The Cuisine of California
The Cuisine of California received national acclaim from the Washington Post and the Atlanta Constitution named it their recommendation as “the best book of the year”. USA TODAY described it as "recipes as original and fresh as the cuisine," The Dallas Times Herald said "Easily the most innovative of the new crop of cookbooks."
Amazon.com reader reviews:
A rare gem of a cookbook, October 9, 2001
Reviewer: David E. Rogers (see more about me)from Los Angeles, CA USA
I've had my copy of The Cuisine of California for almost 20 years--and its stains, tears and loose pages testify to its worth.
Got a dinner party coming up? Pull out this book and you're guaranteed to find a winning recipe--with menu and wine suggestions too. Want a cozy and delicious dinner for two? You'll find great ideas inside.
The ingredients lists and recipes are clear and supplemented by a glossary. I've halved and doubled recipes with little difficulty and have never had a failure. I trust this book so much that I've routinely served guests a dish I hadn't prepared before--with rave reviews! This is a cookbook that belongs in every kitchen!
I turn to this one again and again..., August 19, 2001
Reviewer: A reader from Portland, OR United States
There are a very few cookbooks (and I'm not talking about the "omnibus" types like Joy of Cooking)that I turn to again and again, and this is one of them. Having shredded my first copy, I'm delighted to purchase another for myself--it's a favorite gift for friends as well. This book captures the essence of California cooking I discovered when I moved there in the 80's, avoiding the "just-one-too-many-ingredient" recipes that took over pop California cuisine subsequently. The recipes are simple and unaffected and the flavors are great...in fact, I cooked the grilled chicken with salsa and mustard butter this very evening!!
ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS AROUND!, November 15, 2002
Reviewer: Amma (Louisa, Kentucky, USA)
There is one huge problem with this cookbook,it is so wonderful, so full of outrageously delcious receipes that the binding just does not hold up to hard use. I want a hard back copy and it simply is not available. If you love to serve elegant delcious fare, then this is one of THE MUST HAVE, MUST USE cookbooks. I am ordering my 4th copy as the others have all fallen apart due to over use. This book will become a dependable "kitchen friend". I've even taken to keeping an extra copy on hand to gift to friends. It is a rarity to find a cookbook where every receipe is foolproof, elegant, and delicious.
The Taste of the Season
(Amazon.com)
From Publishers Weekly
Anyone can cook during the summer months, when produce is abundant and grills are at the ready. More challenging, however, is winter cuisine, with its brussels sprouts, cabbages and seemingly endless parade of root vegetables. Snowbound home cooks are likely to welcome any inspiration geared to the season, and Worthington's book serves the purpose well. The author of The Taste of Summer and Seriously Simple knows cold weather can be the best excuse to dig into comfort foods too time-consuming or rich for the rest of the year. Some of her best recipes make the most of complex flavors that develop slowly in stews and braises: White Bean and Arugula Stew Gratinée, or Short Ribs with Dried Mushrooms and Fire-Roasted Tomatoes. Worthington's use of winter ingredients is efficient and at times inspired, as in Butternut Squash and Chestnut Soup, Autumn Salad with Persimmons and Pomegranates, and Pumpkin-Chocolate Bread Pudding. A few dishes lack any clear connection to the season, though, like Crispy Roast Duck with Lavender Honey Sauce, and Toasted Coconut Cake (but they're no less appealing). The book features beautiful photographs, a clean layout and somewhat small print. Down-to-earth and accessible, Worthington's paean to winter does much to make the slow, deep flavors of the colder months something to look forward to throughout the year.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Amazon.com reader reviews:
Another must have cookbook, October 28, 2004
Pen Name "Pen" (Los Angeles)
Diane Worthington has done it again. Buy at least three cookbooks: one to keep pretty and one to cook with and one for a gift. I've already had a few of these delicious recipes and all were big hits! Thank you Diane!
The Taste of Summer Food and Wine Magazine called it "a delicious sampling of the season." The San Francisco Chronicle said "Worthington's recipes are mouthwateringly good and are based on the bounty of the season. The dishes are fresh and colorful..." Bon Appetit Magazine said "A lovely collection of refreshingly simple recipes of casual entertaining."
Amazon.com reader reviews:
The best cookbook I own/A great gift, July 12, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from Wayzata, MN USA
Finally this cookbook has been re-released. I own many, many cookbooks and this is by far my all time favorite. You can use these recipes as a first time try on your guests. No worries.
