Some interesting food books

THE CULINARIAN; a kitchen desk reference (John Wiley & Sons, 2011,
66 pages, ISBN 978-0-470-5542-1, $19.99 US paper covers) is  y Barbara
Ann Kipfer, a professional lexicographer. She's created many reference
books dealing with words. Here she takes on food. According to the
Introduction, "The book has one main alphabetical section peppered with
informational lists and sidebars, as well as factual matter in the
front and indexes in the back." It opens with measurements,
conversions, food grades and classes. Each entry on food has some
explication of varieties, selection, purchase storage, basic preps,
seasoning, cooking problems and solutions. It is a fairly complete book
in its 600 or so pages.
Audience and level of use: curious food lovers
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: pears ripen better in the
presence of apples.
The downside to this book: it will be well-used, so don't break the
spine.
The upside to this book: there is more here than just food words –
there are also food histories, lists, trivia, and little known facts.
Quality/Price Rating: 89.

 

 

 

4. LA TARTINE GOURMANDE; recipes for an inspired life. (Roost Books,
2011; distr. Random House of Canada, 314 pages, ISBN 978-1-59030-762-5,
$35US hard covers) is by Beatrice Peltre, creator of
latartinegourmande.com weblog. She's also a free-lance food writer,
stylist and photographer, working in and around Boston. So she did
almost everything in the book: food writing, food styling and food
photography. There's log rolling from David Lebovitz, Clotilde
Dusoulier, and Dorie Greenspan. There are about 100 recipes, mostly
inspired by her French roots. Other preps come from Denmark, New
Zealand, and Boston. She's also slightly gluten-intolerant, so most of
the baked goods here have gluten-free flours. She's careful to explain
all of this and to list her organic flours. Every prep comes with a
memoir-like anecdote, so it is a bit of a personal book. After a
kitchen primer, the arrangement is by course (breakfast, lunch, dinner,
and dessert). Preparations have their ingredients listed in mainly
avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents.
Audience and level of use: casual cooks.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: cold honeydew and cucumber
soup; omelet wraps with nori and crunchy veggies; cumin and parsley-
flavored cheese gougeres; white lentil soup with chorizo and poached
eggs; lavender ile flottantes.
The downside to this book: with a personal 100 recipes, it might be
best to view the book before buying. Check out her website first.
The upside to this book: gluten-free recipes, plus excellent
photography.
Quality/Price Rating: 87.

 

 

 

5. A COUNTRY COOK'S KITCHEN; time-tested kitchen skills (Rizzoli, 2012;
distr. Random House of Canada, 192 pages, ISBN 978-0-8478-3839-4, $35
US hard covers) is by Alison Walker, food and drink editor of Country
Living magazine in the UK. It's being co-published in the UK by Aurum
Press. The publisher says that it has "simple recipes for making
breads, cheese, jams, preserves, cured meats, and more." The book
certainly seems to touch all the farmhouse basics for using and
preserving the bounty of summer. It's a lot of work though, doing
things such as churning your own butter, making cheese, baking during
the summer, salting and smoking meats, and filling a pantry with little
jars of condiments. After all, it was once a full-time job to be a
farmwife. But, you do not have to do it all. There's a stronger
tradition in the UK about curing and potting meats, and even making
your own liqueurs and infusions (alcohol was higher taxes in the UK).
For every major technique, such as cold smoking, she'll lay out a
description, cover the ingredients and equipment, and then give a bit
of technique – all illustrated, of course. There are also some useful
addresses, albeit American. Preparations have their ingredients listed
in avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric
equivalents.
Audience and level of use: home cooks.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: flowerpot rolls; gingerbread
loaf; red onion marmalade; pear and pumpkin chutney; lemon barley
water; dry-cured smoked organic bacon.
The downside to this book: slight British orientation
The upside to this book: good techniques and photos, wide-range of
products covered.
Quality/Price Rating: 84.

