(Cook)Book Reviews - January 2007

Good cookbooks provide Cafe Drake with more than just recipes to try or draw inspiration from. The very best of the lot read as thrillingly as a deeply satisfying novel, opening doors into the authors' private worlds, and thereby sharing with us often fascinatng personalities and philosophies of living. Ina Garten's latest volume, The Barefoot Contessa at Home, is appropriately devoted to weeknight meals and easy suppers to be shared with friends, but her easygoing prose and house photos reveal a cook and celebrity close to our own heart. Garten extolls the virtues of long soaking baths prior to mealtime, and cozy afternoons on the sofa with good coffee, great scones and the Sunday Times. Any of the recipes can be made with relative ease and without trips to exotic food markets. All are downright homey and relaxed and ideal for the cook partial to unfussy yet solid classics like a Lasagne Verde or Shrimp Risotto.

Home chefs with ambitious natures with thrill to the out-of-print but still available Great Dishes of the World, published in the early 1960s and redolent of the period's love of festive novelties such as tableside cooking, foods set alight with liquor and a match and many other theatrical touches. True to its title, the comprehensive cookbook contains instructions for most of the planet's classic meals, such as Cheese Souffle, Hunter's Stew and Chicken Kiev. Author Robert Carrier presents himself both in his writing and photographs as one of a dying breed, the suave host flipping Tarragon Omelettes in a tie and cardigan, brandy snifter in tow. For a glimpse into how much we've lost in terms of dining sophistication, pick up a copy and return to the glory days, insisting your lucky guests dress for dinner! [Note: there currently exists a British reprint of this treasure - see photo above - available on Amazon UK and Amazon Canada, both of which should be bookmarked on your laptops already we hope.]

A gal after our own frequently inebriated tastes is Amy Sedaris, the wickedly talented sister of David S. and star of the much beloved (at Cafe Drake for certain) former Comedy Central show Strangers With Candy. Maybe it's the food connection we adore so much, as Amy famously sold her gourmet cupcakes as a side gig while honing her comic routine in Off-Off-Off Broadway productions (we bought them at performance intermissions in the early '90s). Now the genius Ms. Sedaris has written a guide to hosting dinner parties, and while hysterically funny and off-color in her trademark style, her contribution to the genre actually offers some real tips (how to properly freeze cocktail meatballs) and recipes (including Chicken of the Taverns and Amy's Lil' Smokey Cheeseball). Yes, I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence also spills the beans on the the legendary cupcakes , including the frosting secret that so eluded us in former Cafe Drake kitchen attempts (hint: half-and-half and we'll say no more). Run, don't walk (staggering allowed) to your nearest bookstore for a copy.