So Sweet!

Cookies, Cupcakes, Whoopie Pies, and More

by Sur La Table

Price: $15.00
ISBN-13: 9781449407285
ISBN-10: 1449407285
Format: Hardcover
Size: 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.
Page Count: 144 Pages

Everyday Grilling

50 Recipes from Appetizers to Desserts

by Sur La Table

Price: $15.00
ISBN-13: 9781449400583
ISBN-10: 1449400582
Size: 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.
Page Count: 144 pages

Simple Comforts

50 Heartwarming Recipes

by Sur La Table

Price: $15.00
ISBN-13: 9780740793516
ISBN-10: 0740793519
Format: Hardcover
Size: 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.
Page Count: 144 Pages

Gifts Cooks Love

Recipes for Giving

by Diane Morgan, Sur La Table

Price: $25.00
ISBN-13: 9780740793509
ISBN-10: 0740793500
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 192 Pages

Eating Local

The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers

by Sur La Table, Janet Fletcher

Price: $35.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-9144-4
ISBN-10: 0-7407-9144-3
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 320 pages

Tips Cooks Love

Over 500 Tips, Techniques, and Shortcuts That Will Make You a Better Cook!

by Sur La Table, Rick Rodgers

Price: $15.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-8344-9
ISBN-10: 0-7407-8344-0
Format: Paperback
Size: 5 x 7 in.
Page Count: 408 pages

Baking Kids Love

by Sur La Table, Cindy Mushet

Price: $20.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-8345-6
ISBN-10: 0-7407-8345-9
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 128 pages

IACP 2010 Cookbook Award Finalist!

The Art and Soul of Baking

by Sur La Table, Cindy Mushet

Price: $40.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-7334-1
ISBN-10: 0-7407-7334-8
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 464 pages

Knives Cooks Love

How to Buy, Sharpen, and Use Your Most Important Kitchen Tool

by Sur La Table, Sarah Jay

Price: $25.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-7002-9
ISBN-10: 0-7407-7002-0
Format: Hardcover
Size: 7 1/2 X 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 192 pages

Things Cooks Love

Implements. Ingredients. Recipes.

by Sur La Table, Marie Simmons

Price: $35.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-6976-4
ISBN-10: 0-7407-6976-6
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 352 pages

““Everyday Grilling” has more than 40 color photographs, an intro that covers all the basic tools and techniques — including ways to add an even bigger punch of flavor to the grilled food — followed by recipes that are clearly written with directions for cooking on both a charcoal flame or gas grill. It’s divided into five categories — Appetizers, Salads and Sandwiches, Vegetables, Main Dishes, Desserts — so you can easily create a five-course menu. How about a starter of Planked Big Easy Shrimp, followed by Baby Greens with Grilled Figs, Blue Cheese and Walnuts? Then an entrée of Grilled Carrots with Fresh Thyme and Wood-Grilled Cowboy Ribeye with Chipotle Butter. And for dessert? Grilled Banana Split. Now that’s a menu sure to please any crowd.” ––Signon San Diego http://bit.ly/n3fGwm

“Here’s what’s hot in the world of grilling: A new book from Sur La Table called Everyday Grilling: 50 Recipes From Appetizers to Desserts. With twists on classic faves — such as grilled corn with chipotle butter and cilantro — we think there’s something for everyone in the family. In addition to grilled recipes for every course, there are tips for cooking on gas and charcoal grills, along with ideas about using specialty gadgets.” ––Star-Telegram.com http://bit.ly/l7YHS3

“Who can resist the succulent tastes and savory scents of fresh food cooked on a hot grill? Indeed. With the approaching warm weather, more and more family cooks are retreating to their patios and backyards to grill. This reader-friendly cookbook suggests that instead of grilling the main course, why not the whole meal. “Everyday Grilling” features 50 recipes that allow cooks to do just that. … The bottom line is that this book proves that there is nothing that can’t be grilled. The easy-to-follow recipes are certain to turn a good summer meal into a great one.” –The Tuscon Citizen http://bit.ly/mmwVR8

“This book is a great reference whether you are experienced with grilling or just starting out. It contains over 50 easy recipes that you can master and use to impress your friends and family. …The photos are beautifully illustrated and will make you hungry for more.” ––Night Owl Reviews http://bit.ly/gQKTNS

“Sur la Table has come out with the perfect little book to inspire you to dust that grill off and put it to good use. There’s a little bit of everything in this book; Appetizers, Salads and Sandwiches, Vegetables, Main Dishes, and even Desserts! The portable size makes the book perfect for toting to the cottage and even makes for a great host or hostess gift. … All in all we found this book to be very inspiring, and very tasty!” ––Living in the Kitchen with Puppies http://bit.ly/hrFNdo

“[Everyday Grilling] includes 50 recipes covering everything from appetizers to salads, sandwiches, vegetables, main dishes, and desserts, and there are some great grilling tips too. An enticing photo sits next to each recipe, and I was immediately drawn to the grilled mozzarella and anchovies in chard leaves, the grilled cauliflower steaks with tahini sauce, and the grilled eggplant cannelloni with ricotta. There’s a stir-grilled chicken, mushroom, and baby bok choy dish prepared in a grill wok, and plank grilling recipes for salmon, shrimp, and papaya. There’s even a grilled banana split for dessert.” ––Lisa is Cooking http://bit.ly/h1wDTp

Blueberries may seem unusual in a doughnut, but paired with this refreshing orange glaze you will find it’s the perfect combination of tart and sweet! These are a healthier doughnut because they are baked instead of fried, but you will need either a standard-size doughnut pan or a standard-size mini doughnut pan for baking these.

Ingredients
Doughnuts
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
1 cup buttermilk
3 large eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
2 teaspoons grated orange zest

1. Preheat the oven to 375℉ and position an oven rack in the center. Lightly coat the doughnut pans with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Make the doughnuts. In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and orange zest with a whisk. Melt the butter in a small pot over low heat and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla with a whisk until foamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir with a large wooden spoon until completely combined. Gently fold in the blueberries until just combined. Do not overmix. Using a pastry bag fitted with a 1-inch round tip, divide the batter equally (using even pressure) between the pans, filling about halfway full. Alternatively, you can use a gallon-sized resealable plastic storage bag. Fill the bag and using scissors, remove 1 inch from one of the bottom corners and proceed with filling the pans as described above.

3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the doughnuts spring back when lightly touched. Remove from the oven, invert the doughnuts onto a rack, and allow to cool completely.

4. Make the glaze. In a medium bowl, combine the powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest with a whisk, mixing until smooth.

5. Glaze the doughnuts. Dip the top of each doughnut into the glaze and lift, allowing the excess to drip back into the bowl. Place the doughnuts on a platter and serve. These doughnuts are best served fresh.

These homey, irresistible bars can be put together in no time, will feed a crowd, and are loved by everyone. The brown sugar-oatmeal crust provides just the right sweetness and crunch against the soft, tart, lightly chewy filling in the center, which is simply a mixture of raspberry jam and dried sour cherries. Pack them in lunches, bring them to bake sales, or serve them warm with ice cream—this is a good recipe to have in your repertoire. Use old-fashioned oats when you want a hearty crunch, or quick oats for a more tender bite, but don’t use instant oats or you’ll have mush.

Makes 36 (3 by 1-inch) bars

Ingredients
Dough
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups old-fashioned or quick oats (not instant)
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Filling
1 (16-ounce) jar good-quality seedless raspberry jam
1 cup dried sour cherries
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉ and position an oven rack in the center. Line a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with foil across the bottom and up the two long sides, then lightly coat with melted butter, oil, or high-heat canola-oil spray.

2. Make the crumble dough. Place the flour, oats, brown sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on low speed until evenly mixed (or place in a food processor and process for 5 seconds). Add the cold butter and mix on low speed until the mixture looks like wet sand and starts to form clumps, 5 to 6 minutes (or process for 45 to 60 seconds, pausing to scrape down once with a spatula).

3. Divide the dough in half. Pat one half into an even layer in the prepared pan. Set the other half aside. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden and crisp. Transfer to a rack and cool for 20 minutes. Leave the oven on.

4. Make the filling. Empty the jam into a medium bowl and stir well to break up any lumps. Add the cherries and stir until well mixed and all the cherries are coated with ham. Spread evenly over the cooled crust, all the way to the edges. Sprinkle the remaining dough evenly over the filling.

5. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. Transfer to a rack and cool completely, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

6. To serve, run a thin knife or spatula around the edges of the pan to loosen any dough or filling. Lift the cookies out using the foil as handles and place on a cutting surface. Cut into 3 by 1-inch bars. Just before serving, use the fine-mesh strainer to lightly dust the confectioners’ sugar over the cookies.

Each recipe is fabulously sweet with intriguing flavor combinations, such as Strawberry with Lemonade Filling Whoopie Pies (perfect for a hot day) and Maple and Bacon Doughnuts (a sweet and savory combination guaranteed to hit the spot). Not sure what that sweet tooth is demanding? Inside you’ll find a delicious treat whether it’s sweet, salty, chocolatey, fruity, or nutty.

Other features include:

• Suggested variations and fun decorating tips to customize each confection
• Descriptive instructions that make the recipes possible for baking novices as well as for experts
• Tips on how to use different tools around the kitchen, including your hands!

From childhood favorites to unique variations on cupcakes to a healthier type of doughnut, So Sweet! is the perfect gift package for home bakers, promising to satisfy any sugar craving.

“The text is lavish with color photos of surprisingly good looking young farmers, both male and female, and expectedly handsome produce. All these glamor shots amuse, but it is the simple but ingenious recipes that are so valuable. … Every recipe works.” ––San Francisco Examiner http://bit.ly/fchgaO

““Eating Local” might just as easily be named “Eating Well.”” ––Madison.com http://bit.ly/c5EjLM

” Janet Fletcher is the author of “Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers.” The book was written for people who might not know what to do with lesser-known produce sold at farmers markets. It’s also geared towards members of community-supported agriculture programs. CSAs pay a farmer early in the year and get boxes of the farm’s yield during the growing season.” ––The Leader (Corning, NY) http://tinyurl.com/2eushwu

“Eating Local is a superb book that gives its readers a deeper understanding and commitment to local food and a necessary appreciation for the passionate people who make it possible for us to have the best edibles on the table at all times.” ––San Francisco Book Review http://www.sanfranciscobookreview.com/cooking-food-wine/eating-local-150-recipes-from-the-farm-to-your-table/

“Eating Local tells the stories of people whose lives are as vital as the food they produce, and gives recipes that extend that vitality to the consumer.   The message within the book is to love the land, eat well, be vital in your own life.  It is dedicated to “America’s hardworking farmers who make eating locally possible. … Janet Fletcher, formerly of the celebrated Chez Panisse, has created recipes that allow ingredients to star.  There are such wonderful recipes as Sicilian Spring Vegetable Stew; Pickled Yellow Wax Beans with Fresh Dill; Broccoli Rabe and Turnip Greens with Hot Pepper Vinegar; Grilled Eggplant Cannelloni with Ricotta and Prosciutto; Braised Chicken with Apple Cider, Tarragon, and Cream; Grilled Flank Steak with Old-Fashioned Creamed Spinach; Polenta with Chopped Broccoli and Pecorino; Carrot-Zucchini Bread with Candied Ginger; Heirloom Apple Tart with Almond Filling and Calvados Cream; Grilled Nectarines with Mascarpone Ice Cream and Crushed Amaretti.” ––Ukiah Blog http://ukiahcommunityblog.wordpress.com/2010/08/05/cookbook-review-eating-local/

“This book is truly a love letter to the eating local movement.” ––Project Foodie

“The meat of the book is its vegetable chapter. Recipes are of the minimalist kind but with twists — whole okra, grilled and kissed with smoked paprika — that may surprise. Recipes do double-duty. Trim the ribs from floppy leaves of Swiss chard to make packets of mozzarella and anchovies for the grill, but don’t think of tossing those ribs. They star in another dish with yogurt, walnuts and dill.” ––Chicago Sun-Times http://bit.ly/dv2ntx

“Instead of meal courses, Fletcher has divided the book into fruits and vegetables (with a small section on dairy and meats), so readers can flip to the ingredient they’re looking for - arugula, eggplant, sweet corn, for example - and related recipes. If the gorgeous photos don’t send you to your nearest farm stand, the recipes will: Creamy Red Onion Soup, Braised Peas and Fennel With Pecorino, and Peach and Boysenberry Cobbler.” ––The Columbus Dispatch http://bit.ly/bOVk4A

“Organized by vegetable, Eating Local shares the wisdom of farmers to guide you in eating smartly and creatively from whatever bounty comes your way.” ––KidoInfo http://bit.ly/dBBp1x

“As you can see the cover is beautiful, but I promise you that all of the 150+ photographs in this book are amazing. It features wonderful pictures of different types of produce that are just so bright and colorful. I have to warn you that this cookbook will make you want to visit your local farmer’s market! As lovely as the pictures are, Eating Local also is filled with so many delicious recipes. As you can see the cover is beautiful, but I promise you that all of the 150+ photographs in this book are amazing. It features wonderful pictures of different types of produce that are just so bright and colorful. I have to warn you that this cookbook will make you want to visit your local farmer’s market! As lovely as the pictures are, Eating Local also is filled with so many delicious recipes.” ––Booking Mama http://bit.ly/9UrQJB

“CSAs and farmers markets are a wonderful way to buy your produce, but figuring out how to get the produce home and then what to do with all that bounty is an ongoing issue, says Bay Area food writer Janet Fletcher. Her new book, “Eating Local, The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers,” is a joint venture with Sur La Table. The cookware boutique’s corporate headquarters in Seattle is a drop-off point for CSA boxes in a pilot program the company hopes may eventually expand. The idea, Fletcher says, is “to make it easier for people to buy local, support local farms and get fresh food on their own table.”" ––Fresh Produce Talk http://bit.ly/bkMHDA

“In “Eating Local,” … cookbook author Janet Fletcher has partnered with Sur La Table to create a useful reference for anyone who’s ever wondered what to do with the parsnips at the bottom of their Community Supported Agriculture box; or for those who look longingly at a perfect bunch of squash blossoms at the farmers’ market, but pass them over for a more recognizable vegetable.” ––SFGate http://bit.ly/cU0JH3

“Eating Local is a gorgeous hardcover cookbook that is worth getting just to look at the photographs. But if you’re a Localvore or someone who tries to eat from the bounty of their garden, you’ll want to get Eating Local for the amazing recipes it offers.” ––Confessions of an Overworked Mom http://bit.ly/cd4FsP

“”Eating Local, the Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers,” by Sur la Table and Janet Fletcher. You can’t help but be hungry as you page through this volume of delight, with color photos of farmers and their crops and of stunning food from around the country. These recipes are all doable, and make the most of local produce, often as simple twists on favorites (Grilled Tomatoes With Pesto, anyone?).” ––Star Tribune http://bit.ly/a1uUKw

