Special Occasions Books - Page 12

Laura Werlin's Cheese Essentials: An Insiders Guide to Buying and Serving Cheese (With 50 recipes)

Laura Werlin

Amazon Price: $16.47 List Price: $24.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Stewart, Tabori and Chang Amazon Marketplace: 39 new & used starting at $14.93

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Easily accessible information in guidebook format
Includes 50 recipes, for appetizers to desserts, highlighting each of the 8 styles of cheese
Features a chapter on entertaining with cheese

Whether shopping at gourmet markets or at Costco, American consumers are seeing a growing, even dizzying, array of new cheeses. But as the number of cheeses has grown, so has the intimidation factor. Recognizing this disconnect between our voracious appetite for cheese and our often-sketchy knowledge of it, acclaimed cheese expert Laura Werlin decided it was high time to demystify the cheese-buying experience. Laura Werlin’s Cheese Essentials—a comprehensive introduction in a convenient guidebook format—is the extremely useful result.

Werlin’s book begins at the same place the flummoxed shopper does—the cheese counter. After mapping out the basics for navigating this daunting environment, Werlin acquaints you with the cheese fundamentals: the different kinds of milk used, information on rinds and mold, and tips on cooking with cheese, as well as a few words on Werlin’s passion—the American artisanal cheese movement. The heart of the book consists of individual chapters on the eight styles of cheese: fresh, semi-soft, soft-ripened, surface-ripened, semi-hard, hard, blue, and washed-rind. Following Werlin’s guidance, you’ll soon be able to identify a cheese by how it looks—and have a good idea of what that cheese will taste like before you even take a bite.

A Passion for Parties

Carolyne Roehm

Amazon Price: $31.50 List Price: $50.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Broadway Amazon Marketplace: 37 new & used starting at $25.97

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 29 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Carolyne Roehm, one of America’s leading tastemakers, trendsetters, and lifestyle experts showcases her passion for entertaining in this glorious sequel to At Home with Carolyne Roehm.

In A Passion for Parties, Carolyne Roehm presents her dazzlingly creative ideas for every kind of event, from a black-and-white dinner dance to a spring tulip celebration. Original themes, detailed decorating tips, gorgeous table settings and floral arrangements, as well as more than forty outstanding and surprisingly easy recipes–are all here to lend your next occasion the sumptuous touches that are the hallmarks of Carolyne Roehm’s style.

The book offers practical advice and inspiration and even a way to partake in these breathtakingly exquisite events, both behind the scenes and as they take place.

Whether it is an intimate Valentine’s Day in Paris or an Autumn Barn Dance for seventy, all of the events depicted here are equally splendid. Organized seasonally, the book features ideas for small gatherings (Christmas Dinner in Aspen) or big blowout events (a Fourth of July dinner with fireworks) and family festivities (a seventy-fifth birthday party, a Dickens-inspired Halloween; a children’s Christmas cookie-decorating party). Recipes include Mini Lemon Crepes Stuffed with Lobster, Chilled Zucchini Soup with Toasted Coconut, Baby Back Ribs with Rhubarb Barbecue Sauce, and Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce.

As stunning and stylish as its author, and stamped with her inimitable flair, Carolyne Roehm’s A Passion for Parties is a must for the party planner or daydreamer in us all.

Gooseberry Patch Christmas All Through the House: Over 600 holiday recipes, cheery crafts, and easy-to-make gifts for flurries of fun!

Gooseberry Patch

Amazon Price: $19.77 List Price: $29.95 Not yet published By: Oxmoor House

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Editorial Review:

Gooseberry Patch is famous for its 10-year series of Christmas books, and in Christmas all Through the House, we've compiled the very best from those books into this collector's edition. As the largest Christmas book every published by Gooseberry Patch, readers will find the best of their reader-shared homespun ideas for food, fun, easy crafts, and gifts in one easy-to-use collection. The book's grand size and bountiful content put this all-in-one Christmas book in a league by itself.

You'll enjoy:

-Over 400 tried-and-true reader recipes for meals, desserts, snacks, drinks, and more, plus over 200 gifts from the heart—Gooseberry Patch style.

-Over 200 craft ideas that include patterns and step-by-step instructions entice you to stitch, glue, and paint to your heart's content.

-Over 400 see-and-do color photos and spiral binding make it easy to use.

Creative Wedding Showers: Homemade Invitations, Decorations, Games, Planning Tips, Menu Ideas and More!

Laurie Dewberry

Amazon Price: $14.99 List Price: $14.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: North Light Books Amazon Marketplace: 44 new & used starting at $0.79

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

great ideas 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.

