Product Description

This book illustrates perfectly what authentic, original, regional American cooking is all about. This is food at its most appealing: simple, delicious fare that leaves lots of room for variations and that the home cook can feel proud to serve anytime.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #272417 in Books
• Published on: 2003-02-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In his newest book, Villas, the food and wine editor of Town & Country for 27 years and author of Between Bites, indulges his love of the traditional dishes that make up much of America's regional cuisine. After covering the "Essentials of Modern Casserole Cookery," including a guide to casserole dishes and their baking dish equivalents, he moves on to freezing and the basic pantry before throwing himself into the recipes. The recipes cover the gamut of courses and ingredients, from appetizers like the flavorful Crusty Wild Mushroom Bake to desserts such as Hot Brandied Fruit Casserole. In between he includes many classics such as the Yankee Hot Pot, All-American Chicken Pot Pie, Jambalaya, and Country Captain as well as many modern adaptations and innovations like the light yet robust California Tuna, Potato and Olive Casserole that uses fresh tuna rather than canned. In "Casserole Chat," Villas imparts helpful hints such as how to store dried mushrooms or how to reheat leftovers. The resulting volume highlights why Villas has maintained his position as one of America's foremost traditional cooks.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Villas, who was food and wine editor of Town & Country for almost 30 years, has written eloquently about American regional cooking in many cookbooks, including Stews, Bogs, and Burgoos. His latest is something of a companion to that title, as he believes that casseroles "boast a versatility that is matched only by soups and stews." He also believes that they, more than any other dish, "illustrate what authentic regional cooking is all about," and he offers dozens of recipes from around the country to prove his point: Chicago Shrimp de Jonghe, Portland Oyster and Bacon Pie, Yankee Corned Beef and Vegetable Pot, and Ann Arbor Venison and Wild Mushroom Bake. Villas's text is informed, opinionated, witty, and a pleasure to read, and with its wide-ranging selection of recipes, it will interest culinary historians as well as home cooks. Highly recommended.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
On a cold winter's night, a casserole bubbling in the oven can be just the thing to pique a family's appetites. Noted cookbook author James P. Villas has assembled 275 recipes in Crazy for Casseroles that offer creative and original ideas for casseroles far removed from typical hamburger, macaroni, and soup renditions. Tarragon scents a casserole of veal stew meat, carrots, and olives. Venison, parsnips, and mushrooms offer a way to use up excess game. Chicken and kohlrabi souffle makes use of a little appreciated vegetable. Goose, sausage, and chestnuts vary the standard holiday fowl. Even macaroni and cheese gets a few handfuls of fresh oysters for a New England twist on the predictable casserole. For the more traditionally minded, Villas creates Blue Plate Noodle, Beef, and Cheese casserole to appeal to the less expansive palate with everyday ingredients. Mark Knoblauch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Worst Cookbook Ever
I hate to disagree with the glowing reviews for this book but since I relied on the other reviews I had read to buy this book, I thought maybe a differing view would be useful. I am a seasoned cook and can say that this is one of the most poorly written cookbooks I have ever cooked from. I have made 3 recipes thus far. All have had major proportion issues and have lacked flavor. Even corrections I made as I went based on previous experiences could not save these recipes. If you like food that is basic in flavor (kinda like standard cafeteria fare) then you will probably like this book. If you like flavor in your food, then I suggest not buying this one.

Well-rounded, all American comfort food
Homey fare, from Texas Hash Casserole, to Portland Oyster and Bacon Pie, and Michigan Baked Fish Casserole, Villas' (The French Country Kitchen") collection of one-dish meals takes us across the country from breakfast (Weekend Egg and Feta Cheese, Plantation Grits and Cheddar) to dessert (Raspberry and Blueberry Crunch, Florida Key Lime Pudding). All the old favorites are here - Yankee Hot Pot, Sally Lunn Casserole Bread, Tuna Noodle - plus some new-fangled favorites like Minnesota Quail with Wild Rice and Raisins, and some local curiosities like New Hampshire Turnip, Beet and Hazelnut Soufflé (Villas even makes this sound good). But New England holds it own with Cheddar, Onion and Walnut Pie, Indian Pudding, Yankee Oyster Pie and Vermont Walnut Casserole Bread. Eggs, butter and cream abound as does macaroni and cheese in various combinations. Succulent meat dishes are also well represented, from Georgia Chicken and Peanut Bake and Country Captain, to Spiced Lamb Chops and Radicchio Casserole, Baked Spareribs with Apples and Prunes, Nevada Basque Chicken, and Venison and Wild Mushroom Bake.

Villas sprinkles this well-rounded, all-American comfort-food collection with tips on everything from freezing to condiment brands and baking dish equivalents. Recipe prefaces provide background history and cooking suggestions. Useful for entertaining as well as everyday, this book will see plenty of use in any kitchen.

Great American Cuisine--the Casserole
Villas is right, it is American, this casserole. It defines regional cooking and it has its own jargon: stratas, perloos, shroups. royales, supremes, gratins, souffles, cobblers, crisps, delights, etc.

So if you don't know all of them, this is the fun of exploring this great comfort food area that we all grew up with. These are the dishes that people have always served and offered up to new neighborhood moveins to potlucks to you name it.

There are simply too many just great recipes here among the 275 to pick only a few. So simply pointing out a few more than a few greats: I agree with Villas that "Craig's Chicken Spaghetti" is a casserole masterpiece; Lizzie's Low Country Chicken Bog; Chicken And Sausage Casserole; Michigan Baked Fish Casserole; Paper Bag Chicken Casserole; Ann Arbor Venison and Wild Mushroom Bake; Yukon Gold Potato and Goat Cheese Casserole; New Hampshire Turnip, Beet and Hazelnut Casserole; Midwestern Wild Plum Jelly Rice Pudding; Peach, Raspberry and Almond Brown Betty; Chilled Seafood, Mango and Rice Casserole.

This is supplemented with good primer on essentials of casserole making and its equipment, techniques, and pantry essential list.

Although void of any photos, the sidebar descriptions which accompany each recipe are enough to get the salivation going and out come the casseroles and one is off.

Beaut of a casserole companion.