“The cookbook contains 150 recipes focused on ingredients that may be new to you or are in abundance during certain times of the year.  Do you know how to prepare the eggplant and arugula in your box?  No problem!  Just look up a recipe.  Do you need some fresh and interesting ways to prepare all that zucchini that florishes in August?  The answer is here.” ––Examiner.com http://bit.ly/aG8GSN

“Hot off the presses, “Eating Local” just crossed our desk, and already we can tell that it’s a keeper – one whose recipes will bring us back time and again, especially as farmers’ markets in our area share their bounty. Written by food journalist Janet Fletcher in conjunction with Sur La Table, a retailer of gourmet cooking utensils and related merchandise, this book instructs home cooks on how to make the most of the “localvoire” movement, that is, using foods of the immediate area sourced not too far from home.” ––Lake County Journal http://www.lakecountyjournals.com/articles/2010/06/14/39000451/index.xml

“The book is organized by ingredient, so as each fruit or vegetable comes into season, you can turn to that section to find several recipes highlighting the fresh ingredients.  Or, if you’re like me, you’ll pick your favorite vegetable (eggplant) and cook everything in that section. … Every recipe I’ve tried is surprisingly simple and delightfully fresh.” ––Alexandra Hedin http://alexandrahedin.blogspot.com/2010/06/read-it-eating-local.html

“This lovely cookbook is a farmers markets dream because the every single recipe had a fruit or vegetable included in it and perusing through it is like walking the stalls of our local farmers markets. Each page is bursting with fabulous produce and it’s like visiting a stand from a favorite farmer. The color, freshness and appeal of every recipe is a proud reminder of why so many of us try to eat local and support our farmers.” ––White on Rice Couple http://bit.ly/cknoE5

“Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers is the latest issue from Sur La Table.  It is written by Janet Fletcher, a food writer with excellent credentials.  She was trained as a cook at the Culinary Institute of America and Chez Panisse Restaurant in Berkeley.  She won three James Beards awards for her food writing for the San Francisco Chronicle and she’s authored or co-authored 20 cookbooks.  She’s a Master Gardener, too. So you can expect great recipes to help you make the most of your deliveries from a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm, your local farmer’s market, or your own veggie plots. The book also includes techniques for preserving seasonal food so none of your precious crop need go to waste. It also takes you behind the scenes so you can learn what a CSA farmer’s life is like, through photos and interviews.” ––Fresh Dirt, Sunset.com http://freshdirt.sunset.com/2010/05/opportunities-to-meet-your-local-farmers-at-sur-la-table.html

“James Beard Award-winning writer Janet Fletcher is garnering considerable buzz for her newest cookbook, “Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America’s Farmers“, with its glorious photographs and 150 tempting recipes. Stories and images from 10 small family farms are interspersed among recipes” ––Mercury News http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_15063075?IADID=Search-www.mercurynews.com-www.mercurynews.com

“This one is the book you give as a gift to your locavore friends when they invite you to the beach house for a week. Like most Sur La Table books, it’s a feast for the eyes: lushly photographed, and somehow both elegant and earthy. Haven’t got any friends with a beach house? Yeah, me neither, actually. Fortunately, Eating Local cooks as good as it looks.” ––NPR http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127062738

“Thousands of Americans purchase their groceries from supermarkets, fully aware that their groceries have probably been imported from halfway around the world. But what few realize is that meats, cheese, fruits and vegetables from local sources are not only fresher, but they’re often also cheaper and taste better. Sur La Table and Janet Fletcher’s new cookbook celebrates this, and teaches Americans how to cook with more local, fresh ingredients so they can enjoy food that much more.” ––KansasCity.com http://bit.ly/dtYprI

“This newest collection from Sur La Table (The Art and Soul of Baking; Things Cooks Love) is perfect for Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscribers and farmers’ market fans looking for ideas on how to use their produce. James Beard Award–winning food writer Fletcher profiles ten American farms with CSA programs. Since the book focuses on fresh, seasonal produce, recipes are organized by primary ingredient rather than course.” ––Library Journal http://bit.ly/cgM5H7

“Nothing says autumn more than the return of comfort food such as Chicken Potpie, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Mile-High Apple Pie and Tomato Soup. The cookbook from Sur La Table has all those and more, many with a contemporary twist such as Beef Stew with Zinfandel and Dried Porcini Sauce. It focuses on 50 recipes in the compact 7-by-7-inch book.” ––PostCrescent.com http://bit.ly/8Zzj9x

“Simple Comforts, is a cute, little book about seven inches square. It’s full of classic dishes that everyone craves, but the recipes have been updated for a more contemporary feel through the addition of fresh herbs and oils and vinegars that have become easy to find these days. Favorite comfort foods like cinnamon rolls, old-fashioned dinner rolls, chicken noodle soup, chicken pot pie, classic extra-cheesy macaroni and cheese, and strawberry shortcakes are all here. But, you’ll also find banana chocolate chip bread with chocolate icing, pizza margherita, kabocha squash soup with toasted cumin and chiles, chard mushroom and swiss cheese frittata, and an ice cream sundae with roasted strawberries with a brown sugar-balsamic drizzle. It’s a great go-to reference for meals that are sure to please and would be a perfect book for a beginner cook.” ––Lisa is Cooking http://bit.ly/cfHeH8

“We all crave “comfort foods,” the classics made by Mom that taste fantastic and warm both your heart and your stomach. Well, the search for old family recipes can finally be called off. “Simple Comforts: 50 Heartwarming Recipes“  compiles instructions on how to re-create all the classic family favorites. The book’s versions of childhood staples like chicken noodle soup, mac ‘n’ cheese and apple pie are both comforting and contemporary, pairing traditional ingredients with a few intended to kick it up a notch, including fresh herbs, exotic spices and variations on classic sauces.” ––The (Tacoma) News Tribune http://bit.ly/a9I41A

“Simple Comforts: 50 Heartwarming Recipes is a new little cookbook from Sur la Table, a trusted authority when it comes to all things cooking related. Simply knowing that you can well imagine that the recipes are all delicious. What they have done with this cookbook is take comfort food classics and give them just a little twist to kick them up a bit and make them new again. This cookbook makes a great gift, especially for a newer cook. It as 50 recipes alongside full-color photographs and detailed instructions. Savory and sweet recipes include everything from breads and muffins to soups and stews, sandwiches, main courses, side dishes, and desserts.” ––Cooking Nook http://bit.ly/bGLWAJ

Serves 8

Ingredients

Pound Cake
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for preparing the pan
2 cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for preparing the pan
½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 ½ cups sugar
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Strawberry-Rhubarb Sauce
1 pint strawberries, cored and quartered lengthwise
½ pound rhubarb, trimmed and cut crosswise into ½-inch pieces
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
6 to 8 tablespoons sugar

Vanilla ice cream

Many fans of pound cake know that toasting it heightens the cake’s buttery flavor. Grilling works the same magic, so when you have the grill going for a summer dinner, why not grill dessert, too? Be sure to brush the grill rack clean first.
1. To make the cake, preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly grease a 9 by 5 by 3-inch loaf pan with butter. Coat the bottom and sides with flour and shake out the excess.

2. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder into a medium bowl.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, cream the butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar gradually, beating constantly until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice, then beat in the lemon zest and poppy seeds. On low speed, add the dry ingredients gradually, beating just until blended. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, spreading it evenly.

4. Bake until the cake is firm to the touch and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 1¼ hours. A cake tester inserted in the middle should come out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then invert onto a rack. Invert again so the top is up and finish cooling on the rack.

5. To make the strawberry-rhubarb sauce, put the berries, rhubarb, orange juice, and 6 tablespoons sugar in a medium saucepan. Set over moderate heat and heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Cover, adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fruit softens and forms a sauce, about 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on the saucepan, reducing the heat if the mixture threatens to bubble over. Cool slightly, then taste and add more sugar if desired. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and chill thoroughly.

6. Prepare a moderately hot charcoal fire or preheat a gas grill to medium-high (375° to 400°F). Cut the ends off the cake, then cut the cake into 8 equal slices. Grill directly over the coals or gas flame, turning once, until lightly toasted on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.

7. Put about 1/3 cup of the sauce on each dessert plate. Top with a slice of toasted cake and a scoop of ice cream. Serve immediately.

Serves 4
Ingredients

Oyster Sauce
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
2 tablespoons chicken broth
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound baby bok choy, cut in half lengthwise
8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
½ fresh red chile, seeded and sliced
Steamed rice for serving

With steamed rice, this stir-grilled dish makes a wonderful meal. Stir-grilling involves marinating foods, then stirring them with wooden paddles or spoons as they cook in a grill wok to a caramelized finish.

1. To make the sauce, combine the garlic, ginger, chicken broth, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine, and peanut oil in a large bowl. Add the chicken, bok choy, mushrooms, and chile and toss to blend. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

2. Prepare a very hot charcoal fire or preheat a gas grill to high (450° to 500°F). Oil the inside of a grill wok.

3. Place the grill wok on the grill grate. Add the chicken mixture to the grill wok. Cover the grill and let cook for 2 minutes. Stir the mixture with wooden paddles or a long-handled wooden spoon, cover, and cook again for 2 minutes. At 2-minute intervals, stir, cover, and cook for 10 more minutes or until the chicken is opaque and firm.

4. Transfer the stir-grilled food to a serving bowl. Serve atop steamed rice.

Inside this reader-friendly book are recipes for completely grilled and completely delicious meals. From bruschetta to banana split, Everyday Grilling proves there’s nothing you can’t grill, and alongside the easy-to-follow recipes are full-color photographs that are sure to make taste buds tingle.

Other flavorful features include:

• Instructions for cooking on gas and charcoal grills to help make your food turn out just right
• Tips on how to use specialty grill gadgets, such as woks and planks, and advice for using marinades, bastes, rubs, and sauces
• A recipe for everyone, including vegetarian dishes and desserts

With Everyday Grilling, the delectable delights of a grilled dish can be enjoyed at every meal, all year long.

“The gorgeous photos left our mouths watering from foods we wanted to make on the spot, from homemade bacon to cinnamon-coated graham crackers to rhubarb compote made with Côtes du Rhône. And because the holidays are nigh, we gobbled up the ideas for themed gift kits built to please anyone who loves to cook and eat.” ––Oregon Live http://bit.ly/hc7knq

“From sweet and savory gifts to drinkable delights and smoked, cured and dried goodies, Gifts Cooks Love is packed with ideas for year-round gift giving. Gifts Cooks Love offers recipes for every level of cook—providing accessible recipes delivered with helpful kitchen tips and techniques, detailed ingredient notes, as well as guidance for artfully wrapping and presenting the forty edible gifts.” ––Fun, Crafts & Recipes http://bit.ly/gaKRdA

“Bollywood-style curried popcorn seasoning. Apricot bourbon mustard. Hand-crafted rosemary crackers. With Hanukkah starting Dec. 1, Christmas just around the corner and scores of holiday parties ahead, it’s not too early to start thinking about making a few gifts to tuck under a tree, drop in a care package or bestow upon a party host. Homemade preserves and cookies are always well received, but there’s so much more a home cook can create. Think outside the jam jar, says award-winning food writer Diane Morgan, author of the new “Gifts Cooks Love“” ––Mercury News http://bit.ly/bGpSv0

“From Orange Cardamom Marmalade and Salmon Gravlax to Rustic Rosemary Parmesan Crackers and Blueberry-Blackberry-Basil Margarita Puree, the recipes in Gifts Cooks Love will help you create the perfect gift for any occasion. Because making a handmade gift takes time–one of life’s most precious commodities–Gifts Cooks Love emphasizes that giving a handmade offering expresses something very personal. In this beautifully presented book, Sur La Table and Diane Morgan offer something for every level of cook, providing accessible recipes delivered with helpful kitchen tips and ingredient notes, as well as guidance for artfully wrapping and presenting these edible gifts. Gorgeous full-color photographs encourage and motivate creativity, while the 40 recipes inside Gifts Cooks Love are certain to please all palates any time of year, from the sweet and simple to the gourmet.” — NTV Good Life http://bit.ly/d79lgx

“Holiday gifts from the kitchen are such personal expressions of kindness. Not only are they homemade and delicious, they also send the recipient a message that you put a lot of thought into their present long before the celebration. “You aren’t going to the mall and grabbing something; instead, it is a gift of your time,” says Diane Morgan, author of Sur La Table’s “Gifts Cooks Love: Recipes for Giving“. “And you don’t have to be an experienced cook to make great gifts.” ––The Orange Country Register http://bit.ly/aO4rCQ

“Gifts Cooks Love, offers just what the title suggests. It presents homemade goodies that make great gifts and ideas for packaging them as well. There are preserved gifts like aleppo pepper-peach chutney, apricot-bourbon mustard, and cotes du rhone-rhubarb compote. The smoked and cured options include homemade bacon, salmon gravlax, and a smoky ketchup. Of course there are baked goods like double fudge brownie pops, panforte, and a very cool-looking biscotti Christmas tree. You’ll also find confections, homemade liqueurs, spice blends, and gift kit ideas.” ––Lisa is Cooking http://bit.ly/cfHeH8

“As you gear up for the holidays and start making your gift list, check out “Gifts Cooks Love: Recipes for Giving” to offer deliciously homemade treats. The new cookbook by kitchenware retailer Sur La Table and author Diane Morgan offers gift-giving ideas including Mexican drinking chocolate, double-fudge brownie pops, pasta kit, cheese kit, blackberry-merlot jellies and apricot-bourbon mustard.” ––Detroit News http://bit.ly/c4Q7cp

“I’ve been browsing through this book every since I got it a few weeks ago. It’s called “Gifts Cooks Love – Recipes for Giving” by Sur La Table and Diane Morgan. I love homemade gifts and I love food so this is a big hit with me! Lots of beautiful photography also. I’m really excited to try some of the projects like “Eight-Hour Butter-Braised Onions” in a jar or “Apricot and Crystallized Ginger Quick Breads” – yummy! These are gifts for those who appreciate fine food, but they are also easy enough for me to make them.” ––Scrapbook Lady http://bit.ly/aiAYPk

” In this divinely inspired book written by Diane Morgan for Sur La Table, there are plenty of wonderfully homey, elegant, sensationally delicious and easy-to-prepare gifts that won’t stretch the pocketbook and will be appreciated long after the holiday season is over. GIFTS COOKS LOVE exceeds any previous book I’ve seen on this subject and is a generous collection of gifts from the kitchen encompassing sweet and savory preserved jams and curds, chutneys, mustards, sauces, ketchups, fish, cakes, cookies, bars, breads, breakfast treats, cookies, crackers, candies, drinks, cocktail purees, liqueurs, flavored butters and popcorn, spice blends and bbq rubs, pastas, and gift kits.” ––Stovetop Readings http://tinyurl.com/29wbcg7

