America's Test Kitchen?
 

I enjoy watching the show - they explain some of the science of cooking, ala Alton Brown, and supposedly try hundreds of different methods and recipes for each dish so you don't have to. So, about two years ago, I bought one of their big cookbooks, "The New Best Recipe". Great explanations of why some things work, others don't. Everything seems perfectly logical, and you are eager to try the recipes.

BUT -

After trying about a dozen recipes, I'm ready to give up on them. Some were OK, most were not very good. This comes up because the Mrs. saw one of their mini-cookbooks in a store (Cook's Illustrated "American Classics" with a picture of cupcakes on the cover), developed a craving for cupcakes, bought the book ($7.95 wasted), and spent 2 hours yesterday meticulously following the directions. After that, we each ate one half a cupcake and threw the remainder of the dozen away - absolutely awful.

I've not had this experience with other cookbooks. I've found my ancient Better Homes & Gardens cookbook and my Family Circle Encyclopedia of Cooking to be absolutely reliable, as well as my Southern Living cookbooks.

Anybody else try the America's Test Kitchen or Cook's Illustrated stuff? What has been your experience?

America's test kitchen is just a shortened version of older (around a year's behind) of Cook's Illustrated items. I subscribe to and enjoy Cooks Illustrated. It is important to understand who their target audience is and how the writer's chosen methodology determines what is the "best" recipe for the dish.

That being said, I've found baking to be the most difficult and precise of the cooking disciplines and can see how something different from a non-calibrated oven to the use of kosher vs table salt can drastically alter the outcome.

Their product reviews are quite good.

Their blind taste tests of stuff are usually pretty good.

Their recipes I always find to be quite bland and boring.

I understand kosher vs table salt vs sea salt. I understand how non-calibrated ovens can affect lots of factors. I consider myself reasonably adept in the kitchen, and haven't found problems with even fairly advanced cookbooks (other than finding the time).

But this does not explain why the chocolate butter cream frosting was abysmal after going to the effort of searching out Dutch process cocoa powder in order to make certain she could follow the directions precisely.

I've also subscribed to Cook's Illustrated for awhile. I enjoyed reading the recipes and watching the videos - porn for a foodie like me. But actually making the dishes - most are bleh.

My experience, anyway. YMMV.

I'm fairly adept, as well, and always follow a recipe exactly as written the first time.

I recently sought out and purchased a ($18!) tin of piment d' Espellette for a smoky tomato soup recipe, because it was called for in the recipe. (It was nice, but could have easily substituted a good smoky paprika instead.)

I subscribed to Cook's Illustrated and didn't renew after trying some of the magazine recipes. I was surprised at the mediocre results.

To the OP,
sounds like you'd enjoy, "On Food and Cooking; the Science and Lore of the Kitchen" by Harold McGee.
Originally published in 1984, it was updated in 2004 and covers the "hows and whys" of just about any ingredient/cooking method you could name.

I've always had great results with their recipes. Their chocolate chip cookie recipe is incredible!

very boring, uninspired stuff

Cooking vs Baking is very much an art. I have tried following some of the cooking recipes to a tee, but found that they are all a bit generic and bland for my southern NOLA lifestyle (love Alton too but also find his actual recipes a bit generic and bland) but I have taken many of the techniques learned and applied to some of my classic recipes. No one guide is the end all be all. I too have seen those magazines in fancy stores and just pass them by knowing that the web is a cornucopia of info.

I've actually been one of their "testers" so you don't have to ;) but have never yet had the time to actually test any of the recipes they send me.

Clearly, I have failed you all!

I'm actually a big fan of the equipment corner and have followed their advice on a number of fronts and have been quite pleased.

I enjoy watching the show, but don't follow the recipes (or any recipe for that matter -- cooking is instinct, baking is science and I don't bake).

I do think Christopher Kimbal is so uncool that he's actually cool. And how could you not love Jack Bishop in the Tasting Lab!