KITCHEN ARTS AND LETTERS
FALL 2005 NEW TITLES

Carles Abellan. LAS TAPAS DE COMERC 24.
Following an apprenticeship at El Bulli, Abellan moved to Barcelona and opened a modern tapas bar that has kept the Catalonian capital talking. No mean feat given the local competition. Lots of great ideas here, many of them simple enough in execution, but still with enough spark to entertain on the plate: green olives stuffed with anchovies; onion tempura with soy foam; waldorf salad in shot glasses. En Espanol. color throughout. cl. $75.00

Andoni Luis Aduriz. CLOROFILIA.
This initially modest-seeming little book is a treasure trove of vibrant ideas for the use of herbs and flowers in contemporary cuisine. Aduriz, the chef at the Basque restaurant Mugaritz, has an elegant style and adventurous palate that has won the attention of Michel Bras, who has provided the foreword for the book. A dazzler. En Espanol. color throughout. p. $110.00

Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. MANGOES & CURRY LEAVES.
An entrancing tour of the Indian subcontinent through the words and photos of the authors of Hot Sour Salty Sweet and Flatbreads and Flavors. This Canadian duo has mastered the art of bringing regional foods and foodways alive in their books, and Mangoes & Curry Leaves is another gorgeous and completely captivating experience for both cooks and readers. One of our leading books this fall. color throughout. cl. $45.00

Pam Anderson.PERFECT RECIPES FOR HAVING PEOPLE OVER.
USA Weekend 's food columnist has been a favorite at Kitchen Arts & Letters since her days at Cook's Illustrated. A love of good simple food, honestly prepared, comes through in every one of Anderson's 200 recipes, each stylish enough for entertaining, but completely suitable for a family cook on any weeknight. We think Ina Garten fans should pay this one some serious attention. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Elizabeth Andoh. WASHOKU.
One of our foremost American authorities on Japanese food, Andoh, American-born and educated, has lived in Japan for nearly thirty years. Her lavishly handsome guide to traditional home cooking is a stunner, visually and culinarily. Detailed recipes are fully supported by a wealth of information on the Japanese home pantry, techniques, flavoring principles, and aesthetics, that could only have been gathered by one long immersed in a rich tradition. Even armchair cooks may roll up their sleeves and start cooking. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Jose Andres. TAPAS.
America's most direct line to Spanish culinary innovation is Washington, DC, chef and restaurateur Jose Andres, proprietor of five restaurants, including the award-winning Cafe Atlantico, Minbar and Jaleo. An intimate of the Adria brothers and Juan Arzak, Andres here offers up an energetic, innovative collection of small plates. Some might well have graced the menu at El Bulli, while others fuse Spanish and American tradition. Full-color photographs throughout also provide some snazzy plating ideas. cl. $35.00

Arlene Voski Avakian and Barbara Haber, editors. FROM BETTY CROCKER TO FEMINIST FOOD STUDIES.
This collection of articles explores the links between women's studies and the emerging field of food studies, in realms as far-flung as colonial India, nineteenth-century New England, and the siege of Leningrad. Contributors include Amy Cooper, Darra Goldstein, and Laura Shapiro. p. $24.95

Rick Bayless. MEXICAN EVERY DAY.
Simple home cooking from Mexico, presented by the chef of Chicago's Frontera Grill and Topolobampo. Most require less than thirty minutes to prepare, and all emphasize the fresh, clean tastes of authentic Mexican home cooking. color throughout. cl. $29.95

Martin Berasategui and Josean Martinez Alija. LA COCINA DEL RESTAURANTE GUGGENHEIM BILBAO.
Dramatic food for a dramatic space within a dramatic museum. While at his other restaurants Berasategui gives modern treatments to traditional ingredients, here he steps outside the recognizably "Spanish" to produce beautiful food that has been excellently presented. color throughout. cl. $89.95

Mark Bittman. THE BEST RECIPES IN THE WORLD.
An immodest title perhaps, but then again, Bittman is the guy who wrote a book called How to Cook Everything that became a full-scale rival to The Joy of Cooking. Now he's lined up more than 1,000 recipes gleaned from every continent, and subjected them to his own rigorous testing and technique simplification. Home cooks who've been intimidated by seemingly exotic ingredient lists will find that Bittman offers plenty of confidence-inspiring advice and help. line-drawings. cl. $29.95