“While the title Gifts Cooks Love might sound like it is a catalog of baking gadgets and cooking tools, but it is actually a book of homemade gifts that you – as someone who loves to cook or bake – can make and give as gifts for any occasion, from housewarmings and birthdays to holiday parties. The recipes range from the simple to the gourmet, but you’ll find plenty of things in here that you might want to make as gifts or simply try first and keep around the house. The recipes in the book are detailed and not difficult to follow along with. Many of them are gourmet twists on simple recipes that stand out as something special, not to mention that it emphasizes the fact that you can’t buy these things in a store. The photos are beautiful and by the end of the book you might find yourself wondering who else needs to go on your holiday gift lists.” ––Baking Bites http://bit.ly/9ua5Rk

“What’s better than a lovingly crafted foodie gift from your own kitchen? A homemade gift says that you care enough to give of your time and talent, and feeding someone has always been a symbol of love. This season, gourmet toy store Sur La Table and award-winning cookbook author Diane Morgan have come out with an entire book of great foodie gift-giving ideas for year-round sharing. Sweet, savoury, baked, cured and smoked, even drink gifts are covered - all with gift tag, recipe card, and decorative packaging ideas to make any holiday special.” ––Living in the Kitchen with Puppies http://bit.ly/d0Wz0o

“”Gifts Cooks Love: Recipes for Giving,” by Sur La Table and Diane Morgan, is packed with ideas for the holidays and beyond and designed for cooks of all levels. The gorgeous full-color photos are packed with ideas, as is a chapter on decorative packaging. This is a book that will keep on giving.” ––The Modesto Bee http://bit.ly/duRzfc

“Cookbook author, culinary instructor and restaurant consultant, [Diane Morgan's] latest book is “Gifts Cooks Love: Recipes for Giving”. The book has suggestions for tools, techniques and decorative packaging for simple but sophisticated food gifts that can be given year round. Recipes are for all skill levels (some recipes take months of curing time while others require no cooking at all). There are ideas for gift kits, such as breakfast and retro popcorn. Each recipe details what to write on the gift card about storing the gift as well as gift-presentation tips.” ––Kansas City.com http://www.kansascity.com/2010/09/04/2191021_qa-diane-morgan-portland-ore.html

“As we enter into the fall and winter holiday season, one question is burning on everyone’s mind: “What do I give my loved ones?” This year national kitchenware retailer Sur La Table and award-winning author Diane Morgan guide you through the essentials of gifting from the heart with their new cookbook, Gifts Cook Love: Recipes for Giving. From sweet and savory gifts to drinkable delights and smoked, cured and dried goodies, Gifts Cooks Love is packed with ideas for year-round gift giving. Recipients need not be culinary aficionados to welcome the gifts—they must simply enjoy food and drink. Gifts Cooks Love offers something for every level of cook—providing accessible recipes delivered with helpful kitchen tips and techniques, detailed ingredient notes, as well as guidance for artfully wrapping and presenting the forty edible gifts. Recipe categories include Sweet Preserved Gifts; Savory Preserved Gifts; Smoked, Cured & Dried Gifts; Baked Gifts; Confections & Chocolate Gifts; Drink Gifts; No-Cook Gifts; and Make-A-Gift.” ––Things We Get http://tastecincinnati-food.blogspot.com/2010/07/gifts-cooks-love-recipes-of-giving-new.html

“Best sweets Bon Appétit Desserts: The Cookbook for All Things Sweet and Wonderful by Barbara Fairchild (Andrews McMeel). Fairchild’s parting gift (though Bon Appétit is moving to New York, she’s staying in L.A) is beautiful, and I’ve only just scratched the surface. If you were stranded on a desert island with one dessert book… you get my drift.”

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread with Honey Butter recipe

Hurray for real mac and cheese. It’s crazy to eat the stuff from the box when the real deal is so easy to make and so totally superior. Do use a cheese with some character, however, or the bland noodles will dominate.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ½ cups whole or 2% milk
Coarse salt
1/ 4   teaspoon dry mustard (optional)
1/ 8   teaspoon freshly grated  nutmeg (optional)
1/ 8   teaspoon freshly ground black  pepper
3 cups grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
1/ 2  cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound elbow macaroni
1 cup coarse fresh bread crumbs

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a medium, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth; cook 2 to 3 minutes, whisking frequently. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking vigorously. If the sauce gets lumpy, don’t worry; just keep whisking until smooth. Lower the heat and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes, whisking frequently, until creamy and smooth. Add 1½ teaspoons salt, the mustard and nutmeg if using, and the black pepper.

2. Take the pan off the heat and add 2½ cups of the Cheddar and half the Parmesan cheese. Whisk until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth. Taste and add more seasonings if you like. It should be salted well, as the sauce will flavor the macaroni.

3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 2 tablespoons salt, and boil the macaroni according to the package directions. Drain well, return to the pot, then toss with the sauce until thoroughly coated. Pile into a 13 by 9-inch baking dish or four 6-inch cast-iron skillets. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining Cheddar and Parmesan.

4. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and toss with the bread crumbs; distribute over the macaroni. Bake until the topping is browned and the macaroni is hot, about 20 minutes. Let rest for about 10 minutes before
serving.

Variations: While the classic is always welcome, try mixing things up on occasion by adding zippy green chiles or briny tuna. For a smoky green chile version, add 1 drained 4-ounce can diced mild green chiles before you put the macaroni in the baking dish. Mix 1 teaspoon smoked paprika with the crumbs and butter. For the “tuna melt” version, substitute 1 cup grated Havarti or Fontina cheese for 1 cup of the Cheddar when you make the sauce (you’ll still need a total of 3 cups cheese plus the ½ cup Parmesan). Add 2 drained 5-ounce cans tuna and 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest to the macaroni before you put it in the baking dish.

Makes 1 (9 by 5-inch) loaf

Ingredients
3 large, very ripe bananas
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
½ cup canola or corn oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
Icing:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
½ cup heavy whipping cream

Banana bread becomes so much less ordinary when paired with chocolate icing and chocolate chips. Chocolate and bananas have been a terrific dessert combo since the advent of banana splits with chocolate sauce and frozen bananas dipped in chocolate. This recipe will drive your stomach bananas.

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and position an oven rack in the center of the oven. Lightly butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, or spray with pan spray.

2. Peel the bananas and break them into pieces in a medium bowl. Using a fork or potato masher, smash them into pulp. It’s okay if a few small lumps of banana remain. You should have about 1½ cups banana pulp.

3. Put the flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk to blend well. Add the eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla to the banana pulp and whisk to blend well. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour the mashed banana into the well. Whisk until the batter is smooth and you don’t see any more patches of flour. Gently stir in the chocolate chips.

4. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, until deep golden brown, firm to the touch in the center, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. You may see some melted chocolate on the toothpick from the chocolate chips. Using oven mitts, transfer the pan to the cooling rack and let the bread cool completely.

5. To make the icing, put the chocolate pieces in a medium bowl. Pour the cream into a small saucepan and place over medium heat, just until it begins to boil. Turn off the heat, and immediately pour the cream over the chocolate. Let it sit for 2 minutes, then whisk gently until blended and smooth. Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes, until the icing runs off the tip of a teaspoon like warm honey.

6. Remove the cake from the pan by turning it upside down and firmly shaking the pan a couple of times, while guiding the cake out onto your hand. Turn the cake right side up on a serving plate or a piece of parchment paper. Using a tablespoon, spoon the icing evenly over the top, letting some of it drip down the sides. Let the icing set for 20 minutes before slicing. Or leave the cake, uncovered, at room temperature until serving time.

Compiled by Sur La Table, the creator of nationally recognized culinary tools and classes, Simple Comforts offers 50 recipes that are both traditionally tasty and surprisingly unique. Cooks can please and impress guests with new twists on old favorites, such as Stilton-Stuffed Burgers, which have blue cheese hidden inside the patty instead of a slice of American on top. Other contemporary treats include Beef and Bean Chili with Chipotle Cream, Parmesan Herb Popovers, and easy but stunning Sundaes with Roasted Pineapples and Salted Caramel Sauce or Dark Chocolate Mint Sauce with Crushed Peppermint Candy.

This reader-friendly cookbook includes:
• Sections on sweet and savory breads; soups, stews, and sandwiches; main dishes; side dishes; and desserts
• Suggested variations for classic recipes, such as Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Pear and Aged Gouda
• Full-color photographs and easy-to-follow instructions

With recipes for everyone’s favorite family dishes, Simple Comforts celebrates food that cooks will not only love to serve, but also love to eat.

Introduction

1 The Gift-Giving Kitchen
2 The Gift-Giving Pantry
3 Decorative Packaging
4 Essential Tips & Techniques  for Preserving & Dehydrating
5 Sweet Preserved Gifts
6 Savory Preserved Gifts
7 Smoked, Cured & Dried Gifts
8 Baked Gifts
9 Confection & Chocolate Gifts
10 Drink Gifts
11 No-Cook Gifts
12 Make-a-Gift Kits

Acknowledgments

Metric Conversions & Equivalents

Index

Benjamin Bettinger is a star on the Portland, Oregon, food scene. He is the executive chef at Beaker & Flask, named Restaurant of the Year by Willamette Week in 2009, the restaurant’s first year of operation. He also happens to make spectacular homemade bacon! We wanted to learn how to make bacon and thought how fun it would be to give homemade cured and smoked bacon as a gift. Ben generously shared his recipe. What sets Benny’s bacon apart is the blend of spices, as most bacon recipes, whether commercial or homemade, do not include any spices other than black pepper in the curing rub. Pork bellies are available by special order from most butcher shops. They are usually about 10 pounds. This recipe will work without adjustment, give or take up to 1 pound. Use kitchen gloves to rub on the curing salt, as it can be highly irritating to the skin. Use pulverized wood chips sold for stovetop smoking, not the larger chips meant for outdoor grills.

Ingredients
3 ½ tablespoons fennel seeds
2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
1 ½ tablespoons yellow mustard seeds
6 bay leaves
1 (10-pound) pork belly
2 teaspoons curing salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup kosher salt
2 cups sweet pulverized wood chips, such as apple, cherry, alder, or oak

Implements
Medium Sauté Pan, Measuring Cups and Spoons, Spice or Coffee Grinder, Large Rimmed Baking Sheet, Disposable Gloves, Plastic Wrap, Cutting Board, Slicing Knife, Stovetop Smoker, Tongs, Meat Fork

Prep Time: 25 minutes  |  Curing Time: 5 days  |  Smoking Time: about 2 ¾ hours  |  Makes four (2 ½-pound) slabs of bacon

1. In a medium, dry heavy skillet, preferably cast iron, toast the fennel seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, and bay leaves over medium-low heat. Swirl the spices in the pan until they release their aromas and take on a slightly darker color, 1 to 2 minutes. Immediately transfer the spice mixture to a spice or coffee grinder and grind to a powder.
2. Place the pork belly on a large rimmed baking sheet with the fat side down. Sprinkle the top (meat side) with about 40 percent of the curing salt, and then 40 percent of the spice powder. Wearing disposable gloves, rub the salt and spices into the meat. Next scatter about 40 percent of the brown sugar over the spices. Using muscle power, firmly press and rub the brown sugar into the flesh. Sprinkle about 40 percent of the kosher salt over the brown sugar and firmly press and rub the salt in, getting as much sugar and salt to absorb into the meat as possible. Flip the belly over so that the fat side is up and repeat this coating process with the remaining 60 percent of the curing salt, spice powder, brown sugar, and kosher salt.
3. Wrap the belly in several layers of plastic wrap; or place it in a food-safe plastic bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and tie it closed. (This is how Ben does it.) Refrigerate the wrapped belly on the baking sheet with the fat side up for 5 days.
4. Slice the cured belly into 4 equal slabs, about 2 ½ pounds each.
5. Set up a stovetop smoker with the wood chips scattered on the bottom and the drip tray set on top. Wrap the wire rack in aluminum foil and set it over the drip tray. Working with one slab of belly at a time, place the belly on the foil-wrapped rack, close the lid of the smoker tightly, and turn the burner to medium-low. Smoke the belly for 20 minutes, then open the smoker lid, flip the belly over, and smoke it on the other side for an additional 20 minutes. At this point, check whether the belly is easily pierced with a meat fork. If it is, then remove it from the smoker. If not, flip the belly again and continue smoking until it is easily pierced. Remove the bacon from the smoker, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Repeat this process with the 3 remaining slabs of belly.

Storing: Refrigerate for up to 1 month or freeze for up to 1 year.

Gift Card: This homemade spiced bacon was smoked on [give date] and can be enjoyed for up to 1 month, kept in the refrigerator, or 1 year if frozen. Slice it into ¼-inch-thick slices and pan-fry for breakfast. It is also delicious wrapped around a grilled filet mignon, and it makes the best BLT you’ll ever taste!

Gift-Giving Tips: Wrap each slab of bacon tightly in plastic wrap, and then wrap neatly with butcher paper. Tie each package with raffia or ribbon and attach a gift card. To turn this into a gift basket, consider including a dozen brown eggs fresh from the farmers’ market and a breakfast-appropriate loaf of artisan bread. To make the gift more elaborate, include a butcher-block cutting board and a slicing knife, or see page 161 for a gift kit idea.

The saying goes, “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.” We say, “When you are handed lemons, make limoncello and lemonade.” It takes 15 lemons to make limoncello, and since only the peel is used, that leaves all the fruit to juice for a refreshingly large pitcher of homemade lemonade—that’s the beauty of making limoncello in the summer! In addition, since it takes 40 to 80 days for the mixture to infuse, if you make it over the summer you’ll have bottles of limoncello ready for holiday gift giving. Use the freshest, most blemish-free, most fully ripe lemons you can find. In addition, buy organic ones if possible. Since the limoncello is made from the lemon peel, you want to make sure they haven’t been coated or sprayed with pesticides.

Ingredients
15 organic lemons
2 (750-milliliter) bottles 151- or 190-proof grain alcohol, such as Everclear (see page 182)
4 cups granulated sugar
9 ½ cups water

Implements
1-Gallon Glass Jar, Vegetable Peeler, Long Wooden Spoon, Measuring Cups, Large Saucepan, Four (1-Liter) Glass Bottles, Fine-Mesh Strainer or Coffee Filter, Large Bowl, Narrow-Neck Funnel, Ladle

Prep Time: 15 minutes  |  Infusing Time: 40 to 80 days  |  Makes four (1-liter) bottles of limoncello

1. Wash a 1-gallon glass jar and lid in hot, soapy water and dry thoroughly. Alternatively, run the jar and lid through the regular cycle of your dishwasher.
2. Scrub the lemons in warm water and pat dry. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the peel from each lemon in wide strips. Be careful not to remove the white pith, which will impart a bitter flavor to the limoncello.
3. Place the lemon peels in the prepared jar. Pour in 1 bottle of the alcohol, and push down the lemon peels with a wooden spoon to completely submerge them in the liquid. Tightly secure the lid, and set the jar in a cool, dark place to steep. Stirring is not necessary.
4. After 20 or 40 days, add the second bottle of alcohol to the mixture. Place the sugar and 7½ cups of the water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Decrease to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes to ensure that all the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and cool.
5. When the sugar syrup is completely cool, add it to the lemon and alcohol mixture in the jar. Tightly secure the lid, and return the jar to a cool, dark place to steep for an additional 20 to
   40 days. Over time, the liquid will absorb the flavor from the lemon peels and turn bright yellow in color.
6. To bottle, first wash the bottles in hot, soapy water and dry thoroughly. Alternatively, run the bottles through the regular cycle of your dishwasher.
7. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh strainer, or coffee filter set in a strainer, into a large bowl. Add 1 2/3 cups of water to the limencello if you used 151-proof grain alcohol; add 2 cups of water if you used 190-proof. (Note: The addition of the water will turn the liquid cloudy and pale yellow in color. This is the desired outcome.) Let it rest for a moment so that any remaining sediment will fall to the bottom of the bowl.
8. Using a narrow-neck funnel, ladle the limoncello into the prepared bottles, leaving 1 inch headspace. Wipe the rims clean, secure the lids, and label.