A Wonderful Summer CookBook!, May 5, 2000
Reviewer: Carrie Hampton (see more about me)from Columbus, Ohio
This book is full of delicious and appealing recipes for summer. It's wondefully put together, and so easy to follow. The recipes are easy enough that anyone (even those with little experience) could create wonderful and tasty meals. The photography is beautiful and it's enjoyably constructed. Highlights are the "Cold Lobster Salad" and the "Summer Squash Gratin" ...but, there are so many more that I can't wait to try. I recommend it to any cook out there!
The California Cook
The California Cook has received outstanding reviews from the New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Gourmet and Bon Appetit Magazine.
From Richard Flaste - The New York Times Book Review
”Diane Rossen Worthington, a pre-eminent California cook and food writer, does the state proud, grilling her veal chops with zucchini-corn relish and grilling her polenta with sun-dried tomato pesto. Perfect. She grills her vegetable and shrimp salad, too--the 'quintessential California salad,' she says. And the truth is that in this very competent cookbook, one really does get a sense of a joyful California, free of catastrophes and worries, the dazzlingly sunny place of the mind's eye.”
The Washington Post: “Worthington reinterprets traditional European recipes with unfettered cultural vision, and produces wonderfully innovative recipes.”
Patricia Wells, author of Bistro Cooking, Trattoria and The Food Lovers Guide to Paris:
“Sunny, substantial, and welcoming, The California Cook presents a sheer festival of freshness and creativity, paying proper homage to a cuisine that says proudly, and distinctly, Made in California.”
Amazon.com reader reviews:
simply elegant, December 28, 1999
Reviewer: Melanie Walpole from San Diego, CA USA
It is extremely easy to offer guests ( or yourself) a magnificent meal that looks like you are a great chef with very little work. Easy techniques and ingredients allow you to enjoy cooking. You will reach for this book repeatedly!
Great, easy and delicious!, September 14, 1999
Reviewer: jamesellis@home.com from USA
I have many cookbooks, but this is one of my favorites. Every recipe that I made from this book has turned out well, which is, I think, a sign of a good cookbook. I particularly like the notes at the bottom of the recipe that tell you how far ahead and through what step you can make the dish. This is a big plus when entertaining. All of the dishes that I have made from this book have been crowd pleasers.
A highly recommended gastronomic delight!, April 16, 1999
Reviewer: Susan G. Hodge (see more about me)from La Canada, California
What a great cookbook! I use it frequently, particularly for the roast chicken (my family's personal favorite), shrimp salsa, the marinades and salad dressings, the chocolate truffle brownies, and an UNBELIEVABLY sinful chocolate cake! The format is attractive, the recipes are easy to follow, and the results have been uniformly consistent. If you enjoy flavorful, creative cuisine, this is for you!
The New California Cook
January Magazine
A California State of Mind
Reviewed by Monica Stark
Arguably, the style of cooking we've come to think of as distinctly Californian began in the 1970s, got a real head of steam in the 80s and settled into stride in the 1990s. Inarguably, it had less to do with California the place and more to do with the fact that the Californian climate offered chefs the opportunity to work with interesting fresh ingredients year round.
As time has gone on, this availability factor is something that has become more true for many North Americans. One doesn't have to wait for a two week window in order to prepare dishes with asparagus -- or pomegranates, or Napa cabbage, or.... Increasingly, even big box supermarkets carry a wide variety of fresh -- and often even organic -- produce as well as packaged ingredients from a wide variety of cultures with which to prepare dishes with many international influences.
In her introduction to The New California Cook, award-winning food writer and Cordon Bleu chef sums this up quite neatly:
You don't have to live n California to be a California cook -- what you do need is a California spirit. That means having a sense of adventure about food, an appreciation of the freshest seasonal ingredients, and a desire to reinterpret familiar dishes with unexpected twists.
Worthington does all of these things in The New California Cook, a new and updated edition of a book that was well received on its first publication in 1994.
"In this edition," writes Worthington, "I've adapted some of the old recipes and added new ones." The resulting book is perfectly of the moment, with tired 1980s reflective recipes replaced with new ones more in keeping with our lighter lifestyles here in the new century.
The publisher claims that the over 200 recipes in The New California Cook are timeless, which is not a sentiment I can get behind. Though we tend not to spend a lot of time thinking about it, food -- like clothing and home styles -- is trend and time influenced. And while some of our family recipes are certainly timeless to us, on a cultural level and in the wider world, this is not as true. (If this were true, the cookbook segment of the book market would not be as healthy as it is: nor would as many new offerings show up every season.)