Massimo Bottura. BALSAMIC VINEGAR.
Another well-executed chef showpiece from Italy, this time presenting the creativity of a chef from Modena, home of the featured ingredient. Bottura's versatility extends across wide range: terrine of duck foie gras and cotechino with deconstructed green sauce; cappucino of potatoes and onions perfumed with balsamic vinegar and accompanied by a croissant with pork cracklings; millefeuille of strawberries, wild strawberries and balsamic vinegar. In English. color throughout. cl. $40.00

Guiliano Bugialli. THE FOOD OF PARMA.
We're delighted to offer this handsome and authoritative book, which has very limited distribution in the United States, on the tradiational foods of this storied Italian city. Bugialli's meticulous exploration of dishes and local foods--there's more to Parma than parmesan cheese--is happily presented alongside lovely photography that greatly enhances the sense of place he so lovingly creates. color throughout. $50.00

John Campbell. FORMULAS FOR FLAVOR.
After several years out-of-print, this imaginative work is back in paper. Campbell is an English country chef whose daring ingredient combinations garnered this book a foreword by Heston Blumenthal of The Fat Duck. Camplbell is more than generous with his explicit discussion of innovative techniques. Risotto of crab with avocado ice cream; rack of venison with buttered greens and chocolate oil. color throughout. p. $34.95

Michael Chiarello. AT HOME WITH MICHAEL CHIARELLO.
The personable style that Chiarello projects in his television shows translates easily to the page in this handsome collection of ambitious entertaining ideas. Though his Tra Vigne restaurant in the Napa Valley is known for Italian food, Chiarello here hews more to the eclectic range of fresh tastes typical of California cooking. color throughout. cl. $45.00

Melissa Clark. CHEF INTERRUPTED.
Clark is a food writer with a particular skill for presenting the work of restaurant chefs to a home audience. Here she offers recipes from a legion of star chefs, every one adapted for the adventurous home cooks. Recipes from Wylie Dufresne, Traci Des Jardins, Barbara Lynch, Norman Van Aken, Marc Vetri, and literally dozens of others. b&w photos. cl. $32.50

Scott Conant. SCOTT CONANT'S ITALIAN COOKING.
It's no longer easy to make a splash cooking Italian food in NYC, but at L'Impero in midtown, Conant has done just that. His first book aims to be accessible to a wide range of cooks, so it does not rely on the showy innovations that have earned him acclaim, instead offering simple, straightforward fare designed for weeknight cooking at home. Still, imagination manages to creep in. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Tamasin Day-Lewis. TAMASIN'S KITCHEN BIBLE.
Though the word "bible" in the title may conjure up visions of a dusty reference volume of techniques and tips, this is really a massive collection of appealing everyday food from one of the brightest lights in the British culinary firmament. Great ideas abound in this good-looking and delightful book. color throughout. cl. $55.00

Marcie Cohen Ferris. MATZOH BALL GUMBO.
The ways in which Southern Jews have embraced, avoided, and adapted the traditional dishes of their Christian neighbors serve as a vehicle for Ferris's larger examination of the intersection of two distinct cultures. Issues of race, gender, and class are also examined in this fascinating study by the associate director of the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies. Recipes, but much, much more. b&w photos. cl. $34.95

Damon Lee Fowler. DAMON LEE FOWLER'S NEW SOUTHERN BAKING.
We don't detect powerful innovation in Fowler's latest collection of Southern fare, but then, if we did, it might not seem Southern, so what would be the point? Still, we have a hard time ignoring the likes of gingered apple-pecan sticky buns, or bourbon-pecan squares, or vidalia onion and country ham tart. color insert. cl. $26.00

