Cookbook review: Ad Hoc At Home

Ad Hoc At Home by Thomas Keller ($28.47 at Amazon) is the most accessible of Thomas Keller's cookbooks. For those that don't know, Thomas Keller is one of the premiere chefs in America, and the genius behind The French Laundry, Per Se and Bouchon. I have two of his other cookbooks, The French Laundry and Bouchon, and they're fantastic cookbooks--but they fall squarely into the category of food porn. They're not for everyday home cooks. I have yet to recreate a single recipe out of either one of them, though I dream about it sometimes. Keller's latest cookbook, Ad Hoc At Home, is more for real people and home cooks. It's a big luscious book, full of practical recipes (fried chicken, salad dressing, etc.) and is also a gateway drug to the more complicated Keller cookbooks.