ANTHONY BOURDAIN KILLS ME!

I haven't had this much fun reading MEDIUM RAW: A Bloody Valentine to the World of Food and the People Who Cook (Ecco; $26.99; ISBN: 978-0-06-171894-6), Anthony Bourdain's latest culinary hand grenade tossed at the culinary world since...well Kitchen Confidential. It must be fun to be Anthony Bourdain. He has achieved an untouchable status in his field so that he can say anything he likes--good and bad and get away with it. He aims high in a series of blistering, withering, scornful, angry, hilariously funny and mostly well-deserved shots at Alice Waters (I think it is fair to question her chef credentials--it seems to me the only thing I've ever seen her prepare is salad), Mark Bittman, Guy Fieri ("I don't dislike Guy Fieri. I realized, after many viewings of his cooking shows, much soul-searching at my personal ashram, and many doses of prescription hypnotics. I just dislike--really dislike--the idea that somebody would put Texas-style barbecue inside a f- -king nori roll."), Sandra Lee, blogger Regina Schrambling, Alain Ducasse, Gael Greene, and other icons. The James Beard Foundation gets a Bourdain boot in the ass and deservedly so. It has to be galling for a chef to be invited to cook there, bring his staff, food, and equipment along only to find out there's no media to cover it. What's the point of this scam? He devotes an entire chapter to GQ's restaurant critic in an overly-long rant entitled "Alan Richman is a douchebag." Bourdain had me in stitches, but fifteen pages is excessive and while douchebag is a funny word, Bourdain goes too far. Did he have to cap it off by resorting to the "C" word?

On the other hand, maybe he should just hit the sheets with David Chang, the wildly popular New York chef/owner of Momofuku and others, and get it over with. Such a valentine to a chef gets a little weary. Maybe it's Chang's famous rages at his cooks (along with his talent) that appeals to a potty-mouthed bad boy like Bourdain (afterall Chang's cookbook is riddled with profanity). I left New York before I had a chance to see what all the fuss was about over Chang's meteoric rise. And Chang is too revered and respected for me or anyone who cares about food to ignore. But the avalanche of hype does make you wonder. So I'll have to take his word for it. Chang emerges here as a boring, gloomy Gus, who doesn't seem to be enjoying his success.

But let me get to the really good stuff. His hilarious opening intro about a secret gathering of chef movers and shakers to eat illegal Ortolans (disgusting is all I'll say about this ancient French culinary delicacy) that for chefs, Bourdain describes the experience as "wank-worthy, the Great Unfinished Business the Thing That Must Be Eaten..."). Funny, funny man.

"So You Want to Be a Chef," should be required reading for any toque-lusting culinary student. The work is grueling, the hours are horrible, addiction and alcoholism is common to the business, relationships and family life are challenging, and your chances of becoming the next Bobby Flay or Thomas Keller, or Emeril Legasse, are probably not going to happen. Bourdain is not being cynical. It's a brutal business, and culinary school is expensive and the pay for the first years years is rotten, and it requires a singular mind and talent to succeed. Good for Bourdain for telling the truth.

I won't argue Bourdain's list of heroes (as good as his list of villains)--he's got it right. I was especially happy to see the names of Jamie Oliver, Wylie Dufresne, Jonathan Gold, Fergus Henderson, Terrance Brennan, Ariane Daguin, Mario Batali, Eric Ripert and Jose Andres, on this list. It was also satisfying to see the name of Brooke Johnson on his list of villains. "She's a villain for being right, Bourdain declares. "--not only for the cynical, fake-ass, soul-destroying, lowest-common-denominator shit-shows she's nurtured and supported since taking the helm. She's a villain for being, clearly and demonstrably, right about everything." Since Johnson took over the Food Network, their ratings have exploded as the quality of its programming has plummeted. It's no longer about food. Its audience is increasingly made up of the coveted young male viewers who spend big to watch an endless round of competitive cooking shows, Vegas-style cake-baking contests for biggish prize money, barbecue cook-offs, and programming about how a large number of well-known food products such as Doritos and Tabasco sauce are made. Cooking shows that teach are no longer welcome at the Food Network. The network's howling success reduces us dissenters as "old school" type--whiners. Again, Bourdain is right.