Susanna Foo. FRESH INSPIRATION.
The innovative Chinese cuisine that the Mongolian-born Foo serves up at her Philadelphia restaurants is handsomely presented here in elegant full-color. Crispy Tuna Spring Rolls; Corn Cakes with Cilantro and Chives; Coconut Panna Cotta. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Stephane Glacier. ENTREMETS DE FETES.
Snazzy holiday deserts from a leading French pastry chef, presented in both French and English, and very nicely photographed to offer plenty of presentation ideas. Coco-pineapple montelimar; bourbon guayaquil; and an astounding array of variations on the Bouche de Noel, including our favorite, nougat and apricot. color throughout. cl. $110.00

Maggie Glezer. ARTISAN BAKING.
The paperback edition of the James Beard Award-winning celebration of American bread bakers retains the handsome color illustrations and the detailed step-by-step photographs. If you've long been considering this one, now is the time. color throughout. p. $22.95

Suzanne Goin. SUNDAY SUPPERS AT LUCQUES.
Goin's Los Angeles restaurant, Lucques, is one of that city's leading dining spots, and her work has won her frequent professional acclaim, including a James Beard Award. Her debut book demonstrates an impressive command of technique and innovation without ever seeming showy or frivolous. The book is arranged seasonally, and recipes are presented in a series of menus that include an appetizer, entree, and dessert. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Kaye Hansen and Liv Harrisen. CHRISTMAS COOKIES FROM THE WHIMSICAL BAKEHOUSE.
An appealing and slightly zany guide to baking and decorating those December goodies from a Westchester bakery. For the child in every baker. color throughout. cl. $16.95

Anissa Helou. THE FIFTH QUARTER.
An impressive catalog of offal dishes for those who wonder what lies beyond Fergus Henderson's The Whole Beast. Helou, the author of numerous books on Middle Eastern cooking, demonstrates a commanding knowledge of the use of everything from lights to sweetbreads that will surely stimulate further creativity with little used ingredients. If you ever wanted a book that contained the line, "Discard the windpipe..." here's your chance. cl. $39.95

Cyril Hitz. DECORATIVE BREAD FOR THE PROFESSIONAL.
This 3-DVD set offers remarkably detailed and thorough instruction in the creation of handsome bread showpieces. The Swiss-born Hitz is a baking and pastry instructor at Johnson & Wales' Providence campus, a silver medalist at the Coupe de Monde Boulangerie competition in Paris, and a member of the 2004 first-place team at the National Baking and Pastry Team Championship, where he personally won first place in three categories. His clear demonstration of technique makes each of these three DVD's a real boon to anyone attempting to master this intricate art. Included are: Yeasted Dough Techniques; Non-Yeasted Dough Techniques; Building a Competition Piece. sold as a set. $155.00

Roger Horowitz. PUTTING MEAT ON THE AMERICAN TABLE.
A history of the raising, processing, and consumption of meat in the United States from the colonial era forward. Horowitz, associate director of the Center for the History of Business, Technology, and Society at the Hagley Museum in Delaware, understandably places his focus on the commercial and industrial aspects of his subject. b&w photos. p. $22.00

Hu Shu-ying. FOOD PLANTS OF CHINA.
A staggeringly broad survey of both cultivated and foraged food plants, written by an eminent Chinese botanist, and based on more than fifty-five years of field work. Hu's notes are often more botanically descriptive than culinary, but she has still observed an amazing range of foods, many of them highly localized and rarely documented in English. This is an unparalleled reference. 800 pages. line drawings; color plates. cl. $98.00

Richard Juhlin. 4000 CHAMPAGNES.
This massive expansion of the author's earlier 2000 Champagnes offers more than just tasting notes on 4000 different vintages. Juhlin profiles major producers, offers predictions on their future courses, and ranks the greatest champagnes of all time. By Juhlin's ranking, count yourself fortunate indeed to have tasted a 1928 Pol Roger Grauves, or a 1938 Krug, for they're the best he's ever come across. color throughout. cl. $60.00

Barbara Kafka with Christopher Styler. VEGETABLE LOVE.
The title indicates the depth of Kafka's interest in her subject, and serious cooks will take note. Her passionate, intimate affair with vegetables--from green beans to chrysanthemum leaves--becomes for readers a detailed and insightful resource that contains 750 recipes and opinionated, keenly intelligent advice on choosing, storing, substituting, and preparing the gamut. As with her beloved Roasting, Kafka has taken advantage of her status as a culinary grande dame to depart from traditional ideas on many points, and we're all better off for it. duotone photos. cl. $35.00

