America’s Test Kitchen has created the definitive guide to Mediterranean cooking. Although brimming with amazing recipes, this cookbook has so much more. This book opens with a concise overview of the Mediterranean diet and meal planning. The authors proceed to five-hundred mouth-watering recipes that require mostly easily obtained ingredients and cover every aspect of the meal: small plates, soups, salads, rices and grains, pasta and couscous, beans, vegetables, seafood, poultry and meat, eggs, breads, and fruits and sweets. Many of the recipes are vegetarian and are clearly marked as such, as are quickly prepared recipes. Almost more significantly, the text is simply packed with additional information. The notes dispersed through the book contain valuable information for those wishing to ensure a good outcome and learn more about the intricacies of choosing ingredients and cooking techniques. The large, glossy pictures of the finished product typically found in cookbooks are traded for smaller pictures of the end product and important preparation details. Furthermore, nutritional information for all recipes is contained in an easily read chart at the end of the book. For those looking for the one book they need to master Mediterranean cooking, this is it.

(Originally reviewed in exchange for a free copy of book for Seattle Book Review.)