Bourdain's discussion of a disappointing meal at Alinea, a Chicago-based restaurant considered one of the finest in America, is illuminating. He describes an excruciating, multi-tasting meal where with each course the waiter delivers an annoying monologue on what he's about to eat "and exactly how we should eat it. Half the time, I'd already popped the thing in my mouth and swallowed it by the time he'd finished with his act." Bourdain worries about being "the very picture of the jaded, over privileged 'foodie' (in the very worst sense of that word) that I used to despise." He describes a meal at Thomas Keller's French Laundry as "the single-best fine-dining, white-tablecloth meal of my life." But wondered why he came home from Keller's New York outpost, Per Se, "heartbroken last night." It says a lot about restaurant criticism, his own celebrity and vast knowledge of food, eating meals for free, and other baggage that must be experienced by others who spend most of their lives in pursuit of good food and writing about it for a living. I no longer care about this kind of restaurant experience--food is not religion. If that's what you're looking for, go to church. But it showed me that Bourdain, who has eaten just about anything edible, who hosts his own successful TV show, writes bestselling books that will piss off some people, breaks bread with some impressive food talent, and seems to genuinely enjoy his life, cares deeply about his profession. He enjoys knowing these creative people, and being a part of the whole circusy, pretentious, democratic, snobbish, scamming, high and low, world that he is a big moving cog in. Which brings me to an endearing quality of Bourdain's--he worries about being honest.

You would think that a guy this talented, good looking, daring, foolish, and successful would have it made. Nothing doing. His opening chapter on selling out is brilliant. By the time he had written Kitchen Confidential, he had more than paid his dues screwing up, getting hooked on drugs, and not living up to his talents as a chef. He admits that while he can dish it out he would sell out just like Sandra Lee or Rachael Ray. "Jesus, I would have given Oprah a back rub and a bikini wax, had she asked me when her people called." He knows Oprah sells books. "Who's the ho now? Me. That's Who," he admits.

MEDIUM RAW is a book to be savored in mutiple seatings. I read a chapter, put the book down and went about my business, only to return to the book ready for Bourdain's next take. It was loads of fun. He likes to project the bad boy, who drinks, smokes and has too much fun. He enjoys being hip, he loves to swear, and tell it like it is. The simple fact of the matter is Anthony Bourdain is a really smart guy with a prodigious knowledge of food, and a talented writer with a flashy prose style that is enormously appealing. He can spot a phony through the darkness of a closed mine shaft. He loves and admires chefs both high and low. A chef who cooks with his heart and technique deservedly ranks high with him. And boy can he describe it all.

Nobody kicks culinary butt like Anthony Bourdain.

PIG--The Definitive Word from a Southern Cookbook Legend

"I cant' state it any more succinctly: Pork is and has been and always will be my favorite meat. But, after all, I was born and bred in North Carolina and have yet to meet a fellow Southerner who didn't love, respect, and, indeed,understand pig like no other American. I could almost say, in fact, that pork is my birthright, that I was virtually weaned on the inimitable sight, aroma, and taste of hog, and that no childhood memories are more indelible than those connected with the mighty pig."

--James Villas, from the Preface to PIG

I can't tell you how I came across American Taste, James Villas' first book focusing on the state of cooking in the U.S. Villas, was then food editor for Town & Country magazine (1982). He was also part of the country's culinary royalty--right up there with Julia Child, James Beard, Craig Claiborne, Gael Greene and others. This was pre-Food Network days--long before Top Chef and other culinary showbiz nonsense invaded the culture. Villas was fascinating—a Southern boy, well-educated with a knowledgeable palate, and a generous expense account. While he covered the food scene, his preferences--no prejudices--were evident right from the beginning. This man loved French food, but he was Southern through and through. His highly entertaining style with descriptive "abominations" and "revoltings" recklessly strewn throughout his paragraphs was fun, and he certainly knew what he was writing about. Since then Villas has produced fifteen cookbooks, quite a few of them on Southern food. But in his last three cookbooks, mature masterpieces all, he is writing at the top of his game about food he clearly loves. I loved Bacon and The Glory of Southern Cooking, but they have served as the appetizer and first courses to the book I think he will long be remembered for, PIG: King of the Southern Table (Wiley; May 2010; $34.95; 978-0-470-19401-0).

I'm with Villas whole hog here. No other meat for me comes close to the variety and flavor of pork and how wonderful to have a book that not only celebrates hog but unequivocally demonstrates the range of recipes that use up the whole animal. There's no beating around the Disney bush here. Villas shows how practical, creative and thrifty Southerners are more like their European counterparts in France and Italy, who waste no part of the hog, cooking every part of the animal without being squeamish and making something delicious of it. I would have to go to the South to sample hog's head, pig's ears, fatback, blood pudding, boudin, livermush, mountain oysters, pickled pork, or souse. Fortunately for the rest of us, there are lots of other part of the pig that we eat: spareribs, pork loin, tenderloin, chops, ham, sausage, bacon, baby back, country and regular spareribs, and ham hocks. Villas is ardent about southern hams particularly Smithfield hams (with sources for ordering them), the distinction between barbecuing and grilling, as well as the types of sauces, dips and dry rubs used, which vary from region to region. There are plenty of fascinating social traditions that go with barbecue from how it is served to how it is eaten. Before plunging into the recipes, Villas discusses the merits of southern bulk sausage, which he states is an essential ingredient in southern cookery. He heaps scorn on "the overly lean or fatty, tough, tasteless, frozen, commercial products found elsewhere in the country," and urges readers to make their own where the cook can choose the right cuts of pork, and combine the right ratio of lean meat to fat, and just the right seasoning, which he insists should only be freshly ground pepper, powdered dried sage and red pepper flakes or cayenne.

