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One Potato, Two Potato: member book reviews

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This is an encyclopedic look at potatoes. Simply put, if you ever cook potatoes, you should have this cookbook in your collection.

I can't imagine any recipe that uses a potato that they may have left out. That said, of the 300+ recipes, there aren't strange ones or simple variations. Each is distinct and interesting. The Mashed Potatoes chapter has 28 recipes and the Main Dishes chapter, 40. With that kind of selection, everyone is sure to find an appealing recipe to use up that sack of spuds. There are a handful of go-with garnish or sauce recipes like frizzled leeks or doctored canned stock to supplement the potato recipes, but very few. This is a book of all potato dishes. Of course some of the recipes like Clam Chowder or Chicken Croquettes have other main ingredients, but all the recipes are for dishes that potatoes are essential in. Sweet potatoes are given some time as well.

The Potato Principles chapter is chock full of great information. They go over the differences between low-, medium- and high-starch potatoes as expected, but also name varieties of each and explain what they should be used for. Interesting tips are given as well. Other good information in this chapter includes sections on: cooking times, draining potatoes, boiling, soaking, peeling and scrubbing, storing, buying, sweet potato information and descriptions of the many types of potatoes in the stores and farmer's markets including heirlooms.

Additional technique-specific information is given at the beginning of some of the chapters. The Mashed Potatoes chapter begins with three pages of description on exactly what to do to get the very best mashed potatoes. Tips like heating added liquids before adding to the potatoes and precisely how to use a hand masher are written out in detail.

Quite a few recipes have variations given at the end which makes them just that much more versatile. Cuisines from around the world are represented.

Each recipe comes with a head note describing it, where it came from, what to serve it with or some other interesting bit of information. They are well-written and quite varied making this a great cookbook to read. Many times the description of the dish sounds so good you want to make it on the spot.

The Bibliography lists dozens of wonderful cookbooks that inspired the recipes. The index is 15 pages long and has the recipes listed any which way you could think to look them up.

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