Reading through Vivian Howard’s This Will Make It Taste Good is like reading a cookbook by your real or imagined North Carolinian best friend... Howard’s intended audience is the time-crunched kitchen novice, though a more experienced cook will surely find some useful tips, as well. Each section is based around a recipe that can be prepped in advance and then used throughout the week in a multitude of dishes...In any time, This Will Make It Taste Good would be a great help to those of us who prefer recipes that look and taste more complex than they are to prepare. That it happens to arrive at a moment when we’re likely all sick of the contents of our fridges and our own culinary limitations is just a bonus.
— Eater
Simple and approachable doesn’t mean boring here—there are plenty of colorful infographics for those who need a little coaxing to read a recipe, and it’s all fun food: burgers crowned with glossy ‘cheese toupees,’ mouth-puckering pickle juice popsicles (picksickles, if you will), and four whole pages devoted to the savory umami bomb that is perfectly caramelized onions. And I mean it when I say this is for the no-cook crowd: for proof, just flip to the eggs softly scrambled in a cup in the microwave on page 190.
— Epicurious
Howard’s ability to weave story into her fantastic recipes is part of what makes me so excited for her next book coming out this fall. In “This Will Make It Taste Good,” Howard solves everyday cooking dilemmas and provides next-level meal prep ideas (hello, great pantry staples).
— The Kitchn
North Carolina chef, restaurateur, and PBS host Howard follows 2016’s Deep Run Roots with a personal and playful introduction to her fare. Chapter titles and recipe names are upbeat and engaging (Herbdacious, Can-Do Kraut), and explained in a pun-packed, chatty voice. Dishes are introduced with frank confessions, including her struggle to correctly spell “hors d’oeuvre” and various kitchen failures... Howard’s enthusiastic exploration of her life in and out of the kitchen shows her at her best and most delightful.
— Publishers Weekly
In her newest book, Howard brings that same storyteller sensibility—paired with serious restaurant-honed kitchen chops—to teach home cooks easily achievable building block recipes and techniques that lend an extra level of pleasure to the simplest dishes, while letting the ingredients shine through.
— Food & Wine
Chef Vivian Howard’s last cookbook, Deep Run Roots, is an epic love letter to the foodways of Eastern North Carolina, where she grew up and eventually returned to launch several successful restaurants. Her new book, This Will Make It Taste Good, is less regionally focused but just as personal, as it explores home cooking and ways to make everyday dishes better.
— Southern Living
Vivian dares to change the way people think about home cooking by introducing the concept of “flavor heroes”... That she gives her hero recipes names such as Little Green Dress and R-Rated Onions and her chapters titles like In Pursuit of Decadence and Snacktastic, gives you an idea of the personality in her approach. If you need further evidence, consider that she poses in the cookbook dressed as Rosie the Riveter while bearing a jar of homemade sauerkraut. Yes, you CAN do it!
— Institute of Culinary Education
This Will Make It Taste Good is Howard’s second cookbook and an essential work of home-cooking genius that makes simple food exciting and accessible with 125 recipes, no matter your skill level in the kitchen... Nothing is complicated, and more than half the dishes are vegetarian, gluten-free, or both, with ingredients that are easy to find, keep around, and cook with. There are also kitchen projects to bring some more joy into your life! Howard's mission is not to protect you from time in your kitchen, but to help you make the most of the time you've got.
— Yes! Weekly
Anyone who has found themselves trying to steer out of the cooking ruts that inevitably developed from preparing dinner six or seven nights a week over the past eight months will find culinary salvation in Howard’s new cookbook, This Will Make It Taste Good.
— Food & Wine
Never a dull mouthful.
— Atlanta Journal Constitution
Howard’s first book, Deep Run Roots, is an homage to Eastern North Carolina cooking and produce, brimming with rustic shots of collards, sweet potatoes, sausage amid her recipes and narratives. ButThis Will Make it Taste Good offers a different perspective: Howard swaps the boots for mules and a red lip, and shares “Kitchen Heroes,” versatile sauces and toppers that inspire 125 simple recipes. Presented with honest wit, lively pictures and catchy titles, Howard hopes this book will change the way people cook and invite them to discover humble kitchen items that are brimming with potential.
— Walter Magazine
