Celebrated television, cookbook, and restaurant chef Michael Chiarello is a master of simple, casually elegant cookingand a fabulous host. In this cookbookpacked with great recipes, gorgeous photographs, and inspiring entertaining ideashe shares his secrets for celebrating in style (and having fun doing it too!). Whether hosting four around the kitchen counter or a hundred for a cocktail party, readers will find everything from appetizers and main courses to desserts and drinks (over 130 recipes in all), time-saving tips, an all-important section on stocking the pantry (great for impromptu gatherings!), whimsical menus, and creative settings and table arrangements. A holiday cocktail party throws together quickly with bowls of crunchy Fusilli Snack Mix and Crispy Sausage-Stuffed Olives, all washed down with citrusy margaritas. Roll out the red carpet for an at-home movie night featuring Pop Culture Popcorn, Giant Bean Cassoulet with Fennel-Spiced Chicken, and Chocolate Mousse Cannolis along with the latest video release. Even a sit-down dinner can be a relaxing affair with Forever Roasted Lamb with Herbes de Provence, Lemon-Oil Smashed Potatoes, Garlicky Vegetables Primavera, and, for dessert, Molton Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes. Uber-casual Chiarello inspires calm and confidence in even the most jangle-nerved hosts, inviting everyone to think like an entertainerand relax like a guest.
"As a chef," says Michael Chiarello in
At Home with Michael Chiarello, "I can either build on a classic recipe or deconstruct it and put it back together with a new identity." The Napa Valley-based TV chef and author takes his own message to heart in this collection of 135-plus recipes for imaginative entertaining. Chiarello's formulas, for the likes of Grilled Salmon and Spinach Salad with Corn Juice "Zablione," Turkey Osso Buco, and "Short Stacks" with Shredded Chicken and Balsamic BBQ Sauce,
do reflect his ceaseless invention; but unlike some other chef's recipes, these are cook-friendlier, with flavors rooted in "homier" Italian and American culinary traditions. His chapter on pasta and rice dishes, with the likes of Lasagna of Roasted Butternut Squash, and Bordetto of Shrimp-Stuffed Pasta Shells, is particularly good.
The book also provides useful advice for easier, more original party-giving in, for example, Entertaining 101, which includes counsel on choosing a dining area, scaling recipes, and wine do's and don'ts, among other topics. Readers should know that many of the attractive dishes require a kitchen workout, and that invention occasionally overruns best taste, as in, for example, a dish of fennel-flavored pork tenderloin with a dressing of molasses, sage, and balsamic vinegar. Still, the majority of formulas, which include tempting sweets like Molten Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes and Freeform Cheesecake Poured Over Fresh Fruit, should make guests very happy as well as expanding the cook's repertoire. With alluring photos, the artfully produced book should, in itself, get the entertaining-at-home urge going. -–Arthur Boehm
