Sunday, October 9, 2011

New Additions To Our Cookbooks Section

Naked wine is wine stripped down to its basics—wine as it was meant to be: wholesome, exciting, provocative, living, sensual, and pure. Naked, or natural, wine is the opposite of most New World wines today; Alice Feiring calls them “overripe, over-manipulated, and overblown” and makes her case that good (and possibly great) wine can still be made, if only winemakers would listen more to nature and less to marketers, and stop using additives and chemicals. But letting wine make itself is harder than it seems.

Three years ago, Feiring answered a dare to try her hand at natural winemaking. In Naked Wine,she details her adventure—sometimes calm, sometimes wild, always revealing—and peers into the nooks and crannies of today’s exciting, new (but centuries-old) world of natural wine.






The smell of a pie baking in the kitchen immediately conjures up feelings of comfort, nostalgia, and love. Michele Stuart vividly remembers standing at her grandmother’s apron hem as a child, as she fine-tuned (and improved!) family recipes that had been passed down for generations. Eventually, Stuart’s lifelong passion for pie-making inspired her to open what would become the world-famous shop Michele’s Pies.

You don’t have to travel to Michele’s Pies in Norwalk and Westport, Connecticut, though, to taste Stuart’s mouthwatering creations. Perfect Pies shares nearly eighty delicious recipes, many of them National Pie Championships winners: There are desserts bursting with fruit (Country Apple Pie, Blueberry-Blackberry Pie), crunchy with nuts (Chocolate-Pecan-Bourbon Pie, Maple Walnut Pie), cream-filled delights (Coconut Custard Pie, Lemon Chiffon Pie), and pies perfect for a party (Ultimate Banana Split Pie, Candyland Pie). And let’s not forget Stuart’s sensational savory creations, from Lobster Pot Pie to Quiche Lorraine to Italian Wheat Pie. Stuart also passes along easy recipes for Hot Fudge Sauce, Raspberry Jam, and Whipped Cream to top it all off.

Stuart’s secret, she says, is that her pies are “made by hand with love,” but she doesn’t neglect to advise you on the basic kitchen tools you’ll need as she reveals essential tips and techniques, from how to roll out dough to the best way to make light and flaky crust. And of course she stresses the use of fresh, seasonal fruits and other wholesome ingredients. “The best pies are the ones that keep it simple,” Stuart notes. So whether you’re a pie novice, a weekend baker, or a seasoned pastry chef, Perfect Pies will help make everything you bake worthy of a blue ribbon.


Choclatique is a chocolate lover’s dream. Ed Engoron has traveled to more than 130 countries in search of the best chocolate the world has to offer. From exploring the Amazon jungle to dining at the Grand Palace of Thailand to studying at Paris’ famed Cordon Bleu, Ed’s experiences are the inspiration for the amazing chocolate creations in Choclatique.

The more than 170 easy recipes are based on five essential building blocks or ganaches (glaze or filling made from chocolate and cream) that allow you to whip up luscious chocolate delights minutes before dinner. Choclatique includes recipes for cakes, candies, cookies, custards, hot chocolate, ice cream, milkshakes, muffins, sauces, smoothies, tarts, trifles, waffles, and more. Illustrated with beautiful full-color photography throughout.

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