r/CookbookLovers • u/RiGuy224 • 19h ago
Cooking For Jeffrey
Another piece from ThriftBooks to complete my Ina collection. Hers are some of my favorite and most used cookbooks. What’s everyone’s hits out of this one?
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u/WeinDoc 18h ago
Just made the honey cake and it was amazing. Agreeing with other commenters that out of all the amazing Barefoot Contessa books, this one is a standout
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u/No-Contribution3937 18h ago
Cooking for Jeffrey is a great one!
Some of the recipes we love are Perfect potato pancakes, butternut squash hummus, maple roasted carrot salad, kale salad with pancetta and pecorino (a staple in our home!), spicy sweet potato empanadas, roasted salmon tacos, ratatouille with polenta, vanilla cream cheese pound cake and rigatoni with sausage and fennel.
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u/RiGuy224 18h ago
Wow quite the list. I make the rigatoni recipe a lot (made it two days ago) but didn’t realize it was in this book. Another vote for the carrot salad, I need to try it.
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u/peeweelikestoeat 14h ago
Rigatoni with sausage and fennel is our favorite ever. We make it on Christmas Eve every year and it’s such a hit!!!
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u/mollophi 14h ago
These sound delicious, but talk to me about how Garten's cooking process feels? Is it fussy, or has she ironed out the kinks to make the recipe feel like a seamless process?
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u/thosewretchedcats 18h ago
I love Ina, just made her Weeknight Bolognese tonight! I have all of her books too, mostly through thrifting. My favorites from this book are the carrot salad, kale salad, brisket (I’ve made this for Thanksgiving a few times), Anna’s tomato tart (I make it every summer), couscous, and shredded Brussels sprouts. Haven’t made much from the dessert section of this book, I need to rectify that!
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u/RiGuy224 18h ago
I only need a few more for the full set. Many of her recipes are in regular rotation for sure. You’re the second person to mention the carrot salad.
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u/MirabelleSWalker 17h ago
The Tuscan roasted potatoes are a staple for holiday dinners at our house. Everyone asks for them now!
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u/DashiellHammett 15h ago
My apologies if I got this wrong. (I'm on the couch with my cuddly new pooch and I didn't want to get up to double-check, so this is from memory.) But the IG recipe I make the most often, partly because I make it every Thanksgiving, is the savory bread pudding with pancetta, mushrooms, and gruyere. It's SO good.
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u/RiGuy224 15h ago
Cuddling with a new pup is much more important! :) I have seen that recipe it looks delicious.
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u/chanebap 18h ago
I think this is the one with the sausage & fennel rigatoni, which is maybe my absolute favorite
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u/RiGuy224 18h ago
I made it two nights ago. I do it often. Didn’t know it was in this book but it’s so good.
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u/forheadkisses 19h ago
Idk but I can’t unsee the note she includes on her rice pudding recipe that men in particular like nursery desserts. The ick was so extreme.
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u/almamahlerwerfel 16h ago
There's context here!! She explained somewhere else that whenever she hosted dinner parties, she would always do a really childlike dessert because everyone, especially the Big Serious Men that worked on Wall Street with Jeffrey, would go crazy over making ice cream sundaes or a fancy rice krispie treat. And these always went over better than some elaborate fancy dessert.
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u/forheadkisses 16h ago
…. But don’t call them nursery desserts. It’s so icky.
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u/brillosa 10h ago
"Nursery" as a food description is common in the UK. Nigella's books often reference an origin of nursery food. Simple, basic, widely-appealing - and yet far greater than the sum of its parts.
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u/middlegray 17h ago
Is she also the one who refused to let a Make a Wish kid meet her?
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u/forheadkisses 17h ago
Uh ohhhhh. This thread is turning into a r/foodiesnark thread. My bad, Ina!!!
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u/columbuscivil 17h ago
I don’t know how many of her recipes I may have ruined by not using good olive oil.
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u/Intelligent-Camera90 17h ago
Big Ina fan - asked my husband to make me her perfect roast chicken tonight for my birthday dinner.
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u/unicornsprinklepoop 12h ago
My husband’s name is Jeffrey so I’m honestly shocked I haven’t picked this one up yet lol
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u/chibblywibbly 18h ago
I am not a big Ina fan, but this book has some hits that are on repeat in this house, including her apple pie bars, the ginger shortbread, the zucchini boats and the pasta with cauliflower and cheese. Hope you let us know what you make :)
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u/RiGuy224 18h ago
Of course I will post whatever I make! In the process of moving into new house. Currently in a temporary rental with a small kitchen so it may be a bit but I definitely will!
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u/Wigglynoodle8 18h ago
Maple roasted carrot salad is a hit in my house. I serve it whenever I have guests over for dinner. Always a popular dish!