The Art of the Table by
Coming together to share a meal is one of our most vital traditions. Whether dining with friends, family, or business associates, we know that an elegant setting and gracious manners bring a sense of harmony and order to the occasion. Yet when it comes to knowing precisely how to set a table for formal and informal dining, which fork is for dessert and which for the appetizer, how to serve different types of wine -- even how to eat certain foods -- many of us are not fully confident.Suzanne von Drachenfels learned this firsthand in her career as an expert on table setting, tableware, and etiquette. Conducting seminars throughout the country, she would hear the same questions again and again: Should bread be buttered entirely or bite by bite? What is the purpose of holding a wine glass by the stem or the base? Is handmade crystal worth the price difference?The Art of the Tableanswers all these questions and more. A treasure trove of timeless information, this complete guide is to the table whatJoy of Cookingis to the kitchen. Von Drachenfels shows us how to select, lay, and use tableware to enhance any dining experience, and how to properly store and care for it -- whether it's your grandmother's porcelain or everyday stainless steel. She provides guidance on mixing and matching tableware patterns; the basics of coffee, tea, and wine; menu planning; napkin folding; and the proper service techniques for all types of entertainment. So as not to let the lore of the table fall away, she delves deep into the history of specific tableware and the customs we keep, making today's practices understandable.For the novice host, this is an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide with more than one hundred helpful illustrations. For the host with more experience, it is a rich and exciting source of new ideas. Like its author, whose passion for the table is contagious,The Art of the Tableis an authoritative, elegant, and sophisticated resource for all one's dining needs.
Butter Baked Goods by 
The Cook's Dictionary and Culinary Reference by 
Eating Shakespeare by
Shakespearean cookery for today's cook. "Small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast." - William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors Act iii, Sc. 1 Packed with recipes and winsome lore, Eating Shakespeare is a pleasure to be savoured by lovers of food and wine, literature and history. It mixes Elizabethan culinary anecdotes with recipes adapted for today's kitchen. To add to the fun, the original recipes appear right beside their delectable modern equivalents. You'll find Pottage of Cherries, Polonian Sausage, Pepper Gingerbread, Coddling Pies, and other gastronomic delights inspired by Shakespeare's time. A brilliant concoction of aroma, flavour, and colour, Eating Shakespeare is a must-read for anyone who aspires to feast in proper Elizabethan style. Novel in its focus and historical and humorous in its approach, the authors have produced a cookbook with recipes that are appealing and that work. More of what's inside: Ingredients to stock your Elizabethan pantry Recipes for soups, salads, stews, vegetable side dishes, meat and fish entrèes, pies, tarts, puddings, gingerbread and other sweetmeats, as well as preserves, and beverages Period table setting and dining customs Inspired quotes, Shakespearean insults, and anecdotes
French Lessons by
From Peter Mayle, a joyous exploration and celebration of the infinite gastronomic pleasures of France. Ranging far from his adopted Provence, Mayle now travels to every corner of the country, armed with knife, fork, and corkscrew. He takes us to tiny, out-of-the-way restaurants, starred Michelin wonders, local village markets, annual festivals, and blessed vineyards. We visit the Foire aux Escargots at Martigny-les-Bains a whole weekend devoted to the lowly but revered snail. We observe the Marathon du Medoc, where runners passing through the great vineyards of Bordeaux refresh themselves en route with tastings of red wine (including Chateau Lafite-Rothschild!). There is a memorable bouillabaisse in a beachside restaurant on the Cute d'Azur. And we go on a search for the perfect chicken that takes us to a fair in Bourg-en-Bresse. There is a Catholic mass in the village of Ri-cherenches, a sacred event at which thanks are given for the aromatic, mysterious, and breathtakingly expensive black truffle. We learn which is the most pungent cheese in France (it's in Normandy), witness a debate on the secret of the perfect omelette, and pick up a few luscious recipes along the way. There is even an appreciation and celebration of an essential tool for any serious food-lover in France, theMichelin Guide. "Here we have all the glory and pleasure of the French table in the most satisfying book yet from the toujours delightfully entertaining" --Peter Mayle.
Jamie's Comfort Food
Kitchen Confidential by 
Mastering the Art of French Eating by 
Modern Native Feasts by
Contemporary, imaginative interpretations of First Nations cuisine, including lighter, healthier, and more nutritious versions of traditional recipes. Native American cuisine comes of age in this elegant, contemporary collection that reinterprets and updates traditional Native recipes with modern, healthy twists. Andrew George Jr. was head chef for Aboriginal foods at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver; his imaginative menus reflect the diverse new culinary landscape while being mindful of an ages-old reverence for the land and sea, reflecting the growing interest in a cuisine that is rapidly moving into the mainstream to become the "next big thing" among food trends. Andrew also works actively at making Native foods healthier and more nutritious; his recipes are lighter, less caloric, and include Asian touches, such as bison ribs with Thai spices, and a sushi roll with various cooked fish wrapped in nori. Other dishes include venison barley soup, wild berry crumble, sea asparagus salad, and buffalo tourtiere. Full of healthy, delicious, and thoroughly North American fare, Modern Native Feasts is the first Aboriginal foods cookbook to go beyond the traditional and take a step into the twenty-first century.
My Life in France by
The bestselling story of Julia's years in France--and the basis for Julie & Julia, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams--in her own words. Although she would later singlehandedly create a new approach to American cuisine with her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her television show The French Chef, Julia Child was not always a master chef. Indeed, when she first arrived in France in 1948 with her husband, Paul, who was to work for the USIS, she spoke no French and knew nothing about the country itself. But as she dove into French culture, buying food at local markets and taking classes at the Cordon Bleu, her life changed forever with her newfound passion for cooking and teaching. Julia's unforgettable story--struggles with the head of the Cordon Bleu, rejections from publishers to whom she sent her now-famous cookbook, a wonderful, nearly fifty-year long marriage that took the Childs across the globe--unfolds with the spirit so key to Julia's success as a chef and a writer, brilliantly capturing one of America's most endearing personalities.
The oh she glows cookbook : vegan recipes to glow from the inside out
The Raincoast Kitchen by 
Royal Cookbook by 
Where People Feast by 