[Isa]

A few reading suggestion....


American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza
by Peter Reinhart November 2003

Aquavit: And the New Scandanavian Cuisine
by Marcus Samuelsson October 2003

Bittersweet: Recipes for Today's Better Chocolates
by Alice Medrich November 2003

Classic Breads : Delicious Recipes from Around the World
by Manuela Caldirola October 2003

Classic Chinese Cuisine
by Nina Simonds September 2003

Cooking by Hand
by Paul Bertolli August 19, 2003

Craft: Notes and Recipes from a Restaurant Kitchen
by Tom Colicchio October 2003

Escape to Yountville: Recipes for Health and Relaxation from Napa Valley
by Sally James

Granita Magic: Rediscovering the Pleasure of Ices in More than 50 Grown-up Recipes
by Nadia Roden

Great Cookies: Secrets to Sensational Sweets
by Carole Walter November 2003

Home Baking: Sweet and Savory Traditions from Around the World
by Jefferey Alford, Naomi Duguid November 2003

Kitchen of Light: New Scandinavian Cooking With Andreas Viestad
by Andreas Viestad, Mette Randem

Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking
by ***hsia Dunlop

Macrina Bakery and Cafe Cookbook
by Leslie MacKie October 2003

Mes Tartes: The Sweet and Savory Tarts of Christine Ferber
by Christine Ferber September 2003

Raw
by Charlie Trotter November 2003

Thai Food and Cooking: A Fiery and Exotic Cuisine: The Traditions, Techniques, Ingredients and Recipes
by Judy Bastyra, Becky Johnson

The Art of Aureole
by Charlie Palmer, Judith Choate October 2003

The Metropolitan Bakery Cookbook: Artisan Breads, Pastries, and Desserts from Philadelphia's Premier Bakery
by James Barrett, Wendy Smith Born October 2003

The New York Times Seafood Cookbook: More than 250 Recipes Collected from the Pages of The New York Times
by Florence Fabricant (Editor)


Soon in paperback:

A New Way to Cook
by Sally Schneider August 2003

From Here, You Can't See Paris: Seasons of a French Village and Its Restaurant
by Michael S. Sanders October 2003

How to Read a French Fry: And Other Stories of Intriguing Kitchen Science
by Russ Parsons September 2003

It Must Have Been Something I Ate: The Return Of The Man Who Ate Everything
by Jeffrey Steingarten October 2003

Near a Thousand Tables: A History of Food
by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto September 2003

The Chocolate Bible
by Christian Teubner October 2003

The Healthy Kitchen: Recipes for a Better Body, Life, and Spirit
by Andrew M. D. Weil, Rosie Daley December 2003

Year in Chocolate: Four Seasons of Unforgettable Desserts
by Alice Medrich October 2003

[Suzanne]

UH-OH!! Thanks for the warning.

Better start saving the pennies.

[Isa]

Which one are you looking forward to Suzanne?

[marinboy]

Not sure what to say here... so many good prospects. Having worked for Roxanne for a year I might say that when Raw W/ Charlie Trotter finally comes out it's probably gonna be a huge story. I'm currently reading Paul Bertolli and Jeremiah Tower. Cali food is going off as much as any else as I have researched these days. Let me know what you think!!

[Suzanne]

Well, I bought the Bertolli. It's as much a reference book as one to cook from -- and to me, that's great.

I might spring for the Alford/Daguid -- I think that along with Dornenburg and Page, they are the best team writing. But I'll wait a year or two on Colicchio's book -- until it's remaindered.

One thing I realized as I was trying to find space for all my books: I don't buy any to actually cook from, any more. I mostly use them as reference works. So I'm not going to run out and buy the latest hot chef's hot new cookbook, unless it's got a lot more than just recipes. That's why I like the Bertolli book, and Diane Forley's Anatomy of a Dish.

[Mezzaluna]

Me too, Suzanne. Although my collection comes nowhere near to your huge and venerable one, I'm pretty picky about what I buy. I have certain recipes I look at, taste in my head, and decide if I like the author's take on the dish. If I do, I look further and if I find at least four or five I'd like to try, I buy it. If not, like you I wait for the remainder pile.

The exception to this strategy is when I hear about a book on this site and it's something I have llittle or no depth of knowledge in- pastry, for example, or a particular cuisine. I really trust what I read here!

[marinboy]

Glad to hear that Bertolli's book is getting read... I think it's a pretty important work. You know that he also wrote Chez Panisse Cooking which is well over a decade old but still great. In the same vain, I did myself a great disservice not so long ago when I borrowed Max McCalman's "The Cheese Plate" from my library... I renewed it as many times as I could and reread it twice. If you're interested in the subject he's exhaustive in his knowledge of it... can you imagine having a fromagier at your restaurant?!

[Isa]

I'm really looking forward to

Home Baking: Sweet and Savory Traditions from Around the World by Jefferey Alford, Naomi Duguid

I love the idea of exploring the traditions of other countries. And judging from their other books this one should be fascinating.


And:

Aquavit: And the New Scandanavian Cuisine
by Marcus Samuelsson

I know nothing of Swedish food. Ok so there are Swedish meatballs and gravax, spice cookies. It is time to broden my scandinavian horizon.

[shroomgirl]

I have heard that Marcus Samuelson's book is great.....no surprise.
Raw peeks my interest.....I have friends that have dined at Roxanne's and said the food was incredible.