Storing: Store the bottles in a cool, dark place, or keep in the freezer until ready to serve. Limoncello will keep for several years.

Gift Card: This homemade Limoncello was bottled on [give date] and can be enjoyed for several years to come. Store it in the freezer, and enjoy it as a refreshing liqueur to sip after dinner.

Gift-Giving Tips: Tie each bottle with raffia or ribbon and attach a gift card. To turn this into a gift basket, add a set of cordial glasses.

Who doesn’t want to wake up to a homemade food gift? Imagine brightening someone’s morning with yummy, ready-to-eat breakfast or brunch fare. There is a bounty of recipes in Gifts Cooks Love that would be ideal to package and expand into a larger gift: the Meyer Lemon Curd; the Orange-Cardamom Marmalade; the Boysenberry and Lemon Verbena Jam; the Salmon Gravlax; Benny’s Bacon; the Mini Apricot and Crystallized Ginger Quick Breads; the Jalapeño and Cheddar Skillet Cornbread with Honey Butter; the Coconut Granola Crunch; and the Mexican Drinking Chocolate.

As a thank-you gift, Benny’s Bacon, wrapped in butcher paper and tied with butcher’s twine and accompanied by brown eggs from the farmers’ market, could be packaged in a large cast-iron skillet and wrapped with a colorful kitchen towel.

Heading to a friend’s home for the weekend? Bring a teatime offering of Meyer Lemon Curd or Orange-Cardamom Marmalade packaged with scones or even a scone mix, a porcelain teapot, and a selection of herbal teas. Consider a breakfast basket overflowing with Coconut Granola Crunch, a set of bistro-style breakfast bowls, containers of yogurt, and fresh fruit. Boysenberry and Lemon Verbena Jam and a crusty loaf of artisan bread ready for toasting would certainly be another breakfast favorite.

Mini Apricot and Crystallized Ginger Quick Breads, a favorite to make at holiday time, would be a welcome hostess gift packaged in a rustic, earthenware bread basket lined with a tea towel and tied with a coordinating bow. Another holiday favorite is to give the Mexican Drinking Chocolate along with a set of festive red cappuccino cups. Any time of year, the Jalapeño and Cheddar Skillet Cornbread with Honey Butter, baked and delivered in a cast-iron skillet, would also delight a host.

For the late sleepers in your life, for whom breakfast looks more like brunch, let them wake up to a Scandinavian or Jewish meal of Salmon Gravlax, artisan cream cheese, and either bagels or rye flatbreads. Package it all in a rustic bread basket; or you could arrange the salmon on a wooden board and include a decorative slicing knife and spreader, wrapping the gift  in cellophane with the spreader tied into the bow.

Recipes
Meyer Lemon Curd on page 57
Orange-Cardamom Marmalade on page 63
Boysenberry and Lemon Verbena Jam on page 67
Salmon Gravlax on page 79
Benny’s Bacon on page 81
Mini Apricot and Crystallized Ginger Quick Breads on page 93
Jalapeño and Cheddar Skillet Cornbread with Honey Butter on page 105
Coconut Granola Crunch on page 119
Mexican Drinking Chocolate on page 171

“Cindy’s 11-year-old daughter, Bella, helped her create the book and offers a running commentary. Photos of Bella and other kids, a colorful design, and full-page photos of the end results will appeal to kids. In addition to baking these recipes with your child, I recommend this book for kids who are old enough to read it themselves.” ––Baking With Carter http://www.bakingwithcarter.com/?p=2236

“The book “Baking Kids Love” designed especially for children and featuring recipes such as PB&J Muffins, Brownie S’mores bars and Gotchya Focaccia provides a fun and tasty way for families to reconnect in the kitchen.” ––Pittsburgh Tribute http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/lifestyles/family/s_659726.html

“This book is colorful and has ring-bound thick pages for easy turning and cleaning off spills. It is packed with crowd-pleasing sugar-laden desserts and fun decorating ideas. Most recipes also have little notes with cooking tips or alternate ingredients.” ––Wall Street Journal (naming Baking Kids Love one of the best cookbooks of 2009) http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2009/12/26/five-of-the-best-cookbooks-of-2009/

“Baking is a great family project. This new book by Sur La Table and cookbook author/mother Cindy Mushet features 30 kid-tested and approved recipes.” ––Star Telegram http://www.star-telegram.com/moms_news/story/1858182.html

“The first thing I liked about it is the cover - inside the hard cover is a spiral bound book, making it easy to turn and lay flat on a kitchen counter. The text in the book is clear and in a good sized font, making everything easy to read. After all, you can’t have fun when you’re squinting, can you. In the beginning of the book there is an entire section on how do do some of the prep work required to make a recipe. This is a  section that would be helpful to any baking novice, not just children. There are colorful pictures on every page. The recipes are written in easy to understand wording. Every recipe contains a detailed list of ingredients and tools required to make it. I really love the book and am looking forward to baking up some of the creations in there with my son.” ––From Val’s Kitchen http://funcraftsandrecipes.com/index.php/2009/holiday-gift-guide-baking-kids-love-by-cindy-mushet/

“Baking Kids Love from Sur La Table designed for 8 to 12-olds offers 30 family-friendly recipes, each with easy to follow instructions, scrumptious photography and baking tips for our future bakers. These recipes were created and tested by James Beard nominee and Pastry Chef Cindy Mushet and her 11-year old daughter, Bella so each one is something that kids enjoy.” ––Dining Magazine http://southflorida.dinemag.net/food/our-2009-foodie-gift-guide/

“[Pastry chef (and award-winning cookbook author) Cindy Mushet and her 11-year-old daughter Bella Robinson] teamed to create Mushet’s latest book, “Baking Kids Love“. Bella loves to bake and her youthful voice is captured in every recipe, her words creatively displayed in squiggle-sided boxes. Her comments include insights from personal experience, helpful tips and even ideas for making clean-up amusing.” ––The Orange County Register http://www.ocregister.com/articles/-221927–.html

“Award winning authors Cindy Mushet and Sur La Table have yet again delivered an innovative and creative new cooking book called, Baking Kids Love. All of the recipes are kid-inspired and have been tried and tested by kids and were only included if children loved baking and eating them!  Not only are the recipes sure to brighten up the faces and fill the tummies of your kids, but Mushet and Sur La Table have created a great way for families to reconnect and spend time together.” ––Bliss Tree http://www.blisstree.com/articles/meringue-crispies/

“The bright colors alone make you want to page through [Baking Kids Love], the layout is adorable and fun, and the easy recipes are perfect for kids.” ––Parenting By Trial and Error http://www.parentingbytrialanderror.com/2009/10/14/cookbook-giveaway-baking-kids-love/

“Are your kids ready to bake? Cindy Mushet’s Baking Kids Love is just the kind of cookbook to get if you aren’t very handy in the kitchen and kids want to try their hands at dessert. It is heavy on information and technique, so that kids are safe and confident. The recipes range from easy to challenging, with the emphasis on having fun and making something very good to eat.” ––Super Chef http://superchefblog.com/2009/10/22/baking-kids-love-cindy-mushet/

“Baking Kids Love [is a] terrific book for getting kids into the kitchen. The ring-binder format is easy to use, directions are long but are broken into easy steps, and the recipes aren’t too little-kid.” ––Charlotte Observer http://www.charlotteobserver.com/508/story/1011983.html

“Baking instructor Cindy Mushet and her daughter Bella team up with cookware authority Sur La Table to carefully guide kids through the experience of creating awesome masterpieces in the kitchen. Step-by-step instructions for key steps (along with Bella’s personal comments about the recipes), inventive variations, and colorful photography complete the book.” ––Parenting By Trial and Error http://www.parentingbytrialanderror.com/2009/10/14/cookbook-giveaway-baking-kids-love/

“Each recipe in Baking Kids Love has 11-year-old Bella Mushet’s approval. The daughter of author Cindy Mushet made each of the 30 recipes, among them cookies, pies, tarts and fruit desserts, quick breads, cakes and yeast breads. Her suggestions on what kids love to bake — monkey bread, pizza, chocolate cake and cookies — are incorporated into the book, along with her tips. Lots of color pictures of kids baking, decorating cakes and cookies and working with dough add to the book’s kid-friendly appeal. ––Modesto Bee http://www.modbee.com/life/taste/story/874380.html

“It’s hard not to get into the baking mood when flipping through the  Art and Soul of Baking book by Cindy Mushet. This book is packed with valuable baking information from cover to cover and it’s so comprehensive that the recipes and techniques can keep help anyone who loves to bake very, very busy in the kitchen. This gigantic book isn’t just a book of recipes, but it’s like an encyclopedia of baking; full of valuable baking tips and methods. The fun recipes and step-by-step, easy to follow instructions and in-depth discussions of the science of baking is wonderful for baker of all levels.” ––White On Rice Couple http://www.whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/parmesan-herb-popovers/#more-10040

“Mushet is an accomplished pastry chef whose writing style is both informative and engaging. Her baking lessons will help even the greenest of bakers understand not only how to make wonderful desserts but help you understand why they taste so good.” ––Serious  Eats http://www.seriouseats.com/2009/11/cook-the-book-the-art-and-soul-of-baking.html

“With over 400 pages, there are so many delights to discover. There are recipes for every type of baked goods, both savory and sweet. It includes tips from the pros, basic pantry and equipment information and clear directions for more complicated recipes. Every time I open the book, I discover a new recipe I want to try. I have made the pizza crust, pie crust and a few other tasty treats. My favorite so far is the Apricot, Almond, and Chocolate Spiraled Coffee Cake.” ––Chef on Call http://chefoncall.typepad.com/chef_on_call_weblog/2009/07/what-im-reading-the-art-soul-of-baking.html

“Overall this book is amazing. It includes great recipes, great pictures and great information on baking. The book is a great reference for not just recipes but for conversions, cooking equipment and various other tips that are included with almost every recipe. I would recommend this book to everyone that is interested in baking.” ––Savory Reviews http://www.savoryreviews.com/2009/07/08/book-review-the-art-soul-of-baking/

“This is a book for the serious wanna-be baker, the person who has the interest and time to truly understand what baking is about but is not a professional. It also works for those who dip into flour and sugar only once in a while, as the instructional information is presented in manageable segments that coordinate with the recipes.” ––Oregon Live http://www.oregonlive.com/foodday/index.ssf/2009/05/art_and_soul_of_baking.html

“Cindy Mushet is a skilled baking teacher who presents in The Art & Soul of Baking a wonderful collection of baking recipes with learning tips, tricks and details that will improve anyone’s baking skills.” ––Project Foodie http://www.projectfoodie.com/spotlights/cookbooks/cindy-mushet-the-art–soul-of-baking.html

‘The Art and Soul of Baking is a meticulous compilation of sweet and savory treats. With clear directions, and a wealth of recipes, it’s a book you’ll turn to again and again.” ––Project Foodie http://www.projectfoodie.com/spotlights/cookbooks/cindy-mushet—the-art-and-soul-of-baking.html

“Long time pastry chef and culinary instructor, Cindy Mushet, knows everything there is to know about flours.” ––Apartment Therapy, The Kitchn http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/roundup-food-radio/good-food-with-evan-kleinman-its-all-in-the-flour-081142

“This nicely designed little paperback has tons of alphabeti­cally arranged topics: comments on ingredients (artichokes, maple syrup, peanut butter, scallions); pointed discussions of techniques, such as brining, tips for grilling, braising and roasting; definitions of esoteric food terms (chemical leaveners, beurre manie, mezzalu­na); charts of metric equivalents and volumes of various size casse­roles and roasting pans — and rec­ipes as well” ––Montgomery Advertiser http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20091220/LIFESTYLE/912200342/Cookbooks-An-easy-recipe-for-holiday-gift-giving

“This small but handy volume contains more than 500 tips, shortcuts and techniques to make cooks’ lives easier and their food better. The alphabetical entries go from acidulated water to zest.” ––Winston Salem Journal http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/dec/02/012140/food-briefs/

“This portable book is handily organized alphabetically, in encyclopedic style, and it still contains an index beyond that. Learn the perfect way to cook a hamburger, what to do to prevent watery eggplant and how to bake even cake layers, among the more than 500 other tips.” ––The Modesto Bee http://bit.ly/2lXDLh

“I wish someone had written [Tips Cooks Love] when I was learning to cook. Rodgers is an expert teacher, cookbook author, and consultant who knows his stuff. This is one of the best books of its type I have ever read; every one of the over 300 pages holds a useful tip. This the perfect book for the ambitious home cook or aspiring beginning chef.” ––Dolce Dolce

Contents

Foreword    iv
Introduction    vii

Vegetables  19
Dancing Roots Farm, Troutdale, Oregon   68
Genesis Growers, St. Anne, Illinois   88
Golden Earthworm Organic Farm, Jamesport, New York   94
Red Fire Farm, Granby, Massachusetts   124

Fruit  131
Amy’s Garden, Quinton, Virginia   142
Full Belly Farm, Guinda, California   158
Morning Song Farm, Rainbow, California   178

Poultry, Meat & Eggs  233
DeLaney Community Farm, Aurora, Colorado   235
Green Gate Farms, Austin, Texas   242
Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm, Harris, Minnesota   254

Your Urban Homestead   288
Acknowledgments   294
Recipe Index by Category   295
Main Recipe Index   297

The big green gate is open at Skip Connett and Erin Flynn’s Austin farm, although perhaps you can’t see it. Until Erin finds time to build it, welding the scrap metal she has been slowly amassing, the gate remains just a vision, like so many of the ambitious plans the couple have for Green Gate Farms. “Skip and I talk about our dreams for the farm so often that sometimes we see things that aren’t there yet,” Erin admits.

In the meantime, the farm’s name helps convey their intentions—to operate a sustainable, open-door venture that embraces the community, involving anyone who cares to participate in farm life. Local artists will come here to sketch, Erin imagines. Children will come to study the bugs or learn about seed saving. Austin’s high-tech engineers, who spend their workdays in cubicles, will come to decompress in a rural setting only eight miles east of downtown.

The five acres that the couple leases are remnants of a once-thriving agricultural corridor—a “green gateway” from rural growers to city markets. Their petite farm nourishes about seventy-five local families who participate in its CSA, and many more people who shop at its weekend farm stand.

