Open Kitchen: Inspired Food for Casual Gatherings

by Susan Spungen

Simple, stylish recipes for fearless entertaining from the renowned food stylist, New York Times contributor, and founding food editor of Martha Stewart Living .

As a professional recipe developer, avid home cook, and frequent hostess, Susan Spungen is devoted to creating perfectly simple recipes for good food. In Open Kitchen, she arms readers with elegant, must-make meal ideas that are easy to share and enjoy with friends and family.

An open kitchen, whether physical or spiritual, is a place to welcome company, to enjoy togetherness and the making of a meal. This cookbook is full of contemporary, stylish, and accessible dishes that will delight and impress with less effort. From simple starters such as Burrata with Pickled Cherries and centerpieces such as Rosy Harissa Chicken, to desserts such as Roasted Strawberry-Basil Sherbet, the dishes are seasonal classics with a twist, vegetable-forward and always appealing. Filled with practical tips and Susan's "get-ahead" cooking philosophy that ensures streamlined, stress-free preparation, this cookbook encourages readers to open their kitchens to new flavors, menus, and guests.

Perfect for occasions that call for simple but elevated comfort food, whether it's a relaxed gathering or a weeknight dinner, Open Kitchen shows readers how to maximize results with minimal effort for deeply satisfying, a little bit surprising, and delicious meals. It is a cookbook you'll reach for again and again.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction

368 pages, Hardcover

Published March 3, 2020

Reviews

[Shipshapeeatworthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Throughout the month of March, I've been steadily cooking from Susan Spungen's latest cookbook, Open Kitchen. Her book has bridged the gap from how I was cooking in the "before times" (as Stephen Colbert puts it) to how I'm cooking now. While the philosophy behind her book looks to guide the home cook towards making delicious food to enjoy with family and friends, I think that even during this time when gatherings have been put on pause, Open Kitchen offers home cooks a way to use her concept of "get-ahead cooking" so that putting meals on the table isn't a chore but something to look forward to. Spungen wants home cooks (and those they cook for) to be able to savour a meal without fussing in the kitchen.

One of the reasons why I find Open Kitchen so useful now is because the recipes rely on fresh ingredients, as well as pantry staples. Going to the grocery store daily or going to multiple stores to source ingredients doesn't fit our current system, so any cookbooks that allow you to use what you've got are essential. Even if you don't have some of the ingredients, Spungen's recipes are flexible enough so that you can omit and/or substitute ingredients. For example, when I wanted to try her recipe for Kabocha Candy w/ Yogurt and Toasted Pepitas but only had buttercup squash, Skyr (a thick, Icelandic yogurt), and pistachios I went ahead with the recipe anyways. At first my daughter wasn't hip to eating the squash and its skin, once she tried it, she was in love -- but it was just as Spungen said it would be like: candy. And, substituting buttercup for kabocha isn't really a stretch -- both have a tender and thin skin that can be eaten after it's roasted and, the combination of flavours and textures here, from sweet and tart to creamy and crunchy, makes this dish something to savour.

The recipes are organized into 6 main chapters: Sauces, Sprinkles, & Stuff, Simple Starters (Meat, Poultry, Fish/Shellfish, Vegetarian), Salads, Vegetables, Starchy Sides, and Desserts. She offers advice on how to stock your pantry and what kitchen equipment to use. And, since this book is about how to cook for gatherings, she offers a variety of menus to suit different occasions. Regardless of the reason who you're cooking for, what Spungen says in her introduction rings true -- by cooking for your loved ones "[you] want [your] friends to feel cared for and considered." This sentiment is especially key during these times. I think in the coming days, weeks, and months we'll be building our inner lives in such a way that we find purpose in the small things and acts. And, one of these acts will be nourishing our bodies and souls. Cooking and baking do this for me. Last week, when my daughter and I baked the Plum Buckwheat Bars, I knew we were holding onto the normalcy that cooking together brings. Then, to sit down in the afternoon to enjoy a warm slice of these jammy, crumbly pie bars, felt so comforting.

