MY 18TH ANNUAL SURVEY OF FOOD AND DRINK-RELATED BOOKS
SUITABLE AS HOLIDAY GIFTS FOR THE 2014/15 PARTY PERIOD
===============================================================
By Dean Tudor, Ryerson Journalism Professor Emeritus and Gothic
Epicures Writing, www.deantudor.com (World Wine Watch Newsletter).
Twitter: @gothicepicures
------
There are so many new food and wine books out there for people who have picky tastes!!
What to choose? I have cast about for material and have come up with a decent selection
to satisfy any pocketbook, any host, and any friend or relative. All books and book-like
materials that are listed here are RECOMMENDED, and can be purchased at a
discount via Amazon.Ca, Chapters.Ca (with free delivery on a total purchase of over
$25), or even The Book Depository in Guernsey.
Price Alert: because of US dollar fluctuations with Canada, all prices will vary. I have
used CAN wherever I know it.
Part One: TOP GIFT IDEAS
========================
A. Art/travel/expensive cookbooks might be some of the best books to give a loved one
(or to yourself, since you are your own best loved one). Most may cost you an
arm and a leg. Books for the coffee table have their place in the gift scheme: just about
every such book is only bought as a gift! And are often perused first by the donor (you).
Don't let the prices daunt you. Such books are available at a discount from online vendors.
Because of the "economy", not too many pricey food and wine books were released last year
and this year, and some book reviewers were cut off from many expensive imported books.
--RELAE (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 448 pages, $58 CAN hard covers) is by Christian F. Puglisi, chef and owner of Relae (2010) and Manfreds (2011) in Copenhagen. He's worked at El Bulli, Taillevent and Noma, where his tenure got the restaurant a rating of the best restaurant in the world. He's also been chosen as one of the top ten chefs in the world under 30 by the Wall Street Journal. Weighing in at almost 4 pounds, it becomes one of the top hefty gift books of the year. As he says, it is a book of ideas with meticulous techniques and a way of doing dishes, much the same as the El Bulli principles. But El Bulli is retired, and Puglisi has moved on from Noma. So this is the work of the most influential chef in the world, bar none. He says, "As I was thinking about this book, I realized that all our dishes are interconnected by the ideas behind them—the practical ideas, theoretical ideas, and technical ideas. The dishes themselves are the most superficial expression of our work. Rather than just list the ingredients and step-by-step methods for each dish, I felt it was more useful to actually articulate the concepts that underlie them." Diverse topics include pickled mackerel or plating cauliflower, At the bottom of each page there are ideas for more techniques or principles or theory. It is really a real foodie book, well-worth the investment.
--EATING DELANCEY (powerHouse Books, 2014, 232 pages, $35 CAN hard covers) is a delight as a Chanukah gift. It is a celebration of Jewish food in Brooklyn, pulled together by Aaron Rezny and Jordan Schaps. It is an homage to the vanishing flavours of Bubbe's Russian Yiddish American Brooklyn kitchen. There are lots of recipes and comments by a huge number of people. As well, many historical photos and stills from the movies illustrate the text. But primarily, it is also about food photography with bagels, knishes, farfel, old seltzer bottles, bialy, pistachio halvah, and pickles being the stars. Strewn throughout are pithy sayings such as "worries go better with soup" or a Passover proverb "They tried to kill us. We survived. Let's eat". Try Aunt Sylvia's chicken fricasee with potted meatballs or Arthur Schwartz's stuffed cabbage.
--BRAZILIAN FOOD (Firefly Books, 2014, 256 pages, $39.95 CAN hard covers) is by Thiago Castanho, a chef-owner of two restaurants in Northern Brazil, listed in "Latin America's 50 Best Restaurants", and featured in Michael Palin's television series "Brazil". The 100 preps have been co-authored by Italian-Brazilian food writer-chef Luciana Bianchi. It is a wide-ranging tome that moves from street food to seafood, sweet treats to cocktails, and more. The major roots are from indigenous people, Portugal, and Africa, with notes from immigrants of Germany, Italy, Syria, Lebanon and Japan, and the food itself comes from five regions and 26 states. Castanho and Bianchi also have recipes from three other award-winning local chefs.