Villas then produces and vast variety of recipes which covers everything from appetizers and salads, soups, stews, casseroles, chops, cutlets and steaks, to pies, hashes, burgers, roasts, ham, sausage and bacon, barbecue and ribs, variety and specialty meats, vegetables, rice and breads.

I want to cook my way through PIG and serve to my guests many of Villas' savory and descriptive recipes: Roast Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Honeyed Apples and Pecans, Sausage and Leek Buffet Casserole, Slab Bacon and Mushroom Strata, Maw Maw's Mustard Pork Chops and Dumplings in Cider, Party Country Ham Deviled Eggs, Butter Beans and Bacon Salad, Country Ham, Pork, and Cheddar Loaf, Florida Mango-and Prune-Stuffed Pork Loin, Fresh Ham Braised in Beer with Mustard Glaze, Aunt Bunny's Bacon and Sausage Soufflé, Bacon Waffles, South Carolina Mustard Barbecue, Barbecued Leg of Pork with Tennessee Table Sauce, Cajun Dry-Rub Barbecued Spareribs, Louisiana Red Beans and Rice with Picked Pork and Piggy Spoon Bread. The chapter on Barbecue and Ribs includes recipes for various sauces and dry rubs, and the section on breads, muffins and biscuits--all containing pork--offer fascinating regional baking at its best.

I'm equally intrigued by the chapter on Variety and Specialty Meats, and would love to sample Miss Edna's Pork Liver and Jowl Pudding, Pork Sweetbreads, Bacon and Mushroom Skewers, and Hog's Head Stew.

We're in the midst of a great revival of interest in pork these days with restaurants that specialize in serving whole roasted pigs. There are a few farmer producing the kind of fabled, fully fatted hogs that most Americans enjoyed before the fat police descended on us, and leaned the animal up to a point of toughness where you have to brine it before you can cook it. Star chefs are restoring the "mighty hog," to the kind of culinary glory it richly deserves. In PIG: King of the Southern Table James presides over this revival with a personal, opinionated, deeply felt cookbook--just in time for us to savor the elevation of our favorite "other white meat.

Old Dominion Scalloped Potatoes with Country Ham

Makes 6 servings

Scalloped potatoes with lots of butter and cheese have been a staple in Southern homes for centuries, but only in Virginia have I encountered the dish made with the state’s incomparable country-cured ham—simply called “Virginia ham” in the Old Dominion. Do remember that you need to use dry russet potatoes for any gratin, and if the potatoes seem to be drying out after 35 or 40 minutes, just add a little whole milk, basting them slightly to produce a golden crust.

4 medium russet potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and sliced ¹⁄8 inch thick

1 cup finely diced cooked country ham

½ cup chopped fresh chives

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces

1 cup half-and-half

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2. Butter a 1½ to 2-quart gratin or baking dish and arrange alternate layers of overlapping potato slices and ham, sprinkling a few chives over each layer and seasoning with salt and pepper. Sprinkle ¼ cup of the cheese over the top, dot with the butter, pour the half-and-half over the top, and bake till the potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes, basting from time to time with the liquid. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake till golden brown, about 10 minutes longer.

3. Serve piping hot directly from the dish.

North Carolina Eastern-Style Chopped or Pulled ’Cue

Makes at least 10 servings

This is the relatively dry, spicy style of pork barbecue (with a little skin crackling) for which eastern North Carolina is so renowned and that is featured at hundreds of barbecue joints and social pig pickin’s throughout the region. Traditionally, whole hogs are slowly smoked on huge grates over hickory and/or oak fires; the cooked meat is either chopped or pulled; and, unlike the sweeter, tomatoey sauces (or dips”) used for Lexington-style barbecue in the western part of the state, the vinegar moppin’ sauce here is not unlike the simple hot pepper sauces of Thomas Jefferson’s day. Given the impracticality of digging a large pit in the ground (or acquiring an enormous metal smoker) and roasting a whole pig, a very good approximation of eastern-style Carolina ’cue can be accomplished with pork shoulder and an ordinary kettle grill. Typically, this barbecue is served with coleslaw, Brunswick stew, maybe baked beans, hush puppies, and either beer or iced tea. Since the chopped barbecue freezes well in airtight bags or containers, you really should consider roasting two shoulders.

