A BON APPETIT BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
“Deb Perelman has gained a devoted following with her blog, Smitten Kitchen, where she shares rigorously tested recipes written with warmth and wit. For her third book, Perelman collects 100 “keepers,” recipes that are guaranteed to be hits whether you’re making it the first or 50th time—recipes like slow-roasted chicken on schmaltzy croutons, perfect spaghetti and meatballs and chocolate peanut butter cup cookies.” –Forbes’ Vetted (The Best Cookbooks Publishing in 2022)
“In an industry that often hypes what’s new, it’s refreshing to see equal attention paid to the familiar. If there’s one person to rely on for tried-and-tested recipes, it’s Deb Perelman, who has been running her blog, Smitten Kitchen, for 16 years. The essence of her latest cookbook is about repetition—recipes that she’s made time and time again, each time with a new improvement, so that they may make their way into your forever files. This collection features those almost-perfect dishes, peppered with Perelman’s inviting energy.” –Jessica Sulima, Thrillist
“For her third cookbook, Perelman has taken the wisdom she has accumulated in the 16 years since she created Smitten Kitchen and funneled it into “keepers,” i.e., recipes deserving of a place in her “forever files” and yours. That means, for example, a towering broccoli cheddar quiche baked in a springform pan, deli pickle potato salad that makes smart use of both pickles and brine, and chocolate peanut butter cup cookies that I can personally attest merit the “keeper” designation. Perelman, as is her wont, employs her trademark warmth and humor as she shepherds you from breakfast to dessert and beyond, making this both a fun and practical read.” –Rebecca Flint Marx, Eater
“Recipes become regulars when they’re fast, reliable, and deliciously worth the effort. In her third book, Smitten Kitchen founder Deb Perelman offers 100 recipes for oft-requested favorites like a fuss-free lemon poppy seed cake and “an epic quiche” sure to become some of the last you’ll ever need to learn.” –Jacqueline Raposo, Epicurious
“Keeper recipes should bring chefs joy, writes Smitten Kitchen blogger Perelman (Smitten Kitchen Everyday) in this fuss-free collection that aims to make “food more reliably delicious.” Those on offer here cover a range of options, from weeknight fare to more elaborate offerings, and easily earn their place in home cooks’ “forever” files. Salad options pack some surprises, as in a deli pickle potato salad that can be kept in the fridge for up to four days. Filling, meat-centric dinners include cabbage and kielbasa with rye croutons, roasted lemon chicken wings, and turkey meatloaf, which is topped off with a glaze of ketchup, molasses, apple cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Perelman excels at tricking out vegetables to create such appetizing dishes as charred salt and vinegar cabbage with butter and garlic, and a spiced winter squash soup with red onion crisp. The desserts are standouts, among them brownielike chocolate peanut butter cup cookies, thick molasses spice cookies, brown butter carrot cake, and crumb pie bars…Perelman’s mastery of culinary magic is evident on every page, and the recipes are clearly the work of someone who knows what she is doing in the kitchen. Practical and versatile, this is a boon to home cooks.” –Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Every cookbook creator makes a dish again and again so that we don’t have to, and Perelman ( Smitten Kitchen Every Day, 2017) just seems to have more fun doing so. With us strangers in mind…she shares recipes that withstand the most important test: folks will actually want to make and eat them over and over. For breakfast, a bodega-style fried-egg sandwich can be yours in three minutes, and a salad-topped frittata cooks entirely in the oven. Vegetables get their own chapters, organized by size…Meat dishes are balanced and homey, like a skillet-chicken parmesan that promises crispiness and sauciness and fail-safe, 10-ingredient pulled pork. Repeat-worthy cookies and unfussy cakes fill out the sweets chapter before Perelman invites readers to host more parties with a tight edit of crowd-pleasing drinks (alcoholic and non) and snacks. There’s a reason readers are still smitten, and this ode to “Weeknight Greatness” confirms it.” –Annie Bostrom, Booklist (starred review)
“In her third cookbook, Perelman returns with a gathering of the best versions of her key dishes—recipes that she has tested, trialed, and tweaked until they became what she wants her kids and readers to learn by heart and cook with delight…The book is a joy to read, with Perelman’s confiding, cheering voice showcased in short prefaces and recipe notes. She writes as if she were dashing off a recipe on a napkin for her best friend, while at the same time telling them what to do to really make it work. It is pure pleasure. The book covers breakfasts (which Perelman says are good at any time of day), salads, soups, vegetables, meats, sweets, and even a few drinks. Vegetarians and gluten-free eaters will find plenty of options and can adapt many of the other recipes…Essential for all collections. The cookbook, like the recipes it shares, is a keeper.” –Neal Wyatt, Library Journal (starred review)
Praise for Deb Perelman and Smitten Kitchen
“Smitten Kitchen is not just a food blog: it is the food blog.” —The New Yorker
“This is the kind of book you could easily cook out of for a month straight without tiring of it . . . And really, that’s the Smitten Kitchen magic: recipes that are ingeniously creative but so accessible that they leave you thinking, ‘Why the hell didn’t I think of that?’” —Eater
“No one delivers recipes inspired by equal parts curiosity and appetite quite like Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman.” —Epicurious
“A tremendously appealing collection of recipes whose headnotes strike chord after rousing chord.” —Food52
“A joy to read . . . Prepare to be seduced.” —Los Angeles Times