--1,000 SPANISH RECIPES (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 692 pages, $40 CAN hard covers) is by the late, great Spanish cookbook author Penelope Casas. Before she died, she managed to collate preps for 242 tapas and small plates, 130 salads soups and stews, 72 paella and rice dishes, 83 veggie and bean dishes, 317 fish-poultry-meat dishes, and 162 desserts and drinks. Recipes are in two columns, and there are no colour photos: just the real goods. Both English and Spanish titles are used for the preps. There are menu suggestions, a listing of vegetarian dishes, and a glossary-pantry section.
--VEGAN HOLIDAY COOKING FROM CANDLE CAFE (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 168 pages, $26.99 CAN) is a useful too for this time of year, especially with meatless celebrations. It comes with the inevitable log rolling by Woody Harrelson, but at least all of the preps are derived from the Candle Cafe group of restaurants, including Candle 79 and Candle Cafe West. These are all celebratory menus and recipes from the reliable New York plant-based restos, arranged by the ten menus for Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day. Passover Seder, Easter Brunch, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. Very timely for Christmas Holiday giving, and well worth a look.
--MALLMAN ON FIRE (Artisan, 2014, 306 pages, $50 CAN ) is a posh too dealing with the Argentine grill and BBQ/ Here are 100 recipe for the home cook, along with gorgeous smokey-toasty photos. He enlivens the downscale of gauchos' and stevedores' portable cooking. But he's also got a day-long menu for an 18-person Parrillada of pork and veggies. He's got a cowboy rib-eye a la plancha, a charred herb salsa, and some deserts as well. There are a lot of photos here reflecting Mallman in Paris, New York, Uruguay, Brazil, Patagonia, and the Argentine highlands, a travelogue-memoir of sorts as stories to go along with the apps, mains, sides and desserts.
--THE SLANTED DOOR (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 264 pages, ISBN 978-1-60774-054-4, $40US hard covers) is by Charles Phan, chef/owner of The Slanted Door family of restaurants since its founding in 1995 in San Francisco. He has won an IACP award for his 2012 book on Vietnamese cooking, a Beard for Best Chef California, and another Beard for Outstanding Restaurant of 2014 . He's got the street creds, and this too is just what the gourmet armchair traveler requires. It has some memoir material about his life and restaurant, plus a variety of homestyle cooking preps from starters such as spring rolls to a raw bar, salads, soups, mains, desserts, and cocktails. Great photographs, lovely to look at, and the recipes actually work too (although you might want to photocopy them since there maybe splatters on the page). However, once you give it as a gift, it is out of your hands
--HUCKLEBERRY (Chronicle Books, 2014, 288 pages, $35 US) has 115 recipes from the Huckleberry Bakery & Cafe, which opened to Santa Monica locals in 2009 as a breakfast-brunch place emphasizing savoury scones, egg sandwiches, brisket hash, and a variety of pastries. It is a good too for brunch lovers, and kind of memoirish in its narrative approaches of stories behind the restaurant. Authors Zoe Nathan and Josh Loeb work and own the cafe, plus a few other restos in the areas. Pastry chef Laurel Almerinda also contributes. The contents are broken down by the work day, so at 3:30 AM they start the muffins (but you don't have to follow this schedule), with biscuits and scones at 4AM, cakes and teacakes at 4:30, breads at 5:30, flaky doughs at 6AM, and so on through to 9:30AM and heartier foods.
--SUGAR RUSH (Clarkson Potter, 2014, 352 pages, $46 CAN hard covers) is by renowned pastry chef Johnny Iuzzini, a Beard Award winner. He was a formerly a pastry chef at Jean-Georges and has judged many food competitions on Food Network. Here he has master tips and techniques for custards, creams, meringues, caramels, cakes, cookies, fillings and sauces, in 150 preparations. Loaded with about 250 photos. Not for the faint of heart...
--LONG NIGHTS AND LOG FIRES (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 176 pages, $32.95) is a British publisher's package of recipes from named contributors such as Ross Dobson, Maxine Clark, and Fiona Beckett. They've been available before, but they are neatly drawn together over the theme of cozying up during the winter. They are supposed to keep your warm through to May: hot soups and snacks, warm dinner dishes, one-pot casserole wonders with the oven on, roasts, and lots of hot drinks featuring rums and ciders. Over 200 ways here for winter eating and festive entertaining.