One small (1½- to 2-pound) bag hickory wood chips

One 10-pound bag charcoal briquets

2 cups white vinegar

1 cup cider vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

One 9- to 10-pound pork shoulder butt (all skin and fat left on)

1. In a pan of water, soak 6 handfuls of the chips for 45 minutes.

2. Open one bottom and one top vent on a kettle grill, place an aluminum drip pan in the bottom of the grill, stack charcoal briquets evenly around the pan (not in the center), and ignite the coals. When the coals are ashen (30 to 45 minutes), sprinkle 2 handfuls of the soaked chips evenly over the hot coals. Place the grate on the grill about 6 inches over the coals.

3. In a nonreactive bowl, combine the vinegars, sugar, red pepper, Tabasco, salt, and pepper and stir till the sugar is dissolved and the sauce well blended. When the coals are ready on the grill, position the butt fat side up on the grate over indirect heat, mop it with the sauce, close the lid, and cook for 3 hours, mopping the meat every hour and replenishing the coals and chips as they burn up. Turn the butt over, close the lid, and cook till the meat is very tender, 2 to 3 hours longer, mopping every hour and replenishing the coals and chips as needed.

4. Transfer the butt to a chopping board, remove and discard excess fat, and either chop the meat and crisp skin coarsely or pull into shreds. Transfer the meat to a roasting pan, drizzle about 1 cup of the sauce over the top, toss well, cover with foil, and keep warm.

5. To serve, mound the barbecue on plates or hamburger buns and serve with the remaining sauce on the side.

OLD SCHOOL

My Gloomy, Streak-Prone Granite Counter Tops

"I hate granite counters," I erupted as it took out one of my favorite mixing bowls. The cream-colored British-made bowl with rounded fluted sides and green piping around it's outer rim slipped off its precarious perch in my dish drain, landing top-side-down. At first it looked fine, until I picked up and saw a large, irregular v-shaped wedge of broken crockery left on that mean hard counter top. I love bowls and this beauty had been given to me by a friend many years ago. I am bereft over the loss of this beautiful vessel.

I loathe granite because its surface, like so many others in modern kitchens these days is unforgivably hard. This is the first home I've lived in with these heavy, implacable counters. I might be more tolerant of the broken wine glasses if the color of this particular granite wasn't so dark and gloomy. But it is and it has gleefully claimed a plate, a breakfast bowl, and a storage glass. I'm well aware of its' lack of kindness, and it's not like I have a heavy hand in the kitchen. Worse, it shows the most appalling streaks. I can clean with a hot sponge, wet paper towel, using Windex, a special product formulated for granite, and dry it immediately, only to watch the light reveal wet marks and cloudy streaks as if to say, "you call this clean?"

I read recently that granite has become THE material of choice in kitchens in America having recently achieved something like 67% of the market in kitchen remodels and new construction. I watch in dismay as young couples buying homes on many HGTV programs whine at the lack of granite and stainless steel in the kitchens of the houses they are considering. The building industry in league with designers has convinced consumers that granite and stainless steel are the very best (and most costly) and therefore, most status conscious of materials for the American kitchen. Along with my third and fourth least-liked kitchen surfaces--porcelain sinks and ceramic or stone floors--I'm feeling decidedly old school.

I've thought about replacing my granite counters, but that seems to be an awfully costly fix and I can't imagine how to recycle the stuff.

In my New York apartment kitchen, I had a stainless steel sink that I could dribble Baccarat crystal on and be reasonably assured it would survive. It shined up beautifully and I could stack all manner of dishes as precariously as I liked and never worry that if something toppled over, it would survive. My counter tops were a beautiful marble patterned Formica, which was as durable as it was handsome. When I sold the apartment thirteen years later, it was without a scratch and as attractive as the day it was installed. It had a matte finish, and cleaned easily with no streaks. You could roll out pastry on it as well as its harder cousins. The marketing folks tell us granite is superior because it handles heat well, but who in their right mind ever put down a hot pot without a trivet or a pot holder to act as a buffer between pot and counter top? Because I treated my Formica well, it rewarded me with long-lasting efficiency.

My New York kitchen floor was covered with linoleum tiles--and I can well imagine the shudders from people reading this. In my previous apartment, I put down gorgeous ceramic tiles in my kitchen. Big mistake. If you are doing a lot of cooking for a dinner party or baking during the holidays, those hard floors will kill your legs. Linoleum (which also comes in lots of handsome colors and pleasing patterns) is much more forgiving and you can stand comfortably on it for hours. Think of what's it's like to go to a museum and wander around on its marble floors for an hour or so, and you'll understand what I mean. Here in Portland, the only agreeable surface in my kitchen are my oak floors, which like linoleum or the recently elevated cork, make long work in the kitchen comfortable underfoot.

