like homemade chocolate-hazelnut spread, nut milks and butters, infused syrups, and vodka-brined olives, will provide just the arsenal you need to create an endlessly inspiring and tasty kitchen.

Lauren Allen, owner and creator of the Tastes Better From Scratch website is best known for recipes you can count on. Her much anticipated first cookbook includes recipes she terms, “The Best of the Best,” including her personal favorite recipes and fan favorites from her website, and several new recipes. Inside you’ll find recipes for every meal of the day, and more, as well as a variety of different cuisines. What’s inside: 116 recipes Images with every recipe QR codes linking to a video of how to make the recipe Make ahead and freezer tips for recipes.

Think glorious foods from scratch are impossible? Think again. "If your looking for a cookbook that is as entertaining as it is delicious, then look no further. From Scratch is a breath of fresh air when it comes to learning how to traditionally prepare and cook nutritious food. Shaye does not disappoint in her recipes and this cookbook reads like a letter from a close friend. These meals are easily prepared and yes, easily devoured."From Scratch: Easy Recipes for Traditionally Prepared, Whole-Food Dishes

The immensely popular blogger behind Little House Living provides a timeless and “heartwarming guide to modern homesteading” (BookPage) that will inspire you to live your life simply and frugally—perfect for fans of The Pioneer Woman and The Hands-On Home. Shortly after getting married, Merissa Alink and her husband found themselves with nothing in their pantry but a package of spaghetti and some breadcrumbs. Their life had seemingly hit rock bottom, and it was only after a touching act of charity that they were able to get back on their feet again. Inspired by this gesture of kindness as well as the beloved Little House on the Prairie books, Merissa was determined to live an entirely made-from-scratch life, and as a result, she rescued her household budget—saving thousands of dollars a year. Now, she reveals the powerful and moving lessons she’s learned after years of homesteading, homemaking, and cooking from scratch. Filled with charm, practical advice, and gorgeous full-color photographs, Merissa shares everything from tips on budgeting to natural, easy-to-make recipes for taco seasoning mix, sunscreen, lemon poppy hand scrub, furniture polish, and much more. Inviting and charming, Little House Living is the epitome of heartland warmth and prairie inspiration.

"Seriously Good Freezer Meals provides home cooks with the tools they need to make delectable, healthy meals using fresh and flavoursome ingredients, with information on shopping, cooking, freezing, thawing and everything in between. This unique compilation of 150+ family- and freezer-friendly recipes, made without processed foods, will help busy families save time and money while still enjoying home-cooked meals. The book provides an all-encompassing look at cooking freezer meals: getting organized, making lists, shopping strategies, nutritional information, making a lot of freezer meals in one day, freezer organization, freezer meal swaps, thawing and more. It also offers a mini starter programme for beginners, an intermediate programme and, for more advanced cooks, a guide to making 50 freezer meals in a day. Within the beautifully photographed full-colour pages you will discover recipes for every meal of the day and for every occasion."--

Introduces the basics of cooking and food, teaching young chefs to make sense of recipes, measure and substitute ingredients, and stock a pantry, illustrating that food is more than just a prepackaged meal.

Selected by the New York Times as a Notable Cookbook, by USA TODAY as a Best Holiday Gift For the Foodie, and by More.com as one of their Best Cookbooks of the Year. This unique combination of recipes, memoir, and advice is “pure entertainment in an original, fresh voice” (Mollie Katzen, author of Moosewood Cookbook). When blogger Jennifer Reese lost her job, she began a series of food-related experiments. Economizing by making her own peanut butter, pita bread, and yogurt, she found that “doing it yourself” doesn’t always cost less or taste better. In fact, she found that the joys of making some foods from scratch— marshmallows, hot dog buns, and hummus—can be augmented by buying certain ready-made foods—butter, ketchup, and hamburger buns. Tired? Buy your mayonnaise. Inspired? Make it. With Reese’s fresh voice and delightful humor, Make the Bread, Buy the Butter has 120 recipes with eminently practical yet deliciously fun “make or buy” recommendations. Her tales include living with a backyard full of cheerful chickens, muttering ducks, and adorable baby goats; countertops laden with lacto-fermenting pickles; and closets full of mellowing cheeses. Here’s the full picture of what is involved in a truly homemade life and how to get the most out of your time in the kitchen—with the good news that you shouldn’t try to make everything yourself.