Tuesday, June 7, 2011

A Better Bon Appetit


My new Bon Appetit magazine arrived in the mail the other day. I'm one of those Gourmet readers who got stuck with Bon Appetite when Gourmet closed a few years ago. The recipes were never as interesting or as good. I missed the lush photography and gauzy prose that made you want to jump in a car or hop on a plane to whatever food destination was profiled that month.

But two issues ago, the magazine suddenly got a lot better. In fact, it became more like Gourmet only more down to earth and less dreamy. The latest is especially good with some fantastic recipes I tried over the weekend.

I strongly recommend this one for a cucumber and tomato salad. A new farm I discovered had cucumbers and another farm I visit was selling pretty good Maine hothouse tomatoes. I topped it off with Greek Feta that I bought from the local Italian food shop. Bellissimo! The dressing actually came out well, which I find is rare.

I tried this pasta recipe from last month's issue. Again, very, very good. The cherry tomatoes were not the best, but they still had great flavor. I love the tip about using pasta water in the sauce. I skimped a little on the cheese, which I recommend against. The cheese is key.

What an irony. They kill off Gourmet and then a year or two later begin turning Bon Appetite into Gourmet. Another example of corporate brilliance.

3 comments:

  1. I don't know about Gwyneth Paltrow on the cover, though. And her grilled chicken with peach barbecue sauce... I tried it, it was just okay.

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  2. You're just saying that because Gwyneth named her kid Apple. Kind of gets to you at your core. I can hardly stem my bad feelings about it.

    This recipe was a big winner. I loved the ice pop recipes. They're next on my list.

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