On a morning in early June, plumes of amaranth, like burgundy feather dusters, dance in the breeze near rows of lemon basil, Hungarian hot wax peppers, and Honey Bear acorn squash. On bushy okra plants, mature pods stand stiffly upright like rockets ready to launch. Eaten raw, they are nutty and sweet, like young green beans, their blossoms enchanting yellow cups with maroon hearts.

But on this steamy June morning, garlic dominates the farm stage. Every gentle wind carries its scent, and the weathered red barn is filled to the rafters with dangling clusters of drying elephant garlic. In the cool of the barn, Rosie, a tubby Hampshire sow, sprawls on a thick pile of matted leaves, breathing rapidly. Eight-year-old Avery kneels down beside her and strokes her as tenderly as a city youngster would pet a cat.

“Their entertainment is nature,” says Erin of her two children, whose playmates include pigs, rare-breed chickens, and goats. The farm also serves as a sort of orphanage for abandoned creatures. “People say, ‘If you don’t take my duck, it’s going to be pâté,’” laughs Erin, who views animals as key to efficient farm management. The chickens fertilize the fields; the pigs grow to market weight on produce unsuitable for sale. And all the animals enhance the experience for the youngsters who visit Green Gate Farms.

At a Glance

Farm motto: “Cultivating healthy food and communities”

Favorite crops: Cherokee Purple tomatoes, Suyo Long cucumbers, Zephyr zucchini

Chief worry: Water. Getting enough and pay-ing for it. Because of the farm’s location, the couple pays city rates for agricultural water.

Peak moment: “When the fields are weeded and the windmill is turning and we can stop and enjoy a fiery sunset,” says Erin.

Handiest farm skill: Repurposing stuff . . . from Goodwill, customers, and friends. “Once you get into that mindset, it becomes a game,” says Erin. “Skip can make a penny scream.”

Inspirations: Author, poet, and farmer Wendell Berry; Virginia farmer Joel Salatin, advocate for pasture-raised meat; organic farmer, author, and CSA pioneer Elizabeth Henderson

Insight: “People have to take their enthusiasm for local food to the next step,” says Erin. “They have to do more than just buy it; they have to become activists.”

Summer lunch on the farm: Just-picked tomatoes, cucumbers, hot peppers, and basil, local goat feta, and a fresh baguette

When summer delivers too many zucchini, many people reach for a zucchini bread recipe. Here’s one with a difference: wisps of grated carrot for color, and nuggets of moist candied ginger for spice. The idea comes from Annie Baker, a respected pastry chef in California’s Napa Valley. Makes two 8-inch loaves

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1⁄2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1⁄2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1⁄2 cup minced candied ginger
3 large eggs
1 cup canola oil
1 3⁄4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup coarsely grated carrots
1 cup coarsely grated zucchini

1 Preheat the oven to 325˚F. Coat two 8-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray.

2 In a large bowl, sift together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir in the salt and candied ginger.

3 In a separate large bowl, whisk the eggs until light and foamy. Add the oil, sugar, and vanilla, whisking vigorously until the sugar dissolves. Whisk in the carrots and zucchini.

4 Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture all at once and stir with a wooden spoon until blended. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans.

5 Bake until the bread is well risen and firm to the touch, about 1 hour. Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert and finish cooling right side up on a cooling rack.

Grilling intensifies the flavor of peaches by caramelizing their natural sugars. Baste the peaches with butter, honey, and bourbon as they grill to give them a sheen. Serve them with juicy pork chops that have been brined to season them all the way through. Serves 4

Ingredients

BRINE
1 1⁄2 quarts water
6 tablespoons kosher or sea salt
1 teaspoon coarsely cracked black pepper
Handful of fresh thyme sprigs
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

4 bone-in pork loin chops, about 3⁄4 inch thick
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons bourbon
2 teaspoons honey
2 large freestone peaches, such as O’Henry or Elberta, halved and pitted

1 Make the brine: In a medium saucepan, combine the water, salt, pepper, thyme, and garlic. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the salt. Set aside until completely cool.

2 Put the pork chops in a nonreactive container that holds them snugly in a single layer. Add the brine, which should cover them. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

3 About 1 hour before cooking, remove the pork chops from the brine and set them on a wire cooling rack at room temperature to dry. Discard the brine. Prepare a moderate charcoal fire for indirect grilling (page 102) or prehat a gas grill to moderate (375˚F), leaving one burner unlit for indirect grilling.

4 In a small saucepan, combine the butter, bourbon, and honey. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring until the butter melts and the honey dissolves. Keep warm.

5 Pat the pork chops with paper towels to remove any remaining surface moisture. Set the chops directly over the coals or flame and brown both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Then transfer to indirect heat, cover the grill, and cook until the pork chops offer some resistance to the touch but are still springy, not firm, about 4 minutes longer. On an instant-read thermometer, the internal temperature should measure about 150˚F for medium.

6 Once the pork chops have been moved to indirect heat, grill the peaches. Brush them all over with the butter-honey mixture and place cut side down directly over the coals or flame. Cook until the peaches are lightly charred, then turn, baste again, and cook just until they are tender and juicy. The pork chops and peaches should be done at roughly the same time, but if not, move whichever is done first to a cooler area of the grill. Serve each pork chop alongside half a grilled peach.

There’s no place like home for the holidays—particularly the dining room. But the cooks among us may feel differently as they slave away on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Because whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned chef, everyone gets stumped at one point or another. Why is the turkey breast dry? Why did the cheesecake crack? And how in the world do I achieve luscious, lump-free gravy?

Sur La Table and award-winning instructor Rick Rodgers aim to answer these mysteries and more in Tips Cooks Love: Over 500 Tips, Techniques and Shortcuts That Will Make You a Better Cook! (Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC, $15.00), a pocket-sized guide filled with year-round practical knowledge that recipes often don’t include. The  authorities are aligned to give real advice, tricks, and tips on hundreds of subjects, ranging from A to Z for easy browsing.

For just a taste, section M alone covers mandoline, mangoes, maple syrup, marinades and marinating, measuring, meat, meat pounder, melons, metric conversions, mezzaluna, molasses, mortar and pestle, muffins, mushrooms, and mussels. And each of the listed subjects contains multiple tips, not just one or two.

In addition to all of the tricks and secrets, there are 10 deconstructed recipes designed to put the learned tips into perspective. So after you’ve read up on parchment paper, for example, you can put the guide to use making caramels for stocking stuffers.

The advice is just specific enough to be what you need when you need it, and just broad enough to be applicable in the next meal you make. And that’s the idea. Because being a better cook is about knowledge, and Tips Cooks Love is about increasing your culinary IQ.

Rick Rodgers is the author of over 30 cookbooks, including the best-selling Fondue and Ready and Waiting. A busy culinary educator, he was named Outstanding Cooking Teacher by Bon Appétit magazine.

Sur La Table

Culinary retailer Sur La Table is the trusted authority when it comes to all things cooking related.  Sur La Table entices aficionados and curious beginners alike with its amazing selection of cookware, tools, cookbooks, and cooking school programs designed to make any cook’s life easier.  The original store and headquarters are in Seattle, WA.

Makes  36 Caramels

Salt is usually considered a savory flavor, but it is often sneaked into caramel desserts where it acts to heighten the interplay between bitter and sweet. A pinch of crunchy sea salt flakes on each caramel identifies it as an out-of-the-ordinary candy experience.

• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
• 1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt, such as fleur de sel or Maldon, plus more for topping
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup light corn syrup
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Lightly butter an 8-inch square metal baking pan. Line the bottom and 4 sides of the pan with parchment paper, allowing the paper to overhang the rim on all sides by about 2 inches. (The overhang will be used as “handles” to remove the caramel slab from the pan.)

2. In a saucepan, bring the cream, butter, and salt to a simmer over medium heat, stirring often until the butter melts. Remove from the heat.

3. Combine the sugar, corn syrup, and water in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring just until the sugar has dissolved. Continue to boil without stirring, occasionally swirling the pan by its handle and wiping down any sugar crystals that form on the sides with a natural bristle brush dipped in cold water, for about 6 minutes, or until the syrup is dark golden brown—about the color of a new penny. The syrup should have a slightly acrid aroma, and a whiff of smoke should rise from the surface.

4. Gradually and carefully add the hot cream mixture—it will bubble up—to the caramel. When the bubbles subside, clip a candy thermometer to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often to avoid scorching, until the temperature reaches 245° to 250°F (firm-ball stage). Remove the heat and stir in the vanilla.

5. Pour into the prepared pan. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and let stand until tepid, about 30 minutes.

6. Using an oiled chef’s knife, score the top of the candy into 36 equal portions. Sprinkle a tiny pinch of salt into the center of each portion, and press with your finger to help it adhere. Let cool completely, 3 to 4 hours.

7. Lift up the paper handles to remove the caramel slab in a single piece. Peel away the parchment paper. Using the oiled knife, cut the caramel through the scores into 36 individual pieces. Wrap each caramel in a square of waxed paper, twisting the ends to seal. The caramels can be stored in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to 1 week.

Tips for Caramels

• Do not stir the syrup until the butter and cream are added.
• Wash down any crystals that form on the inside of the saucepan with a natural-bristle brush dipped in cold water.
• Judge caramel by color and aroma, not with a candy thermometer.
• Add vanilla extract to hot mixtures after they are finished cooking.

Salt

Salt is either mined from underground deposits or collected from evaporated seawater. Although the salt in both cases is primarily made up of sodium chloride, the differences in flavor depend largely on the minerals present in the earth or water from which the salt was taken.

Kosher salt (which can come from either land or sea sources) has coarse, irregular crystals and is typically free of additives. It has nothing to do specifically with religious laws—the large irregular flakes are used to draw out the blood of raw meat, a process called koshering. Kosher salt is easy to pick up with your  fingers and sprinkle on meat (where it can be easily seen, helping to avoid oversalting) or for other seasoning jobs. Unless specifically called for, don’t use kosher salt in baking, as it doesn’t dissolve well in batters and dough, and its flaky texture can often be detected.

Parchment Paper

Parchment paper is often sold in rolls, so when you want to use it, it remains in a curl. When you buy a roll, take a few minutes to cut it into lengths to fit your baking sheets. Put the stack of cut sheets between two baking sheets, then store them together to “iron” the parchment flat. If you have to use curly paper, butter the pan first to help the paper adhere.

Serves 4

Skirt steak is one of the most flavorful cuts and can be quickly panfried in a skillet on the stove top. The sophisticated and easy béarnaise sauce—it’s made in a blender—gives the steak a nice touch of class. When you cook the steak, be sure to turn on the range hood to avoid smoking up the kitchen.

• 4 (7-ounce) skirt steaks
• 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

RED WINE BÉARNAISE SAUCE
• ¼ cup hearty red wine, such as Cabernet-Shiraz blend
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped  shallots
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
• ¼ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
• Kosher salt

Trim a few pieces of fat from the steaks and reserve. Mix together the salt and pepper, and season the steaks all over with the mixture. Let the steaks stand at room temperature while you make the sauce.

To make the béarnaise sauce, combine the wine, vinegar, shallots, tarragon, and coarsely ground pepper in a small, nonreactive saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing hard on the solids to extract as much flavor as possible. Reserve the solids in the sieve.

Put the egg yolks and strained wine mixture in a blender. In a saucepan, bring the butter to a boil over medium heat. Pour the hot butter into a heatproof glass measuring cup. Skim the foam off the surface of the butter. With the blender running, slowly add the hot butter through the hole in the lid, leaving the milk solids in the measuring cup. It should take about 1 minute to add the butter. Then uncover the blender, add the reserved solids in the sieve, re-cover, and pulse just to combine. Season with salt. Transfer to the top part of a double boiler and keep warm for up to 30 minutes. (Or transfer the sauce to a warmed widemouthed Thermos and keep warm for up to 2 hours.)

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Add the reserved beef fat and use tongs to wipe a thin coating of fat over the entire bottom of the skillet. Remove and discard the fat. Add the steaks and cook, turning once, for about 5 minutes total for medium-rare, or until they are nicely browned on both sides and feel somewhat resilient when pressed in the center.

Transfer each steak to a dinner plate. Spoon the sauce into a serving bowl. Serve the steaks hot, and pass the sauce at the table.

Tips for Skirt Steak with Béarnaise Sauce

• A cast-iron skillet creates a beautiful crust on steaks.
• Grease the skillet with some of the beef fat.
• Keep béarnaise sauce warm in a double boiler or in a widemouthed Thermos.
• Use a nonreactive saucepan to cook the acidic ingredients for the sauce.

“In just under 200 pages this book delivers straightforward information such as various materials from which knives are made. Anchored in a bit (just a bit) of history and covering the knife-making centers of Germany, Japan, France, Italy, England, and the US. This book also helps cooks select knives by function and design. This is a book for everyone who hasn’t been to culinary school.” ––Gourmet Food, Suite 101, by Jacqueline Church http://gourmetfood.suite101.com/article.cfm/buying_kitchen_cutlery_just_got_easier

Baking instructor Cindy Mushet and her daughter Bella team up with cookware authority Sur La Table to carefully guide kids through the experience of creating awesome masterpieces in the kitchen. Step-by-step instructions for key steps (along with Bella’s personal comments about the recipes), inventive variations, and colorful photography complete the book. Popovers magically rising into puffy, golden pillows, and gooey, warm cheese melting over the sides of a crispy pizza crust—these are just a few of the surprises waiting to be enjoyed in this book. So roll up your sleeves, get a little flour on your hands, and warm your stomach with a treat while sharing a smile. Baking Kids Love is baking that both kids and adults will love.

About Cindy Mushet
Cindy Mushet is the author of The Art and Soul of Baking, which has received glowing reviews and was chosen by Gourmet magazine as a book club selection. She has been a professional pastry chef and baking instructor for over twenty years. Her recipes have appeared in numerous publications, including Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking, Country Home, the National Culinary Review, the New York Times, and The 150 Best American Recipes (2006). Her first book, Desserts: Mediterranean Flavors, California Style, was published in 2000. Inspired by her daughter Bella, Cindy has taught baking to many children, both in school classrooms and in summer baking camps. A fun and engaging teacher, Cindy has also taught thousands of adults nationwide. She makes her home in the Los Angeles area.

Makes 1 big, yummy cake!

Ingredients
For the cake
1 cup water
¾ cup buttermilk
¾ cup canola or corn oil
3 large eggs
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 ¾ cups sugar
¾ cup unsweetened, natural cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt

For the frosting
3 cups unsifted powdered sugar
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Tools
Two 9-inch cake pans, lightly buttered or sprayed, and lined with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit the bottom of the pan
Two medium bowls
Whisk
Fine sieve or strainer
Two large bowls
Silicone spatula
A 9-inch cake cardboard, or the bottom of a 9-inch tart pan or flat, round plate
Hand mixer
Small offset spatula

1. Before you begin
• Line each pan with a round of parchment paper (see page 10).
• Position two oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. Bake the cake
• Place the water, buttermilk, oil, and eggs in the medium bowl. Whisk until the eggs have completely blended into the mixture.
• Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into the larger bowl (see page 11).
• Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients. Whisk gently at first, and then, as the mixture blends, whisk faster, until it is a smooth batter and you don’t see any more dry patches.

