5 comments about San Francisco Encore.

1. I have always looked for recipes that are fairly easy but that produce delicious results. This cookbook meets my criteria! Every recipe I have tried has been a success.



2. This is my favorite and most cherished cookbook even though I am a Virginian and this is a decidedly Californian cookbook. I picked up by chance in a used bookstore and began making recipes from it and was soon quite impressed. After 5 years, I have yet to find a bad recipe in the book. Furthermore, the recipes are elegant and somewhat fancy while not being too out of the mainstream or too exotic -- or too difficult for that matter. Interestingly, many of the recipes in here have become "standards" (Khalhua pie, baked brie, Indonesian rice salad) with variations on them popping up in other cookbooks and on the web. These are the original, simple versions that first began to define California cooking. You'll enjoy this.



3. This is a standout among communtity/fundraiser cookbooks. The format is clean and easy to follow. Ingredients are in bold type and consistant throughout. Instructions are clearly written, steps are not omited and they are not too wordy. Each section is clearly named with the "cute" name saved for the second page of the section (ie: SOUP chapter is also named Mendocino) and includes a written description of the region and it's food history.
   
   Some of our favorite recipes are from this book. The "Mustard Chicken in Phyllo" is an easy to make ahead dinner party favorite. The soups are amazing. The "Red Pepper Soup" is easy to make and delicious as is the "Black Bean Soup con Salsa". The "Soupe de Poisson" is more complicated to make but well worth the effort; with a salad and bread it is the perfect summer dinner to delight your friends. The "Kaluha Cinnamon Raisin Rolls" are one of my brunch staples.
   
   This makes the perfect shower gift along with The Silver Palate Cookbook and The Frog Commissary Cookbook.



4. As I said in review of San Francisco Ala Carte-you can't go wrong. I probably have over 200 cookbooks and between Sunset Recipe annuals and these-they are the most used to reference of all that I have. Reliable and tasty doesn't change with the years and I love the use of ingredients I grew up eating in Northern California



5. I was very skeptical ordering a used book and was most pleasantly surprised at the quality! It looks nearly new -- in VERY good condition. We are trying to order some of our out-of-print cookbooks for a niece that just married and this was a real find. Thank you so much and I will certainly use this service again.

No comments about The Wine Country Deck: 50 Best Northern California Wineries (Pleasures of Wine).

2 comments about The Galaxy Global Eatery Hemp Cookbook.

1. The Galaxy Global Eatery Hemp Cookbook is a unique cookbook concerning the culinary uses of hemp - well known for its applications in clothing, rope, and plastics but little known for its seeds' taste (like a cross between hazelnut and a walnut) and the cooking uses of its flour and oils. Superbly written and presented by Denis Cicero (owner of one of New York's most up-and-coming restaurants) with the assistance of professional chefs Kris Czartoryski, Suzanne Gruber, and Michael Lipp, The Galaxy Global Eatery Hemp Cookbook features easy-to-follow recipes, enhanced with luscious full-color photographs, a simple glossary, and a true appreciation of the wonderful delicacies that can be enhanced with the flavor of hemp. Dishes offered include Fruit Hemp Salad, Hemp Cheese Sticks, Hempnut-Crusted Catfish Filets, Lemon Hemparoons, and a great many more.



2. My only gripe first: recipes should come with their preparation time, and perhaps even with the kilojoule value for those who need to pay attention to it.
   
   Other than that it's a beautifully designed book with truly unique recipes that just beg to be prepared in your own home. Throughout the book are two types of references: one about the nutritional value of certain foodstuffs, the other one about hemp itself, and where/how it has been used throughout the millennia, even by at least two US Presidents.
   
   The book focuses on the versatility of (non-THC) hemp in the kitchen, although I would have liked to see a few more references to the use of hemp in general. However, it does a brilliant job in introducing those with little knowledge about this miracle plant to its culinary (and health) benefits, and thus makes an important contribution to the 'de-demonization' of hemp in general.
   
   Even if you're not a hempnut (pardon the pun), you should buy this book. It'll then only be a matter of time before hemp finds its way from the kitchen into your daily life, and that - at least according to some people - is exactly what's needed to save this planet.
   
   The benefits of hemp are legendary, but it wasn't until Dennis Cicero's book that the beauty of hemp found its most important application: an incredibly healthy staple food.

