COOKBOOKS

Here is a list of books that I use frequently - new cookbooks proliferate like rabbits and I find that I like some of the old ones better!

Chez Panisse Fruit, Alice Waters, HarperCollins, 2002 - Alphabetical, interesting choices, easy and very very good.

Chez Panisse Vegetables
Alice Waters, HarperCollins, 1996. This is really great when you buy something you've never cooked before. Her information is really solid.

Home Baking by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, Artisan, NY 2003. If you like to bake this has wonderful breads and sweet things too. And the pictures are stunning!

In Nonna's Kitchen by Carol Field, HarperCollins, 1997 Grandmother recipes, hearty traditional stuff, but not complicated.

Italy in Small Bites by Carol Field, William Morrow, 1993. Good breads, bruschetta, focaccia. In general, don't be afraid to add more flour than she calls for - sometimes the recipes sound forbidding but if you like to make bread you will like this book.


MENUS

I enjoy the task of building a menu as much as doing the cooking and I nearly always want to reconfigure it once the meal is complete - here is a list of meals that taste good to me ----

Dear Friends/Important Winter Dinner inspired by Julia Child --
Demitasse Watercress Soup
Classic Boeuf Bourguignon (I bought a rump roast and cut it up myself) - served with a scalloped potatoes cooked in broth not cream.
Butter lettuce salad with slices of ripe pears, toasted pecans and a walnut oil dressing
Savarins imbibed with lemon liqueur syrup served with whipped creme and a few slivers of candied orange peel