Gordon Ramsay’s Family Fare and Other Recipes from The F Word

In keeping with his British show, The F Word, celebrity chef Ramsay aims to promote “family” meals with this new, cleanly designed paean to home and hearth. Chapters are divided into individual meals, each with a theme and three courses (Mediterranean: pan-roasted scallops with cauliflower puree, herb-crusted rack of lamb, and baguette and butter pudding), with Ramsay providing a helpful plan of attack at the outset in order to better time the proceedings. There’s a decidedly English slant to his roasts and puddings, but Ramsay also allows for flavors of the Middle East, Malaysia, and Spain to seep into his fare. In book form, Ramsay is a gentle guide—and not nearly as demanding as he appears on his shows Hell’s Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares. One idiosyncrasy is that his oven times are devised for convection appliances, so those without need to increase the temperature by 25 degrees Fahrenheit. For some cooks, these meals will feel a bit heavier and more formal than what they’re accustomed to cooking at home, but Ramsay is full of good ideas (saffron and cauliflower soup; pan-fried sea bass with broccoli sorrel sauce; cardamom custard tart) for enlivening the ordinary. (June)