3 comments about An Affair to Remember: Recipes, Menus, and Home-Entertaining Tips from Hollywood's Leading Caterers.

1. This book has some FABULOUS recipes, but they are definitely for special occasions or when you have a LOT of time on your hands. You would not want to be trying to whip up one of these recipes on the fly, at 6:00 on a school night. Plus, the kids would probably turn their noses up at the unusual dishes. But, if you're looking for a special recipe for a special night, look here.



2. Judy Kessler brings to our bookshelves that magical blend of childhood fantasy mixed with Hollywood glamour in An Affair To Remember! Not only were the recipes superb and exciting, but Kessler's caterers share trade secrets on reproducing their effects and ambiance on a more personal scale. It is for this reason that I give An Affair To Remember 5 stars!



3. Judy Kessler brings to our bookshelves that magical blend of childhood fantasy mixed with Hollywood glamour in An Affair To Remember! Not only were the recipes superb and exciting, but Kessler's caterers share trade secrets on reproducing their effects and ambiance on a more personal scale. It is for this reason that I give An Affair To Remember 5 stars!

4 comments about The New Cook's Tour of Sonoma: 200 Recipes and the Best of the Region's Food and Wine.

1. The New Cook's Tour Of Sonoma showcases the rich culinary history and cuisine of Sonoma County, California, a 1,560 square mile agricultural and viticultural country. Featuring 150 recipes illustrated with sixteen pages of superbly presented color photographs, From Mexican Cheese Bread, Potato Gnocchi with Duck Ragout, and Butterflied Leg of Lamb with Garlic, to Oven-Roasted Peppers, Grilled Salmon Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette, and Russian River Vineyards Cheesecake with Green Valley Blueberry Sauce, The New Cook's Tour Of Sonoma is a highly recommended combination food history and cookbook that will grace any household cookbook collection.



2. Sonoma County, California is a very special place. From the Pacific ocean on the west to the ridgeline east of the Valley of the Moon, Sonoma County almost has it all.

   Michele Anna Jordan helps bring this special place alive with this book. She's an extraordinary writer who infuses her stories and recipes with great commentary.

   This particular cookbook is among my favorites -- because it's so much more than just a cookbook. The sidebar commentaries about places in Sonoma County help bring the area to life in my mind's eye.

   Highly recommended!




3. I had my eyes opened when I purchased the original Cook's Tour many years ago. Being a native of Sonoma County, I was fascinated by all the things I didn't know about my home county. Michele gave a face to things I had passed by blindly for years...farms, cheesemakers, gourmet stores, festivals. In the new edition of Cook's Tour she presents us with an ever richer trip through the wonders of Sonoma. She teaches us about the wine appellations and what crops thrive right along with the grapes of that region. She includes political information that supports the farmer and sustainable agriculture. She updates us on new cheesemakers, new purveyors and celebrates the staying power of the old. Once again Michele gives a face to Sonoma County, but this time she introduces us by name and helps us start a conversation. Her recipes are wonderful, making use of all the bounty that is available locally. I feel the circle of belonging to a place close as I drive through the country she writes of with such affection and then buy produce and ingredients, ultimately cooking dishes that are truly local in origin and taste. "The New Cook's Tour of Sonoma" makes me grateful that I live in this magic place. Thanks to Ms Jordan for opening my eyes even wider.



4. I received this book as a gift, and read it quickly, almost as a travelogue, wondering what it would be like to live in this vividly described area. Later, I visited Sonoma County and used the book as a guide. I visited a cheese factory, two farmers' markets, a small winery and an artisanal herb garden, led to each location by the informative guide with which I had been gifted. I used several of the clear, easy to follow-and execute-recipes with food bought from the sources suggested in The Cook's Tour. After returning home, I contine to read the book to remind myself of the glorious visit to Sonoma County, and as an inspiration for food purchases and discoveries I would normally have never attempted.

1 comments about Cookbook for the 90s: Great-Tasting Lowfat Recipes for the Better Health.

1. Having looked at several low-fat (or no-fat) cookbooks lately, I'm very pleased with this one. With one recipe per page and complete nutritional analysis, it's easy to read and to use. No odd ingredients, and the recipes all look good and easy. One drawback - no photos except for the front cover.

No comments about Wine Country Recipes: A Postcard Book.

3 comments about Only in California.

