Simple Pasta: Pasta Made Easy. Life Made Better. [A Cookbook] by Odette Williams
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Web ID: 14876599Simple Pasta
Pasta has always been something I have wanted to get into making and Simple Pasta was the perfect entry book to start. Odette Williams has written a super approachable book that gives you the tools to make pasta at home without a bunch of fancy gadgets. I was really surprised to realize how easy (and therapeutic) it is to make your own pasta. We have really loved making the potato gnocchi, ricotta gnocchi, and various pastas. Whats great about this book is that it is split into seasons with great seasonal ingredients. The peppery pappardelle with pancetta and mushrooms was memorable. These recipes are super approachable and if pressed for time you can always use store bought pasta instead. Thank you ten speed press for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Pasta for beginners
I've received a free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review. This cookbook is absolutely wonderful for beginning pasta cooks. Easy to follow directions for a variety of pasta techniques this book is well written and not overwhelming to the reader, especially ones that are apprehensive about making pasta from scratch as I was. Invest in a pasta machine, the rolling of the dough will go much easier, but you can do many of them with a rolling pin. The sauces was my favorite section of the book. The Charred Broccoli, Cashew and Pecorino Pesto was easy to make and tasted great, all ingredients I had already and was thrilled to find a new way to add some zing to a weeknight dinner. This book would make a lovely gift for anyone as a hostess present or for the upcoming holidays.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
So many options!
I've received a free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review. I love pasta - who doesn't right? I especially liked how this book was divided by season. So many things taste best when eaten in the season they were meant to be eaten! Thus, I was more than happy to make a soup recipe from the cookbook on a chilly October weekend. I made Williams' Cannellini, Pancetta & Lemon Pasta e Fagioli. The soup was awesome! It's really easy to eat. I wish my Mom were still alive to have tried it. While she was undergoing chemo treatments, it was an all-hands attempt by me and my sisters to try to find recipes that she would like. This fit the bill: it was hearty, but not overfilling and tasty, yet mild. I can't wait to try other recipes from here!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
For Pasta Lovers
I was excited to receive this book as Odette Williams is a great cook and writer. This is the perfect book for pasta lovers, and it really details out an approachable way to make pasta from scratch with helpful pasta making techniques and tips. Odette provides a foundation and encourages creativity to showcase that there are many possibilities for pasta. There are a lot of recipes included in the book, along with step-by-step instructions and photos to reference. The book is divided into recipes for the seasons and there are great dishes that you’ll want to make again and again. Since it’s Autumn here and the temperature is dropping, I look forward to making the Beet & Carrot Agnolotti with Sage-Hazelnut Butter, the Luxe Mac & Cheese and the Tagliatelle with Lamb, Fennel & Olives. I've received a free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Fantasic and Aspirational Book
Odette Williams’ other book, Simple Cake, has held its status as one of my go-to baking books since it was published, and I am already ceding favorite pasta book status to this one–what a treat, one of my favorite food writers on one of my favorite food subjects! This is a gem of a book, giving its first few dozen pages over to the making and shaping of pasta doughs, and then the rest spent imagining them in inventive, but truly uncomplicated, ways. This book arrived just as the corn and jalapenos were both ripening in my garden (I received my free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review) and so I was able to dive right in with the recipe for sweet corn and jalapeno ravioli (highly recommend) and can also assure you that no one will ever regret a meal spent with a dish of the creamy potato, caramelized leek and gruyere pansotti. (I mean.) After the chapters on pasta doughs and on basic sauces, the book launches into long sections divided into the seasons, and including dessert for each, and protein go-withs.I am sure I’ll be cooking from this book for a long time, and I think any pasta lovers out there will also find much to love and explore here, as well.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Pasta Guide
I was so excited when I received "Simple Pasta" to review. I had recently made pasta for my family. "Simple Pasta" is detailed for beginners but also very varied for more experienced cooks. I am looking forward to "Simple Pasta" to improve my pasta making including pasta sauces and pesto. "Simple Pasta" contains basic pasta sauces and pesto recipes. It then goes to seasonal menus with more sophisticated recipes that go from appetizers to dessert. I've received a free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Fabulous Pasta