 

 

 

6. HOW TO GROW FOOD; a step-by-step guide to growing all kinds of
fruits, vegetables, herbs, salads and more (Firefly, 2011, 256 pages,
ISBN 978-1-55407-806-6, $28.95 CAD hard covers) is by Richard
Gianfrancesco, who is a plant scientist who has co-ordinated hundreds
of garden plant tests and trials, which have been published in
magazines and online. The book has been co-published in the UK by
Quarto Here he appeals to those who want to "eat local", whether from
their window box or from a large backyard (maybe as much as one-third
of the North American population?). He has some good principles about
organic gardening, soil management, composting, weeds and pests,
pruning, growing from seed, buying plants, and growing in containers.
In fact, his title should really be "How to Grow Real Food". The main
section is a plant-by-plant analysis for growing. He begins with
veggies and salads (potato, sweet potato, onion, lettuces, herbs, etc.
– about 64 in all), continuing with 22 fruits and three nuts. At the
end are some ideas on preserving the crop (jams, jellies, pickles,
chutneys, drying, and freezing). There's also a sowing summary, a crop
selection summary, and a list of hardiness zones. Preparations have
their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements,
but there is no table of equivalents.
Audience and level of use: home gardeners who want to grow their own
food.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: before you go on vacation,
make sure you pick off every bean you can find – the plant will carry
on producing beans while you are gone.
The downside to this book: most of the typeface was a shade too small.
The upside to this book: there is a good explanation on how to use the
book, at the front.
Quality/Price Rating: 86.

 

 

 

7. 5 EASY STEPS TO HEALTHY COOKING; 500 recipes for lifelong wellness
(Robert Rose, 2012, 544 pages, IBN 978-0-7788-0296-9, $24.95 US paper
covers) is by Camilla V. Saulsbury, a recipe developer who has won
several cooking competitions and has appeared in the media. Here she
takes a holistic and flexible approach. Her five steps are to eat:
fresh foods; mostly veggies and fruits; healthy fats and proteins;
superfoods (nutrient-dense foods); and whole grains. And this is all
easy enough to do, guaranteed to promote a healthier lifestyle. And
maybe lose weight and effect a few cures along the way (but no promises
with these). Along the way she tells us the most and the least
pesticide-contaminated fruits and vegetables in North America. There's
a nutrient table for each recipe, and plenty of tips and advice.
Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and
avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of equivalents.
Audience and level of use: flexitarians; cooks looking for a lot of
recipes in one book.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: easy raisin rye bread;
gluten-free flax muffins; stir-fried pork and peppers with buckwheat
noodles; quick quinoa stir-fry with veggies; summer vegetable orzo
soup; chicken with cherry tomato and avocado salsa.
The downside to this book: some menu ideas would have been appreciated.
The upside to this book: there are a few gluten-free recipes, but maybe
she needed more.
Quality/Price Rating: 86.

 

 

 

8. GROW COOK EAT; a food lover's guide to vegetable gardening,
including 50 recipes, plus harvesting and storage tips (Sasquatch
Books, 2012; distr. Random House Canada, 294 pages, ISBN 978-1-57061-
731-7, $29.95 US paper covers) is by Willi Galloway, former editor at
Organic Gardening now blogging (www.digginfood.com) and providing radio
commentary out of Portland and Seattle. She's got 50 guides to herbs,
greens, legumes, squash, cabbage, roots and bulbs, warm season veggies,
and fruit – with one food prep for each. A lot of the book (with
exceptions) is based on West Coast gardening. So for each she has
descriptive notes on planting, growing, harvesting, storing, and
cooking ideas. There are photos of both the plant and the finished food
plate. Arugula, for example, has a salad with blue cheese, dates and
hot bacon dressing. There's a resources list, primarily American.
Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements,
but there is no table of metric equivalents.
Audience and level of use: home gardeners and cooks
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: steak sandwiches with
gorgonzola chive sauce; pot stickers with Asian greens; mixed melons in
lemon verbena syrup.
The downside to this book: many preps are just grilled or dried
veggies.
The upside to this book: a good collection of gardening ideas plus
photos.
Quality/Price Rating: 83.

