Eureka! I’ve finally stumbled across a cookbook that combines my love of ancient Greece with my fascination for food! In her search for authentic recipes, food historian and innovative cookbook author Francine Segan has delved into everything from Apicius’ On Cookery — written in the first century — to writings by Aristotle and [...]
Don’t have any lemongrass in the pantry? Short on kefir? Out of cockles? (Okay, the last one isn’t something I usually have, either.) David Joachim’s book is the most complete list of substitutions I’ve ever seen — he goes far, far beyond the “flour, sugar, eggs” list you usually find at the back of [...]
I LOVE peanut butter. (Specifically, 100% organic Valencia crunchy salted from Trader Joe’s.) I could probably eat an entire jar at one sitting, but I hold myself back. With effort. So imagine my delight when I stumbled across a cookbook of international recipes that ALL feature peanut butter! Mashed sweet [...]
Deborah doesn’t make me just want to rush out to the nearest farmer’s market, she makes me want to run out into my backyard to see what edibles I can find. Local Flavors is exactly about that: finding taste in unexpected places. From normally-stuck-in-a-corner root vegetables like celeriac and rutabaga to spring-is-here! [...]
Once again, Ghanian-born Dorinda Hafner takes us on a cultural/culinary journey, this time through the Caribbean islands. While a few of them are well-known, several of them are visited by cruise ships but languish in culinary obscurity — have you ever heard of Tickle Me Belly pancakes from Dominica, for example? Fish Mousse [...]
This cookbook doesn’t have all the bells and whistles we’re used to seeing nowadays — that is, sidebars and photographs galore — but it does have a wealth of delicious recipes from Caribbean and South Pacific islands. It’s unusual to see those two areas paired in one cookbook…but now that I’ve lived vicariously through [...]
Ming Tsai, creator of the real-life Blue Ginger restaurant and host of the friendly and accessible PBS show, “East Meets West with Ming Tsai,” has a rare touch: he seems to be able to effortlessly create fusion dishes that are fresh, innovative, and stay true to the parts of their sum. (His recipes [...]
“Finland, Finland, Finland/The country where I want to be/Eating breakfast or dinner/Or just watching TV”…
Okay, all Monty Python jokes aside, after reading this book and trying a few of the recipes, I really would like to visit Finland some time to check out its culinary scene. (Fortunately, I like herring.) Its very-northern geographic [...]
Ghanian-born Dorinda Hafner combines her artistic skills with her culinary ones to give us a detailed look at the many flavors Africa has to offer. From north to south, from east to west, she has presented us with a delicious array of traditional and modern dishes. (The recipes from Tanzania — home of [...]
Zingerman’s is the #2 reason why I go to Ann Arbor. (The #1 reason is Dawn Treader Bookshop, one of my all-time-favorite used bookstores. Fellow bibliophiles, if you’re in Ann Arbor, don’t miss it!) To walk through the doors of Zingerman’s is to walk into Foodie Heaven — there are dozens of [...]