--TORONTO COOKS (Figure 1, 2014, 232 pages, $37.95 CAN) is from Toronto food writer-columnist Amy Rosen. It is a collection of recipes from renowned restaurants in Toronto, along with a profile of the chef-at-the-time (they move around) and advice on how to cook the prep. There are 48 restaurants, with a total of 100 preps. They range from Allen's through George through Mistura to Vertical, in alpha order. From Edulis there is baba au rhum, from El Catrin there is ensalada destileria, and from Elleven, there are lobster rolls. The best part: for the holidays the giver and the giftee can argue the selection of restaurants (hey, why no Gallery Grill?).
--CALGARY COOKS (Figure 1, 2014, 192 pages, $34.95 CAN) is from Gail Norton and Karen Ralph, both food writers (Norton also owns The Cookbook Co. Cooks). It too is a collection of recipes from renowned restaurants, but in Calgary, along with a profile of the chef-at-the-time (they move around) and advice on how to cook the prep. There are 48 restaurants, with a total of 78 preps. They range from Anejo`s guacamole through Cassis Bistro`s Dover sole, through Craft Beer Market`s warm chorizo and frisee salad, , then Il Sogno`s radiccio salad with poached pears and burrata, and ending with Yellow Door Bistro`s baked French onion soup with braised oxtail – 39 restaurants in all, with chef pix and profiles. Again, a great source of opinions and arguments.
--FLOUR + WATER PASTA (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 260 pages, $41 CAN) is by Thomas McNaughton, with food writer Paolo Lucchesi. McNaughton is chef and co-owner of three restaurants in San Francisco. He gives us a virtually complete primer on pasta making, which is dependent on the freshest dough. Here are 75 seasonal preps for home cooks at every skill level, and include such as pumpkin tortelloni, tomato farfalle, and asparagus caramelle with brown butter. There is also a wide range of sauces and chances for you to improvise.
--MEDITERRANEAN COOKBOOK (DK Books, 2014, 320 pages, $37 CAN hard covers) is a collection 300 healthy recipes employing the Mediterranean diet techniques from Tuscany, Provence, Spain, Greek Islands, and the Middle East (Morocco, Egypt). Preps are arranged by food and not by country, so it is easy to combine the cuisines of different countries within one meal, and still be a part of the Mediterranean diet. Another too with some 250 full-colour great pictures.
--75 FLOWERS FOR CAKE DECORATORS (St. Martin's Press, 2014, 144 pages, $24.99 paper covers) is by Helen Penman, and it is a terrific too with excellent illustrations of simple blooms and exotic flowers. She teaches us to create a bouquet with fondants and modeling paste, making piped, pulled or freehand flowers, stenciling or using brush embroidery. A nifty little gift for your pastry lover friends.
--FROM A PERSIAN KITCHEN (I.B.Taurus, 2014, 272 pages, $33.50 CAN hard covers) is by Jila Dana-Haeri. The subtitle says it is fresh discoveries in Iranian cooking. And the range is aashes, khoreshes, khoraks, rice dishes, and the usual accompaniments, sides and salads. Plus sweets, of course. The recipes are titled in both Persian and English. Typical are date halvah, eggplant with yogurt, and spicy chicken in coconut sauce. Iran has a diverse regional cooking approach as it is a bridge to Europe and Asia. Prominent to us in the west are berries, walnuts, coriander, and mint. And this is covered in the author's history of the cuisine.
--A GOURMET GUIDE TO OIL AND VINEGAR (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 176 pages, $27.95 CAN hard covers) is by Ursula Ferrigno. With 62 recipes, it is an illustrated explanatory book on the wide range of oils available and how to use and season them. Most of it is Mediterranean-inspired olive oils, but there are also nut oils (hazelnut, walnut, pistachio). Vinegar comes from alcohol beverages such as wine, sherry, Champagne, cider, and grains.
--HERITAGE (Artisan Books, 2014, 336 pages, $50 CAN hard covers) is by Sean Brock, executive chef and partner of four US Deep South restaurant, principally in Charleston. He has a Beard Award and performs as a TV chef. The book has heavy log rolling from Batali, Bourdain and Chang. He relates his stories and passion for preserving heritage foods, as well as his re-interpretations on Southern food (both comfort and restaurant food). It's organized by place, with The Garden on veggies, The Yard on poultry, The Creek and The Sea, and others. He profiles his fave purveyors but encourages us to use non-local ingredients where it makes sense. Locally, his Any-Vegetable Salad prep calls for "12 ounces each of the 6 best-looking vegetables at the market". A good read, and usable cookbook.
