12 best american cookbooks

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Every Recipe from the Hit TV Show with Product Ratings and a Look Behind the Scenes

The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook is back after a year-long 20th anniversary party. Find every recipe prepared on 21 seasons of public television's top-rated cooking show all in a single compendium, including the new season that debuts in January 2021. You'll also get the latest equipment and ingredient ratings drawn from the show's equipment testing and taste testing segments.

Back By Popular Demand

Every recipe from every episode is included with recipes from the 2019, 2020, and 2021 seasons integrated into this new edition. There are also bonus recipe variations included in the book that did not appear on TV.

Up-to-Date Shopping Guide

The 60-page shopping guide at the back of the book contains all of the buying recommendations from ATK’s tasting and testing experts so that readers will have our winning ingredients and kitchen equipment at their fingertips.

Chopped Carrot Salad with Fennel, Orange, and Hazelnuts

This salad is inspired by a recipe by Joan Nathan and delivers the vegetable's juicy, earthy sweetness while offering a texture that's more like grains, with a pleasant crunch.

Cast Iron Baked Ziti

Baked ziti, a hearty combination of pasta, tomato sauce, and gooey cheese, can be time-consuming and fussy between making the sauce, boiling the pasta, and then assembling. This recipe streamlines the dish, achieving the same delicious results in less time and without watching over, and dirtying, a multitude of pots.

Chicken Schnitzel

Chicken schnitzel is defined by thin, tender, juicy cutlets coated in a fine, wrinkly crust that puffs away from the meat during frying. We like to serve the schnitzel with a bright creamy salad such as Cucumber-Dill Salad.

Buttermilk Panna Cotta

This silky-smooth, delicately textured buttermilk panna cotta is an elegant dessert that requires some waiting but hardly any work.

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Salmon Rillettes with Injera

in honor of ALMIRA SESSION, chef, New York, NY

Haitian Black Rice and Mushrooms

in honor of GREGORY GOURDET, chef, Portland, OR

Oxtail Pepperpot with Dumplings

in honor of TAVEL BRISTOL-JOSEPH, chef, Austin, TX

Flaky Andouille and Callaloo Hand Pies with Red Pepper Sambal

in honor of ADRIAN MILLER, author, Denver, CO

Portland Parish Lamb Pie

in honor of TIFFANY JONES, chef, New York, NY

Tigernut Custard Tart with Cinnamon Poached Pears

in honor of TONI TIPTON-MARTIN, author, Baltimore, MD

Mar Cocktail/The Bowie

in honor of JOE STINCHCOMB, bartender, Oxford, MS

Broken Rice Peanut Seafood Stew

in honor of FRED OPIE, historian, Boston, MA

Baobab-Buttermilk and Broiled Peach Popsicles

in honor of CHERYL DAY, chef, Savannah, GA

Fish Cakes with Birmingham Greens Salad

in honor of MASHAMA BAILEY, chef, Savannah, GA

Rodney’s Ribs with Baked Cowpeas

in honor of RODNEY SCOTT, pitmaster, Charleston, SC

Pots de Crème with Benne Seed Praline and Roasted Pineapple

in honor of KWAME ONWUACHI, chef, Washington, DC

Ayib

Kelewele Spice Blend

Roasted Red Pepper Sambal

Yaji (Suya Spice) Aioli

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Lasagna that Won’t Wear Out Its Welcome

We redesign our recipe to serve two by trading a baking pan for a loaf pan. A few ingredients added to the sauce gives us a velvety texture reminiscent of a Bolognese sauce, meatloaf mix (a combination of ground beef, veal, and pork) adds more flavor and richness than ground beef alone, and no-boil lasagna noodles were a timesaver and fit neatly into the pan.

Single Skillet Feast for Two

There’s nothing more satisfying than fork-tender beef slow-roasted with creamy potatoes and sweet carrots. But when you’re cooking for two, you want all that, and less (less meat than called for in a classic pot roast recipe, and less prep and cleanup, too). We found top blade steak to be a very tender and richly flavored cut of meat that’s well suited to pot roasting; it has plenty of collagen to break down and add flavor during cooking.

