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A Book For Every Cook

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By JEFF HOUCK | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 27, 2007

Fun

"The Food Snob's Dictionary: An Essential Lexicon of Gastronomical Knowledge," by David Kamp and Marion Rosenfeld (Broadway Books, $12.95). This book's definition of a food snob? "A food obsessive for whom the actual joy of eating and cooking is but a side dish to the accumulation off arcane knowledge about these subjects." The rest of the book is equally as irreverent.

"The Bollywood Cookbook," by Bulbul Mankani (Kyle Books, $24.99). India is home to the largest film industry in the world. This book delves into the Technicolor world of "Bollywood" and its actors and directors and their celebration of the food that India is famous for.

"Kitchen Wisdom: Hundreds of Hints and Tips for Every Cook," by Anne Sheasby (Ryland Peters & Small, $14.95). To add subtle flavor when making savory bread dough, use celery salt or garlic salt instead of table salt. These and loads of other helpful tips are available in this book.

"The Book of Spam: A Most Glorious and Definitive Compendium of the World's Favorite Canned Meat," by Dan Armstrong and Dustin Black (Atria Books, $23.95). Our favorite chapter: "What is Spam?"

"Eat This! 1,001 Things to Eat Before You Diet," by Ian Jackman (Harper, $14.95). Jackman traveled the country in search of the best the USA has to offer the taste buds. (The Columbia's 1905 Salad gets a nice plug, as does Carmine's.

Celebrity

"Christmas With Paula Deen: Recipes and Stories From My Favorite Holiday," by Paula Deen (Simon & Schuster, $23). Intimate and quirky, you get glimpses into the Food Network maven's fave holiday recipes (The Raisin Puffs are "Martha Nesbitt's son Zack's favorite cookies," she discloses.), as well as the Ultimate Anecdote about the time Michael Groover proposed to her on Christmas.

"Beard on Food: The Best Recipes and Kitchen Wisdom From the Dean of American Cooking," edited by Mark Bittman (Bloomsbury, $26.50). The high priest of American cuisine has been venerated almost to the point of culinary deity. In this reprinted collection of his short, entertaining essays, you can see for yourself how he made everyday foods into delicious meals.

"Think Like a Chef," by Tom Colicchio (Potter, $22.50). The restaurateur and head judge of the Bravo series "Top Chef" deconstructs for the home cook what chefs do in kitchens every day in an effort to make their techniques less intimidating and more helpful and effective for everyday eating.

"Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories With Recipes," by Maya Angelou (Random House, $19.95). You might expect the poet and author to lean more heavily on the memories than the recipes, but both come across with equal appeal. Red Tripe With White Rice is for the hard-core Southern foodies.

Ethnic

"Kitchen of Light: The New Scandinavian Cooking," by Andreas Viestad (Artisan, $24.95). Norway's best-known food writer sheds light on overlooked Scandinavian cooking, including a chapter on such cod and potato dishes as Truffled Cod With Garlic-Veal Glacé and Rustic Potatoes With Goose Fat and Lemon.

"Isabel's Cantina: Bold Latin Flavors From the New California Kitchen," by Isabel Cruz (Clarkson Potter, $27). Latin comfort food flavored with Pacific Rim flavors are Cruz's expertise. The California restaurateur's Avocado Salsa Cruda and Cilantro-Garlic Mojo sauce recipes are just the start for this flavorful book.

Collections

"America's Best Lost Recipes: 121 Kitchen-Tested Heirloom Recipes Too Good to Forget," by the editors of Cook's Country magazine (Cooks Illustrated, $29.95). This is the perfect book for anyone who wishes they could pass along comfort-food recipes for such dishes as Chocolate Blackout Cake or Naked Ladies With Their Legs Crossed. This book should be the first course of every cooking school in America.

"The Taste of Home Baking Book: Timeless Recipes From Trusted Home Cooks," by the editors of Taste of Home magazine (Taste of Home Books, $29.95). This baking manual is full of helpful tips and recipes, as well as ingredient substitutions. Recipes range from novice to expert level.

"Saveur Cooks Authentic American: Celebrating the Recipes and Diverse Traditions of Our Rich Heritage," by the editors of Saveur magazine (Chronicle, $24.95). Some of the of the great, flavorful travel stories featured in Saveur magazine are featured in this collection. The beautiful photos alone are worth the purchase.

"Eating for Life," by Jill Wendholt Silva (Kansas City Star Books, $24.95). The Beard Award-winning food editor of The Kansas City Star compiles the best-loved nutritious recipes from her "Eating for Life" syndicated column.

Health

"The Healthy Hedonist Holidays," by Myra Kornfeld (Simon & Schuster, $19.95). Cooking for the holidays is a minefield, what with the dietary needs and desires of everyone at the table. Kornfeld offers flavorful recipes that will satisfy just about everyone in the vegan-to-omnivore spectrum.

"Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook," Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero (Marlowe & Co., $27.50). This self-described "doorstop of a cookbook" paints itself as an all-purpose tome for the vegan, vegetarian and flexitarian. The reason Moskowitz and Romero wrote the book? "To prove that vegan food doesn't have to be repetitive, difficult or inaccessible."

Memoir

"The Tenth Muse," by Judith Jones (Alfred A. Knopf, $24.95). Living in Paris during World War II, Jones sought to bring back to America the joy of cooking and eating she enjoyed in France. That led to her publishing Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," as well as giving celebrated authors James Beard, Claudia Roden and Madhur Jaffrey their starts.

"The Amateur Gourmet: How to Shop, Chop and Table-Hop Like a Pro," by Adam D. Roberts (Bantam, $25). Follow along as Roberts transforms himself into a talented home cook and food writer from a gourmet of frozen pizza.

"Made From Scratch," by Sandra Lee (Meredith, $24.95). The creator of Food Network's "Semi-Homemade With Sandra Lee" discloses her hardscrabble life and the tragedies early in life that helped make her what she is today.

Kids

"The Spatulata Cookbook," by Isabella and Olivia Gerasole (Scholastic, $16.99). Fun and delicious recipes for kids, by kids from the James Beard award-winning Web site Spatulatta.com. Ghosts in the Graveyard Meatloaf is a hoot.

"Kids Cook," published by General Mills (Wiley, $19.95). Aimed at kids who love watching food shows on television, the book gives a primer on the tools, techniques and recipes necessary for kids to get started cooking in the kitchen.

Reporter Jeff Houck can be reached at (813) 259-7324 or jhouck@tampatrib.com.

Hear It From Them

You can listen to the following authors talk about their latest food books on Jeff Houck's Table Conversations podcast by going online to TBO.com, keyword: Stew:

Suvir Saran, "American Masala"

Kathleen Flinn, "The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry."

Diane Werner, editor of "The Taste of Home Baking Book"

Rocco DiSpirito, "Rocco's Real Life Recipes"

Padma Lakshmi, "Tangy Tart Hot & Sweet"

Michael Ruhlman, "The Elements of Cooking"

Elizabeth Falkner, "Demolition Desserts"

Robert Irvine, "Mission: Cook!"

Ingrid Hoffman, "Simply Delicioso"

Alice Waters, "The Art of Simple Food"

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