 

9. EAT RAW, EAT WELL; 400 raw, vegan & gluten-free recipes (Robert
Rose, 2012, 384 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0295-2, $24.95 US paper covers)
is by Douglas McNish, who is now a Certified Red Seal Professional
Vegan Chef. He's also a cooking teacher and raw-food consultant. "A raw
food diet contains whole, unprocessed fruits and vegetables, nuts and
seeds and select legumes and grains that have not been heated past 48
degrees centigrade." When food is heated past 41 degrees centigrade,
enzymes begin to break down. McNish explains the advantages of a raw
foods diet, transitioning, organic produce, and various techniques such
as sprouting, dehydrating, marinating, and juicing. His arrangement is
by course, from breakfast (with smoothies and other juices) to dips and
salads and soups, the main, and the side dishes plus desserts. There's
a mound of material here, including tips and advice in every recipe.
His online resources list includes US, Canada, UK, and Australia.
Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and
avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of equivalents.
Audience and level of use: raw food lovers; transitioning eaters.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: morning energy bars; spicy
orange and ginger sesame watercress; cake batter smoothie; tomatillo
and chia seed salsa; moussaka.
The downside to this book: a series of menus might have been useful,
just to keep some nutritional balance to the meal.
The upside to this book: gluten-free preps.
Quality/Price Rating: 89.

 

10. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO SUNDAY DINNER? A year of Italian menus with
250 recipes that celebrate family (Sterling Epicure, 2012, 322 pages,
ISBN 978-1-4027-8482-8, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Lisa Caponigri,
who had her Sicilian nonna guide her through all the Italian preps.
Here are 52 menus, with no repeats, for each Sunday of the year. You
can either repeat the sequence in a year, or do a mix and match
routine. Favourite dishes from all regions are here, although there is
no real attempt to keep all the dishes from one region within the same
meal. One northern Italian menu has Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardia,
Tuscany, and Sicilia at one sitting. There is a combination of family
Sicilian recipes intermingled with Italian classics. The menus are in
Italian style: antipasto, primo (usually pasta), secondo (main), just
one contorni (side), and a dessert. Each menu is numbered, but nothing
is tied into seasons or holidays. Menu 51, next to Christmas, has
breadsticks with herbs and prosciutto, spinach lasagna, braciole, baked
cipolline, and chestnuts with cream. There's some family memoir
material and a scattering of colour photos. Both Italian and English
recipe titles are used, although only English titles (with Italian in
brackets) are indexed. Preparations have their ingredients listed in
avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of metric equivalents.
Audience and level of use: basic home cooks
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: pollo cacciatore; pepperoni
ripieni; manzo marinato; carne in sugo di pomodori; spiedino di arista
con pane,
The downside to this book: no regional character, but there could have
been an index to this feature. No seasonal approach either (again, an
index here would have been useful).
The upside to this book: there is an index to secondo and primo dishes,
as well as pasta, antipasti, and contorni.
Quality/Price Rating: 85.

 

 

 

11. WASHINGTON FOOD ARTSANS; farm stories and chef recipes (Sasquatch
Books, 2012; distr. Random House Canada, 206 pages, ISBN 978-1-57061-
660-0, $35 US hard covers) is by Leora Bloom, once a pastry chef and
bakery owner in Washington state, and now a freelance writer. It's
another book in a burgeoning series about local food workers throughout
North America, produced by different publishers and writers. There have
been many on California and Canada, Maine, the Deep South. In fact,
this is a quickly trending food idea for publications. Here Bloom
details veggies, animal products, fruit, foraged foods, and wine.
There's a listing of 52 preps by course, sourced by chef (with a
restaurant listing at the back). This is followed by details about 17
artisans and recipes. This collection of photo essays works well, and
gives enough details and addresses for each food producer. Preparations
have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements, but there is
no table of metric equivalents.
Audience and level of use: Washington state lovers, followers of local
food artisans and locavores.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: albacore with lentils and
cumin-onion jam; farro risotto with morels; bruschetta of goat brie and
tomato jam; blackened oysters with chipotle aioli and pico de gallo.
The downside to this book: some people may not like the excessive
quantity of photographs, to the detriment of more space for artisans.
The upside to this book: a good contribution to locavore artisans.
Quality/Price Rating: 86.

