Minimal Effort, Great Rewards

ometimes around here we are fancy. We garnish things. We make a sauce. Before kids we made homemade pasta. Mostly these days we eat things that can be cooked in one pot, eaten cold, or put on pasta (store-bought). This is not to say we don't eat well. Often I look at the abundance on the table and think "We eat like kings."

Mark Bittmans's new cookbook "The Minimalist Cooks at Home: Recipes That Give You More Flavor From Fewer Ingredients in Less Time" fits right into our un-fancy fancy home. Mark Bittman takes the most uncomplicated path to make glorious food that feels gourmet. The food feels indulgent. Really, it is just a much nicer version of that same stuff that can be cooked in one pot.
This is the highest compliment to Mr. Bittman and his cookbook. He is realistic. This is about what you can do to get food on the table. But he does not treat you like an idiot suggesting time-saving hits that taste terrible. There is a streak of the New York restaurant world interesting flavor combination here, but it works.

If you are not familiar with Mark Bittman's previous cookbook, How to Cook Everything, you should be. It lives up to its name. It is huge and really does have everything, with good concise writing too. So when I saw this book I was excited. This guy is my friend in the kitchen.

"The Minimalist Cooks at Home" lives up to expectations. It is a compendium of New York Times articles from the Minimalist column Mark Bittman writes. For the book he took off on whole great tangents, expanding the information and adding all sorts of recipes that piggyback on each other. He introduces a subject, say the perfect roast chicken. Once you understand that, he gives incredible variations--Honey-Orange Roast Chicken, Soy-Roasted Chicken, or Lemon-Roasted chicken.
My favorite of these transformations is Spaghetti with Zucchini which can become Spaghetti Carbonara or Fettucini Alfredo. I have never made it past the Zucchini version because it is so wonderful. But I plan to. Oh, it is great. It may be worth the price of the whole book. It is creamy, crispy, and sumptuous.

The aim of the recipes in "The Minimalist Cooks at Home" is to tempt the expert and not overwhelm the novice. Nearly all of the recipes seemed tempting to me. The photographs demonstrating techniques are the only off-note in the book. They are dismal looking and unhelpful. Luckily they are also totally unnecessary and can be ignored.

Since all the recipes are worth trying it is hard to list the most enticing. But if I had to put together a few meals here are the recipes I would use: Prosciuto Soup; Pasta with Potatoes; Emma's Cod and Potatoes; Spicy Chicken with Lemongrass and Lime; Beet Roesti with Rosemary; Fig Relish; and every variation of the One Batter, Many Cookies.

"The Minimalist Cooks at Home" will make you feel like a four star chef--not the kind that builds tall salads and terrines of this and that, but the kind that makes the comfort food from her own country and wows everyone, in a very intelligent and educational way, of course. The author put it best himself in his introduction when he said, "It all starts with simplicity, which is not a compromise but a treasure."

Spaghetti With Zucchini Salt and freshly ground black pepper 3 tablespoons olive oil 3 or 4 small zucchini (about 1 pound), washed and trimmed and cut into slices 1/8-1/4 inch thick 2 eggs 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 1 pound spaghetti, linguini, or other long pasta 1/2 cup roughly chopped mint, parsley, or basil Put a large pot of water to boil over high heat and salt it. Place the olive oil in a 10- or 12- inch skillet over medium-high heat. A minute later, add the zucchini; cook, stirring only occasionally, until very tender and lightly browned, 10-15 minutes. Season with a little salt and a lot of pepper. Meanwhile beat the eggs and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan together. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until it is tender but firm. When it is done, drain it and combine it immediately with the egg-cheese mixture, tossing until the egg appears cooked. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Toss in the herb and zucchini and serve immediately, passing the remaining Parmesan at the table.

---

Michelle Auerbach Brode was a professional chef. Now she is much happier cooking at home for her family and talking about food incessantly. If you need to talk to her about food or anything else she can be reached at Michelle.Brode@pobox.com.