Anna and David Kasabian. THE FIFTH TASTE.
Umami the Japanese call it, the rich, savory note in mushrooms, steak, cheese, oysters, and other foods that is still a fuzzy concept here in the West. The Kasabians help to make the idea clearer with recipes collected from a host of well-known chefs, including Daniel Boulud, Nobu Matsuhisa, and Ming Tsai. color throughout. cl. $40.00

Mollie Katzen. SALAD PEOPLE.
Ask us for a children's cookbook, and quite likely the first we pull of the shelf will be one of Katzen's beloved pair, Pretend Soup and Honest Pretzels. So we're delighted to have a third choice, suitable for pre-schoolers and up, that offers the same friendly, approachable style that we've loved in the first two books. color illustrations. cl. $17.95

Susur Lee. SUSUR.
Raised in Hong Kong, Lee has made his mark in Toronto with vigorously flavored, excitingly plated modern Chinese cuisine. This showcase is actually two books bound together, one a memoir, the other a collection of his exciting signature dishes. The funky binding is a sign, perhaps, that Lee feels free to experiment with any traditional concept, and much more often than not, he succeeds admirably. Enthralling stuff. color throughout. cl. $50.00

Ronni Lundy, editor. CORNBREAD NATION 3.
More explorations of Southern cooking from the folks at the Southern Foodways Alliance. Contributors include John T. Edge, Nikki Giovanni, Matt and Ted Lee, and Frank Browning. Plus, you get the lyrics to the Cornbread Nation anthem! p. $17.95

Jennifer McLagan. BONES.
Food cooked on the bone--whether roast chicken or lamb shanks--is always more flavorful. McLagan, an Australian former chef and food writer now living in Canada, makes this case most convincingly in this one-of-a-kind work that argues for the pursuit of flavor over convenience. The fact that her dishes are all enticing and perfectly suited for cold-weather cooking is sure to win her plenty of converts. color photos. cl. $34.95

James E. McWilliams. A REVOLUTION IN EATING.
An engaging, fascinating look at the development of regional cuisines in colonial America by a professor of history at Texas State University-San Marcus. McWilliams clearly demonstrates how factors such as economics, slavery, relations with Native Americans, and climate caused New Englanders and Virginia Planters, among other groups, to approach food quite differently, with results that remain evident even today. cl. $29.95

Nick Malgieri. A BAKER'S TOUR.
Another collection of appealing recipes for sweets, gathered from kitchens around the world by the director of the baking program at NYC's Institute of Culinary Education. Obvious source countries such as France and Italy are joined by South Africa, China, Syria, and Argentina. color throughout. cl. $34.95

Paolo Marchi, editor. RICETTE DI TALENTO.
This bilingual (English-Italian) showcase for rising young chefs in Italy provides a look at the work of 80 up-and-comers who are eager to display their creativity. Contributors include Moreno Cedroni of La Madonnina del Pescatore (and author of Sushi and Susci cl. $55.00), Anna Matscher of Leone, and Walter Bianconi. color throughout. cl. $84.95

Lydie Marshall. SLOW-COOKED COMFORT.
Stews, casseroles, and braised dishes all benefit from long, leisurely cooking, and Marshall, a much-loved cooking teacher here in NY now returned to her native Provence, presents more than 100 truly satisfying one-dish meals just in time for winter. We like. cl. $26.95

Alice Medrich. CHOCOLATE HOLIDAYS.
A modestly revised edition of Medrich's A Year in Chocolate features year-round desserts and other goodies for a full calendar's worth of celebrations. Is there an American who knows more about chocolate? color throughout. p. $15.95

Michelin. THE MICHELIN GUIDE NEW YORK CITY 2006.
The first red guide for anywhere outside Europe covers more than 500 restaurants in the Big Apple, along with 50 hotels. Does this system make sense in the United States? Do we agree with the reviews? Does our humble opinion matter? It seems everyone wants to know what the inspectors said. color photographs. p. $16.95

