Paper Palate

Bi-monthly magazine Cook’s Country is the bigger, glossier, and down-homier sibling of Cook’s Illustrated. Cook’s Illustrated readers will recognize the style of the equipment and product reviews; these get their own departments, “Equipment Roundup” and “Food Shopping,” respectively. Cook’s readers will also recognize the method of experimenting with and testing dishes until they really shine, then explaining why the recipe works. Chicken Marsala is one classic recipe that is reinvented in the December/January 2007 issue of Cook’s Country.

Then there are the things that Cook’s Country does a bit differently. It frequently looks at “retro” food in a column called “Lost Recipes.” This issue’s lost recipe is for Red Velvet Cake, which waned in popularity amid the health scare about red dye #2 in the 1970s. Readers can also write in to the department called “I’m Looking for a Recipe” and ask others for help in rediscovering all-but-forgotten recipes. Another reader-oriented column is “When Things Go Wrong in the Kitchen,” where readers contribute their war stories. There is a central section of pull-out recipe cards for “30-Minute Suppers.” There are recipe contests, too; this issue’s Christmas cookie contest was won by a no-bake recipe for Crunchy Spiced Rum Balls (four runners-up also get their recipes printed in the magazine for the contest roundup).

In keeping with this issue’s seasonal dateline, there’s a holiday menu with family recipes from America’s Test Kitchen staff. The centerpiece is Pineapple Mustard Glazed Ham, and it is complemented by Shrimp Cocktail Salad, Smoky Scalloped Potatoes, Apricot-Orange Gelatin Mold, Sweet and Sour Glazed Brussels Sprouts, and Cranberry-Raspberry Fools. Also highlighted on the cover is Dinner Party Beef Tenderloin, the sort of thing one might want to serve when entertaining this season.