I have three experience with CI. One is a "Fix it and forget it" cookbook my mom got me--basically casserole meals for the stovetop, oven, and slow cooker. Mostly fattening meat eater fare, so I don't use it much. The recipes I've tried have been OK, not out of this world and their version has never been my definitive one, despite what they claim. I guess mom got it for me so maybe I would make some of those dishes when the 'rents visit, it's really more their style of eating. I watch their show on PBS and enjoy it, but again, mostly meat stuff so not for me. I recently tracked down their blueberry scones recipe because I like fresh fruit in scones but don't like how they get all mushed up. The America's Test Kitchen show I watched on the scones had a folding technique for incorporating the berries. The recipe had all kinds of other fru fru stuff, like grating the frozen butter, freezing the dough for 5 minutes halfway through, etc. The scones turned out OK, kinda doughy, and not any better than any other recipe I have tried, except the folding part about the fruit. The third experience I had was having pumpkin cheesecake at a friend's house, and it was absolutely out of this world, by far the best I have ever had. I normally don't even like it!! She gave me a copy of the article she got the recipe from. Their fussy technique of pressing the pumpkin puree between paper towels to remove some of the liquid really did make a difference it that case. When they review brands, they only review a smattering of the options available. On the plus side, at least they try to be innovative and helpful, and the recipes are not over shadowed by personalities.

Here's one I found online. It's not attributed to anyone but reads like a Cooks Illustrated recipe, especially the "jagged edge" instructions at the end. Big and Chewy Low-Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies To get a flavorful, and tender, cookie, we use date puree to replace three-quarters of the butter. Browning the remaining butter concentrates and boosts its flavor, adding just enough richness to mask the slight fruit flavor from the dates. The browned butter also allowed us to cut the amount of chocolate chips back to 1/2 cup. To make sure each cookie contains some chips, press a portion of the chips over each dough ball just before putting the cookies in the oven. Dried dates can be found in the nut and dried fruit section of the supermarket. Be sure to buy dates that are still supple. Makes 18 cookies 1 cup water 4 tablespoons chopped dates 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon table salt 1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar 1 large egg 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 2. Bring water to boil in small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add dates and simmer until tender and most of water has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Using rubber spatula, press dates through fine-mesh strainer into medium bowl. Scrape dates remaining in strainer into bowl (you should have 1/4 cup puree). Cook butter in small saucepan over medium heat until nutty brown, about 4 minutes. Let cool. 3. Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. With electric mixer on medium speed, beat melted butter, brown sugar, and date puree in large bowl until blended. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Add flour mixture and mix on low until just combined. Reserve 2 tablespoons chips, and stir remaining chips into batter by hand. 4. Following the steps below, form dough into 18 cookies and space them 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Press remaining 2 tablespoons chips evenly over cookies. 5. Bake until edges are light golden brown and centers are soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating baking sheet front to back halfway through baking. Cool cookies completely on baking sheets. Serve. (Cookies will keep in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.) PER COOKIE: Cal 120; Fat 3 g STEP BY STEP: The Jagged Edge 1. Roll 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. Hold the dough ball with the finger-tips of both hands and pull it into two equal halves, creating jagged edges. 2. Rotate the cookie halves so that the jagged surfaces are facing up. Press the two halves together at their base so that they form a single ball. 3. Space the balls of dough, jagged side up, 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.

Yes Kathleen and only someone who knows the island would know that! I take it from your user name that you're from LI as well...where abouts? The original recipe is as follows. Cook's added beer, vinegar, and a quick knead before the final rise. Sue No-Knead Bread Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery Time: About 1.5 hours plus 14 to 20 hours rising 3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast 1 1/4 teaspoons salt Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed. 1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees. 2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes. 3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger. 4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack. Yield: One 1.5 pound loaf.

Ricotta Cheesecake Serves 8 to 10. Published December 12, 2006. The ricotta cheese must be drained in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, or overnight. To drain the cheese, line a fine-mesh sieve with two layers of paper towels, place the cheese in the sieve, place the sieve over a bowl, and refrigerate. Ingredients Amaretti Cookie Crust 5 ounces amaretti cookies , processed in a food processor to uniformly fine crumbs (1 1/4 cups crumbs) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted, plus 1 tablespoon melted butter for greasing pan Ricotta Filling 2 pounds ricotta cheese , drained overnight (see note above) 4 large eggs , separated 3/4 cup sugar (5 1/4 ounces) 1/4 cup light rum 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon) 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/8 teaspoon table salt Instructions 1. For the crust: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. In small bowl, combine amaretti crumbs and 4 tablespoons of melted butter and toss with fork until evenly moistened. Brush bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan with most of remaining tablespoon melted butter, reserving small amount of excess melted butter for brushing sides of pan after crust cools. Empty crumbs into springform pan and press evenly into pan bottom (See illustration). Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around edges, about 13 minutes. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 30 minutes. (Do not turn off oven.) Brush sides of springform pan with remaining melted butter. 2. For the filling: While crust cools, place drained ricotta in food processor and process until very smooth, about 1 minute. Add egg yolks, sugar, rum, flour, zest, vanilla, and salt and process until blended, about 1 more minute. Scrape mixture into large bowl. 3. In bowl of standing mixer, beat egg whites at high speed until they hold stiff peaks. Fold whites into ricotta mixture until fully incorporated and pour mixture evenly into cooled crust. 4. Bake cheesecake until top is lightly browned and instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers about 150 degrees, about 1 1/4 hours. (Perimeter of cake should be firm, but center will jiggle slightly. It will solidify further as cake cools.) Transfer pan to wire rack and cool for 5 minutes. Run paring knife between cake and side of springform pan. Cool until barely warm, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Wrap pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cheesecake is cold and set, at least 5 hours or up to 2 days. 5. To unmold cheesecake, remove sides of pan. Let cheesecake stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve. Perfect Crumb Crust Crumb crusts come together in just seconds, but they can sometimes fall apart. Here's how to make a neat and sturdy crust. Using a flat-bottomed measuring cup, gently press down on the crumbs in the center of the pie plate and then work toward the sides. Tilting the measuring cup, press the sides while squaring off the top edge with your thumb.