Bill Niman and Janet Fletcher. THE NIMAN RANCH COOKBOOK.
Fans of The River Cottage Meat Book, and anyone who cares about how the animals that end up on their table are raised and treated, will be very interested in this solid book from the US's largest producer of meat raised under the Animal Welfare Institute's guidelines. As with the River Cottage book, the recipes here are not the point: Niman's detailed, earnest explanations of why his company cares about such issues as grass-feeding and confinement are the significant feature of this work. Well done. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Michel Nischan. HOMEGROWN PURE AND SIMPLE.
Seasonal, garden-based cooking from the former chef of New York's Heartbeat restaurant is appealingly presented in enticing full-color photography. Snap peas with fennel, onions, and grilled peach dressing; citrus and chili pickled eggplant; roasted pear spoonbread tart with cranberry, orange, and jalapeno dressing. color throughout. cl. $35.00

Nancy Oakes and Pamela Mazzola. BOULEVARD: THE COOKBOOK.
At her famed San Francisco restaurant overlooking the Ferry Plaza farmers' market, Oakes, along with her chef de cuisine Mazzola, has spent more than a decade demonstrating the glories of California produce. Here, in her opinionated first book (she's earned the right), she offers 75 recipes that have helped define the homey-sophisticated style that makes Boulevard famous. Just as fascinating, the meticulously written recipes are full of insightful commentary that reveal keen culinary understanding at work. color throughout. cl. $50.00

Robert M. Parker, Jr. THE WORLD'S GREATEST WINE ESTATES.
In his world tour of 175 of what he regards as the most enduringly important wine producers, Parker offers histories, maps, notes on planted varietals and the average age of vines, and of course, tasting notes on the wineries outstanding offerings. Densely illustrated and highly opinionated, this is the ultimate goodie for Parkerphiles. 704 pages. color throughout. cl. $75.00

Julie Powell. JULIE & JULIA.
Powell's year-long project of cooking every recipe in volume 1 of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking was the basis for a highly popular blog in which she chronicled her triumphs, trials, and transformation from aimless office temp into an accomplished home cook. Her expansion of her adventures into a book is a little more chatty about her personal life than we might have wanted, but it's still a fascinating record of culinary ambition. cl. $23.95

Gilles Puldowski. GREAT WOMEN CHEFS OF EUROPE.
A handsome survey of the kitchens and cuisine of the likes of Nadia Santini, Elena Arzak, Anne-Sophie Pic, and Paris's legendary Olympe. Thirty chefs are profiled in all, and it makes us wish that many of these women had books all their own. color throughout. cl. $45.00

Joan Roca and Salvador Brugues. SOUS-VIDE CUISINE.
The first book we've seen in English on this subject is a solid translation of an imaginative, informative work by the chefs of Spain's Michelin 2-star El Raco de Can Roca. With details on using the technique for storage, pre-cooking, and cooking, as well as the various gases suited to different ingredient types, Sous-Vide Cuisine is an excellent tool for anyone who wants to master this significant new method. With a foreword by Wylie Dufresne and an introduction by Herve This. color througout. cl. $135.00

Olivier Roellinger. OLIVIER ROELLINGER'S CONTEMPORARY FRENCH CUISINE.
In his first culinary book in a decade, Roellinger demonstrates keen innovation while remaining true to the ingredients of his native Brittany, including an abundant use of seafood. Eagerly iconoclastic, he has also chosen not to include photographs of his plated food, instead offering detailed diagrams of how he presents his finished dishes. Quirky, a little frustrating, but still compellingly fascinating. color throughout. cl. $50.00

Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn. CHARCUTERIE.
A detailed, comprehensive guide to the curing of meat, poultry, and seafood from the coauthor of The French Laundry Cookbook, and a restaurant chef turned charcuterie instructor. Professionals and serious home cooks will both find this extraordinarily useful for everything from pates and simple sausages to hams, dried meats, and a wide range of confits. It's great to see a new and serious work on the subject in English. line-drawings. cl. $35.00

