This Will Make It Taste Good

Starred review from October 1, 2020

Chef, author, and tv personality Howard (Deep Run Roots) reinvigorates home cooking with her new book, which uses unexpected flavors to upgrade familiar recipes. Howard aims to make "simple cooking exciting and accessible" and succeeds. The book is organized around her "flavor heroes," ranging from an herby green sauce to kraut and spiced nuts. The same "flavor hero" may appear in sweet and savory recipes, allowing people to cook creatively with Howard's help. For example, deceptively straightforward fruit preserves appear with Brussel sprouts, followed by a breakfast bake. Each chapter begins with memories of her Eastern North Carolina upbringing, personal connections to the ingredients, and a peek into her daily life. The book feels intimate, yet approachable and practical. Readers looking for more ways to enhance their home cooking may also enjoy Julia Turshen's Now & Again. VERDICT A vibrant, empowering guide for home cooks. Howard is a gifted storyteller, and her conversational recipes and writing make readers feel as if they are cooking side-by-side with a dear friend.--Kate Bellody, SUNY New Paltz

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 1, 2020
North Carolina chef Howard (Deep Run Roots, 2016), a two-restaurant owner and host of PBS' A Chef's Life, shares her COVID-19 pivot: she's closed one of her two restaurants, invented the online-based Handy & Hot bakery, and returned to her love of writing. Home chefs will clap with surprise and awe at these 100-plus recipes as Howard's unusual ideas translate into some major flavor boosters without too much fuss: an herby pesto-like topper, pickled stuff galore, nuts that go beyond, and the best deployment of jams and jellies, among so many others. She organizes the recipes around 10 of her flavor heroes, like "quirky furki" (a fishy-sesame seasoning blend based on Japanese furikake), "red weapons" (spicy pickled tomatoes), "my citrus shrine" (preserved citrus of one's choosing). Blender/processor work and time at the stove are a given, but these food profiles pop, further enhanced by her tips and sidebars and the inspiration she shares, not to mention the engaging, personal lead-ins to every recipe. Nothing overly composed nor requiring umpteen ingredients: This is home cooking, elevated.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

October 5, 2020
North Carolina chef, restaurateur, and PBS host Howard follows 2016’s Deep Run Roots with a personal and playful introduction to her fare. Chapter titles and recipe names are upbeat and engaging (Herbdacious, Can-Do Kraut), and explained in a pun-packed, chatty voice. Dishes are introduced with frank confessions, including her struggle to correctly spell “hors d’oeuvre” and various kitchen failures. Recurring sidebars called “No Brainers” offer simple ways to use condiments such as the Community Organizer—a sweet-sour paste of tomatoes, peppers, and onions—as meatloaf topping or a flavor base for soups. Her palate is wide-ranging and incorporates flavors from global cuisines, evident in the Japanese-inspired seasoning she adds to her Quirky Furki Party Rolls and her conversion of Italian classics like pizza into spicy “mozzarella toast.” Howard also shares a recipe for fried chicken, which she has only recently begun serving at her restaurants; in her version, she adds her signature pickling liquids and oils to punch up the batter. She also reveals details about her private life, including the strains of a two-chef marriage and going on book tours. Howard’s enthusiastic exploration of her life in and out of the kitchen shows her at her best and most delightful.