The New Orleans cookbook whose authenticity dependability, and wealth of information have made it a classic.

    Trillin knows that the search for good food requires constant vigilance particularly when outside the Big Apple. Not that Cincinnati and Houston and Kansas City (his hometown) lack magnificent places to eat—if one can resist the importunities of those well-meaning ignoramuses who insist on hauling you off to La Maison de la Casa House, the pride of local epicures too dumb to realize that the noblest culinary creations of the American heartland are barbecued ribs, fried chicken, hash browns and hamburgers. Trillin is ready to do battle for K.C.'s Winstead's as the home of the greatest burger in the USA. Generally, he advises, you will do fine if you avoid ""any restaurant the executive secretary of the chamber of commerce is particularly proud of."" Also, any restaurant with (ply)wood paneling and ""atmosphere,"" where the food is likely to taste ""something like a medium-rare sponge."" This then is not a celebration of multi-star ""restaurants"" but of diners, roadhouses, eateries—the kind that serve food on wax paper or plastic plates and to hell with Craig Claiborne. With tongue in stuffed cheek Trillin gives the finger to the food snobs, confessing his secret vices with fiendish glee and high good humor.

    It guides the reader through the fourteen basic cooking methods including poaching, boiling and grilling. Tools, equipment, and methods are discussed and illustrated with many line drawings in the first part of the book. The second part contains numerous recipes which allow the reader to test the skills obtained in the first part. In addition, it contains many of the business aspects of running a kitchen such as layout and accounting. Two four-colour inserts illustrating many of the recipes and techniques are included in the text.

    

    There are over two hundred recipes for cakes, cookies, pies, cheese cakes, cake rolls and pastries. All of them are delicious, most of them are high-calorie and unique to one of the most gifted bakers in America.As a young wife during the Depression, Rose Naftalin began baking for her husband's delicatessen. Eventually "Rose's Food Shoppe" became a famous Midwest restaurant, from its base in Toledo, Ohio. Rose later moved to Portland, Oregon, where, again, her cooking and baking in "Rose's" restaurant became extraordinarily well-known and sought-after in the Pacific Northwest and throughout the country. Great boxes of goodies were dispatched weekly to lucky dining rooms from coast to coast.Why all the fuss? Well, consider a Carrot Torte with an orange and pistachio frosting. Dream of peach cookies that look like heaven-made peaches, whose stones are a celestial concoction of chocolate, nuts and crumbs. Imagine a pumpkin pie set in a praline shell, the textures and tastes an astonishing delight.Rose says that the beginner as well as the sophisticated baker can learn to make every one of these wonderful pastries—all one needs is the will and fine ingredients. To which one can only add, "And you need this book."Though there are other dessert cookbooks in the world, there has rarely been one of such personal style, superior quality and warm good feeling.

    Taking the reader through several often-debated recipes for creating the perfect julep, Harwell also unveils the elusive history behind the drink, from its highly contested origin in Virginia, through Oxford University's establishment of Mint Julep Day in 1845, and beyond. Summoning voices and anecdotes from the past, Harwell's handsome little book offers an efficient and enthusiastic voyage into the realm of mixing, stirring, and enjoying the perfect mint julep.The ceremonial undertaking of making a mint julep--which is not simply the product of a recipe--has always been the subject of much debate, from the use of "cool, crystal-clear water bubbles" and "snow ice" to the embellishments and spells that go hand-in-hand with making the drink. Harwell summons various voices from as early as 1803 to help unlock the mystery behind creating the perfect julep, while also uncovering the cultural impact the julep had on the American South and abroad. Always remaining an impartial guide, Harwell offers his own enthusiasm for the mint julep in both his text and the book's lively footnotes. For anyone interested in the history of the South or in learning how to make an outstanding drink, The Mint Julep offers a refreshing and light-hearted contribution.