Three new annuals are perennials

REVIEWS BY SYBIL PRATT

I've admitted to my 30-year addiction to Gourmet magazine before, but I doubt that I mentioned the mountains of aging copies that used to send my normally even-tempered spouse into a full-blown hissy. The glut-of-Gourmets quandary was solved some years ago with the bessed arrival of The Best of Gourmet, a collection of the year's best menus and recipes culled from the magazine's pages and presented in a single sumptuous volume. (My back issues were dutifully donated to our local library.) The Best of Gourmet 1998, the 13th in the series, has 23 marvelous menus -- from an intimate dinner for two to a cocktail spread for 30 -- over 400 recipes, and full-color photos that will make mouths water (even Martha's). This year's "Cuisine of the World" feature focuses on the exotic, enticing flavors of India, with three brand new menus and a primer that explores the essentials of the Indian kitchen. "A Gourmet Addendum" includes 24 all-new recipes for making "Gifts from the Kitchen," tantalizing treats, sweet and savory, that will wow friends year-round.


Good Housekeeping Best Recipes 1998, the annual anthology of recipes from Good Housekeeping magazine, is good news for cooks. Triple-tested by the good -- and talented -- folks in Good Housekeeping's kitchens, the over 300 super-reliable recipes range from "Appetizers and Soups" to "Condiments, Sauces and Jams." And though the magazine is as American as apple pie and has been an institution for well over a hundred years, you'll find foods from all over the globe (Tuscan White Bean Bruschetta, Vietnamese Noodle Soup, Greek Shrimp and Potatoes), next to regional favorites (New Orleans Green Gumbo, Narragansett Succotash, Pennsylvannia-Dutch Sauerkraut and Apple Stuffing). More than recipes spice up these pages. You'll find: solutions for age-old cooking conundrums (should you salt the pasta water, soak dry beans, use a drip pan to cut the fat?); comfort in numbers (12 low-fat ways to perk up veggies, five desserts to make in five minutes, ten quick sandwich dressings); tips on terms and techniques (how to make perfect whipped cream and food processor pie crust or tell the difference between cod and scrod, cobblers and crisps). The tireless testers in the GH Institute provide all the answers plus the skinny on choosing a juice machine, bread machine, pepper mill, toaster oven, and more. It all goes to show that good cooking is at the heart of Good Housekeeping.


It doesn't take light years to get the recipes and the info you need for healthy eating; just read through Cooking Light Annual Recipes 1998. Every single recipe from a year's worth of Cooking Light magazines -- nearly 900, all with detailed nutritional analysis -- is gathered between these covers. This collection marks the magazine's tenth anniversary, which may be why tens keep turning up. It offers the ten hottest food trends, from low-fat Asian noodles, nutty and dense enough to stand up to the spicier flavors we've developed a yen for (Saucy Garlic Beef Lo Mein), to roasting the unexpected (Roasted Summer-Fruit Salad); "new soul food" (Hoppin' John Cakes with Tomatillo-Tomato Salsa); and "new comfort desserts" (sublime Fudgy Souffle Cake with Warm Turtle Sauce). "Our 10 Best Recipes Ever," chosen by the magazine's staff, includes a bold, distinct Greek-Style Scampi and, as numero uno, a rich tasting Italian Cream Cake with only 300 calories per portion. There are "10 Dinners on the Double," "10 Top Foods to Live By," and the "Top 10 Entries from the Recipe of the Decade Contest." There are months of menus, wine picks, suggestions for "Quick and Easy Weeknight" dinners and "cooking classes" with step-by-step guidance for all sorts of techniques.

So lighten up and live it up. You have nothing to lose but excess calories, cholesterol, and fat, and everything to gain but weight.


Sybil Pratt is an avid cook.

© 1998 ProMotion, inc.
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