I really appreciate how Spungen consistently uses her pantry staples in satisfying and interesting ways. When I open a cookbook what I'm looking for are recipes that offer something unique. Even something as ubiquitous as banana bread has been made more special through her use of buckwheat flour and tahini. Speaking of tahini, its an ingredient that Spungen uses to great success in Open Kitchen. The sesame seed and all its related forms have found their way into many of her recipes. Most of us probably have a jar of tahini lurking in the fridge for those times we make hummus but what Spungen does here is to take this humble ingredient and give it new purpose. From the tahini in the gorgeously smooth sauce for the Za'atar Tofu Bowls and in the Black and White Tahini Swirl Cookies to the halvah in the frangipane of the Apple Galette (along with a few recipes I haven't tried yet) she demonstrates how delicious and versatile this ingredient is. Even though the black tahini would be a special-order ingredient for most people, these cookies can be made entirely from regular tahini -- I highly recommend trying this recipe because the cookies are so delicious! They're at the top of my list for best cookies ever -- a combination of shortbread and peanut butter cookie (I baked them in the same shape Spungen used for a similar cookie that appeared in the NY Times Cooking section in December but I used the recipe from Open Kitchen).

After trying almost a dozen recipes, Open Kitchen has become a welcome addition to my cookbook shelf. And, I find there are so many recipes on my list still to try -- the Meyer Lemon Gnocchi w/ Spring Vegetables and, the Shaved Rhubarb and Beet Salad w/ Rhubarb Vinaigrette are two notable examples. Lots of "vegetarian (or nearly)" recipes (lots of "Meatless Monday" inspiration) in addition to other more meatier ones. Spungen takes care of everyone! I appreciate how thoughtful Spungen is about what ingredients she uses and which recipes she included in her book, which is why it's one I'll keep going back to for recipes and inspiration.

Please note that this is an excerpt of a longer review posted to www.shipshapeeatworthy.wordpress.com

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Susan Spungen and Avery Books for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook is the December featured cookbook for the Food 52 Cookbook club. I had it out of the library over the summer, and on a casual look through thought that it was not for me. Then I made a recipe, and reading the directions and the context and then tasting the food, I thought, well, it is a pandemic, and we need inspiration to continue to thrive on the food that we are making, so why not?

There are several things that I love about this book, not the least of which are the photos, but a cookbook that has an extensive salads section, on top of vegetable sides is a cookbook for me. There is plenty of meat in here, but there are quite a few recipes with none, and then others where it can be omitted or is optional. The book identifies recipes that are projects rather than week night dishes, and there is a break down of when you can do what ahead, so that is you are transporting the dish, or prepping for a week night meal that is elaborate ahead of time, you know exactly what works, at least from the author's point of view. A nice addition to my collection.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a gorgeous book. It’s got lots of great ideas for entertaining and I thought the meat chapters were great - you could also use these recipes for batch cooking or weekly meal prep. I could have lived without as many toast and kale recipes. Her salads and veg dishes are also strong, while the desert chapter did very little for me. The one amazing cookie recipe - triple chocolate ginger - I already have from Martha Stewart. Also, many of these recipes are ‘projects’ in the sense they are very involved to prepare. If I’m having company, the last thing I want is a project.

[Juli Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been putting this one off because living amidst a global pandemic really makes you rethink the way you've entertained your whole life. Frankly, I haven't had anyone in my house in over a year and I've realized I kind of like it that way. It's hard for me to separate those circumstances from my reading of this book. I bookmarked a couple of recipes here, but most of the recipes are far too entailed for me to consider attempting for company.

[Meg Ready · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful photos and clear recipes without a ton of ingredients. The book is well organized with green project tabs that indicate more time-consuming dishes. The suggested menus in the back are helpful, too. This book contains good recipes for a crowd with flavor profiles that are accessible, but many recipes like "oven-baked polenta" while good foundational recipes aren't new.

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely pictures and a wonderful layout. Unfortunately, you can definitely tell that the author was an editor at Martha Stewart Living for a while. Many of the recipes use hard to source or expensive ingredients, and many of them seem more involved than she implied in her opening. Overall, not a book I would cook from.

[Aasinathena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got to know about Susan through the Cherry Bombe mag and then only got to knew Susan was the one to cook and style the dishes for Julie and Julia movie. That movie was one of the best and I love it so much ! This book is too a very good cook book if you look for contemporary French food !

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something about the intro to this book made me think I was not going to like it—stuffy? Pretentious? Turns out I loved it. Making the buckwheat plum bars this afternoon!

[Avalon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very dull plain recipes that are not unique or flavorful have been done many times in other cookbooks.

[E G Melby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Her idea of casual is MUCH different from mine. I did appreciate the inclusion of the ginger and chocolate chip cookie recipe.

[Cathy Meyers · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Beautiful pictures but nothing I’d be able to use.

[Mary C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not only was this a good read but I tried and loved the Grilled Swordfish with Spicy Olive Relish. I will make that again for sure and can't wait to try other recipes from this book also.

[Rosanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great recipes, but jeez, so elitist. Many eye rolls to be had.