Kitchen Letters

[Vanessa]

A new addiction: filling holes in my cookbook collection at budget cost from e-bay. I won't pay more than $6.00 and am finding some goodies - for me at least.

 

Today A Belgian Cookbook by Juliette Elkon (1958) was lying on the doormat. Charmingly written by a native, arranged by region with no emphasis given to Brussels.

 

v

[pim]

A new addiction: filling holes in my cookbook collection at budget cost from e-bay.

Holes in your cookbook collection dear V.? Surely you jest. I've seen your cookbook collection, it cannot possibly have any hole in it.

[Vanessa]

A new addiction: filling holes in my cookbook collection at budget cost from e-bay.

Holes in your cookbook collection dear V.? Surely you jest. I've seen your cookbook collection, it cannot possibly have any hole in it.

There are so many interesting books, and so many interesting things to cook....

 

 

v

[Vanessa]

3 more Indian cookbooks on the doormat yesterday: The Calcutta Cookbook; The Essential Kodava Cookbook (I'd never even heard of Kodava - next to Kerala); and The Essential Goa Cookbook. As with all these books, lots of good reading.

 

v

[Vanessa]

... and another on the doormat: The Hawaii Cookbook & Backyard Luau by Elizabeth Ahn Toupin (1967). Beautfully produced book, very authentic but a little too much of its time for my taste in terms of cooking, for example the ubiquity of msg. But I'll find something useful and tasty in there in around 10 years time

 

v

[Wilfrid1]

Origen del Cocina Dominicana. Did you know that yuca was so important to the Neolithic Tainos that they worshipped El Grand Senyor Yuca as the senior god of their pantheon?

[helena]

Since this a thread on kitchen letters the book i just got still belongs here:

Contemporary Asian Kitchens And Dining Rooms - love it so much that i'm ordering

Living Rooms and Bathrooms from this Contemporary Asian Home series.

As well as several other books on asian interior design, all published by Periplus.

[Guest Adam]

Bought two new books for £4 each "Gypsy Feast" by Carol Wilson and "FLAVOURS OF GREECE" Rosemary Barron. Both look interesting, but I haven't had a chance to really look through them yet.

[scamhi]

I have a good friend who is he librarian at the James Beard House and she asked me to post this press release.

 

CALLING ALL COOKBOOK COLLECTORS

BIENNIAL BEARD FOUNDATION SALE IS

ON FEBRUARY 5, STARTING AT 10 AM

 

For Immediate Release

 

With prices ranging from $1 to $20, a few items slightly higher, the biennial Cookbook and Culinary Tag Sale of The James Beard Foundation will take place on Saturday, February 5 from 10AM until 2PM at The Beard House, 167 West 12 Street in Greenwich Village. There is no admission charge. Proceeds of the event will be used to help maintain the library and James Beard archives of the not-for profit Foundation.

 

On sale will be new and used cookbooks and a variety of kitchen items, according to Phyllis Isaacson, director of information services. Attendees will be able to purchase culinary tools and serving pieces left by chefs who prepared dinners at The James Beard House.

 

These include a variety of sheet pans, ladles, glassware, small metal buckets, ice cream scoops, and work gloves.

 

The cookbook sale is the Beard Library's primary source of income, Isaacson explained. "Much needed books, computer materials and data processing services, will be purchased with the money collected."

 

Isaacson said that the fourth floor cookbook library is open to the public for research and browsing. It contains all of the late James Beard's books, books on wine and gastronomy, and a number of newsletters. There is an emphasis on books related to New York restaurants and chefs. Current and back issues of food-related publications are also on hand.

 

To make an appointment to visit the library, call Isaacson at 212-675-4984, extension 308.

 

The James Beard Foundation website is www.jamesbeard.org <http://www.jamesbeard.org> .

[helena]

My tracked down and reasonably priced copy of Florence Lin's Complete book of Chinese Noodles, Dumplings and Breads is confirmed and packaging - touch wood.

[Vanessa]

There is a slightly oddball (in its geographical scope) series from Time Life from the mid-90's called 'Cookery Around the World'. Complete list of titles in the series from this rather useful site.

 

Does anyone have any of these books. Are they any good?

 

v

[Kikujiro]

Cook's Guide To Asian Vegetables by Wendy Hutton – although I expected to see more exotic stuff, it’s still a lovely book;

Picked this up recently alongside one called Cooking with Asian Leaves (Devagi Sanmugam & Christopher Tan). Both reasonably useful as shopping guides, although neither quite as comprehensive as one would like.

 

Also Food from the Heart: Malaysia's Culinary Heritage, which was far from the most comprehensive of those I looked at, but won on curiosity value by having each recipe contributed by some member of the local great & good. This includes a noodle recipe by Mahatir, and a fish dish notable for the author's name being about as long as the cooking directions:

 

Ikan Singgang by Her Majesty, the Queen of Malaysia Seri Paduka Baginda Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Fauziah Binti Al-Marhum Tengku Abdul Rashid ... Clean fish and rub salt all over it. Leave for a while and rinse off. Put everything in a cooking pot and boil until the fish is cooked

[helena]

Cook's Guide To Asian Vegetables by Wendy Hutton – although I expected to see more exotic stuff, it’s still a lovely book;

Picked this up recently alongside one called Cooking with Asian Leaves (Devagi Sanmugam & Christopher Tan). Both reasonably useful as shopping guides, although neither quite as comprehensive as one would like.

 

I'm telling whoever looks for a comprehensive guide should do herself a favour and get Schneider's Vegetables:Amaranth to Zucchini . It covers all those asian leaves and roots and pods - recently i got some quite an exotic produce from indian grocery - it was throughly covered in this book too including some nice recipes.

But having said that i'm adding Cooking with Asian Leaves to my wishlist

 

Speaking of asian leaves, books on asian vegetables don't cover much of the indian produce if at all: any particular reason for this?

Covered in indian vegetables books?

Not that many vegetables that are specific to India?

[tanabutler]

One of my clients got to raid the Ten Speed Press warehouse (upcoming book deal) and came home with two copies of Charlie Trotter's Meat & Game. One of them is now mine.

 

There is a recipe for braised beef short ribs with horseradish-potato purée, parslied shallots, and red wine jus that looks wonderful. I've been dying to braise ever since I had braised beef cheeks at Manresa.

 

What a book, though I think much of it will be too much trouble to go to for just the two of us. Making the transition from cooking for girls in the house to cooking for just us has been difficult. I find it very difficult to make the change and stay inspired. (Anyone else been there? How did you cope?)

[Wilfrid1]

Vanessa asked me to post details about a book on Dominican gastronomic history (with recipes) I recently acquired. It's in Spanish, and will be hard to find, but for the record:

 

Juan B. Nina, El Origen de la Cocina Dominicana.