America's Test Kitchen & Secret Recipes

So I hinted at this in a previous post which you can read about here.  This is one of the secrets and another one will be revealed in October.  

America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) is a great resource that you should know about if you love recipes, cooking, or kitchen equipment and gadgets.  They have TV shows, podcasts, magazines, and MANY cookbooks.  I have subscribed at various times to both “Cook’s Country” and “Cook’s Illustrated.”  “Cook’s Country” has several recipes with great instructions explaining the science behind what worked and sometimes what didn’t work.  They have photos for each recipe and sometimes even step-by-step pictures. It also has stories from around the food world.  “Cook’s Illustrated” is more technical, explaining things thoroughly and giving equipment reviews too.  Both are great resources and worth keeping as they are like their own little cookbooks.  

I have 5 of their books: “The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook, 2001-2018,” “Just Add Sauce,” “The Complete Make-Ahead Cookbook,” “Food Gifts,” and “Cook’s Illustrated Kitchen Hacks.”  “The Complete ATK TV Show Cookbook” is huge and similar to “Joy of Cooking” or “The New York Time Essential Cookbook” in that it’s a comprehensive book that covers most of the essentials.  I’ve made the Mexican pulled pork (carnitas), really good garlic bread (that’s the actual title), and the arugula salad with figs, prosciutto, walnuts, and parmesan.  All were great, but the carnitas were incredible and so tasty!  From the “Just Add Sauce” book I’ve made the pan-fried sole with lemon-caper pan sauce.  I can’t wait to make something from “Food Gifts” for the holiday season this year. I got that book with a discount which I’ll explain below. 

I’ve listened to the “Proof” podcast where they cover a variety of food topics.  But that’s not what I want to talk about.  When I was listening to the podcast I happened to hear one of their ads telling listeners about how they can sign up to be a recipe tester.  I went to the site, and they explained how it all worked.  You can read more here, but simply they email you recipes that you can try or not.  If you don’t try something, there’s no penalty, and you’re not removed from future emails.  And if you do try something and give feedback, as a thank you I’ve gotten a discount at their shop which is why I got the “Food Gifts” book.  In addition, you get early access to one of their recipes and are helping them develop it to share with others.  You can not share the recipe or photos until they publish it in one of their sources.  

My take on the chorizo with sweet potatoes and black beans

So I was excited when the chorizo with sweet potatoes and black beans was published in the February/March 2024 issue.  As soon as I saw the title, I said to myself “oh, I made that!”  Turns out I made that about a year ago.  And since I’m slow to read my magazines, I didn’t see it until July 2024.  This has been a fun experience, and I’ve tried three other recipes since I signed up last summer.  But I haven’t seen them anywhere so I need to keep them a secret until I see them!  Try this if you want early access to recipes and like to keep secrets!