--BAKING CHEZ MOI (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 477 pages, $51 CAN hard covers) is by Dorie Greenspan, a Beard Award-winning cookbook author. This is the world of French baking, which apparently is slowly disappearing from France itself. Nevertheless, there are classics and contemporary preps here, along with seasonal ingredients, visits to markets, and regional specialties. Includes madeleines, caramel tart, apple flamenkuch, eclairs, cream puffs, galettes, brioche and more – all for the home baker.
--THE BAKING BIBLE (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014, 560 pages, $50 CAN hard covers) is by Rose Levy Beranbaum, an award-winning author of ten cookbooks, some in the Bible series. Here she consolidates and refashions many of her faves from the past, with new photos and new interpretations, plus some more original recipes for baked goodies (e.g. Mango Bango Chesecake). She has a good discourse on flours but all references are to wheat types. She's got the basic tips, tricks, troubleshooting advice, and some "golden rules". Arrangement is by type of baking: cakes, pies and tarts, cookies and candy, ending with breads and yeast pastries. Every prep is listed by weight (scaling) and by volume.
--A KITCHEN IN FRANCE (Clarkson Potter, 2014, 304 pages, $46 CAN hard covers) is by Mimi Thorisson, now living in the Medoc and performing in two cooking shows on French television. It is French regional cooking at its finest, moving through the seasons from Spring through Winter. Good photography, good stories about the locals, good summary of moving problems and resolutions. Sort of like A Year in Provence, but here it is the Medoc – better wine too! I love the leading and the spaciousness of the tome; it is great for tired eyes.
--JEWISH SOUL FOOD (Schocken Books, 2014, 218 pages, $41 CAN hard covers) is by Janna Gur, founder and editor of the leading Israeli food and wine magazine. She had previously authored The Book of New Israeli food. Here, she writes about both Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jewish cooking; the subtitle indicates "from Minsk to Marrakesh". There are about 100 dishes, updated for the modern kitchen. Typical dishes include sabich, hamin macaroni, mafroum, feta-stuffed pepper cutlets, and fluden. This is Jewish heritage food.
--7000 ISLANDS (Hardie Grant, 2014, 336 pages, $39.95 CAN hard covers) presents a wealth of recipes from Filipino regions scattered across 7000 islands. Yasmin Newman, an Australian, gives us a thorough enough coverage with short chapters on American, Mexican, Spanish and Malaysian/Spanish influences, and on Filipino drinks. She's got humba (braised pork with black beans) and lechon kawali (pork belly) plus all the various adobos. Most everything can be found in supermarkets except for some spices, but you can load up on these latter once a year via websites or specialty stores in the big city.
--THE WORLD'S BEST SPICY FOOD (Lonely Planet, 2014, 224 pages, $24.99 CAN paper covers) is about where to find and how to make spicy foods. There are 30 contributing food writers dealing with the history and profile of each dish: Sichuan hot pots, Mexican salsa, hot curries, Malaysian laksas, and more. 100 preps in all, with a glossy of exotic ingredients. For the arm chair traveler.
--THE FOOD LOVER'S GUIDE TO PARIS 5th ed (Workman, 2014, 454 pages, $20.95 CAN paper covers) is by Patricia Wells, the cookbook author who runs cooking schools in Paris and Provence. The first edition was in 1984. This fifth edition covers some 457 (345 new, 112 revisited) restaurants, cafes, charcuterie shops, patisseries, cheese shops, wine stores, and others, with updated addresses, phone numbers, hours, websites, nearest metro stop, etc. She's also got 40 recipes, contributed by local chefs.
--DI PALO'S GUIDE TO THE ESSENTIAL FOODS OF ITALY (Ballantine Books, 2014, 235 pages, $34 CAN hard covers) is by Lou Di Palo who has been running Di Palo's for the past 40 years. He's an Italian food purveyor whose store has been around for a century. He's got a lot of stories to relate. It is part history of a store, with pictures, and part story of Italian food, with 18 or so recipes. He's got the basic material on how to buy, to store and serve Italian food. But essentially it is a good guide to the types of food from Italy – that his comprehensive store sells.
