2 game-changing guides for today’s home cook

“The Dinner Plan: Simple Weeknight Recipes and Strategies for Every Schedule” by Kathy Brennan and Caroline Campion (Abrams, $29.99)

Kathy Brennan and Caroline Campion had cool careers back in the day. They were editors at Saveur magazine, “arguably one of the dreamiest jobs in the food world,” as they write in their new book.

Later, as busy mothers, they encountered a less dreamy life, and one that prompted them to write a book of practical recipes: “Keepers: Two Home Cooks Share Their Tried-and-True Weeknight Recipes and the Secrets to Happiness in the Kitchen.” Released in 2013, their first effort won an IACP cookbook award.

Now the tag-team duo is back with a follow-up.

“The Dinner Plan” stands out as a real and reliable source, especially for the time-pressed.

The authors are strategists, and they organize their recipes in categories: Make-Ahead; Staggered (dishes that can be left at the back of the stove and eaten as desired); One-Dish; Pantry (food that can be made without a special trip to buy ingredients); and Extra-Fast (I like the sound of that!). Many of the recipes fall into multiple categories.

I sure wish my mom had made me Mexican Skillet Lasagna (constructed from tortillas), Corn With Miso Butter, Rotisserie Chicken Banh Mi, or Curried Coconut Noodle Soup (with sweet potatoes and tofu).

Based on the notion that every cook, no matter how accomplished, needs a few recipes he or she can turn to in a pinch, Brennan and Campion suggest five “backpocket” gems: Shrimp Scampi, Skillet Chicken Parm, Go-To Frittatas, Bacon and Egg Fried Rice and Fast Bolognese.

They also share their “life-saver” condiments, tips on how to pamper yourself when you have dinner alone, and thoughts on “The Forgotten Meal” — that extra, afterschool mini-meal most growing kids seem to crave. With five strategies and 135 recipes, this is home cooking designed to give families more time together or to pursue life outside the kitchen. Sounds like a plan!

“How to Roast Everything: A Game-Changing Guide to Building Flavor in Meat, Vegetables, and More” (America’s Test Kitchen, $40)

Back in 1995, the great food writer Barbara Kafka published “Roasting: A Simple Art,” a book that focused on blasting food at high temperatures, a technique that produces shockingly good and flavorful things to eat.

Kafka’s book was wildly influential. Molly Stevens’ “All About Roasting: A New Approach to a Classic Art” followed in 2011, picking up awards from the James Beard Foundation and the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Now America’s Test Kitchen weighs in — with a 416-recipe, 295-recipe tome designed like “Joy of Cooking” for people who roast.

Not just fish, fowl and meat, mind you. But vegetables and fruits, too. (Plus instructions on how to pick the best cuts of meat, how to buy seafood, how to prep it all like a pro.)

There’s also a hefty chapter that demystifies the magic of roasting on the grill, starting with spicerubbed drumsticks and ending with Grill-Roasted Oysters with Mignonette Sauce.

Ah, yes, sauce. How we love it. The stuff that rehydrates, accentuates, and (often) coagulates but not before transforming a leg of lamb, a hunk of fish or a pork belly into something grand, something fit for company.

Now we’ve arrived at the point where I tell you about the recipes that caught my eye. They are clever, beautifully photographed, legion. (How much space do we have? Thought so.)

But look — just look what those rigorous recipe testers of America’s Test Kitchen in Boston give us this time:

Slow-Roasted Beef, made from an inexpensive boneless eye-round, cooked to perfect pink medium rare, sliced thin and served (if you like) with a boat of Horseradish Sauce. Classic.

Also Roasted Salmon Fillets with Tangerine and Ginger Relish; Tandoori Chicken with Raita; Roast Pomegranate-Glazed Quail; Roast Beef Tenderloin With Smoky Potatoes and Persillade Relish.

Since I’m back on beef, perhaps I should move along to the plant kingdom. Here we have roasted carrots three ways. Bulgur-Stuffed Eggplant. Best Baked Potatoes.

If roasting food appeals to your taste buds, this is one smart, deeply researched and delicious-looking guide.

It will save you money, time and heartache — and warm up your kitchen on a cold day, too.

I see a lot of cookbooks. This is one I plan to keep nearby for years to come.