Ultimate Potato Book: Hundreds Of Ways To Turn America's Favorite Side Dish Into A Meal

by Bruce Weinstein, Mark Scarbrough

That's right, The Ultimate Potato Book moves the versatile potato to the center of every meal. Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough offer up main course classics such as Shepherd's Pie, Cod Cakes, and Chili Fries, along with some surprising new ideas -- Lasagna (potatoes replace the noodles), Enchiladas, and Twice-Baked Potatoes with bacon, asparagus, and Cheddar.

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Cooking

274 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2003

About the author

Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough are QVC favorites with five sell-out appearances. They've appeared on everything from the Today show to corporate-sponsored events, making ice cream, gelati, sherberts, and sorbets. They're also experts on the desserts that pair with these frozen treats, having written bestselling brownie and cookie books and all-purpose cookbooks with desserts aplenty and countless features for Fine Cooking, Eating Well, and The Washington Post. Their cooking podcast, Cooking with Bruce and Mark, is available on iTunes. They've written numerous cookbooks, including A la Mode and The Turbo Blender Dessert Revolution (11/1/16). They live in Connecticut.

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Sweetness loves potatoes and so do I. It must be the Irish blood in my veins. Weinstein and Scarborough love potatoes, too, and noticed that the noble spud is consistently relegated to the role of best supporting side dish and rarely to stardom as an entrée. The authors did two things to remedy this imbalance in the Universe: they found recipes which put potatoes front-and-center and they altered well-known potato recipes to move the potato out of the chorus line and into the spotlight. A perusal of the table of contents would lead one to believe that there are 102 recipes in this book. This is incorrect. Recognizing that every culture has a variety of making the same dish, the recipes in this book end with alternatives. For example, the Shepherd's Pie (made with ground beef) recipe ends with instructions to alter the basic recipe to become a more authentic version made with ground lamb, another seasoned with blue cheese, another with Italian (rather than British) seasonings, another which features fresh peas, a Southwestern American version that could be served in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and an entirely vegetarian pie made with mushrooms. Given the number of variants, this single recipe could well be counted as seven. Other dishes afford even more variations. There are nine ways to make Steak Frits! I love it when I find a recipe of which I have never heard. When I found Salpicon -- a seared-beefsteak and purple potato salad from Chile -- I rushed to make it and it’s is very good! Other great recipes include Pierogi from Poland, Aloo Mutar Gobi from India, Ma'afe from Mali, Caldo Verde from Brazil, Roesti from Switzerland, Bangers and Mash from Great Britain, Nikujaga from Japan, Blintzes and Knishes and Latkes like your Jewish grandmother taught you to make, Empanadas from Argentina, German Potato Salad, and Skordalia from Greece. There are even those Twice-Baked Potatoes like in the pages of that cooking magazine they sell on the endcap at the grocer's. On the back cover, the reader is invited to visit "the author's website" which implies that there is only one author when, in fact, there are two. This booboo is attributable to a copywriter at Morrow/HarperCollins and never would have happened while my brilliant daughter worked there. No worries. Following the link leads to a single page posted by BuyDomains.com offering you the right to use that particular web address for an amount disclosed only if you phone the non-geographically-assigned toll-free number provided. Not every culinary library needs a single-volume cookbook devoted entirely to potatoes, much less to potatoes as main dishes, but, if you need one, this is probably it.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A representative collection of potato dishes from around the world with few surprises. As a professional chef, it offered few new ideas; for those without experience in world cuisines, this will be a fun adventure into the variety of foods including the versatile potatoe.

[Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cook book without pictures is a shameful thing.

[Mahmudul Hasan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ultimate Potato Book offers an appealing collection of ideas for transforming potatoes into satisfying, flavorful meals. I love the mix of classic comfort-food favorites and innovative main-course recipes, which promises plenty of inspiration for everyday cooking. Potatoes are affordable, versatile, and easy to pair with different ingredients, making this cookbook a useful resource for home cooks looking to add variety to their menus. A great choice for anyone who wants to explore creative potato dishes and make mealtime more exciting!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mmmmm, potatoes.