--QUEENS; a culinary passport (St. Martin's Griffin, 2014, 214 pages, $22.99 CAN paper covers) is by Andrea Lynn. It is an illustrated cook's tour through the Borough of Queens in NYC, exploring ethnic cuisines (Italy, India, Greece, Latin, China) at 40 restaurants and food stands, with chef profiles and signature dish recipes. She's even got subway directions and detailed neighbourhood walking tours.
--THE KITCHEN ECOSYSTEM (Clarkson Potter, 2014, 408 pages, $32 CAN hardbound) is by Eugenia Bone. Her principle is that preserved foods and products made from preparing one dish could boost the flavours in the next dish. To her, foods are building blocks, continuously changing into a pantry of plenitude. So, you can make stocks from uneaten leftovers, while juices from canning foods go into syrups and granites. Don't forget that marinades and pickling liquids add extra flavours as well. Just get a main course and add into it, creating an ecosystem. One way or another, there are about 400 preps here.
…and gift books for the beverage drinker? Try –
--WINE; a tasting course (DK Books, 2014, 256 pages, $26 CAN) written by Marnie Old, formerly wine director at the French Culinary Institute. She has written many other books about wine, but this is her first all-embracing beginner book. It is also very heavily illustrated, showing, what the publisher says, what other wine books only tell you. There are chapters on building wine skills, navigating wine by style, grape-growing choices, discovering wine grapes and regions, and the like. There is something for all of us here, even wine experts like myself!
--THE WORLD ATLAS OF COFFEE (Firefly Books, 2014, 256 pages, $35 CAN hard covers) is by James Hoffmann, 2007 World Barista Champion. Over 440 million cups of coffee are consumed daily in North America. Behind each cup is an explanation by this too, a global tour of 35 or so coffee-growing countries, with colour photos. So for Malawi, for example, there is detail on cultural and business history, a taste profile of the coffees, an interconnection with other countries, a description of the main growing regions, and pictures of pickers. The countries are grouped by continent: Africa, Asia and the Americas. Both organic production and the fair trade movement are discussed. He's got full tasting notes for over 500 different beans and grinds. Detailed maps locate growing areas and worldwide trends. A great book to look at and to delve into, for you to explore beyond your fave coffee.
--COFFEE OBSESSION (DK Books, 2014, 224 pages, $23 CAN hard covers) by Anette Moldvaer is not all that pricey, falling line with other DK Books. Here are over 100 global recipes from chai latte and affogato to kahwa and ristretto, covering each of the coffee-producing nations (New Guinea, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Brazil, et al) with locations and maps, terroir and different flavours, climates, local processing There is some step-by-step instructional material for self-barista training (about half the book), as well as over 200 photos. Save money, stay at home, do it yourself – for nobody seems to socially interact in person in a coffee shop anymore. It is all textual communication.
--BAROLO AND BARBARESCO (University of California Press, 2014, 346 pages, $44.60 CAN hard covers) is by Kerin O'Keefe, who has also authored Brunello di Montalcino for UC Press. Here she moves from Tuscany to Piedmont and gives a very through overview of the contiguous growing areas for both wines, areas that are separated only Alba. She's got a few profiles of the movers and shakers who play with nebbiolo grapes, as well as the villages of Barbaresco and Barolo. She covers climate change, treatment of vineyards, vinification methods and modern changes, the status of aging, and the expansion and zoning of vineyard areas to meet world demand. There is also a vintages guide (in 2007 Barbaresco bested Barolo) and a glossary of Italian wine terms, along with scholarly end notes and a bibliography.
--WINE ATLAS OF GERMANY (Uibersity of California Press, 2007, 2014, 278 pages, $67 CAN hard covers) is by Dieter Braatz, Ulrich Sautter, and Ingo Swoboda. It was originally published in 2007 in German, but here it has been translated for the English-language world, and comes with a Forward by Jancis Robinson. There are 67 colour maps with detailed references to vineyards and appellations. There is commentary on all the wine-growing regions of Germany as well as and analysis and ranking of the most significant vineyards of each region. Rieslings get prime coverage, especially of the Mosel and Rhine rivers. There are also sidebars and other essays.
