Forking Fantastic!: Put the Party Back in Dinner Party

by Zora O'Neill, Tamara Reynolds, Tamara Reynolds

Book Overview

From the creators of Sunday Night Dinners comes this festive collection of 50 crowd-pleasing recipes. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1592405053
• ISBN13: 9781592405053
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Gotham Books
• Length: 244 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 7.5" x 9.1"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Absolutely Inspiring

I just love this book! It's so much more than a cookbook. The dynamic personalities of the authors shine through in the telling of their cooking adventures, recipes, and stories. Their humor and love of entertaining have inspired me to have more dinner parties and to stress less about it. This is a great book for people at all stages of cooking experience. I've been cooking for many years and still found some great tips to help me. Read this book and be inspired to have the best dinner parties ever. I highly recommend it.

The Real Fun of Cooking finally explained

Forking Fantastic uses cooking as a means not a goal. The goal is a better, healthier and, mainly, a more social life. This is the first cook book I ever read that truly delivers its message in a simple and fun way with no bs. The authors, Tamara and Zora experienced a real change for the better in their lives since they began throwing dinner parties and they make a very convincing argument why this could work for anyone. This book has some great recipes (from caesar's salad to fried chicken to croquembouche to lane cake) and awesome practical tips like what a great kitchen needs - turns out, not much (3 knives, a cast iron skillets, a few stainless steel bowls and a garlic press), they also support the Jamie Oliver style of not using exact measurements (thank you!). This book will give you all the confidence you need to stop eating take away watching reruns of Friends and actually get a life.

Laid Back, Delicious Food & Fun!!!!

I just got this cookbook last week and am already in love with it -- I love the laid-back, no measurements approach (which is really how you're supposed to cook!), and the no-fuss approach to dining. I've already flagged a bunch of recipes to make for upcoming dinner parties.

Brazen over-the-top fun! Who can resist?

If you've never considered cooking for another person never mind a group, this book will at least get you fantasizing about the possibility. Even if you rarely cook for yourself, you'll find yourself thinking Hmmm, I could make that... And seasoned cooks? I'm one of those ~ boasting dozens of years of creative cookery ~ yet there were multiple "who knew?" moments for me. These women know what they're talking about and better yet, know how to say it with clarity. And when's the last time you laughed out loud reading a cookbook? Despite the statement that their vision of vegetarianism includes a bacon exception, the authors' vegetable dishes are original and tantalizing ~ and don't actually contain bacon although the recipe for candying it might make you want to.

Practical. Funny. Profane. Awesome.

Ok, I've only had this book for 24 hours, so the recipes are not battle-tested, with the exception of a yummy Spanish Tortilla I made with leftovers last night (think frittata, not mexican tortilla). Having said that, I love the spirit of the book. It's aimed at someone who basically never throws a dinner party because of the stress involved. The recipes, shopping tips, etc all emphasize maximum deliciousness with least effort - for instance, it recommends never peeling a vegetable. It correctly identifies the surprising tastiness of frozen peas. I could go on. The pleasure the authors take in a wine-infused, too-many-people-in-a-small-apartment kind of a dinner party is infectious. All in all, if the use of the f-word bothers you, or you want your dinner to look great in photographs, look elsewhere. If you've been meaning to get 8 people over for dinner more often, and want some help, this is just the ticket.