I took something of a beating on the sale of my apartment. My real estate agent told me too many times that my lack of an updated kitchen was hurting its sales potential. I could never understand why I should have to renovate a kitchen I was perfectly happy with and one that produced outstanding meals for me and my guests. And why shouldn't the person buying the apartment put in the kitchen of their choice, rather than be stuck, like me, with a kitchen that I like the layout of but not the choice of material (the alder wood cabinets and drawers are beautiful)? And don't get me started on my dishwasher--a poorly designed model that holds little, has a weird door storage for silverware, and has broken more than its fair share of glasses.

And yet the trend for the future is for more granite, more stainless steel appliances and more porcelain sinks (which are also harder to clean than stainless steel) and more tile on the floors. The one good trend that I've noticed is the gradual popularity of the armoire-style refrigerator over the side-by-side models, which are shallow in depth and lack adequate storage (try storing a wide platter in the refrigerator or freezing a half-sheet full of strawberries or homemade gnocchi in the even-narrower freezer side).

Please don't respond with argumentative opinions otherwise. I'm set in my ways, and not likely to change my opinions about these things. You get to be old school after years of experience.

This dishwasher deserves a special place in appliance hell and I often find myself praying for its demise--soon!

Not even the addition of this "old lady" drain from the Oxo Good Grips folks,

make my sink safer for dishes.

THE WORLD OF TAPAS EXPLORED IN A DEFINITIVE NEW COOKBOOK

Tapas was one of the highlights of a trip I made to Spain more than a decade ago. Spain hadn't become the culinary mecca it is today, in fact, much of the food I sampled in Madrid and Barcelona was disappointing. Yet tapas, those enticing little plates of food found in Spain's local bars and taverns was the exception. I remember a street full of tapas bars not far from the Prado Museum in Madrid. Each bar had its own unique personality from rustic to sleek and offered it's own delicious plates which you ordered with a glass of wine or beer or sherry. Hot or cold, tapas can be as simple as a slice of bread with oil-packed tuna, or a slice of Serrano ham, or tiny mild green olives. Tapas can be more elaborate, such as salad, or a plate of white beans with tomatoes, the wildly popular patatas bravas, fried potatoes with a spicy tomato-based sauce, or famous Spanish Tortilla (filled with potatoes and eaten warm of room temperature). Empanadas, a terrine of seafood, meat or vegetables, stuffed eggs--nearly anything that can take the edge off of your hunger without ruining your dinner, can be classified as tapas.

Simone & Ines Ortega, two of Spain's most admired cookbook writers, have created THE BOOK OF TAPAS (Phaidon; $35.99; ISBN: 978-0-71485613-1). Simone Ortega earned the gratitude of Spanish cooks by producing her bestseller 1080 Recipes, which is considered that country's Joy of Cooking, and has sold more than two million copies. Along with her daughter, Ines, the book also includes the collaboration of Jose Andres, the popular TV chef and restaurant owner credited with bringing tapas to America. The book offers a wide variety of tapas from the traditional to the most modern with contributions from famous chefs such from Spain, New York, London, Paris and Washington, D.C., as Jose Andres, Albert Adria, Albert Raurich, Jose Pizarro, Sam and Sam Clark, and Seamus Mullen.

Simple Tapas: Melon and Ham

Once past the fascinating chapters on tapas and their history in Spain, as well as a useful tapas glossary and an A-Z guide to Spanish ingredients, the authors get down to business with chapters devoted to hot and cold versions of vegetable, egg and cheese, fish and meat tapas. The sheer variety of tapas is arresting: Prunes with Roquefort, Raisins and Pine Nuts, an Olive Caviar spread, Leek Flan, Soft Cheese Sandwiches, Cheese Fritters with Tomato Sauce, Salt Cod, Orange, Onion and Olive Salad, Mussel Brochettes with Sauce, Salmon Terrine, Salt Cod and Potato Croquettes, Serrano Ham with Melon Mousse, Rice with Bacon, Sausages and Bonito, Chicken Livers with Grapes, and Chicken and Bell Pepper Empanada. Even simple tapas such as Salami and Cheese, or Melon Balls with Ham are memorable because of the fine quality of the ingredients. The chapter from guests chefs offering their own tapas is equally memorable, and include some surprisingly simple ideas with big flavors, including Anchovies in Vinegar, Endive with Oranges, Goat Cheese and Almonds, spicy Pork Skewers and Brussels Sprouts with Chorizo.

Leek Flan

The look of THE BOOKS OF TAPAS was one of the reasons I bought this strikingly handsome cookbook. From pile of books laying on a large table at Costco in Seattle, this book with its bright yellow jacket with bold red type and no illustration stood out. Phaidon kept the design consistently throughout the book with the same bright yellow pages for each recipe with red type for the recipe titles, and black type for ingredients and instructions. And there are five big photo inserts of stunningly photographed finished dishes. This may be one of the most beautiful cookbooks I've ever seen.

