Shirley O. Corriher, national and international speaker, food writer, and culinary food sleuth, solves problems
for everyone from large corporations, food editors, and test-kitchen chefs to home cooks. She is a contributing
editor of Fine Cooking and lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, Arch.
Review
"Corriher is a well-known culinary consultant and problem solver whose answers to kitchen mysteries have
appeared in many food publications. Now she has set down some of her vast knowledge in this big, wide-ranging reference/cookbook.
In seven basic chapters, from The Wonder of Risen Bread to Sweet Thoughts and Chocolate Dreams, she explains why
recipes work, what to do when they don t and how to make them even better (anyone who s ever wondered why the same
cake recipe always tastes better when her neighbor makes it will find out the probable reasons why). More than
200 recipes interspersed throughout demonstrate Corriher s explorations and explanations. Also included are At
a Glance charts for easy reference (e.g., Fine tuning cookies), trouble-shooting charts (Yeast Bread Problems),
charts on the basics (Whipped Cream: What to Do and Why), and dozens more. Although the recipes are delicious--and
surely foolproof--this unique work will be far more valuable as a reference than as a cookbook. Highly recommended."
--Library Journal
"Besides the background procedures and transformations discussed in chapter introductions, Corriher spells
out the science lesson to be learned from each of the recipes, e.g., chilling potatoes in the fridge converts some
of the starch to sugar and promotes the browning process in Oven-Fried Herbed Potatoes. Corriher, passing up no
chance to inform is a persuasive tutor with many terrific ideas.... Curious-minded home cooks who are satisfied
as much by the process of cooking as by its other rewards will find much to relish here."
--Publishers Weekly
Submitted by Publisher July, 2001
Summary
Can you tell whether a recipe will work before you cook it? You can if you really know what's cooking.
In the long-awaited CookWise, food sleuth Shirley Corriher tells you how and why things happen in cooking.
When you know how to estimate the right amount of baking powder, you can tell by looking at the recipe that the
cake is overleavened and may fall. When you know that too little liquid for the amount of chocolate in a recipe
can cause the chocolate to seize and become a solid grainy mass, you can spot chocolate truffle recipes that will
be a disaster. And, in both cases, you know exactly how to "fix" the recipe. Knowing how ingredients
work, individually and in combination, will not only make you more aware of the cooking process, but transform
you into a confident and exceptional cook -- a cook who is in control.
CookWise is a different kind of cookbook. There are over 230 outstanding recipes -- from Snapper Fingers
with Smoked Pepper Tartar Sauce to Chocolate Stonehenge Slabs with Cappuccino Mousse -- but here each recipe serves
not only to please the palate but to demonstrate the roles of ingredients and techniques. A What This Recipe Shows
section summarizes the special cooking points being demonstrated in each recipe. This little bit of science in
everyday language indicates which steps or ingredients are vital and cannot be omitted without consequences.
Among the recipes you'll also find some surprises. Don't be afraid of a vinaigrette prepared without vinegar
or a high-egg-white, crisp pâte â choux. Many of the concepts used here are Shirley's own. Try her
method of sprinkling croissant or puff pastry dough with ice water before folding to keep it soft and easy to roll.
CookWise covers everything from the rise and fall of cakes, through unscrambling the powers of eggs and
why red cabbage turns blue during cooking but red peppers don't, to the essential role of crystals in making fudge.
Want to learn about what makes a crust flaky? Try the Big-Chunk Fresh Apple Pie in Flaky cheese Crust. Discover
for yourself what brining does to poultry in Juicy Roast Chicken.
No matter what your cooking level, you'll find CookWise a revelation. Different people will use CookWise
in different ways:
Home cooks will value CookWise as a collection of extraordinarily good recipes.
The busy chef can use CookWise as a reference book to look up and solve problems. Major headings
are shown in the Contents and 42 At-a-Glance summary charts make problem solving quick and easy
Beginning cooks can use CookWise as a howto book with easy-to-follow recipes that produce dishes
looking and tasting like the work of an experienced chef.
Food writers and test-kitchen chefs who are developing recipes can find the formulas and tips for successful
recipes,
Anyone who wants to improve a recipe can use CookWise as a guide. Here is how to make cakes moister,
a pate A choux drier and crisper, a dish lighter or darker in color; how to make muffins peak better, cookies spread
less, or a roast chicken juicier.
Everyone who cooks needs to be able to spot bad recipes and save the time, money, and frustration that
they cause. Many of the At-a-Glance charts point out specific problems.
CookWise is not only informative, it's engrossing, and many sections react like a mystery story. The
knowledge you gain from its pages will transform you, too, into a food sleuth, an informed and assured cook who
can track down why sauces curdle or why the muffins were dry -- a cook who will never prepare a failed recipe again!