On the other hand, Worthington has done a great job of putting together a book with a classic feel, yet brimming with recipes that feel absolutely contemporary. The author's Garden Risotto, for instance, is a fresh take on a classic that can sometimes seem too rich and heavy in this era. The addition of carrots, snap peas and red bell pepper adds lightness as well as color.
And I adore Worthington's spin on the classic mac and cheese. Here it's called Three-Cheese Macaroni with Caramelized Leeks, Prosciutto, and Peas and it makes for an elegant light main course that even children can be tricked into enjoying. (And, as Worthington points out, with the proscuitto left out, it's suitable for non-meat eaters.)
Another classic revisited, though this one not for vegetarians: Grilled Steak and Potato Salad. In Worthington's words: "The favorite American combination of steak and potatoes is reinterpreted here as a hearty salad." And certainly one that will make a meal memorable.
Most dishes have less of a domestic influence, however. Entrees like Lamb Stew with Dates and Zinfandel; Grilled Steaks with Olivada and Port Wine Sauce; Glazed Orange-Hoisin Chicken and others all bring flavors from around the world within easy reach.
And it is easy: Worthington has seen to that. With few exceptions, the ingredients called for here are available in most supermarkets. More importantly, her instructions are clear and concise with minimal steps for each recipe, though not at the cost of clarity.
Worthington, who lives in Southern California, is the author of 17 cookbooks, including The Cuisine of California, Seriously Simple, American Bistro and many others. | May 2006
American Bistro
From the Sacramento Bee:
"Worthington, a food writer and cookbook author, offers a tastier, healthier and more economical option to most bistro-style restaurants. Her dishes are elegant to the palate and plate, yet gentle to the cook and the kitchen. The style, she points out, crisscrosses the continent--from Northwestern salmon appetizers and Southwestern chilies, to Eastern soft-shell crabs and Midwestern sausages. There are worldly influences too, with Indian yogurt raitas, a Japanese tuna tartare and a Russian borscht. She manages to keep it all light, using low-fat cheeses and sauces, lean meats and marinades of fruits, herbs and vegetables...The book's design makes for an easy read. The type is hip and clear, the recipes and ingredients lists are placed side-by-side, and instructions are boldly numbered. For example, a glance at the grilled shrimp with ginger-coconut sauce informs you that there's a marinade, sauce and garnish to prepare and six steps to do in order to serve six to eight people...'Fun' is the operative word. American Bistro provides the menu for a dinner party, cocktail party or simple weekday meal. Any cook should welcome this book into the kitchen."
Amazon.com reader reviews:
"I CAN'T WAIT FOR HER NEXT ONE!", May 16, 2000
Reviewer: A readerfrom Los Angeles
American Bistro by Diane Worthington is destined to become another must have in any cooks kitchen. It already is in mine! The Whitefish Tureen is to die for and the Mushroom Barley Soup is heaven on earth. Diane, if you are reading this, keep up the great work! You leave your readers craving more everytime!
Everything to make an Casual meal elegant, May 12, 2000
Reviewer: Beth Heffner from Los Angles, Ca
If you love to cook and love to eat good food this is for you. The elegance of Bisto food with the simplicty of casual cooking. I love it and my collection would not be complete without it and I would miss it.
Her recipes work every time!, January 12, 2000
Reviewer: Jan Gradyfrom Los Altos, California
Diane Rossen Worthington is my favorite cookbook author. In American Bistro, I loved the Grilled Lime-Cilantro Chicken with Tomatillo Salsa, Southwestern-style Beef Chili, and Grilled Veal Sausages with Sauteed Apples and Carmelized Fennel and Red Onions. For holiday desserts, her Pumpkin Caramel Flan and Pumpkin Ice Cream Pie with Gingersnap Crust are welcome alternatives to standard pumpkin pie. Her Warm Chocolate Pudding Cakes are out of this world!
Seriously Simple Holidays
Review by Terry Thompson-Anderson (Texasfoodandwinegourmet.com)
Many home cooks view the holiday season as an exhausting marathon that is simply to be endured, throwing ourselves into a frenzy of cooking complicated dishes unlike any type of food which we prepare the remainder of the year! Two-time James Beard Award-winning food broadcaster, cookbook author and syndicated columnist Diane Rossen Worthington says it simply doesn’t have to be so!
In this well-written and immensely helpful new book. Worthington provides all of the game plans, shortcuts, shopping tips, equipment needs, and wine pairing suggestions for preparing holiday meals with reduced prep time and streamlined cooking techniques, while ensuring fabulous and delicious results.