The 250 recipes here are just a starting point and underline how these tasty small dishes are perfect for home entertaining. This is simple, unfussy cooking that does honor to good ingredients. The cook is free to construct their own tapas party, but THE BOOK OF TAPAS is is ideal introduction to the basic concepts while adding a few more recipes to your basic repertoire.

A personal favorite: Prunes with Roquefort, Raisins and Pine Nuts

AMANDA HESSER WRITES A NEW COOKBOOK THAT EXPLORES MORE THAN 150 YEARS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES FOOD ARCHIVE

In THE ESSENTIAL NEW YORK TIMES COOKBOOK: Classic Recipes for the New Century (WW Norton; October 25, 2010), Amanda Hesser, food columnist at The New York Times, author (Cooking for Mr. Latte), and co-founder of food52.com, has combed through the vast New York Times food archive and present more than 1,000 recipes for contemporary cooks.

An e-mail from Norton's publicity department describes this new project as a compilation of the best recipes from 150 years of distinguished food journalism. "Amanda Hesser, brings her signature voice and expertise to this compendium of influential and delicious recipes from chefs, home cooks, and food writers. Devoted Times subscribers will find the many treasured recipes they have cooked for years-Plum Torte, David Eyre's Pancake, Pamela Sherrid's Summer Pasta-as well as favorites from the early Craig Claiborne New York Times Cookbook and a host of other classics-from 1940s Caesar salad and 1960s flourless chocolate cake to today's fava bean salad and no-knead bread.

Hesser has cooked and updated every one of the 1,000-plus recipes here. Her chapter introductions showcase the history of American cooking, and her witty and fascinating headnotes share what makes each recipe special. The Essential New York Times Cookbook is for people who grew up in the kitchen with Claiborne, for curious cooks who want to serve a nineteenth-century raspberry granita to their friends, and for the new cook who needs a book that explains everything from how to roll out dough to how to slow-roast fish-a volume that will serve as a lifelong companion."

Miss Hesser was one of the first to write about Julie Powell and her blog in which she wrote about her experiences cooking her way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Miss Powell would go on to write Julie and Julia which became the basis of the popular film starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. She is also the author of The Cook and the Gardener, and edited the essay collection Eat, Memory. A cookbook will be published based on the recipes featured on her website, food52.com. Aiming at the all-important Christmas selling season, as well as the lucrative wedding registry business THE ESSENTIAL NEW YORK TIMES COOKBOOK is sure to be one of the season's most visible cookbooks.

AUTHENTIC PASTA DISHES PASS THE 30-MINUTE TEST IN GIULIANO HAZAN'S NEW COOKBOOK

"In 2004, the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that according

to a survey commissioned the the Italian National Research Council, one-third

of Italians would rather dig into a dish of pasta than have sex."

--from the Introduction of GIULIANO HAZAN'S THIRTY MINUTE PASTA

Well Americans love pasta too and sensing our carb phobia has finally passed, Giuliano Hazan delivers a diverse and tasty new cookbook devoted to pasta and all within 30 minutes. THIRTY MINUTE PASTA: 100 Quick and Easy Recipes (Stewart, Tabori and Chang; $27.50; ISBN: 978-1-58479-807-1), is the kind of effortless and creative 'quick' cookbook that I like to keep close at hand for those nights when I'm not feeling terribly ambitious and crave something really delicious and soul-satisfying in a hurry.

Giuliano Hazan's has wonderful pedigree as the son of the legendary Marcella Hazan (and Victor too), and has accomplished much in the culinary world on his own. He has a cooking school in Verona, and won the IACP Cooking Teacher of the Year award in 2007. His first book, The Classic Pasta Cookbook, sold half a million copies worldwide. He regularly appears on TV (including the Today Show).

Do we need another book on pasta? We do when it comes to the variety of quickly prepared dishes Hazan presents here. He gives new currency to old favorites and manages to create new ways or variations to expand our pasta repertoire. Spaghetti with a Meatless Carbonara dispenses with pancetta, and in the process gives us a newer, fresher, and lighter version of this old classic. Spaghetti with Olives, Capers and Anchovies, omits tomatoes (Puttanesca-style) with breadcrumbs binding the sauce instead of the usual tomatoes. Broccoli Soup with Pasta is as easy as it is delicious and offers lots of flavor and the few ingredients needed make it an easy weeknight effort. There are four sauces with a pesto component: Classic Basil Pesto, Creamy Basil Pesto, Walnut Pesto and Parsley and Mint Pesto.

There are classics we love here too. I had to go to Rome to discover the joy of tucking into Spaghetti with Cheese and Pepper (Cacio e Pepe) and once sampled, I had to have it over and over again. Fettucine Alfredo, Fettucine with Spring Vegetables (known as Primavera--Hazan's rightly advises not to undercook the vegetables, which concentrate their flavor), Linguine with Fresh Tomatoes, Basil, and Mozzarella (Sorrentina), Orecchiette with Broccoli, Bucatini with Spicy Tomato Sauce (all'Amatriciana), are just a few of the best-known pasta dishes to be found here.

