REVIEWS

Desperate Housewives Dishes can be Yours to Serve

The Desperate Housewives Cookbook: Juicy Dishes and Saucy Bits Recipes by Christopher Styler Text by Scott S. Tobis Hyperion, 2006 ISBN#: 1401302777

I love cooking and my favorite show is Desperate Housewives – great combo for a review assignment!

I was surprised at how great a book it actually is. I thought it may be kind of hokey with lots of pictures thrown in to make it more a collector picture book rather than a useable cookbook; however, I was wrong.

Although there are a lot of great pictures, making me giggle as I recall the episodes from which those came, there are actually a lot of fantastic recipes also.

I particularly like how the writers separated the girls into categories and picked out foods related to each character. I went immediately to Susan’s list to see if the famous Macaroni and Cheese dish was there. Yes, sure enough, it was! Who can forget that episode! Even the dialogue from that fateful day of Mike Delphino eating the "undercooked , yet burnt flavored" dish is in the book – very funny.

Bree has items particularly suited to her culinary skills. The recipes in her section are high end, yet fairly simple. Her muffin mix is there with some humorous additions. "These are not the enormous, super sweet greasy muffins; these are moist delicate muffins."

The Lamb Shanks Osso Bucco really intrigued me with the addition of an unusual ingredient: cinnamon. Along with the dialogue from that episode, "Do you always have to serve cuisine? Can’t we ever just have food? To which her response was are you doing drugs?"

Lobster Risotto with Herb Oil, Steamed Tiny Potatoes with Herb Butter, Basil Puree Soup. All perfect examples of our Bree.

Susan’s chapter is more down-to-earth with home-based, easy recipes you would use on a daily basis, as opposed to Bree’s more formal, dinner-party-type of recipes.

Margaritas, Foolproof Macaroni and Cheese, Shopping Bag Chicken, Easy or Easiest Coleslaw, and Not Too Crunchy Granola. Sounds like our Susan!

The section from Gabrielle Solis has a lot of cultural, spicy foods. I am going to make the Paella dish. One of my favorites! And a learning experience, which I never even heard of, but sounded intriguing, was the boiled peanuts - you will have to read it to see what I mean. Some really great desserts in her section also: Rum-glazed Roasted Pineapple, Toasted Angel Food Cake with Spiced Strawberries. Yum, that would go great with the Mexican Hot Chocolate recipe!

And rightly so, Lynnette’s chapter has a lot of kid-friendly dishes that are quick with easy ingredients, most of what you would have at home. And yes, the famous Brussel Sprout recipe is in there, and I dare you to try it with your kids! Some very interesting Grilled Cheese Sandwich ideas, a couple of which I am going to try for an adult dinner. Mango Martinis, Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan Cheese. Great ideas and very simple.

Last but not least, the smallest chapter from Edie, who I assume is more into wearing the food than cooking it. These include Camembert Baked in its Box and Make-your-own Sundae (ice cream optional). These make for a good laugh, and hey, it could be fun.

The Neighbors section was nice to round out the cast. The Wisteria Lane Icebox Napoleons look incredibly easy but I bet they are incredibly tasty! Something kids could make.

As well as trivia and other anecdotes in between recipes, there are suggestions for alternative usages of the food (use your imagination here!) The girls’ individual shopping lists are comical to say the least, and I imagine very accurate. The chapter at the back describing in detail the amount of work the food stylist manages on the show was enlightening and will make me look closer at the show when the dinners and food items are shown in upcoming episodes.

Overall, the presentation, design and layout looks good and is actually one of the nicer cookbooks I have seen in a while, including both gourmet items and items kids could make with ease. I enjoyed it from beginning to end and it would make a great gift for fans of Desperate Housewives everywhere.

Petrina Bosiak, single mother of three, watches and lives Desperate Housewives. Her escape from reality is to faithfully watch the show on Sundays. She best relates to Lynette's life.