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This Cookbook Is the Next Best Thing to Having a Chef on Speed Dial
If you Google, say, “best lasagna recipe,”you’ll get over 4 million hits. “Apple pie recipe”? Over 20 million. But Cal Peternell’s inviting, daringly conceived new cookbook, Twelve Recipes, says goodbye to all that overload. Though its “twelve recipes” actually extend into 13 info- and recipe-rich chapters—covering such basics as braising, how to cook vegetables, and the secrets behind perfecting three indispensable sauces—the book maintains the streamlined appeal its title suggests. Peternell is a chef at Berkeley’s legendary Chez Panisse, but his book found its inspiration in his oldest son’s departure for college, and the realization that somehow, his own kids couldn’t really cook. Through conversations, phone calls, and emails between Peternell and his sons, the book began to take shape, and now it stands as a perfect resource for anyone who happens not to have a Michelin-starred chef in their contacts list.
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The curated collection of recipes cuts through the noise
Sometimes the internet seems held together by recipes, cat videos, and gossip, and having too many answers to the “What’s for dinner?” question can be as frustrating as having too few. Peternell knows it doesn’t have to be that way. Here he zeroes in on toast, eggs, beans, salads, pasta, other starches, vegetables, roasted chicken, braised meats, grilling, sauces, and cake. To get a little more specific, a Peternell-inspired meal might look like this: deviled eggs and avocado-and-herb dressed salad to start, followed by roasted tomato bisque and dinner bell chicken, and capped with plum upside-down cake. None of it difficult, all of it impressive.
This guy loves food, and he’ll make you love it, too
Just listen to the way he talks about bread: “Without a doubt, the very best thing to do with thick toast is to rub the top with a raw garlic clove, be generous with your best olive oil, and sprinkle with a bit of salt.” Yes, please, with seconds. Peternell comes off like one of those people who moves effortlessly around the kitchen, drinking a glass of wine and holding a conversation as he prepares the best meal of your life with the simplest ingredients. He’ll make you want to be that kind of person, then he’ll teach you exactly how to pull it off. And he’s a great storyteller: his recipes and tips are wrapped into humble, rangy tales of his travels and his life. A recipe for roast chicken becomes a story about his father; a discussion of delicious variations on a simple mayonnaise recipe ends in a description of his son’s “special sauce.”
The book feels like it was written by a friend
You know when you go to a dinner party, eat way too much pumpkin cake, and spend the rest of the night alternately raving about it and begging the host for the recipe? If you’re very lucky, you’ll get an email the next day with a recipe full of notes on adding extra ginger, how long you’ve got to beat those eggs, and how exactly you’ll know when it’s time to take it out of the oven. Peternell’s conversationally written recipes are a pleasure to read and never leave you in the dark as to why you have to mix and match methods depending on, say, what kind of fish you’ve picked up at the market.
The recipes work for chefs at every level
Even master chefs will appreciate learning how to easily add nuance and sweetness to a basic harissa recipe…and beginner chefs will just be glad Peternell shares eight ways to dress a salad. The book is full of little insights on food and its preparation that even the most seasoned home chef might not know.
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