Intriguing and unusual combinations included Tagliatelle with Chickpeas, Spaghetti with Melon (cantaloupe), Spaghetti with Carrots and Fusilli with Butternut Squash. A favorite for me in this spring season just past is Penne with Asparagus and Prosciutto. This elegant pasta is rich and the addition of some of the water used to cook the asparagus gives it a more intense flavor.

Hazan discusses both dried and fresh pasta (and wisely enjoys both, side-stepping that dreary subject of preference) as well as the many shapes you'll find in your local market. He helps the cook set up their pantry including perishables, non-perishables, various cheeses, herbs, olives, and other Italian staples with one page devoted entirely to the proper way to cook pasta. From there on, Hazan organizes his recipes into categories: Pasta soups, and pastas with vegetables, seafood and meat. There are many beautifully styled photographs by Joseph De Leo, which would make the book an ideal gift.

GIULIANO HAZAN'S THIRTY MINUTE PASTAS is a book to turn to when you need to get a great meal on the table in record time. But use it only when you're in a hurry. Linguine with Crab and Arugula, begs to be prepared for company.

Penne with Asparagus and Prosciutto

Penne agli Asparagi e Prosciutto

This is one of our favorites in spring when sweet, meaty asparagus is in season. To infuse this sauce with a rich asparagus flavor, I save some of the water the asparagus cooks in and use it to deglaze the skillet.

3/4 pound asparagus

1/2 medium yellow onion

3 tablespoons butter

4 ounces prosciutto, sliced 1/8 inch thick

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2/3 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 pound penne (short fusilli or egg fettuccine are also good)

(serves 4)

1. Fill a pot for the pasta with about 6 quarts of water, place over high heat, and bring to a boil.

2. Fill a 10-inch skillet (or asparagus cooker) with water, place over high heat, and bring to a boil.

3. Cut off the white woody bottom part of the asparagus spears, then peel the remaining bottom third. Add 1 teaspoon salt to the boiling water, then gently slide in the asparagus. Cook until the asparagus is tender, 5 to 6 minutes, then lift it out and set aside. Save 1/2 cup of the water the asparagus cooked in.

4. While the asparagus is cooking, peel and finely chop the onion. Put the butter in a 12-inch skillet, add the chopped onion, and place over medium high heat. Sauté until the onion has turned to a rich golden color, about 5 minutes.

5. Cut the prosciutto slices into strips about 1/8-inch wide and 1-inch long. When the onion is ready, add the prosciutto and sauté until it loses its raw color, 1 to 2 minutes.

6. Cut the asparagus into 1-inch lengths and add then to the pan. Continue sautéing until the asparagus becomes lightly colored, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the saved asparagus water and continue cooking until the liquid has evaporated completely, loosening any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet.

7. Add about 2 tablespoons salt to the boiling pasta water, add the penne, and stir well. Cook until al dente.

8. While the pasta is cooking, add the cream to the asragus and cook until the cream has thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

9. When the pasta is done, drain well, toss with the sauce and the freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and serve at once.

FRANCES MAYES' LATEST VALENTINE TO HER BELOVED TUSCANY

For nearly fifteen years, Frances Mayes has been enchanting readers about her love affair with Italy. Under the Tuscan Sun and Bella Tuscany, her two previous bestselling memoirs, magically recount her finding and restoring a broken down villa in Cortona, Italy, near Florence, and her subsequent life there, shared with her poet-husband Ed. In EVERY DAY IN TUSCANY: Seasons of an Italian Life (Broadway Books; $25.00; ISBN: 978-0-7679-2982-0), Mrs. Mayes is now a famous author. Her work has benefited the town of Cortona, luring hordes of tourists eager to see the house and perhaps meet its mistress. Where once she and her husband took on the renovation work themselves, a recently purchased property in dilapidated state not far from Bramasole, the villa they lovingly restored, has been turned over to professionals for a major rehab. Now retired from her demanding teaching job in San Francisco, Mrs. Mayes has the time to explore the country’s many pleasures. If anything she is even more enamored of Italy and her delight with her adopted home becomes ours.

“The giving, the fun, and the spontaneity of every day life here shock me and return me immediately to a munificent state of being that gradually start to feel normal,” she writes ecstatically early on in EVERY DAY IN TUSCANY. “I begin to notice here at Bramasole, that my skin fits perfectly over my body, just as this house sits so serenely and naturally on this hillside.” Later on she writes, “In Tuscany, I learned to take time. Take time to have coffee with the one-armed man in my neighborhood, who tells me how he drives his stick-shift Panda with his dog in his lap, and how as a child he ate bread dipped in red wine for breakfast. Dividing the snarl of Iris bulbs and replanting them around an olive tree takes time. I find that I have it.” This is the kind of poetic narrative that has won for Mrs. Mayes, many readers. Whether searching out the canvases of Renaissance painter Luca Signorelli, foraging for wild field greens near her house, or sitting in the main piazza of Cortona, sipping a coffee, Mrs. Mayes takes time, and reading her elegant prose, we are rewarded over and over again as she describes the endless ways that life in Italy continues to stimulate and give her joy.