--DEATH & CO (Ten Speed Press, 2014, 300 pages, $46 CAN hard covers) is by David Kaplan, Nick Fauchald, and Alex Day. David and Alex are co-owners of the eponymous cocktail bar in New York City. It is also partially a memoir of the bar, with much history since 2006. The book has about 500 creations, each with terrific detail and indexing. For example, they give the classic Negroni, and then nine variations including White Negroni and others made with tequila or rum substituting for the gin. Well worth a look and eventual purchase as a gift for the cocktail lover.
--THE CURIOUS BARTENDER: AN ODYSSEY OF WHISKIES (Ryland Peters & Small, 2014, 288 pages, $32.95 CAN hard covers) is by Tristan Stephenson, not only a drinks author but also a brand ambassador and consultant in the UK world of cocktails. His second work covers malt, bourbon and rye types of whiskey, with histories, an exploration of the barrel-aging process, and a swing through 60 distilleries throughout the world but principally the UK and the US. He's also got some classic preps for cocktails, such as the Boilermaker. It follows the rising tide of brown spirits that has returned after many years of clear spirits.
...perhaps some reference books? Such as:
--THE VEGETARIAN FLAVOR BIBLE (Little, Brown, 2014, 554 pages, $44 CAN hard covers) is by Karen Page, the Beard Award-winning author of The Flavor Bible. Her bestseller was based on compatible flavours rather than recipes, and here she concentrates on plant-based cookery. She's got a lot of opinions from many American chefs, and is a chief promoter of vegetarianism based on her personal experiences of giving up meat. For those of us who still eat meat (but meat consumption is down in North America for the fifth consecutive year), the knowledge of flavour profiles may be just what we need to encourage the use of meat as just a garnish. There's a lot in the book: profiles of several hundreds of foods (nutritional contents, serving suggestions, cooking tips) arranged in dictionary format from acai to zucchini blossoms; lists of idea starters to inspire your next creation; maximizing flavours; pairing wine with plants; and search patterns by ethnic cuisine or flavour or season.
--FIFTY FOODS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF HISTORY (Firefly Books, 2014, 224 pages, $29.95 CAN hard covers) is by Bill Price. It's a guide to foods that have had the biggest impact on civilization (one of them – the mammoth -- is no longer with us). These are short illustrated chapters dealing with the food in terms of cultural, social, commercial, political and/or military spheres. Beyond bread, sugar, wine potato, beef and rice, there is also paella, hardtack, cassoulet, hamburger, and bananas. Very readable, especially late at night – a chapter at a time.
--THE SPICE & HERB BIBLE. 3rd ed (Robert Rose, 2014, 800 pages, $34.95 CAN paperback) is by Ian Hemphill. He's been in the spice trade for the past four decades. Indeed, his mother Rosemary Hemphill wrote a major best seller in 1959, The Penguin Book of Herbs and Spices. Kate Hemphill, a UK chef, developed the 177 recipes. There are six new spice entries here, bringing the total up to 97. 102 of the recipes are new. There are also 33 new curry spice blends and 17 other new spice blends. Everything has been redesigned and reorganized with new full colour photos; the resulting book weighs because of its thick paper. Each entry has lists of common names in non-English languages, an illustration, background, a listing of other varieties, buying and storage, use, and a recipe. Typical preps include Baharat beef with olives, Ras el Hanout chicken, and shrimp moilee. You just cannot get more encyclopedic than this: give it to your foodie reference person, wean him/her off the Internet.
--GOOD FOOD GREAT BUSINESS (Chronicle Books, 2014, 256 pages, $22.99 CAN soft covers) is by food business strategist Susie Wyshak. It's about how to take your artisan food idea from concept to marketplace. It has a glossary and bibliography plus a resources list. The examples used are American, but the principles are the same for Canada. It's a nice gift for your pickle-maker or jam-maker neighbour.
--THE MEAT COOKBOOK (DK Books, 2014, 320 pages, $37 CAN hard covers) is a package visual guide to choosing, preparing, and cooking meats (pork, lamb, beef, poultry, game and offal). There are 300 international recipes here, as well as advice on getting the best quality cooked meat from the raw. There are 50 step-by-step techniques on how to cook various meats such as sausages, turkeys, steaks. Jam packed with 500 colour photos, including some self-butchering materials.
Chimo! www.deantudor.com
