[.ca] The Common Grill Cookbook (ISBN 1886947880)

From Amazon.com:
First of all, there is nothing common about this cookbook, and it is not about grilling. Rather, it is a compilation of more than 150 recipes from the Common Grill, chef Craig Common's restaurant in the quaint town of Chelsea, Michigan. Common's food has been described as a combination of "big city" and "casual comfort," and with recipes such as Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Warm Garlic Custard, it's easy to see why. Common's work is well organized. He starts with a chapter of basics, such as stocks, basil pesto, and a roasted-tomato sauce, and then presents a chapter of sauces, some of which are called for later in the book and some of which will make a dish all on their own. A little note at the end of a recipe for Mint Aioli says, "A great addition to grilled lamb chops"; Tomato and Roasted Pepper Compote is "great on grilled fish"; and Bacon-Balsamic Vinaigrette is used in a salmon recipe but would be tasty also on a spinach salad. Once you get past the basics, however, Common gets less common and more complicated. While there are a number of recipes with short lists of ingredients and manageable time frames, such as Skillet-Roasted Mussels, Dungeness Crab Cakes, and Apple Praline French Toast, most are quite complex and time-consuming, requiring a bit of expertise in the kitchen. Fortunately, many are beautifully photographed and all are laid out well, with the lists of ingredients separated into mini-recipes and printed on an off-white background to help you keep your place as you look back and forth at the instructions alongside. Tuna Salad Niçoise, for example, is a work of art, made with fresh Ahi tuna and served on mesclun with beans, potatoes, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, and ricotta or feta cheese with Roasted Lemon-Basil Vinaigrette. The recipes for the Tuna Marinade and the vinaigrette are called out separately. Pan-Seared Whitefish with Cajun Ragout Sauce, Chilean Sea Bass with New Bedford Littleneck Clams, and Roasted Vegetable Cannelloni are all worth the trouble, but the key to these recipes is to really read them, as the instructions sometimes oversimplify the work involved. While this book is certainly something a kitchen novice could aspire to, it is geared more toward cooks who are already quite comfortable in the kitchen. For them, Common is sure to be a source of inspiration. --Leora Y. Bloom

Very special cookbook:
My husband was attracted to this cookbook because of its appearance, but once we really looked through it, we had to have it! The recipes use the ingredients that we prefer and keep around. The last dinner I made, the Marinated Grilled Ribeye with Gorgonzola sauce and the Smashed Redskins w/parnips and carrots, was a unqualified hit for a birthday dinner. These recipes are so good you 'ummmmmm!' while you eat. The fish recipes are easy and unusual. He also offers suggestions on a wine to accompany the meal. Everything we've made, we've loved. THEN we went to his restaurant. What a wonderful experience. Chelsea is close to Ann Arbor. Make a point to go.

Too Pretty to Take in the Kitchen:
Sleeping Bear Publishing makes great looking books and the Common Grill Cookbook is no exception. It's so pretty I needed to buy a second book--one for the coffee table and one for the kitchen. The recipes are easy to follow and result in fabulous food. The only thing better is eating in the restaurant because then you don't need to clean up.

Homemade pizza dough recipe lacking accurate flour measure.:
The cookbook overall is filled with mouth-watering recipes and easy to follow directions and layout. Major disappointment came, however, in the homemade pizza dough recipe (page 141)... Seems to be a "typo" in the flour quantity. The recipe requires one cup of flour, but with 2/3 cup warm water doesn't seem to be accurate. When preparing this recipe I had to trial-and-error the quantity of flour myself. This recipe was very important to me, for pizzas, but also for bread when shaped into a short loaf, the one I tried to prepare first, and one which didn't quite turn out, hence my disappointment. The apple chutney, on the other hand, was quite a success.

For those who like a little challenge:
I have completed three dinner parties using recipes from this cookbook exclusively, and have gotten rave reviews on all three. The ingredients lists are long, sometimes with unusual ingredients, so this is a book for someone who enjoys a little challenge. The Chinese Chicken Salad is delicious, the desserts are rich and wonderful, and the pictures allow you to produce meals that look like a professional chef is hiding in your kitchen.

Chelsea Common Grill is My Favorite:
One of the things that I have truly enjoyed about living in and around Ann Arbor, Michigan, is the selection of great restaurants in the area. Not being a big city girl, I've never lived somewhere that had so many great restaurants in such a small area. However, Chelsea Common Grill is my absolute favorite. It stands head and shoulders above all the others in the area in the quality of its food (and service). In fact, I am joining several friends there this evening to celebrate my birthday. Today, I discovered the availability of the cookbook and it is going on my Christmas wish list. To have access to Chef Craig's recipes is like a dream come true. While I haven't had the opportunity to review the cookbook and try any of its recipes, I know from eating the food served at his restaurant that this will be a cookbook worth having and giving!