Madame E. Saint-Ange. LA BONNE CUISINE DE MADAME E. SAINT-ANGE .
We're delighted that Ten Speed Press has at last published Paul Aratow's fine translation of this legendary French home cookbook, which dates from 1927. Fussy yet highly instructive in the preparation of an astounding array of classic dishes, Madame Saint-Ange is one of the great voices of French cuisine. 800 pages. cl. $40.00

Bill Smith. SEASONED IN THE SOUTH.
Crook's Corner restaurant in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, enjoys near-legenday status as a bastion of Southern cuisine. Smith, who took over the kitchen there after the death of the founding chef Bill Neal, has been responsible for the maintenance of that status through an emphasis on the use of traditional and seasonal Southern ingredients in imaginative ways. This chatty little volume embodies the charm that draws so many people back to the restaurant again and again. cl. $23.95

Susan Spungen. RECIPES.
Spungen spent more than a decade as the food editor of Martha Stewart Living, and her clean, simple tastes in food were synonymous with the magazine's. In her first book, she offers an array of appealing food that combines modern elegance with simplicity without resort to dumbed-down shortcuts. This is the kind of cooking anyone would want to come home to. color throughout. cl. $34.95

Martha Stewart. MARTHA STEWART'S BAKING HANDBOOK.
Fans of Stewart's Hors d'Oeuvres Handbook will respond immediately to this new work which takes the same inventive yet methodical approach--particularly theme and variations--to presenting handsomely executed goodies that display great visual and culinary imagination. There's not a thing in here that doesn't look gorgeous. color throughout. cl. $40.00

Herve This. MOLECULAR GASTRONOMY.
This (pronounced teece) is France's answer to Harold McGee, a relentless explorer of the science of cooking and a chemist whose influence extends to kitchens in Spain, Britain, the U.S., and elsewhere. This, his first work to be translated into English, begins with a re-examination and frequent debunking of time-honored culinary dictums, and proceeds through an exploration of the physiology of flavor and taste perception. We carry his earlier books in French. Fascinating stuff. cl. $29.95

Jerry Traunfeld. THE HERBAL KITCHEN.
Chef of the Herbfarm restaurant outside Seattle, Traunfeld is an ardent advocate of herbal flavors. Here he offers 100 recipes that demonstrate the versatility of fresh herbs in a wide range of dishes, both sweet and savory. color throughout. cl. $34.95

Anya von Bremzen. THE NEW SPANISH TABLE.
You don't need us to tell you that Spain has become the focus of intense fascination in the culinary world. Journalist and James Beard Award-winner von Bremzen here examines the fusion of the country's innovative restaurant fare with the traditional home cooking in places as disparate as tapas bars, farmhouses, seaside shacks, and convents. All those bold flavors are boldly presented in vibrant color. color throughout. p. $19.95; cl. $35.00

Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough. THE ULTIMATE PEANUT BUTTER BOOK.
If a PB&J isn't good enough to feed your addiction, why not try peanut butter snickerdoodles, peanut butter waffles, or a Senegalese peanut stew? Like all of Weinstein and Scarborough's books, this is a sturdy, dependable guide to slightly indulgent cooking that delivers on its promises. p. $16.95

John Wilkins and Shaun Hill. FOOD IN THE ANCIENT WORLD.
A respected classicist joins forces with the chef of Britain's Merchant House restaurant to offer a serious exploration of the role of food in society in classical Greece and Rome. With discussions of religious rituals, social structures, and food technology, along with a smattering of illustrative recipes. p. $27.95

Jean-Pierre Wybauw. FINE CHOCOLATES.
A consultant to Callebaut, this Belgian pastry chef has an accomplished, imaginative hand at confectionary that is very handsomely showcased here. Saffron ganache, marzipan and cognac centers, coconut truffles. A high-level work with strong technique suggestions to accompany the gorgeous photographs. cl. $98.00

Lisa Yockelson. CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE.
A large format indulgence from a respected baker who has happily let her love of chocolate run amok. Toffee and milk-chocolate chip cake; bittersweet chocolate, oatmeal, and dried cherry cookies; chocolate chunk waffles. Call it chocolate to live for. color throughout. cl. $45.00