Gordon Ramsay Makes It Easy

I have always admired Gordon Ramsay's approach to cooking, and I enjoy his television shows as well. My husband surprised me with this book not long ago and I have already cooked a number of recipes from it, with great success! I have been cooking for over 20 years now, and Gordon's lobster spaghetti is hands-down the best dish I have ever cooked. Since trying his method of cooking scrambled eggs (see the Sublime Scrambled Eggs recipe), I will never go back to the old way. The wild mushroom risotto won over my husband, who has never even liked risotto! And my 2 year old son loves the Fruity Yogurt Lollies. This book helps me to turn out restaurant-quality food from my own small kitchen. Do not let Gordon Ramsay's reputation intimidate you - this book is easy to use, well written, and beautifully illustrated. I especially love the chapters on fast food and cooking for kids. Gordon has four children, and the photos of him cooking with his kids are precious. He and his wife were actually voted the best celebrity parents in the United Kingdom! I enjoy cooking for my son and getting him to try new foods, and this book helps me and inspires me to do just that. It's a book that food-loving families can really use. Someone once said that the best dishes are very simple dishes - just take the freshest, highest-quality ingredients you can find and put them together in a simple way that lets their flavors shine through. That is what this book is about and it makes this busy working mom feel like a chef in her own kitchen!

This is a wonderful intimate little book designed for the home chef. The DVD is rather short, but does have some humor to it. The recipes range from simple to fancy...but all have the common denominator of being quick and simple to prepare using fresh ingredients. All the dishes are very clean tasting and not overly fussy, and there are also fancier recipes for special occasions that do not take hours to prepare. This chef is similar to Jamie Oliver is some aspects, but his influence is more French rather than Jamie's Italian. Fans of Jamie should also like Gordon's approach to cooking. The book is arranged in themes such as great fast food, kid's, BBQs, posh, and dinner for two....it is a good reference point for new cooking ideas and ranges from classics to modern, My absolute favorite recipe in this book is the crispy skin salmon on crushed potatoes, baby leeks with tomato butter - it comes out restaurant class. Also the chocolate fondant is deceptively easy to make, but is very impressive when served up. Another one that comes out beautifully is the bacon wrapped stuffed chicken thigh and also the wild mushroom rissotto. My only criticism of this book is that the preparation and cooking times are not listed by the recipes, but rather within the recipes themselves. However this is not too much of an annoyance as the prep times and cooking times are generally not excessive. Gordan is a modern chef, and his food is trendy yet classic, simple yet classy and tastes fantastic. This book has been well worth the purchase price...

Every time I mention that the fact that I admire "Gordon Ramsay" I have to defend myself from attack. For those who have seen this ex-football player in the television show "Hell's Kitchen", he can be intimidating, ruthlessly efficient and sarcastic all in one breath. But his attitude does not come from any joy of berating contestants. Gordon is a perfectionist and he wants to make sure everything is done right because it is his name and reputation that is on the line everytime a dish leaves his kitchen. This book is no different. Gordon spells out his recipies in a clear and concise format. Unlike some other chefs who use their books just to dump some bland exercises in cooking, Gordon livens up (or sexies up - as he calls it) his presentation with photos. But I especially appreciated the fact that there is a DVD attached to this book which goes into detail on how to make some of his dishes. GORDON RAMSAY IS THE MAN!!

Even though Gordon Ramsay is not exactly likeable when he's tormenting people on "Hell's Kitchen," this book is really great! Although I see what some of the other reveiwers are saying about the ingredients, the truth is he really only calls for hard-to-find British ingredients in a handful of recipes, and it's always easy to substitute - i.e. red snapper for mullet. What's great about these recipes is that they look really impressive, but don't require much work - perfect for impressing dinner guests! Try the Hot Chocolate Fondant (little molten chocolate cakes) - it's amazing with vanilla ice cream on the side!