1. This is a wonderful book, with recipes that feature unusual combinations of familiar ingredients. It (of course) includes recommendations of which California wines to serve with the dishes. If you enjoy ethnic cuisine, there is much to find here to like: Mexican, Italian, Chinese, Thai, etc. Don't be a loser--buy this book. Chicks dig guys who can cook.



2. We had a baby shower today and made 2 appetizers and 3 salads from this book. All the guests wanted the recipes and when I showed them the book we got them from all were interested in getting their own copy. Although we have hundreds of cookbooks this is the one we chose to use for the shower. We tried all new recipes and were not dissappointed.



3. I have this book at home(California) and love it. I bought a copy as a thank you gift for friends we visited in another state. They too, loved the book. Great recipes, lovely water colors, reader friendly!

5 comments about Napa.

1. Covers the history of the valley, mixing money, family fueds, and agriculture.

   I read it in one flight, couldn't put it down




2. Conaway's Napa is subtitled, "The Story of an American Eden." Conaway has done his research in uncovering the history of the valley and the origin of its now world-class wineries. However, readers who are looking for a romantic evocation of this "American Eden" may be disappointed. Conaway devotes more space to land use issues, corporate politics and social history than to the development of the vintner's art in the Napa. The story is told through a series of short chapters relating to many of the people who have had made an impact on the valley. This provides a detailed history, but the author does little to provide much synthesis for the many narratives. The book begins with the arrival of Jack and Jamie Davies and their renovation of the Shramsberg winery in the early 60's, but the last several chapters deal almost exlusively with the political battles between the big vintners, portrayed as greedy and selfish, and the slow-growth advocates, the story's idealistic heroes. The conflicts between growth versus conservation and art versus commerce do provide some interesting drama and are necessary elements of the story of Napa Valley. But the essence of Napa is wine and the good life, and this story gets lost in the politics of Conaway's version of Napa. Read the book for the interesting history of Napa's wine industry and the wealth of historical detail, but understand that the author is more conerned with how the beauty of Napa can be preserved than with the romance of the vine.



3. Napa is a fine book for anyone interested in wines in general and in the ones produced in Napa Valley in particular. The beginning of the book is really the best part. With a great deal of interesting details, the author recalls the beginning of wine production in the area. Reading the story of the pionners who settled there in the beginning of the century is really fascinating. The description of the lives of great characters such as Gustave Niebaum, Georges de Latour or John Daniel are really well written. The second part of the book is less interesting. It focusses too much on political battles in the late 80's and the author has clearly chosen his camp and shows too much the people that he does not like. It would be great if the author would suppress the last chapters and write about what happened in the 90's. Napa Valley has changed, new producers have emerged and an up-dated version of Napa would be a great gift for all wine lovers.



4. ------- as a classmate of robin daniels and mickey mondavi, as a son of a winery-worker who worked with joe heitz and mike grgich, i delivered newspapers to them and all the rest.

   napa managed to never mention me or my paper-route, but i'm behind every page, just around the corner.

   cold and raw in the winter, hot and dry in the summer, sticky and heavy (picking grapes and prunes)in the fall, napa (st. helena in particular)seems like it "ought" to be an Eden. guess what? it's not. it's a business. want to make a small fortune in the wine biz? start with a LARGE fortune!

   the people who grew up and worked there are just like the people who grew up in stockton.

   you may never meet me, but you'll get the chance to meet the "players". you won't meet the gallos, however, yet they kept napa in the grape/wine business by guaranteeing a market (even if penny-ante)when wine wasn't "hip."

   napa is spot-on all the way through, with that one exception . . .




5. Especially if you're planning a visit to the California Wine Country, consider spending some time with this book. The story is fascinating and provides an almost personal connection that gives a wonderful context to one's own experience of the place. Footprints of many of the storied poineers can still be found in the Valley today, but one might miss them trusting only a tour book. Conaway is sometimes criticized for his politics shining through the latter part of the book, but (perhaps due to my on sympathies?) I would disagree. There have been dramatic changes in the American wine industry and especially in Napa Valley over the past twenty years, and hearing a well articulated commentary (at least through the first of those watershed years) detracts little from the picture Conaway evokes. Grab a glass of your favorite Napa Cabernet or Chardonnay and enjoy!

No comments about California Herb Cookery: from the Ranch House Restaurant.