This book offers great ideas for shower themes, favors, games, menus, etc. including pictures and step-by-step instructions. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for some trendy wedding shower ideas.

Wonderful! 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

This book is awesome if you like to do crafts. I love doing crafts but I am not as crafty as other people. When me and the other bridesmaid started to do our invitations we thought we were getting in over our heads but the directions were easy and it turned out to be a great success. I posted the photos of our apron invitations on here for people to view. I highly recommend this book to anyone! It has a lot of different themes and beautiful invitations, decorations and ideas for bridal showers.

Editorial Review:

It's a snap to throw a stylish wedding shower with the wealth of ideas and crafts found in this book. Covering everything a hostess needs to give the bride-to-be a memorable day, Creative Wedding Showers:

*Features 10 inspired shower themes and 50 easy projects to match any bride's personality

*Provides information on invitations, decorations, entertainment, menus and party favors--all in one place

*Includes clear, step-by-step instructions that make these creative projects accessible for everyone

There's no reason for a hostess to stress out with this indispensable guide at her side. It's the next best thing to a party planner!

Entertaining: Inspired Menus For Cooking with Family and Friends (Williams-Sonoma)

George Dolese

Amazon Price: $23.07 List Price: $34.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Oxmoor House Amazon Marketplace: 57 new & used starting at $0.97

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Editorial Review:

Packed with clever ideas, delicious recipes, and gorgeous color photography, Williams-Sonoma Entertaining is the ultimate guide to a successful party. The secrets of easy entertaining are demystified with helpful sections such as planning menus, buying quality ingredients, coaxing the best flavors out of food, and stocking a bar. Organized by season, each themed menu features accessible recipes driven by fresh ingredients; an easy-to-follow work plan; and detailed how-to photos depicting styling ideas.

Key Features:

* Sixteen seasonal menus with more than 100 simple, delicious recipes

* Beautiful full-color photography shows every recipe as a finished dish, plus key preparation, cooking, and serving techniques

* Inspiring photos show creative ideas for table settings, flower arranging, and party favors

* Dozens of ideas for successful parties, from planning a menu to mixing creative cocktails to shortcuts for preparing the meal

Italian Classics (The Best Recipe Series)

Amazon Price: $19.77 List Price: $29.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Boston Common Press Amazon Marketplace: 43 new & used starting at $9.49

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Best Recipe series from Cook's Illustrated magazine goes from strength to strength. With its formula of exhaustively tested recipes paired with heavily illustrated techniques, the series makes it easy for even beginning cooks to produce successful dishes almost every time. For the casual home cook, Italian Classics might be the single best Italian cookbook to own. The book is, in classic Best Recipe fashion, a great big beautiful doorstop of a thing. Even so, it's not crammed with arcana. For most Americans--who in survey after survey say that regional Italian is the cuisine they most enjoy cooking at home--the recipes here will be pretty familiar; the space is devoted not to obscure dishes but to exhaustive treatments of favorites. Pesto, for instance, gets about three pages. You end up with a delicious, perfectly prepared basil paste, and along the way you learn how to bruise herb leaves, you get a treatise on why a garlic press isn't such a bad thing (despite what the professionals say), and finally, you are led into the intriguing territory of nonbasil pestos such as Toasted Nut and Parsley, and Arugula and Ricotta. All the classics are here, from red-checkered-tablecloth dishes like Spaghetti and Meatballs to regional dishes like Ribollita. Throughout, there's a nice balance between authenticity and accessibility. The book doesn't call for wildly obscure ingredients that other cookbook authors so often claim can be readily found at "specialty stores," and there's no snobbishly overwrought preparation--another boon for the home cook. --Claire Dederer

At Home with Michael Chiarello: Easy Entertaining

Michael Chiarello

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

"As a chef," says Michael Chiarello in At Home with Michael Chiarello, "I can either build on a classic recipe or deconstruct it and put it back together with a new identity." The Napa Valley-based TV chef and author takes his own message to heart in this collection of 135-plus recipes for imaginative entertaining. Chiarello's formulas, for the likes of Grilled Salmon and Spinach Salad with Corn Juice "Zablione," Turkey Osso Buco, and "Short Stacks" with Shredded Chicken and Balsamic BBQ Sauce, do reflect his ceaseless invention; but unlike some other chef's recipes, these are cook-friendlier, with flavors rooted in "homier" Italian and American culinary traditions. His chapter on pasta and rice dishes, with the likes of Lasagna of Roasted Butternut Squash, and Bordetto of Shrimp-Stuffed Pasta Shells, is particularly good.