3. Bake the cake
• Scrape the batter into the prepared pans, dividing it as evenly as you can. Put one pan in the center of each oven rack. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Transfer the pans to a cooling rack. If the cakes are rounded on top, place a clean, dry towel on top of each warm cake and press down firmly with the palm of your hand to level the surface. Cool completely.

4. Make the frosting
• Sift the powdered sugar into the medium bowl (see page 11).
• Place the room temperature cream cheese and butter in a large bowl and beat until they are blended and smooth. Add half of the powdered sugar and beat it in thoroughly. Scrape down the bowl with a silicone spatula. Add the remaining sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is blended and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract.

5. Unmold the cakes
• Slide a small spatula around the edges of the cake to separate it from the pan. Set the serving plate upside-down on top of the cake pan. Hold the plate and cake (in the pan) together like a sandwich, then flip them over. The cake will fall out of the pan onto the plate. Peel off the parchment paper.

6. Frost and decorate the cake
• Use a small offset spatula to spread half of the frosting over the cake, stopping about ¼ inch from the edge. When you put the second layer on top, it will squish the frosting out to the edge.
• Unmold the second cake by setting a cake cardboard or tart pan bottom on top of the pan, flipping the two over as described above, then gently pushing the cake off the
• Spread the remaining frosting over the top layer. Decorate the top with sprinkles, confetti candy, sparkling sugar, or whatever you Like. You can leave this at room temperature for a few hours. Otherwise, refrigerate the cake until serving time.

Playing around
This cake batter makes great cupcakes.

It will make 24, so you’ll need 2 standard-size cupcake pans with paper liners. Divide the batter evenly among the cups, filling them no more than ²⁄3 full. Bake on two racks as described in step 1, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely before frosting the cupcakes. If you like chocolate frosting, try the one on page 20. board and into place on the frosting. Peel off the parchment paper.

Makes 1 delicious 9” x 5” loaf

Ingredients

for the bread dough
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (or 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast)
1 ¼ cups warm milk (no hotter than 115ºF)
2 teaspoons sugar
3 ¼ cups unbleached allpurpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

To finish
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon water
Tools
Small bowl
Whisk
Large bowl
Wooden spoon
Bench scraper
9 by 5-inch loaf pan, lightly buttered or sprayed with pan spray
Pastry brush

1. Proof the yeast
• Wake up the yeast by whisking it into ¼ cup warm (not hot) milk in a small bowl. Stir in the sugar and set the bowl aside for 8 to 10 minutes, until it looks foamy (see page 9).
• If the yeast isn’t foamy after 15 minutes (it didn’t wake up), start over with a new package.

2. Mix the dough
• Put the flour and salt in the large bowl and whisk to blend. Make a well in the center and add the yeast mixture. Pour in the remaining 1 cup of warm milk and the melted butter. Stir well with the wooden spoon until you get big, shaggy clumps of dough and it all starts to stick together.

3. Knead the dough
• Sprinkle a little flour on your work surface (don’t put too much, because you can always add more later). Dip your hands in flour and start kneading the dough (see page 12). It will take about 10 minutes of kneading until you get a smooth, springy dough.
• Sprinkle a little more flour on the table and on top if the dough feels very sticky. It should feel tacky, like tape, but not sticky and gooey. A metal bench scraper is handy to scrape up any bits of dough that are stuck to the table, and to help you move the dough around.

4. Let the dough rise
• Wash out the large bowl and rub the inside with a thin layer of vegetable oil (or use pan spray). Shape the dough into a ball and put it in the bowl. Lightly rub or spray the top of the dough with a little oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Set it aside and let the dough rise until it is twice as big, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

5. Punch down and shape the dough
• Gently turn the dough out onto a lightly floured table. Press down firmly to flatten the dough and pop the air bubbles in the dough. Don’t knead or it will get too springy to shape.
• To shape the dough into a loaf, gently pull the flattened dough into a 7 by 10-inch rectangle.

Ingredients
3 large egg whites (not even a speck of yolks, please)
¾ cup sugar
Tools
Hand mixer and a medium bowl, both very clean
Silicone spatula
One 14-inch pastry bag fitted with a ³⁄8-inch plain round tip
2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper

1. Before you begin
• Position two oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 225ºF.

2. Make the meringue
• Put the egg whites in the clean bowl and whip on medium speed until they are foamy and form soft peaks.
• To check, turn off the mixer, lift the beaters straight out of the eggs, then turn them upside down. The slope leading to the tip of the egg whites should be soft and barely holding its shape.
• With the mixer running on medium, gently shake the sugar over the eggs, letting it blend in slowly. Once all the sugar has been added, turn the mixer to high and continue to beat until the eggs are very fluffy and shiny, and form firm peaks, another 1 to 2 minutes.
• Turn off the mixer and check as above — at this point the slope should be nearly vertical.

3. Pipe the cookies
• Put the tip into the pastry bag. Spoon the meringue into the bag until it is half full. Grasp the bag just above the mound of meringue and twist it 3 times (this prevents the mixture from coming out the wrong end of the bag).
• Squeeze from the twisted part of the bag, while guiding the bag with a couple of fingers near the tip. Pipe the meringue into any shape you like, such as letters of the alphabet, rounds, or even zigzags. Keep the tip of the bag about an inch from the surface of the pan and let the meringue fall out of the bag onto the pan in a thick rope.
• Refill the bag with the remaining meringue. Retwist and continue piping until you have used all the batter.

Playing Around
Rattling meringue bones and fingers

For bones: Pipe the meringue into a stretched version of dog bone treats.

For fingers: Pipe a straight line with a knobby center for the knuckle and a tapered end for the fingernail. Just before baking, set a colored candy almond or a sliced almond into the meringue at the tapered end. Once the “fingers” have dried, finish them by dipping one of the ends in melted red coating chocolate for blood. Pipe a ring with melted colored coating chocolate, and embellish with  colored sugars, dragées, or candy pearls.

Is there a difference between a crisp and a crumble? Why do baking times vary? Can active yeast be substituted for instant? Each chapter of The Art and Soul of Baking begins with a primer that answers even the toughest baking questions, explaining essential ingredients and baking methods. Special “Getting Ahead” tips offer pointers on prepping in advance (biscotti logs can be frozen for up to two months, lemon curd can be made three days ahead), and sidebars tell “What the Pros Know” such as how to fix a “broken” ganache, how to make brownies either fudgy or cakey, and how to bake a soufflé in a coffee mug.

More than 275 tested and delectable recipes cover all the bases from tasty pies, tantalizing tarts, melt-in-your-mouth meringues, and delicious cookies to more complicated creations such as flaky pastries, decadent cakes, and lighter-than-air soufflés. Novice bakers and pastry perfectionists alike will be tempted by such treats as Dulce De Leche Éclairs with Milk Chocolate Glaze; Pumpkin Spice Cake with Maple-Cream Cheese Frosting; Gingerbread Shortcakes with Caramelized Apples and Cider Sabayon; and Warm Cranberry Crumble Tart. Of course, there are savory recipes, too, including fragrant Parmesan-Herb Popovers; Potato, Onion, and Gruyère Galette; and a perfect Herbed Chicken Pot Pie. And for a delicious twist on tried-and-true favorites, there are recipes for Bananas Foster Bread Pudding; Citrus-Goat Cheese Cheesecake; Chocolate Velvet Pound Cake; and Peanut Butter Thumbprints with Peanut Caramel.

Additionally, there are 100 sumptuous, full-color photographs by acclaimed photographer Maren Caruso. Along with finished dishes, Maren captures helpful step-by-step techniques, so you see not only the finished Almond Croissants, for example, but also what the butter-filled dough looks like along the way.

Whether you’re new to the kitchen or baking is a familiar old friend, the guidance and recipes in The Art and Soul of Baking will not only make everything you bake look and taste better, but they will also improve the quality of your time spent in the kitchen. As Cindy Mushet says, “Have fun, enjoy the process, and when you’re done, sit back and lick the spatula every once in a while.”

Winners were announced at the 2009 International Association of Culinary Professionals Conference (IACP) International in Denver on April 4.

Art and Soul of Baking won in the cookbook/baking category!

Sur La Table teamed with pastry chef and baking teacher Cindy Mushet to bring you the ultimate guide to baking. Beautiful photographs and more than 250 easy-to-follow recipes lead you into a world of alluring aromas and light, flaky pastries. Illustrated asides take you step by step through important techniques, from carmelizing sugar to working with croissant dough. Plus, you’ll find invaluable information on over 100 ingredients and 50 baker’s tools. A true pleasure for anyone who loves to bake.

The cookbook was also nominated for a 2009 James Beard Foundation Award.

Seattle-based Sur La Table has kept its finger on the pulse of America’s cooks since opening its doors in 1972 at Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market. Since then, chefs and home cooks with a taste for adventure have flocked to the culinary mecca. A destination for iconic chefs like Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, Martha Stewart, and Mario Batali, Sur La Table entices aficionados and curious beginners alike with its amazing selection of cookware and tools. With a successful catalog, Web site, cooking class program, and stores from coast to coast, Sur La Table continues to share its passion for the traditions and tastes of the world with people who love to cook and entertain. For more about Sur La Table, see surlatable.com.

About Cindy Mushet

Cindy Mushet has been a pastry chef and culinary instructor for nearly 20 years, beginning her career at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, CA.  She has since headed pastry kitchens in restaurants and bakeries from Napa to San Diego and has taught professional training courses at Le Cordon Bleu, the Culinary Institute of America, and the New School of Cooking, among others. She has also taught hundreds of recreational classes across the country.

For five years she wrote and published the highly regarded Baking With the American Harvest, a quarterly baking journal with subscribers nationwide. She also is the author of Desserts: Mediterranean Flavors, California Style and was a contributing writer to The Joy of Cooking, The Joy of Cooking Christmas Cookies, and The Baker’s Dozen Cookbook.  Cindy’s recipes and articles have been featured in magazines and newspapers across the country, including Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking, Gourmet, Country Home, and The New York Times.  In addition, her recipes were among the few to be chosen for The Best American Recipe books.

Cindy lives in Los Angeles, where she is a patisserie chef-instructor in Le Cordon Bleu program at the California School of Culinary Arts, and she consults regularly with restaurants and bakeries on menu development and staff training.  Cindy is a regular guest on KCRW’s Good Food radio show. She has been a spokeswoman for the American Butter Institute and a guest chef at food conferences across the country.

“Some books have great practical information and some have great recipes, but The Art and Soul of Baking has both—and it’s beautiful. Learning to be a better baker just became easy, fun, and very delicious.” —Dorie Greenspan, author of Baking From My Home to Yours

“Cindy Mushet has put together an impressive masterpiece on baking. With tips and tricks for everything from making the fanciest dough, to deep, dark chocolate brownies, to fruit-studded muffins that will rise above all others, The Art and Soul of Baking is an outstanding collection of recipes and technical advice that will certainly become one of the most well-used books in any baker’s kitchen, as it has in mine.” —David Lebovitz, author of The Great Book of Chocolate

“From baking basics to advanced tips that take baking to a whole new level, The Art and Soul of Baking covers everything anyone needs to know to be a great baker. It should be on all our bookshelves. It is on mine so I can refer to it for a quick reference from ‘What the Pros Know,’ or to make the Morning Buns to start my day off right or the Peanut Butter Thumbprints with Peanut Caramel for an afternoon pick-me-up.” —Emily Luchetti, author of Classic Stars Desserts: Favorite Recipes

“I’ve been using high-quality baking tools from Sur la Table for years, and now I can add its all-purpose baking book to my collection. The photos alone are worth the price, but Cindy Mushet’s easy-to-follow recipe descriptions and nurturing voice make this a book everyone will want to actually use and not just look at.” —Peter Reinhart, author of Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor

“Cindy Mushet has put together an incredible compilation of sweet and savory recipes, full of all sorts of extra information that put this beautiful book in a league of its own. She is more than a great baker—she’s a superb teacher. The tips she shares, in the most straightforward, precise, yet down-to-earth manner, will make anyone who uses The Art and Soul of Baking, whether a home cook or a professional, a better baker.” —Sherry Yard, executive pastry chef, Wolfgang Puck Worldwide

Gourmet started the Cookbook Club in an attempt to help its readers “cut through the clutter” of the 24,000 cookbooks published each year, according to Editor in-chief Ruth Reichl. The magazine’s editors choose a book each month that offers “imaginative insight and delicious results.”

Reichl said she and her staff established the club in response to the overwhelming number of cookbooks published in the United States. “Tons of cookbooks come pouring in here all the time,” she told Publishers Weekly. “Every time we find one we really love we say, ‘We ought to share this with other people.” Reichl considered adding cookbook reviews to Gourmet but decided a book club would be more inclusive of readers and Gourmet’s online community.

Books chosen for the new club, which launched in June, are marked with a Gourmet plate shaped seal to indicate they are official selections. In addition, at the book club’s home page, gourmet.com/cookbookclub, visitors can find more recipes from the books and videos of the authors demonstrating recipes from their books.

The stakes are simply higher when it comes to baking. A less-than-stellar soup or sauce can be saved at the last minute with an extra pinch of salt or some fresh herbs, but bad baked goods tend to be total disasters—a tough piecrust, a heavy cake, an unrisen yeast dough—and leave you with little to do but dump them into the trash and start again. So when a baking book in which the recipes perform as flawlessly as they do in The Art and Soul of Baking (Andrews McMeel Publishing; 454 pages; $40) comes out, we’re particularly impressed.

Lots of love and effort went into this book from the upscale kitchen store Sur La Table, which is no surprise considering its author is Chez Panisse alum and longtime California baking instructor Cindy Mushet. Her recipes, which strike just the right balance between novelty and simplicity, are each broken down into information-packed sections that are a boon to the home baker: An equipment sidebar tells you everything you’ll need up front; a “getting ahead” section enumerates which steps can be done in advance and mentions what freezes well. Ingredients are listed in traditional cup and tablespoon fashion, as well as in weight measures (for the serious baker); follow-up paragraphs offer recipe variations.

If there’s any weakness here, it’s perhaps too much emphasis on equipment: You don’t truly need a stand mixer for every recipe that calls for it, and when Mushet instructs you, in the blueberry clafoutis recipe, for example, to get out a baking sheet for the sole purpose of holding raw blueberries while you pick through them, she crosses the line into micromanagement. But even this criticism feels like hairsplitting, given such consistently wonderful recipes. A smart one for pumpkin walnut bread can be whipped up quickly using only pantry ingredients. A silky butterscotch pie is a taste of nostalgia that’s not too sweet, and a pizza crust comes together almost effortlessly. It’s the time of year when baking feels right again, and this is just the book to provide inspiration throughout the months ahead.

