Cookbook Review: The Gourmet Cookie Book

The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe from Each Year 1941-2009

I remember when I was very young, I used to "help" my mom make cookies.  I can remember her flouring the cookie sheets and then making marks where we were to put the cookie dough.  I can remember when I was in fourth grade, I came home from school one day and Mom had the makings for chocolate chip cookies on the table (including a mixer with a broken handle--I still have that mixer and can't believe I ever used it for more than mashing potatoes or mixing icing).  I remember figuring that 4T of flour could be omitted from the recipe as too much trouble, and I remember finding out that I was wrong about that.  Making cookies is one of my favorite holiday traditions.  All that being said, when I saw The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe from Each Year 1941-2009 available on Net Galley, I requested it.  

The Gourmet Cookie Book: The Single Best Recipe from Each Year 1941-2009 falls into the "kitchen porn" group of cookbooks.  If you follow the Amazon link, you'll see that it is filled with beautiful pictures of  cookies artfully arranged.  My six year old assistant and I have tried any of the recipes yet, and while there are a few that just seem like far more trouble than they would be worth, others, such as the date bars look like they could be whipped up in no time.  

The main criticism of the book is that I like recipes that list the ingredients first, and then give the cooking directions.  This book does it all together--telling you to cream together a certain amount of butter with so much sugar and brown sugar and so on.  I like to be able to tell at a glance if the ingredients are in my cabinet; with these recipes I have to read them carefully to make sure I didn't miss anything.  

Grade:  B-

I'd like to thank the publisher for providing a complimentary digital galley via Net Galley.