Reviewed by annieb123 on
Great Book of Grilled Cheese is such a fun and useful collection of coordinating recipes for almost everyone's favorite comfort food written and curated by Kim Wilcox. Released 27th July 2021 by Fox Chapel, it's 160 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats.
This is an upbeat, well written, and beautifully presented cookbook full of very yummy recipes. The introduction includes a capsule history of the iconic grilled cheese sandwich as well as overviews over tools, supplies, and ingredients.
The recipe chapters are arranged thematically: best of the best, gourmet/fancy, vegetarian, regional variants, collaborative efforts with other chefs, and desserts. Ingredient measurements are supplied in American standard measurements only. The nutritional information is not included. Each recipe includes a header with a short description of the recipe and approximate servings. Extra tips or recipe alternatives are listed in text boxes in the recipes. The recipes themselves are fairly straightforward and are made for the most part with easily sourced ingredients. Many are very simple, none of them are overly complex. The photography is abundant and clear and the recipes are illustrated simply and clearly. Nearly all of the recipes also include a highlighted text box offering tips and alternative presentations and variations.
Grilled cheese and "everyday" food are perennial favorites in my family and this book has enough good tips and variations that it'll keep comfort food fans busy for months. One of the standout recipes for us was the Asian slaw with fried wontons. It was absolutely bursting with flavor and crunch and is a huge hit with us now (with everything, not just grilled cheese).
Four and a half stars. This is a solid cookbook which will be used. It would make a superlative housewarming gift to a friend or family member living on their own - college student, new graduate, newlyweds, kids flying the nest, etc as well as a nice acquisition for the home, public, or school library.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 3 January, 2022: Finished reading
- 3 January, 2022: Reviewed