The fisherman's stew in this book is incredible, and the ingredients list is far simpler than I have seen elsewhere, yet it's the best recipe I've tasted. There are some unusual choices of meat/poultry. Hard to come by squab in your local market these days, but many could easily be replaced by more a traditional selection. Cornish Game Hen for Squab, for instance.

Not always as elegant as say, perfect roast chicken, but always tasty, I use this cookbook regularly. The Marinara Sauce in here is the only one I make anymore, it's only 5, 6 ingrediants and goes on everything! Great parmesan pork chops, too.

Again, down to earth ingredient lists and instructions with beautiful results you won't mind eating again and again. This is my favorite of hers, although all of her cookbooks are worth looking into. Shamefully I've only tried a meager handful of these recipes, because everytime I crack the book open I fall upon my favorite recipe...lemon chicken with croutons, and then I just make that.

Barbecue defies the simple and easy homemade rule, being as it is neither. BUT I love this book and it is constantly out on the counter even in cold, cold winter it provides hours of daydreaming about the spring and the day when it will be well and truly sensible to barbecue. The barbecue sauce and the magic rub alone are pretty much worth it's weight in gold.