Selected recipes:

• Bittersweet Chocolate Soufflés with Vanilla Custard Sauce
• Butterscotch Pie
• Graham Cracker Crumb Pie Crust
• Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Pumpkin Walnut Bread

Watch videos of Cindy: http://www.gourmet.com/

Mushet, a talented pastry chef, cooking teacher, and author of the excellent Desserts: Mediterranean Flavors, California Style, presents the latest book from the Sur La Table team, following Things Cooks Love. Like Malgieri’s book, it covers both sweet and savory baking, but it includes far more information. Two lengthy introductory chapters cover techniques, equipment, and ingredients, and dozens of sidebars on “Tips for Success” and “What the Pros Know” offer further helpful insider advice. Recipes range from basics such as Quick Puff Pastry and Classic Sugar Cookies to unusual and appealing treats like Malted Milk Chocolate Tart; most of them include make-ahead information, and many also have variations. There are striking color photographs throughout, as well as step-by-step technique photos. Mushet’s style is engaging and never intimidating. Essential.

Cooler weather often is incentive enough to get people baking. But for those who need an extra push, the latest batch of baking cookbooks offers plenty of inspiration to get you in the mood. Here are the highlights:

The Art & Soul of Baking” by Cindy Mushet and Sur la Table

If you buy just one new baking book this season, make it this one. Gorgeously illustrated and exhaustively comprehensive, “The Art & Soul of Baking” covers everything from essential equipment (after all, Sur la Table is a kitchen supplies retailer) and pantry staples to chapters on savory breads, quick breads, tarts, pies, cookies and cakes, to name just a few.

The recipes are exceedingly detailed and include do-ahead tips, notes on equipment needed, advice on storing the finished treats and suggestions for variations. Reading this is a pleasant and enticing baking education.

Mushet’s recipes for Rustic Olive and Thyme Bread and Nine-grain Whole-wheat Harvest Bread were easy to follow and produced delicious, attractive loaves.

Despite the titles appeal to emotional and aesthetic urges, this baking guide determinedly concentrates on the scientific knowledge that underpins everything that an accomplished baker produces. That focus radiates throughout the text of this totally accessible and eminently useful introduction to breads, pastries, pies, cookies, cakes, custards, and souffles. Mushet is determined to explain in detail the whys and wherefores of baking, recommending that even tyros learn to measure flour and similar ingredients by weight rather than volume. She provides comprehensive glossaries of baking equipment and components that intelligently address just about any question a novice might raise. In addition to listing ingredients, quantities, and techniques, each recipe inventories equipment necessary to execute the recipe successfully, making it unnecessary to search the full recipe to find out what pans and appliances to use. Mushet also provides informative sidebars that share professional bakers secrets. Very valuable for cookery reference collections. —Mark Knoblauch

Veteran pastry chef Mushet puts her decades of experience to work in this dense, informative baking guide from Seattle-based gourmet cookware retailer Sur La Table…opening with a comprehensive overview of crucial equipment and a 30 page guide to pantry stocking (butter, flour and sugar get three pages each, chocolate gets five). Covering all aspects of the baking spectrum, Mushet gives yeast-based breads, quick breads, cookies and bars, layered pastries and other specialties their turn, doing admirable work with standards like pizza dough and dinner rolls, as well as trendier riffs like pesto rolls and rustic olive and thyme bread that give cooks room to stretch in each category. Mushets invaluable lessons in ensuring oven accuracy, incorporating butter into dough for layered pastries (with step-by-step photos) and the causes of falling soufflés will get novices up to speed, and experts ready to tackle Mushets compelling cheesecake batter-in-a-food-processor technique will find her inventive hors doeuvre Stilton Cheesecake with Port-Braised Pears a big hit at the next cocktail party. Those already comfortable with baking will get the most out of the books 250 recipes, but there are plenty of dishes well within the reach of those new to Crème Brulee and lemon bar construction, making this a great volume to learn and grow with. (Sept.)

The Art & Soul of Baking by pastry genius Cindy Mushet is October’s Cookbook Club selection over at Gourmet.com. In conjunction with the book, they also offer up a short video on how to make individual bittersweet chocolate souffles. The clip is chock full of baking tips and very, very precise instructions.

In less than 10 minutes you will learn:

• when to whisk in the flour in a béchamel sauce; indeed, you will learn exactly how to make the entire béchamel sauce
• precisely what a soft peak looks like as compared with a stiff peak (hint: it has nothing to do with the peak)
• what it means to rain (rein?) in the sugar
• why you should completely coat the inside of the souffle dish with butter
• how to fold in (the perfectly peaked) egg whites

I’m a former pastry chef (long ago and far away) and still I learned a lot from this video.

If that’s not enough for you, you can continue with another short clip with several great tips like how to soften brown sugar, test your baking powder and soda and keep your scones from burning on the bottom.

Baking Bites, October 13, 2008, by Nicole

The Art and Soul of Baking is a new book from Sur La Table’s relatively young cookbook line. Things Cooks Love was published earlier this year and another book, Knives Cooks Love, is due out at the end of this month. The store is known for its top quality kitchenware, so it’s no surprise to see them putting it to good use in a book like this one.

The Art and Soul of Baking a huge compendium of all things baked. The book has nearly 300 recipes in its 464 pages, as well as tons of information about kitchen equipment and ingredients. The introduction to the book is broken up into two parts and is the main reference section. The Baker’s Kitchen chapter is primarily dedicated to describing the use and purpose of various pieces of baking-related kitchen equipment, and also gives weight and volume conversion tables. The Baker’s Pantry chapter is dedicated to ingredients, describing how things are made, what the flavors are like and how to use them.

The recipes are broken down into chapters by type, and are all well-written. At the beginning of each chapter there is a little primer on how to be as successful as possible with your cakes, breads, souffles, etc. The instructions are descriptive and there are plenty of tips given in the sidebars to help make the process as easy as possible. The book also makes note of possible variations on each recipe. There are plenty of full-page photographs in the book, and while they are excellent shots, not every recipe is covered. Overall, it’s a nice book that will give the reader plenty of recipe options and some great reference material, the sheer size of the book is a little intimidating, even though the clear writing and friendly tone will keep a reader engaged once he or she starts to flip through the pages. The book’s author, Cindy Mushet, has a blog set up that is a great way to get a preview of the book.

An Interview with Cindy Mushet on the “Art & Soul of Baking”

Cindy Mushet’s definitive book, the Art & Soul of Baking.

If you don’t know the name Cindy Mushet, let me introduce you. She’s one of those people in the background who makes amazing things happen. Her contributions may not always have her name blazed on them, but her impact is evidenced by a rich history in the culinary world. Cindy was a contributor to the Joy of Cooking, has taught throughout the United States for Sur La Table and is currently an instructor at Le Cordon Bleu. Her recipes have appeared in Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking, the New York Times, and the National Culinary Review.

During her 24 hour stay in Seattle, I had the opportunity to meet with Cindy and it was kismet from the beginning. We chatted over lunch and then strolled over to my favorite bakery for a little nosh. She was just days into her 3 week tour, and despite having already done an early morning TV spot, a pod cast interview and a newspaper interview, by the time we talked she was still a fireball of energy.

A long history of teaching permeates Cindy’s culinary style. She understands how her students feel, going through the effort to bake something, only to fail with a dessert you can’t serve. “That’s when people go to Costco and pick up something cheap.” But there are so many things wrong with cheap: desserts are packed with preservatives to extend the shelf life and the ingredients stray far from anything that might be good for you…or flavorful.

Her mission became: Teach a Man to Bake, Don’t Give Him a Cake.

Warm and engaging, Cindy’s got an analytical mind that probes with a laser focus until she lands on the answer. While there are some excellent baking books, many of them lack direction in the most basic steps. One of the most frustrating steps both she and her students struggled with was the familiar: cream butter until light & fluffy. “What does that mean?” In her frustration she surmised, “Butter never looks fluffy…or light.” Eventually she learned “light” meant light in color, not texture. And “fluffy” spoke to the incorporation of air into the butter. It’s that attention to the intention that makes her recipes a step above.

To perfect her baking, she applied a scientific approach — baking cakes repeatedly, changing the ratios at each attempt. Then, she’d study the results and determine what yielded the best outcome.

This scientific approach came from an early influence by the San Francisco’s Baker’s Dozen group. At the time, she was living in Berkley and there were a number of bakers in the area. They’d gather and talk about issues they were having, “I’m having a problem with this dough…do you know anything about that?”

Eventually, the group gelled into something more formal. They’d meet once a quarter and learn from each other. Tackling Angel Food cake, for instance, each person brought a finished cake and the recipe. “You wouldn’t believe the variety! They all fell under the category of Angle Food cakes, but they were so different.” Getting to the heart of the differences, the group sampled each cake, decided which characteristics were ideal, and then compared recipes. Side by side, they’d see the ingredients were the same. “Okay, now what did you do differently?” They’d analyze the techniques that arrived at an excellent finished product. Not surprising, this process deeply influenced Cindy’s approach to baking.

When she was first asked to write a book on baking, Cindy thought, “What could I say about baking that hasn’t already been said?” After further reflection…and before she’d given a final answer, she tapped into her own collection of over 200 baking books. Laying multiple books out on the living room floor, she poured over them with an analytic approach —what’s here? What’s missing? And most importantly, what did her Sur La Table students struggle with when using the recipes?

Because she had years of contact with students who are often unsure, she could see firsthand where the issues where, and modified her own recipes accordingly.

Then Cindy turned to the bible of cooking science, Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. While the book is a treasure trove of information, admittedly, it’s a very dry read.

So, Cindy asked herself, “How can I combine both solid recipes and provide enough information to help people understand the science behind what’s going on?”

She was determined to prove success in baking is built on a solid foundation…not a fluke. Tapping into an analytical approach, combined with years of teaching, the result is her latest book, the Art and Soul of Baking.

It hits the mark on every level.

In fact, she gives a lot of credit to Sur La Table, who was the impetus behind the project. They were very “hands off” in the creation of this book. None of the directions were cropped or modified to save space. And they gave her the time necessary to create a book of substance. Two years to write it, one year for editing means this book is much more than just a collection of recipes.

Baker’s Dozen alum, Alice Medrich, wrote the forward and she highlights two key points: the chart for Baking Pan Volumes (What’s the difference between a 9 x 1″ Pyrex pie pan and a 9 x 1 1/2″ Emily Henry fluted pie pan? It’s here.) And a handy chart that converts measuring cups and spoons into exact weights. Alice notes, “The book’s two essential double-page charts should be photocopied and hung inside a cupboard door for easy reference.” Taking a cue from Alice, mine are laminated and stuck to the side of the refrigerator…and I refer to them, regularly.

The Art & Soul of Baking is packed with relevant information designed to bring success into the kitchen. Whether you’re a novice or a seasoned baker, I found her discussion on the Eight Main Ingredients invaluable. And the photos for bread dough detailing the different stages: underrisen, perfectly risen, and overrisen doughs provides the visual cues necessary when conquering the land of yeast. Tips in the margins, “What the Pros Know” layers the knowledge base, providing multiple “ah-ha!” moments.

I consider myself a fairly accomplished baker and I’ve got dozens of books on the subject. Frankly, this is the book I have been looking for. Cindy is a perfect guide — explaining not just how, but why. Surely I’d be a better baker today if I’d had this book sooner.

The good news is, there’s still plenty for me to learn. And with Cindy as my guide, next up…conquering my fear of yeast!

Serves 10 to 12

This soft, moist, towering cloud of a dessert lies somewhere between a cake and a trifle, its lemon syrup–soaked cake layers alternating with lemon mascarpone cream. Meyer lemons are especially fragrant, but this cake is outstanding even with supermarket Eureka lemons. There are a few steps here, but almost everything can be done ahead, which makes putting it together pretty easy.

Ingredients

Sponge Cakes

6 large eggs, separated
7 tablespoons (3 ounces) plus
7 tablespoons (3 ounces) sugar
1 3/4 cups (6 ounces) sifted cake flour

Lemon Syrup
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) sugar
1/2 cup (4 fl ounces) water
1/4 cup (2 ounces) freshly squeezed
lemon juice

Mascarpone Filling
2 1/2 cups (20 ounces) heavy whipping cream
7 tablespoons (3 ounces) sugar
1 pound mascarpone
1 cup lemon curd, plus 1 1/2 cups for layering and garnish

Equipment

Two Ungreased 9 by 1 3/4-inch Round Cake Pans Lined with Parchment Paper, Pastry Brush, Small Offset Spatula, Icing Spatula, Pastry Bag Fitted with a 1/2-inch Star Tip

1 Preheat the oven to 375°F. Position oven racks in the lower and upper thirds of the oven.

2 Make the sponge cakes: Place the egg yolks and 7 tablespoons of the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whip on high speed until the mixture is thick and very light in color, 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside while you whip the egg whites.

3 In a clean bowl with a clean whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium speed to soft peaks. With the mixer running, gradually add the remaining 7 tablespoons of sugar and continue beating until the egg whites hold firm peaks. Fold one-third of the egg whites into the beaten yolks, then sift half of the flour over the top and gently fold it in. Repeat. Fold in the last of the egg whites until no streaks of white remain.

4 Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until the top is golden, firm to the touch, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out free of crumbs. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool completely.

5 Make the lemon syrup: Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan and heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the liquid is clear. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Stir in the lemon juice.

6 Make the mascarpone filling: Place the cream and sugar in a bowl and whip to soft peaks. Refrigerate. Place the mascarpone and one cup of the lemon curd in a bowl and stir until blended—it should be the consistency of pudding. Gently fold in the whipped cream until the mixture is homogenous and thick. If the mixture becomes overworked, it will look grainy or separated. If this happens, stir in several tablespoons of cream with a rubber spatula—stir just until the mixture has smoothed out again.

by Sur La Table, Cindy Mushet

Price: $40.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-7334-1
ISBN-10: 0-7407-7334-8
Format: Hardcover
Size: 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 464 pages

“The most important thing in a kitchen is your knife. You need to choose it well, treat it well, and use it well. Knives Cooks Love prepares you for all that and more. By nature, every cook is eager to learn, and this book provides everything you ever wanted to know about knives. Filled with culinary history, techniques, and supporting recipes, this book covers it all.” —Ming Tsai, host and executive producer of Simply Ming and chef-owner of Blue Ginger

“I like a clunky heavy European-style knife, like a Wüsthof. I have big hands. It’s uncomfortable for me to work with a really narrow blade.” —David Waltuck, chef-owner of Chanterelle, New York City

“Indulge in every chef’s obsession of finding the perfect knife. Knives Cooks Love contains great advice on technique, how to keep knives sharp, which knife to use for what, and a lot of personal insight from the professionals who use them every day. This book answers the question that I am most frequently asked: What knife should I buy?” —Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of Boulevard Restaurant, author of Boulevard, The Cookbook

From chef’s knives and santoku knives to paring knives, bread knives, boning knives, fillet knives, tomato knives, cheese knives, steak knives, meat and vegetable cleavers, and even shears and sharpeners, Knives Cooks Love helps chefs of all levels find the right knives for their needs. It also features step-by-step instructions for trimming, paring, slicing, dicing, pitting, chopping, mincing, scoring, coring, and butterflying a variety of meats, vegetables, and other foods.

