Perfect Recipes for Having People Over Review

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(More customer reviews)Anderson's brief introduction emphasizes organization and planning, and the book's design is elegant - lots of full-page color pictures of finished dishes - and practical, with a tip guide at the bottom of each recipe.
She starts with the main course, grouped by occasion, from kitchen gatherings to barbecues, sit-down dinners and breakfast. "All the Rest" follows, from appetizers through dessert, including drinks and breads.
Anderson often offers a master recipe, which can be transformed with simple additions - quesadillas, for instance, or shish kebabs, which both come with a page of variations in spices and main ingredients. This is particularly true for the soups, like the Creamy Vegetable, which comes with 10 separate recipes and ideas for "hundreds" of variations.
Each recipe concludes with suggestions for when to serve and what to serve it with, variations, shortcuts, advance preparations and, my personal favorite, ideas for the leftovers.
For the dining room there's an Easy Baked Risotto which does away with much of the stirring and Beef Tenderloin with cracked pepper and a red wine pan sauce; more casual meals feature Oven-Barbecued Pork for sandwiches or carnitas and Lasagna made with both white and red sauce and no-boil noodles. Breakfast might be a savory baked strata, assembled the night before.
Side dishes are bright and imaginative, like Smoked Salmon and Watercress Salad with Red Onion-Caper Vinaigrette or Orange-Glazed Asparagus; desserts are simple and many are homey, like the Tender Yellow Cake and Five Variations. Drinks come by the pitcher.
There's nothing difficult here and there's plenty of range to suit every taste and every occasion. Anderson's fans ("The Perfect Recipe," "How to Cook Without a Book") will snap it up and anyone who entertains should find it a useful pleasure.
- Portsmouth Herald

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