 

 

 

12. WILLIAMS-SONOMA SALAD OF THE DAY; 365 recipes for every day of the
year (Weldon-Owen, 2012; distr. Simon & Schuster, 304 pages, ISBN 978-
1-61628-212-7, $34.95 US hard covers) is by Georgeanne Brennan, a food
author who has written many books for Williams-Sonoma. Here she
assembles a large variety of salads, arranged by the calendar. These
are light or heavy, main or luncheon meals, depending on what can be
added. There are opening pages for each month, with a listing of the
salad for each day. Of course, one doesn't have to follow along
completely. January 19 has cannellini bean salad with tuna and grilled
radicchio, February 19 has cannellini bean, fennel & shrimp salad,
March 19 has chicken & orzo salad, and April 19 has bulgur salad with
lemons, peas and mint. Preparations have their ingredients listed in
both metric and avoirdupois measurements, but there is no table of
metric equivalents. In addition to the recipe index, there is also an
index to salads by type (bean, grain, egg, fruit, greens, meat,
poultry, pasta, seafood).
Audience and level of use: salad lovers, those looking for variety in
their salads.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: see above.
The downside to this book: there is plenty of white space, so the font
could have had a larger typeface.
The upside to this book: each prep has good sidebar advice.
Quality/Price Rating: 88.

 

 

 

13. THE PLOUGHMAN'S LUNCH AND THE MISER'S FEAST; authentic pub food,
restaurant fare, and home coking from small towns, big cities, and
country villages across the British Isles. (Harvard Common Press, 2012,
214 pages, ISBN 978-1-55832-413-8, $24.95 US hard covers) is by Brian
Yarvin, a food and travel writer-photographer with four previous
cookbooks. He has been concentrating on Great Britain's cooks and food
purveyors for about two decades. He has found about 100 straightforward
recipes with about 200 of his own photos. Most of these preps are
updated classics that you could logically find in North American
gastropubs and British-style pubs. It's arranged by meal or course,
beginning with the "full breakfast" and moving on to sandwiches and
small plates, soups, mains, curries, side dishes, savoury pies, and
sweets. Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois
measurements, but there is a table of metric equivalents. Here is even
a glossary of British food terms.
Audience and level of use: travelers to the UK, gastro pub lovers.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: chicken and leek casserole;
cream of watercress soup; Scotch oatmeal soup; Cornish steak pasty;
Welsh rarebit.
The downside to this book: there is enough white space that more
recipes could have been incorporated.
The upside to this book: good leading and typefaces, larger print
sizes.
Quality/Price Rating: 86.

 

 

 

14. SAUSAGES; a country-by-country photographic guide with recipes (DK
Books, 2012, 224 pages, ISBN 978-0-7566-8983-4, $22 US hard covers) is
by Nichola Flecher, with recipes from Caroline Bretherton. It's a
descriptive guide to about 300 sausages from around the world, with a
short finishing chapter on how to make your own chorizo, blood sausage,
fresh sausage, scalded sausage, and cooked sausage. There's a brief
primer-history, followed by the grand tour through Teutonic Europe (of
course), the Mediterranean countries, Africa, the Americas, and Asia
(with Australia and New Zealand). For each country, there is a listing
of the major sausages, with a photo for each, a textual description,
the type of meat used, the type of sausage, its size, and something
about the seasoning. One of my faves is the droewors from South Africa,
a dry beef or ostrich sausage with little fat. The last quarter of the
book has the recipes, almost 50 of them and almost all the "classics".
Preparations have their ingredients listed in avoirdupois measurements,
but there is no table of metric equivalents. There is also a glossary
and a source list.
Audience and level of use: sausage lovers, food reference libraries.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: lamb sausage kebabs with
tzatziki dip; pea and sausage soup; game sausages and celery root
gratin with braised red cabbage; cocido; choucroute garnie; fabada.
The downside to this book: I'd still would have liked more detail and
history about some of the more important sausages.
The upside to this book: recipes are nicely laid out, with sausage
alternatives suggested.
Quality/Price Rating: 89.