You’ll learn how to stock the holiday pantry ahead of time so everything is there when you need it; how to stock your home bar from napkins and lemon wedges to beverages and ice. You’ll learn about various entertaining styles – buffet, sit-down, family-style, or potluck. There’s also a great section on making edible gifts from your kitchen – great for hostess gifts when you attend gatherings at someone else’s home. Guidelines for pairing wine and cheese, and serving cheese courses are also featured.
The books is neatly divided into chapters that take you through the entire gamut of the holiday season – Seasonal Drinks, Appetizers, Soups and Salads, Breakfast and Brunch, Main courses (Poultry, Meats and Seafood), Pasta, Vegetables and Side Dishes, Desserts, and a special chapter on Basics and Sauces, featuring quick and easy recipes for holiday basics like cranberry sauce and a great make-ahead turkey gravy. With each recipe Diane includes a little note called “The Clever Cook Could:” offering some variations on the recipe, or suggestions for using the recipe’s leftovers to prepare another stellar meal. She’s even taken the guesswork out of wine selections, listing recommended wines with each recipe!
Best of all, you’ll find some great alternatives to the traditional holiday meals. This year, you can think beyond the traditional roast turkey and forget the dressing. Sail your way through holiday cooking with grace and ease. With help from Seriously Simple Holidays, you can enjoy this season!
Seriously Simple
(Amazon.com) Diane Rossen Worthington's Seriously Simple: Easy Recipes for Creative Cooks delivers on the promise of its title. The award-winning chef and author provides sophisticated flavor combinations while keeping the ingredients, and, most importantly, prep time, to a minimum. Chilled Summer Squash Soup with Basil makes a great starter course or light entrée; Grilled Lamb Chops with Cilantro-Mint Sauce yields a rich yet refreshing result with almost no work, especially with the use of a food processor; and the Summer Fruit Crisp (much less work than a homemade pie) includes a custard layer made with crème fraîche. Keeping with her theme of simplicity, Worthington has provided many suggestions for "advanced preparation" so that the busy cook can do some, or all, of the preparation long before mealtime. The most unique element of this cookbook is "the clever cook could" entry with each dish, in which Worthington makes suggestions for substituting ingredients and how to use the leftovers in savvy and tasty ways. Worthington's recipes will help shorten the work to get food on the table but should also increase the enjoyment while at it. --Teresa Simanton
Amazon.com reader reviews:
This book delivers on its title, April 2, 2004
Veronica Rusnak (Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA)
Simple, extremely flavorful, and easy to modify recipes to personal tastes. You end up with dishes that look and taste like you ordered them from some nouvelle cuisine restaurant. I haven't made anything in here that didn't simply rock. Flavors actually sparkle. Wonderful attitude about cooking.
Love it!, January 12, 2008
Scribby (New York, New York)
This is the most used cookbook in my kitchen. I received it as a gift a few years ago and have made about half of the recipes in it, but there are 3 or 4 that are staples around our house. Our family favorite is the minestrone which saves and freezes beautifully. We like to puree it and serve it with a dot of pesto and sour creme (it looks so fancy and impressive). It's also very yummy with cheddar sprinkled on top. Another easy favorite is the Baked Pasta with Spicy Tomato and Sausage Sauce (beware--it serves about 12, but reheats well and freezes well) The chocolate fudge cake is unique and amazing as well, none better in any book I own! I ordered a bunch for friends this Christmas and they were all pleased since they all beg for my recipes and request my chocolate cake.
Best cookbook I've ever bought: fast, easy, gourmet results, July 28, 2007
EmmiOwner
This book is outstanding. The recipes have few ingredients and most are fast to make, but taste like gourmet California cuisine. I have been cooking every night this week because I want to try all the recipes. My boyfriend has several times said the results are equivalent to, or in the case of the pacific island short ribs tonight, better than top-notch restaurants. Also excellent was the avocado-pea cold soup as a starter, the citris tuna, the grilled curry chicken breasts, and the stir-fried ginger shrimp.
Other reader reviews:
really, actually simple. and delicious!
2008-02-21 | valerie moy
At first glance, these recipes look WAY too pretty and tasty to be as straightforward as the title promises. They are, in fact, both pretty and tasty, but they are also ridiculously easy to make and amazingly difficult to screw up. This book will have you braising and grilling without even realizing it. And best of all, the author includes tips with every recipe on how to make part of the dish ahead of time or ingredients that might be added or substituted. In fact, this book subtly teaches you how to trust your instincts in cooking. Start with this book, and you'll be throwing together your own recipes before you know it!