Just the Right Number of Freshly Baked Cookies

Our favorite recipe for Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies yields 24 cookies—far too many even for a pair of die-hard cookie fans. We wanted a recipe for 12 cookies, and we wanted it to be quick and convenient. Our secret? Melted butter gives the cookies a chewy texture and enables us to easily stir our ingredients by hand (no lugging out the electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar).

Greek-Style Lamb Pita Sandwiches

We wanted restaurant-style Greek gyros—slices of shaved, marinated lamb, tomato slices, crisp lettuce, and cooling cucumber-yogurt sauce stuffed inside a soft pita—that we could make at home. Rather than the traditional shaved slices of meat from a vertical rotisserie, we pan-fried ground lamb patties flavored with mint, onion, and minced garlic.

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Sweet Potato Nests (Nido de Camote)

Stuffed Chicken Breasts (Pollo Quinceañera)

Green Pozole (Pozole Verde)

Black Mole (Mole Negro)

Avocado Salsa (Salsa de Aguacate)

Mezcalpache

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Blueberry Cornbread Waffles

These waffles are a combination of my son’s two favorite foods (waffles and cornbread) and one of mine (blueberries). When I was growing up, we used to sometimes go out to breakfast at a local restaurant near my hometown of Seattle and get them.

Rosie is my go-to when it comes to recipes.”

--Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give and On the Come Up

Black-Eyed Pea Salad

Every New Year’s Day when I was a kid, we would eat black-eyed peas because beans mean prosperity, and we were always hoping that this would be the year. In fact, we hoped so hard we would put out two kinds of black-eyed peas: the traditional hot version, made with ham hocks, and also this nice cold salad—why not double your luck?

Crab Deviled Eggs with Bacon

If you read the breakfast section, you know I hate bland eggs. So when I wanted to make some deviled eggs for a holiday party, I knew I needed to add my special twist. Crab packs the filling with briny flavor, and the bacon adds a smoky, meaty crunch.

Oven-Baked BBQ Ribs

My mom never grilled when I was growing up, so BBQ always meant the oven to us at home. Now that I’m grown up—and still live in the rainy Northwest—I think I have a few guesses as to why she did that. Don’t forget to serve these ribs with some of my Southern Potato Salad, and it’s just like the cookout, minus worrying about the weather.

Okra and Tomatoes

Okra and tomatoes go together like ham hocks and greens—they grow right alongside each other in the South, coming ripe in the same season, and pair up on the plate perfectly.

Soul Food Macaroni and Cheese

Asking me to choose a favorite macaroni and cheese recipe is like asking me to choose between Morris Chestnut and Idris Elba. I want it all! But when I had to pick one that deserved a spot in the book, I knew this was it. It’s a special one, the one I make for holidays, in part because it uses six kinds of cheese.

Gumbo

Gumbo is something of a sacred tradition among Louisiana folk—it’s basically just a big ol’ pot of seafood. Just don’t try to call it a stew—you’ll make the Creole people in my family real mad.

Church Lady Lemon Coconut Pound Cake

My aunt Nisha is like my second mom, and some Sundays she would bring me to her church. After service, they would have a dinner, and the desserts they served were all I could think about. This recipe is my homage to the masterful women behind the dessert table at my aunt Nisha’s church.

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Learn Baking Tips and Tricks!

Master measuring, rolling, frosting and decorating!

Treats for Every Occasion!

From after school treats to show-stopping special occasion desserts.

More than 40 Recipes!

Pies, cakes, cookies, cupcakes, brownies and more!

A Parents’ Choice Award winner!

Parents Choice award-winning cookbook featuring more than 40 delicious recipes for every meal.

Gain Kitchen Confidence!

Learn essential cooking skills with step-by-step instructions.

Inspiring Images!

Full-color photos help ensure success!

Plan the Perfect Party!

Tips for invitations, hosting and setting a festive table.

8 Festive Party Themes!

Celebrate Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween and Christmas parties as well as Sleepover, Garden Party, Birthday Party and Summer BBQ.

Complete Menus!

Recipes for snacks, main dishes, drinks and desserts for every party!