The book also provides useful advice for easier, more original party-giving in, for example, Entertaining 101, which includes counsel on choosing a dining area, scaling recipes, and wine do's and don'ts, among other topics. Readers should know that many of the attractive dishes require a kitchen workout, and that invention occasionally overruns best taste, as in, for example, a dish of fennel-flavored pork tenderloin with a dressing of molasses, sage, and balsamic vinegar. Still, the majority of formulas, which include tempting sweets like Molten Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes and Freeform Cheesecake Poured Over Fresh Fruit, should make guests very happy as well as expanding the cook's repertoire. With alluring photos, the artfully produced book should, in itself, get the entertaining-at-home urge going. --Arthur Boehm

Small Bites, Big Nights: Seductive Little Plates for Intimate Occasions and Lavish Parties

Govind Armstrong

Amazon Price: $19.80 List Price: $30.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Clarkson Potter Amazon Marketplace: 46 new & used starting at $15.94

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Whether he’s setting the scene at his acclaimed restaurant Table 8 in Los Angeles, entertaining the audience on Food Network’s Iron Chef America, or designing the menus for Hollywood hot-spots RokBar and L’Scorpion, chef Govind Armstrong knows how to create spectacular menus for occasions of all sizes. As Govind says, small plates encourage people to be more adventurous, to share food, and to enjoy the mélange of flavors and textures. In his first cookbook, Small Bites, Big Nights, he shows you how to put together a menu of small, sophisticated, sexy dishes and pair them with the perfect cocktail. The result? Guests get to enjoy a feast of flavors, and as the host, you’ll be able to relax and have fun, instead of spending the whole night in the kitchen.

Wow a crowd with hors d’oeuvres like Arugula, Dates, and Parmesan (a salad that’s finger food; Rare Tuna Crostini with White Bean Puree and Tapenade; or Seared Kobe Beef on Mini Yorkshire Pudding. To drink: Black Martinis. Barbecue sizzling treats like Grilled Endive with Serrano Ham; New Zealand Scampi with Heirloom Tomatoes and Summer Truffle Vinaigrette; or Grilled Chicken Thighs with Wood-Roasted Gazpacho and Avocado Salsa.

Make dinner for 8 unforgettable with Tender Bean Salad and Prosciutto; a deceptively simple Foie Gras–Stuffed Quail; and luscious Panna Cotta with Raspberry Coulis.

Warm up a cool night with bite-size comfort foods: Mini Onion Soup; Braised Chicken Oysters Piccata; and Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Mousse.

Patricia Wells' Trattoria: Simple and Robust Fare Inspired by the Small Family Restaurants of Italy

Patricia Wells, Steven Rothfeld

Amazon Price: $12.89 List Price: $18.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: William Morrow Cookbooks Amazon Marketplace: 37 new & used starting at $10.90

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 22 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

All you need is this book and a lace curtain in the window 5 out of 5 stars.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.

I have been cooking with 'Bistro', Patricia Wells' book of simple French recipes, for several decades now. I have recently been converted to her 'Paris Cookbook'. So what stopped me from buying her book of Italian trattoria cooking?

Two words: Marcella Hazan.

I am addicted to Hazan's 'Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking'. It's clear. It produces restaurant-quality meals that take only modest effort. And "fancy" is the last thing it is.

I thought I just didn't need another Italian cookbook.

But now, fourteen years after it was first published, "Trattoria" --- a bargain at $13 --- is finally in the house. And, more to the point, in the kitchen. And I am chastened.

You want simple? This is it. Easy? Forget about it. Organized? Buying the book could be the last time you'll ever need to think about an Italian menu.

Why? Because the fact is, you really don't want rich and fancy. You want a trattoria --- an uncomplicated, modestly decorated, family-run establishment featuring traditional regional fare. You drink the house wine. You tend to order whatever special is being pushed. And you are likely to leave satisfied though not sated.

Patricia Wells recreates that experience here.

Editorial Review:

Whether it's a bustling eatery in the heart of Florence or a tiny alcove tucked away on a side street in Venice, the trattoria is where Italians go for robust flavors, great friendship, and good times. Patricia Wells' Trattoria now feeds America's passion for Italian food with 150 authentic recipes. Savor a Fresh Artichoke Omelet, succulent Lamb Braised in White Wine, Garlic, and Hot Peppers, a hearty portion of Lasagne with Basil, Garlic, and Tomato Sauce, or a luscious Fragrant Orange and Lemon Cake, and much more. This essential cookbook of Italian trattorias presents a full range of homemade recipes for antipasti, soups, dried and fresh pastas, polenta, seafood, poultry, and meat, with special chapters on breads, pizzas, and desserts. Come explore the heart and soul of Italian cooking in Patricia Wells' Trattoria.