Readers who make pilgrimages to Bramasole leave modest offerings such a flowers and other gifts. The film version of Under the Tuscan Sun brought even more visitors, to the point where Cortona is a thriving tourist attraction. “Tourists who arrive with their cameras want to see the house more than they want to see me,” she writes with bemusement. “Some stay for an hour, staring up. Friendships begin in the road, and one marriage resulted from two people meeting here. What visitors don’t know is how the sound carries on the side of the hill. Up in my study with the windows open, I often hear blissful comments (“Isn’t it dreamy, just dreamy,” “Oh, my god, how spectacular—look at those roses”), speculation about my private life (“They got divorced, you know” and, of course, the most frequent refrain—“She doesn’t live here anymore”). Sometimes I hear, “This can’t be Bramasole—that screen is wonky,” “It’s crumbling,” and “My house is much bigger than this.”

And with success comes some unpleasantness as well. In circulating a petition to protest the site of the building of a public pool near her home, Mrs. Mayes found herself feeling like something of an outsider. Few of their Italian neighbors were willing to sign the petition for fear of reprisals such as their taxes going up, or their businesses being investigated. A hostile and inaccurate story in a small local paper by the editor who had an interest in the business earned sympathy from the locals, but the project still went forward. Strangely reprisal does arrive in a surprisingly scary way through a hand-grenade that was left in her driveway. Someone was clearly sending a message, and it understandably frightened her.

Unlike many recent books that chronicle life in a foreign country, Mrs. Mayes avoids being cute. There are no humorless forced stories about the quaint behavior of the “locals” in her books. She isn’t totally serious, describing her delight in sitting at dinner one evening next to Robert Redford where they talk of good writers they admire.

Food is a part of EVERY DAY IN TUSCANY as it has been in her previous books, and there are some lovely recipes here, including a Plum Tart (Torta Di Susine Con Mandorle) and Faro Salad (Insalata Di Faro), a grain that is native to Tuscany and ought to be better known in the U.S. Clearly she is an accomplished cook and the book is full of delightful meals served at her table or at the homes of friends. Part of the many short trips Mrs. Mayes describes in the book such as Portofino or Assisi, is the food they find in local restaurants. The long Tuscan summers are given over to great feasts of good food and wine, and the winters feature meals in the comfort of a warm house with friends, the delicious meals keeping the cold far away.

In the final chapters, Mrs. Mayes writes eloquently about the differences between eating in America and in Italy. “At the table, there is no discussion among the children about what someone does or does not like, because they like everything Aurora, Fiorella, Linda, Ombretta, Giusi, Silvia, or Donatella serve,” she writes with a sense of wonder. “The language helps, too. Coniglio and agnello don’t convey the loaded sentiments of Peter Rabbit and Mary’s little lamb." She begins to teach her grandson, Willie who visits in the summer to cook. And near the end of the chapter, these lines made me smile. “I’ve never heard of a dish referred to as ‘your protein’ or ‘a carb,’ and there’s no dreary talk at all about glutens, portion control, fat content, or calories. Eating in Italy made me aware of how tortured the relationship to food is in my country. After a long Tuscan dinner, I feel not only the gift of exceptional company, food, and wine, but also an inexplicable sense of well-being, of revival. Dinner invigorates the spirit as it nourishes the body.”

I read EVERY DAY IN TUSCANY quickly and in big chunks and only began to slow down by the final third, adapting my reading time to the book's rhythm. Why did it take me so long to get the message? Now I understand the concept of taking time. Thank you, Frances Mayes.

Insalata Di Farro

Farro Salad

Farro is sometimes translated as spelt but is actually its own distinctive grain. Tuscans love it with chickpeas in a rousing winter soup. In summer, faro salad is an inspired choice for lunches because it is easy, abundant, and tasty. Leftover faro salad keeps in the fridge for 3 or 4 days and is handy for wraps or to serve in radicchio leaves on an antipasto platter. Serves 10

2 cups faro

4 tomatoes, chopped, or ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, diced

2 or 3 ribs celery, chopped

½ cup green olives, cut in half if they’re large

2 shallots, minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

¼ to ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup basil leaves, torn

1 cup parsley, chopped

Salt and pepper

Follow the directions on the package of faro. Usually it cooks in less than 2 hours. While the faro is cooking, mix the other ingredients together. Drain the faro and add it to the vegetable mixture, correct the seasonings, and serve at room temperature.