This is a delightful cookbook full of homemade pasta dishes. It not only teaches one to make homemade pasta, but also to utilize that pasta into simple but heavenly meals. The book is divided into pasta dishes for each season of the year. There is something for any pasta lover. This book is a must for said pasta lovers. I've received a free copy from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review and I thank you so much.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
part pasta, part possibility
Odette Williams had to postpone a trip to Italy because of the pandemic. So instead, she spent her lockdown time teaching herself how to make pasta at home. A long-time lover of Italian food, she realized that she had made it to the age of 40 without once making pasta herself. She set about to change that. And then she chose to teach us all how we can make homemade pasta too, even on a weeknight. To me, Simple Pasta feels like it’s been written in two parts. The first part is all about the homemade pasta—the techniques, the recipes, the shapes, and the simple sauces and crunchy toppings that home cooks can use to make new dishes, to develop new skills, to open up new possibilities. Then the second half of the book is seasonal recipes for those new pastas you’ve learned to make alongside ideas for appetizers, salads, mains, sides, cocktails, and desserts. The first part of the book is the isolation of lockdown; the second is the enjoyment of reconnecting with family and friends. As the subtitle says, “Pasta made easy. Life made better.” So Williams starts with her pasta recipes, and she makes them pretty accessible to a beginner. She only has three basic pasta recipes—egg, gnocchi, and semolina. The egg dough is a lighter, more delicate pasta that works well rolled into sheets and then cut into lengths like fettucine or pappardelle. The semolina dough is good for shapes like farfalle (bowties) or orecchiette, and it works well with heavier, meatier sauces. There are recipes for a ricotta and a potato gnocchi, so you can make a lighter one for warmer months and a starchier one for colder nights. These pages have lots of photos to go with the detailed instructions, so beginner and intermediate pasta makers can see the process, from the dough coming together to rolling it out and shaping and filling it. But despite all of the intricate instruction of the hand-crafted pasta, Williams throws no shade to those who aren’t interested. If you want to use dried pasta, there is no shame. If you use jarred sauce, she’s okay with that. But if you want to make your own, she includes recipes for several tomato-based sauces, from quick ones you can throw together to Nonna’s Homemade Passata, which you can can and use as a base for your heartier sauces all winter long. There are also a selection of pestos with herbs, nuts, cheese, and even one with Tuscan kale. The she talks about cooked, flavored bread crumbs that will add a layer of flavor and texture to your pasta dish and includes her ultimate garlic bread recipe. If that were the entire cookbook, that would be enough to keep pasta cooks busy for weeks with new skills to test and dishes to serve. But then Williams offers a collection of recipes for each season which read like a party menu. Some of these recipes are for the pastas you just learned, like summer’s Lobster Ravioli or winter’s Creamy Wild Mushroom & Potato Gnocchi or spring’s Artichoke, Pea & French Feta Farfalle. But there are other dishes to round that out. So with autumn’s Garganelli with Vodka Sauce, there are also recipes for a Marinated Peppers, Gruyere & Hazelnut Dip for a starter, Sanpelligrino 75, a citrusy cocktail with Prosecco, an arugula salad, Superior Schnitzel, Midnight Fettucine with Seared Scallops, “Yum, You’re Lovely” Classic Bolognese Lasagna, and a Sesame & Honey Panna Cotta to finish. Reading these seasonal recipes feels like seeing a menu for an amazing dinner party that I would love to attend. There is a lot to love about Simple Pasta, but it does feel a little disjointed at times. The first part, teaching fresh pasta neophytes to whip up a fresh egg dough for a Tuesday night dinner is encouraging and instructive. The second half feels more aspirational, creating feasts of Italian food that include lots of the fresh pasta along with beautiful dishes that may pair well with the pasta or may overshadow the pasta. I do understand the journey that Williams is taking us on in this book, but I can see how some readers could be thrown by the transition and be put off the cookbook for that. I hope not, because this book is genuinely lovely, with lots of gorgeous photography, delicious dishes that feel like small celebrations, warmth and understanding in the directions, and the hospitality that Italian food evokes. I’ve received a free copy of Simple Pasta from Ten Speed Press in exchange for a free and unbiased review, with many thanks.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com