Readers will learn what to look for when purchasing high-quality knives, the different blades for every purpose (from sectioning a grapefruit to carving a turkey), how to keep them razor-sharp for years to come (hint: Don’t put them in the dishwasher), as well as how to properly clean and store them. With sidebar advice from renowned chefs, including tips, tricks, and notes on their favorite knives, Knives Cooks Love is the ultimate primer for choosing and using the most important tool in the kitchen.

The final section of the book contains a complete range of recipes for everything from vegetables and fruits to meat, poultry, and fish. Put the knowledge of Knives Cooks Love to the test with mouthwatering dishes to help you practice using a variety of knives and techniques. Learn how to chop and chiffonade fresh herbs to cook Crispy Roasted Potato Wedges with Parsley, Rosemary and Lemon. Perfectly slice an apple in just four straight cuts to bake Flaky Apple Pinwheels with ease. Or fillet a salmon and make your own Lemon-Dill Gravlax, sure to be a hit at Sunday brunch.

As Chef Emeril Lagasse says in the foreword: “Although many folks may proudly possess nice kitchen equipment, knives included, they have little or no knowledge about how to properly care for or sharpen a knife. That’s where this book comes in.”

Seattle-based Sur La Table has kept its finger on the pulse of America’s cooks since opening its doors in 1972 at Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market. Since then, chefs and home cooks with a taste for adventure have flocked to the culinary mecca. A destination for iconic chefs like Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, Martha Stewart, and Mario Batali, Sur La Table entices aficionados and curious beginners alike with its amazing selection of cookware and tools. With a successful catalog, Web site, cooking class program, and stores from coast to coast, Sur La Table continues to share Sarah Jay its passion for the traditions and tastes of the world with people who love to cook and entertain. For more about Sur La Table, see surlatable.com.

About Sarah Jay

Sarah Jay was the executive editor of Fine Cooking magazine before becoming a freelance food writer and editor. She is now a contributing editor to the magazine. A former newspaper reporter, Sarah has published articles in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Saveur magazine. She received a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and is a graduate of Brown University. Sarah’s passion is Spanish food, and she maintains a small side business importing paella pans and other products from Spain. She lives in New York City with her husband, two daughters, and a drawer full of very sharp knives.

This punchy rendition of mussels in white wine offers a quick course on several cuts: slicing, dicing, mincing, and chiffonading. Serve the mussels with crusty bread for dipping into the peppery tomato broth, or ladle the mussels and broth over hot linguine. When buying mussels, ask the fishmonger for a bag from the refrigerator in back, which are often fresher than those in the front display.

Serves 2 to 3 as a main course

1 small fennel bulb
1 small yellow onion
1 carrot
3 cloves garlic
2 small tomatoes
10 to 12 large fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded (discard any that do not close)

Trim the stalks from the fennel and cut a thin slice off the bottom; then core and cut the fennel into 1/4-inch crosswise slices (see page 119). Put the fennel into a large bowl. Cut the onion crosswise into ¼-inch semicircles (see page 95) and add to the bowl. Peel the carrot and cut into 1/4-inch dice (see page 109) and add to the bowl. Peel and mince the garlic (see page 100) and add to the bowl.

Core the tomatoes. Cut them in half through the equator and squeeze out the seeds. Cut them into ¼-inch dice (see page 127) and put them in a separate bowl. Cut the basil into chiffonade (see page 133) and reserve for the garnish.

Lightly crush the peppercorns and fennel seeds in a mortar and pestle. (Alternatively, put them in a small self-sealing plastic bag. Using the bottom of a cast-iron skillet, lightly crush them. Transfer the spices to a small dish.) Add the salt and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a heavy 6-quart or larger stockpot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion, carrot, and garlic, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the spice mixture. Add the wine and the tomatoes along with any juices in the bowl. Bring to a boil.

Add the mussels to the stockpot (don’t stir), cover, and steam until the mussels open, about 5 minutes. Scoop the mussels into individual shallow bowls, discarding any that remain closed, and then spoon some vegetables and broth over them. Sprinkle each bowl with basil and serve immediately.

Fennel

Trimming, Coring, Slicing, and Dicing

If you’re braising or roasting fennel wedges, leave the core intact so it holds the fennel together. But for slicing or dicing, do cut away the core first. Lengthwise slices emphasize the vegetable’s tough and fibrous quality. Crosswise slices are more tender and juicy, and better for salads.

1 Cut off the stalks close to the bulb (save the fernlike fronds for a garnish, if you want). Trim off the hard base. If the outer layer isn’t too blemished or fibrous, leave it on. Otherwise, remove it and discard (or save for stock).

2 Cut the bulb into lengthwise quarters. Stand up one quarter on its base, or let it rest on the rounded side, and cut away the core. Repeat with the other three pieces.

3 Set the pieces on a flat side. Cut crosswise or lengthwise slices of the width you need. (For a dice, cut lengthwise slices and gather a few strips and cut across them.)

There’s lots of dicing and mincing to do here, but once that’s out of the way, you just toss everything together and you’re done. This makes a fresh, colorful condiment for grilled or sautéed pork chops, chicken breasts, or fish fillets.

Makes about 2 cups

2 small, ripe mangoes
1/2 seedless cucumber (about 6 inches), peeled
1/4 red bell pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro (see page 132), plus a stem for garnish
1 green onion, white and light green parts only, sliced thinly
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, plus more as needed
Pinch of sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Peel and pit the mango and cut the flesh into ¼-inch dice (see pages 144 and 145). Cut the cucumber into ¼-inch dice (see page 109). Cut the bell pepper into ¼-inch dice (see page 116).

Put the mangoes, cucumber, bell pepper, cilantro, green onion, and jalapeño in a medium bowl. Toss to combine. Add the lime juice, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss, taste, and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with cilantro stem if desired. Serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to 12 hours.

For such a succulent fruit, mangoes sure are a pain to peel and pit. Here is one option found in Knives Cooks Love.

method 1: dice first, then peel

The advantage to this approach is that you don’t have to grip the slippery flesh. It works best when you need ½-inch dice or larger.

1 Cut a thin slice off the stem end of the mango to create a flat base. With the knife a little off the center point, slice off one broad cheek of the mango. The knife should barely rub against the pit on its way down. Cut the other cheek off the same way.

2 Score the flesh with the tip of a paring knife in a crosshatch pattern, creating the size dice you want. Be careful not to cut through the skin.

3 Invert the mango half so the cubes pop out. Cut the cubes away from the skin. Repeat with the other half. Cut the two thinner sides off of the pit and handle them the same way.

“The first time I stepped into a Sur La Table store many years ago, it instantly became my favoirte kitchenware store, and it still is. Its variety never fails to surprise me. I have always found what I needed or even what I didn’t know I needed until I saw it there.” –Marcella Hazan, godmother of Italian cooking in America and author of six cookbooks including Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

“A book chock-full of mouthwatering recipes and really important equipment information froma cooking store that I really love. If you thought that the store wasn’t perfect enough, check out the book.” –Jamie Oliver, celebrity chef

THINGS COOKS LOVE opens with “Essential Cookware and Tools,” which includes The Basic Kitchen, detailed descriptions of everything from baking dishes and braisers to tongs and toasters, and The Well-Stocked Global Kitchen, the ultimate wish list to take your kitchen to a new level of sophistication. It is both an easy reference for setting up a new kitchen and a convenient checklist for when it’s time to add new items. THINGS COOKS LOVE gives all the information you need to confidently select the best and most durable implements.

Once you’ve explored the basics, it’s time to put them to use in “Cooking with Kitchen Essentials,” which offers tips for use and care, and recipes for everything from whisks to stove-top smokers. The recipes put your new or refreshed knowledge to work with dishes such as Sea Bass Poached in Orange, Basil and Wine with Citrus and Herb Sauce; Corn on the Cob with Flavored Butters; or Smoked Shrimp Wrapped with Prosciutto. And because this is a book for both the beginning cook and the gourmet, it also offers alternatives for kitchens that are not stocked with the exact cookware or tools.

For further inspiration, the final section of THINGS COOKS LOVE, “Globe-Trotting Kitchen Essentials,” explores the cookware, ingredients, and recipes of Asia, Mexico, France, India, Italy, Iberia, and Morocco. It spans the globe, visiting the world’s favorite pantries and kitchens to experience the luscious tastes and simple techniques for using tools from the versatile Mexican stove-top pepper roaster and the elegant, clam-shaped Portuguese cataplana to the practical and handsome French cocotte and the iconic Spanish paella pan. A quick read on Morocco will embolden the home cook to try a Lamb Tagine with Artichoke Hearts, Dried Apricots, and Preserved Lemon or Classic Chicken Bisteeya.

Recognizing that a beloved cooking collection is the foundation for good food, THINGS COOKS LOVE is more than a reference tool or collection of recipes, more than a cookbook; it is a cook’s book. It is for everyone who has not only a passion and enthusiasm for all things culinary, but also a sense of adventure. And just as your kitchen equipment can last a lifetime, this book will serve cooks well time and again as they continue to expand their recipe repertoire and cookware collection.

Seattle-based Sur La Table has kept its finger on the pulse of America’s cooks since opening its doors in 1972 at Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market. Since then, chefs and home cooks with a taste for adventure have flocked to the culinary mecca. A destination for iconic chefs like Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, Martha Stewart, and Mario Batali, Sur La Table entices aficionados and curious beginners alike with its amazing selection of cookware and tools. With a successful catalog, Web site, cooking class program, and stores from coast to coast, Sur La Table continues to share its passion for the traditions and tastes of the world with people who love to cook and entertain. For more about Sur La Table, see surlatable.com.

About Marie Simmons

Marie Simmons is an award-winning cookbook author, popular cooking teacher, and food writer. Her recipes and food articles have appeared in hundreds of magazines. For more than 15 years she wrote a monthly column for Bon Appétit magazine and a weekly column for the Los Angeles Times Syndicate. She currently writes a bi-monthly column, “Simmons Sez,” for the Contra Costa Times and the Bay Area News Group.

Marie has written 18 cookbooks, including Fig Heaven; Fresh & Fast; The Amazing World of Rice; The Good Egg, winner of a James Beard Award; and Lighter, Quicker, Better, written with Richard Sax and winner of Julia Child and James Beard awards. She also wrote Bar Cookies A to Z, Puddings A to Z, Muffins A to Z, and Pancakes A to Z. One of her first cookbooks, 365 Ways to Cook Pasta, has more than 500,000 copies in print. Marie, a native New Yorker, lives in Richmond, CA.

Prep 30 min | cook time 18 min | serves 4–6

The Italian word pesto translates roughly as “pounded” and typically refers to any food mashed in a mortar. But the best-known pesto is a sauce made with fresh basil leaves, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, and grated cheese. It is traditionally the sauce for a pasta dish that also includes green beans and potatoes, but here the pasta has been left out and the pesto is instead served over a salad of warm cubed potatoes and green beans. In another departure from tradition, dry-roasted almonds are used in place of the pine nuts. Make this recipe in the summer when the markets are well stocked with beautiful fresh basil.

Implements:
Large Mortar and Pestle, 6-Quart Dutch Oven, Colander, Rubber Spatula, Chef’s Knife

Ingredients:
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon coarse salt
4 tablespoons coarsely chopped unsalted dry-roasted almonds
1 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, stemmed
¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
¼ cup grated pecorino romano cheese
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound Yukon Gold or other boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes
12 ounces thin green beans, trimmed, and cut into 1-inch lengths
1 large, ripe tomato, cut into thin wedges, for garnish

1. Place the garlic, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and 2 tablespoons of the almonds in a large mortar. Pound with the pestle to a smooth paste. Gradually add the basil leaves while pounding, adding more only after each batch has been reduced to a paste. This will only take 2 to 3 minutes.
2. When all of the basil leaves are pounded to a smooth paste, gradually add both cheeses, stirring with the pestle to blend them with the basil paste. Then drizzle in the olive oil with one hand while stirring and pounding with the pestle in the other hand until the mixture is smooth. Set aside.
3. Fill a 6-quart Dutch oven or other large, wide pan two-thirds full of water and bring to a boil. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon salt and the potatoes. Boil, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add the green beans and boil for 6 to 8 minutes, until both the beans and potatoes are tender. Drain in a colander.
4. Place the beans and potatoes in a large serving bowl, spoon the pesto on top, and fold together gently with a rubber spatula until blended. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons almonds. Garnish the bowl with the tomato wedges. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Prep 30 min | cook time 50 min | serves 4

A number of traditional Portuguese dishes are based on the unlikely, but flavorful, combination of pork and shellfish. This variation on amêijoas na cataplana, the classic clam and pork stew, calls for three types of pork: fresh pork cubes, spicy sausage, and bacon. The addition of Italian green beans, also known as romano beans, with the clams makes this recipe a one-pot meal. Serve with plenty of bread to sop up the flavorful sauce.

Implements:

Food Mill, Rubber Spatula, Large, Heavy Skillet, Cataplana, Oven Mitts

Ingredients:
1 can (28-ounce) Italian plum tomatoes with juices
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 (1/4-inch-thick) slices bacon, cut into ¼-inch dice
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
4 ounces chouriço or chorizo, casings removed and cut into ¼-inch dice
4 ounces pork tenderloin, loin, or shoulder, cut into ¼-inch dice (optional)
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 pounds littleneck or Manila clams, cleaned (see Tip, page 222)
8 ounces romano or other green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths

1. Fit a food mill with the medium disk, and set the mill on the rim of a medium bowl. Put the tomatoes with their juices in the food mill and puree. Reverse the crank to extract every bit of flavor from the tomato pulp, and occasionally stop to clean the underside of the mill with a rubber spatula, so the puree falls freely. Discard the pulp left in the strainer. Set the puree aside.
2. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot enough to sizzle a piece of bacon. Add the bacon and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the onion and red and green peppers and sauté, stirring, for 8 minutes, or until the vegetables are wilted and beginning to turn golden. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Stir in the chouriço and pork and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes, or until lightly browned. Sprinkle with the paprika and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
3. Add the wine, tomatoes, and parsley and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to low and cook, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until liquid is slightly reduced.
4. Spoon half of the sauce into the cataplana; spoon the clams on top and scatter the green beans over the clams. Spoon the remaining sauce on top. Secure the cover in place.
5. Place the cataplana over medium heat and cook for 10 minutes, or until the clams have opened. Bring the cataplana to the table and, using oven mitts, carefully remove the cover. Discard any clams that failed to open. Spoon the clams and rich sauce into warmed shallow bowls and serve at once.

tip
Preparation in Alternative Cookware
Cook the sauce in a Dutch oven or braiser instead of the skillet. Add the clams, cover, and cook as directed for the cataplana.