2023 1.DINNER WITH JANE AUSTEN; menus inspired by her novels and letters (CICO Books, 2023, 64 pages, ISBN 978-1-80065-264-4 $19.99 CAD hardbound) is by Pen Vogler who has written many such historical British cookbooks (Tea with Jane Austen, Dinner with Mr. Darcy, Dinner with Dickens, et al). These are Regency menus and dinners that have been fully updated for modern times: the originals are next to the updates. There are five menus with notes about the times and about compelling dishes. For example, there is Mrs. Bennet's Dinner to Impress from Pride and Prejudice (fresh pea soup, partridges with bread sauce, spiced mushrooms, and everlasting syllabub). There is also a bibliography and an index. A top book for the top of your stocking stuffers. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 2.VIETNAMESE CUISINE; recipes and anecdotes from Vietnamese gastronomic culture (Firefly Books, 2023, 128 pages, ISBN 978-0-2281-0442-1 $19.95 CAD paperbound) is by Nathalie Nguyen, with great watercolour illustrations by Melody Ung. It was originally published in French in France in 2022. This edition is the third in a Firefly series (the others dealt with illustrated cuisines of Japan and of Korea. There are 30 recipes, each with text about the plate's place in culinary history. And yes, Vietnam cuisine does have its own version of peanut sauce (a no-heat recipe is included). Typical dishes include banh mi (of course), but also Vietnamese pancakes, pho bo, nem chua, and caramelized fish. There is a lot going on here: in addition to recipes, there are memoir materials, anecdotes, histories and background. For the food itself, there is in-depth coverage on techniques, utensils, and Vietnamese ingredients. It's a colourful book since all of the illustrations are watercolours of food, utensils, finished plates, meal composition, tableware, staples, condiments and sauces. These are everyday dishes. Do try to track down the other two books --can Thai or Laos be far behind? A top book for the top of your stocking stuffers. Quality/Price rating is 92 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 3.FESTIVE COFFEE SHOP DRINKS; more than 50 holiday-inspired recipes for coffees, hot chocolates & more (Ryland, Peters & Small, 2023, 128 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-554-8 $23.99 CAD hardbound) is by Hannah Miles who has authored 46 cookbooks. Her book is mainly for the Christmas season: coffee and tea-based drinks, hot chocolates, mochas, cold brews, frappes, and creamy shakes. Some of the preps are from her earlier books on hot chocolate and shakes, while four others were furnished by Louise Pickford. Primer chapters deal with making the best base beverage, making syrups and sauces, and decorating the drink. Then each type has its own chapter. And each type seems to have its own shape of glass or mug. Gorgeous illustrations help place this book in the Christmas "giftbook" category. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 4.BEAUTIFUL BOARDS & DELICIOUS CHARCUTERIE FOR EVERY OCCASION (Fox Chapel Publishing, 2023, 136 pages, ISBN 978-1-4971-0383-2 $18.99 CAD softbound) is by Kate Woodson. She's got 100 easy-to-make recipes for meats, cheese, veggies, butter boards, and themed spreads. After a primer the chapters are mainly savoury, with 16 preps for sweet platters such as honey-almond brie, whipped honey ricotta, peanut butter and chocolate hummus, plus some dips. Most of the preps are for savouries such as meat lovers, smoked foods, Mexican, Spanish tapas, a bruschetta board, seasonal boards, French, Italian, Mediterranean, and the like. All of the platyter ideas are laid out nicely with accompanying recipes and photos. Fox Chapel did a good job of condensing all you'll need to know about platters. For two people (or more) everything here can replace TV dinners. With glasses of sparkling wine, this is actually unbeatable while you are streaming. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 5.CHARCUTERIE BOARDS; platters, boards, plates & simple recipes to share (Ryland, Peters & Small, 2023, 176 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-515-9 $34.12 CAD hardbound) is by Miranda Ballard and Louise Pickford. Both are cookbook authors for RP&S, with Ballard having the additional credit of owning five retail butcher shops in the UK. Some of Ballard's preps come from a previous RP&S book published in 2014. The boards are mainly meats with occasional garnishes of olives, peppers, capers, pickles, breads, cheese, and jams and jellies. There's an Italian board with pesto and local cheeses, a Spanish tapas board with cheeses and sauces, a French board, a Northern European board, a New York deli board, a smoked board, and more. It's a classic book for entertaining, with cold cuts of meat being the main feature surrounded by a variety of other foods. The key is a theme and a layout for the board. Ballard and Pickford provide both. And there is such a wide variety of food accompaniments that it is relatively easy to mix and match within limits. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 1.IT'S NO FUN WITHOUT RUM! 50 fabulous recipes for rum-based cocktails from mai tai to mojito (Dog 'n' Bone, 2023, 64 pages, ISBN 978-1-912983-78-0 $12.99 USD hardbound) is a publisher's book with 11 different contributors: Ben Reed has largest number of recipes (15), followed by Michael Butt (13). It's a basic handy guide to a pile of delicious rum cocktail preps. We all know daiquiri, pina colada, planter's punch, cuba libre, and hurricane. But do we know officer's nightcap? Or tiki negroni? Or graham cracker crunch? We do now. Nifty photos. A good book to serve as a host gift or stocking stuffer. Quality/Price rating is 88 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 2.FALAFEL; delicious recipes for Middle Eastern-style patties, plus sauces, pickles, salads, & breads (Ryland, Peters & Small, 2023, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-527-2 $16.99 USD hardbound) is by Dunja Gulin, a Croatian cookbook author of many vegan cookbooks. Here she has also shared a dozen preps from other food writers. Falafels are chickpeas (also known as garbanzos) ground with a variety of spices and herbs to create a sort of meatball-shaped vegetarian (or vegan) pod. You can also make falafels with pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, cashews, buckwheat, mushrooms, flaxseeds, et al. She's got different sections: one on fried falafels, another on baked falafels, and one on no-cook falafels. Then there are chapters on dips, dressings, pittas, flatbreads and crackers. She starts with the traditional chickpea falafel pockets (street food style) and moves along to undone (deconstructed) falafel salad. You can do burgers, casseroles, curries, soups, even a grazing board! Ingredients are mainly listed in Imperial measurements with some metric volumes, but there is no table of metric equivalents. A very clever single dish cookbook, well-worth exploring. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 3.MANJU'S COOKBOOK; vegetarian Gujarati Indian recipes from a much-loved family restaurant (Ryland Peters & Small, 2023, 176 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-559-3 $30 USD hardbound) is by Manju Patel who operates a family-run restaurant in Brighton (UK). As of this writing, she's 86 and still cooking for her head chef Dee. Her food categories begin with a primer on Gujarati cuisine (west coast of India, north of Mumbai) and then move through curries, breads-rice-dal, snacks, and street foods. Near the end there are sides, chutneys, pickles, sweets, and drinks. Typical dishes include khandvi, kachori (peas in pastry), eggplant curry, paneer curry, millet flatbread, chakri (crispy swirls), and dahi vada (lentil fritters coated in yogurt). This is a good Indian theme book with many colourful illustrations of fab-looking dishes. Ingredients are mainly listed in Imperial measurements with some metric volumes, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 4.THEO'S FAMILY KITCHEN; 75 recipes for fast feel good food at home (Ryland Peters & Small, 2023, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-558-6 $28 USD hardbound) is by Theo A. Michaels, who works as an Executive Chef as well as authoring six cookbooks for RP&S. He says: Feeding my family unprocessed, homecooked meals is important to me and I want to pass on my knowledge so you can do the same. It's also a book for all family members to contribute their time and energies to proper food. He opens up with How to Cook the Perfect....egg, rice, potatoes, green veggies, fish, chicken, white sauce, tomato sauce, homemade stock, shortcrust pie shell. Indeed, many bachelors could make use of this book. He's got ideas for tasty family meals on weeknights and weekends, plus some family takeout knockoffs to do at home (e.g. fish and chips, pizza, burgers, and fried chicken). Salads, sides and sweets complete the package. Ingredients are mainly listed in Imperial measurements with some metric volumes, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 88 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 5.AREPA; classic and contemporary recipes for Venezuela's daily bread (Ryland Peters & Small, 2023, 192 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-517-3 $30 USD hardbound) is by Irena Stein, owner of Alma Cocina Latina in Baltimore, and by Eduardo Egui, a Venezuelan chef living in Spain, and by David Zamudio, the Executive Chef at Alma Cocina Latina. There's a basic introduction to the bread with notes on its history, with recipes and notes on variations. There are three main chapters: seafood, vegetarian, and meat. Along the way they've got separate sections on appetizers, butters and sauces, some deserts, and drinks. It's fairly comprehensive, and then photography (food and travel) is gorgeous. The book would make a nice hostess gift. One of my faves is the fried egg arepa with spicy marinated veggies and aged cheese. Another is the fried pork arepa with kimchi. Ingredients are mainly listed in Imperial measurements with some metric volumes, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 1.HEARTY CAST-IRON AND SKILLET COOKING; 101 easy-to-make, feel-good recipes (Fox Chapel Publishing, 2023, 152 pages, ISBN 978-1-4971-0386-3 $22.99 CDN softbound) is by Anne Schaeffer, who has also written cookbooks on campfire meals, Dutch ovens, crock pots, tailgating, Amish baking, and many other topics. All of the preps here can be cooked on the stove, in the oven, and/or grilled over a fire using the Dutch oven, the skillet or cast-iron pan. Once heated, these pots maintain even cooking temps. And the cookware lasts forever, even through to the next generation plus one. They are all highly recommended for campfires, grills, and other open flame sources. Typical preps here include breakfast (bacon and potato pancakes, frittatas), lunch (tuna noodle casserole, one pot shells and meatballs), dinner (fajita enchiladas, chicken marsala), and desserts (peachy raspberry pie, cherry-cream roll-ups). I like that the type face is large so that it is easy enough for seniors to read. Also, the idea of one pot or pan appeals to the male chef for its tidiness; consequently, the book has advantages for the guys. Ingredients are only listed in Imperial measurements, and there is no table of metric equivalents. Recipe directions include instructions for all three heat sources. Quality/Price rating is 88 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 2.COOKING WITH BEER AND BOURBON (Fox Chapel Publishing, 2023, 136 pages, ISBN 978-1-4971-0389-4 $20.99 CDN softbound) is by Hunter Reed. It's loaded with 124 preps that include beer or bourbon (or both) as a major ingredient. He gives us 10 different beer types and 3 different bourbon types, plus he notes non-alcoholic, gluten-free, and vegan options. The book is arranged by course or plate (moving from sides, snacks, sauces, soups, to chilies, BBQ, sweets), but also within each section there is an arrangement of light to heavy flavours from the beer and bourbon. Thus he starts with beer battered fried mozzarella sticks as appetizers and move through the book to no-churn toffee and stout ice cream and bourbon choco-sicles. It's also a guy book in that most of the food (Irish beef stew, beer party meatballs, jalapeno cheddar beer bread) is what guys eat and drink with beer and bourbon. A readable typeface is very useful, although the print of the index is very tiny. Ingredients are only listed in Imperial measurements, and there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 3.THE GROUNDS CAFE; seasonal dishes from Murray's Century Farm (Boulder Books, 2023, 165 pages, ISBN 978-1-989417-60-7 $34.95 hardbound) is by Nick Van Mele, who also did the recipes, with contributions from the Murray family. The book goes into the importance of community, co-operation, and the interdependence they all share in producing good food. The Murrays arrived in Newfoundland in 1820 and the Century Farm began in 1860. In 2017 Murray's opened The Grounds Cafe, a farm-to-fork restaurant. This book is a collection of recipes from that restaurant. Readers will enjoy reading about the growth of the farmers, foragers, foodies, family and friends over the years up through to the modern times. Lots of memoir material and photos. It's arranged by season, beginning with spring. Each has a section of about a dozen recipes. Spring includes spring harvest salad , oyster mushroom and chive tartlet, buckwheat noodle bowl, handmade pasta with nettle pesto and cured radish. Summer brings tomato tart with basil pesto and mozzarella, charred zucchini and fennel soup, and a summer salad. The chill of fall produces tomato jam, squash risotto, apple butter, and a warm fall harvest salad with roasted pumpkin. Winter invites beet frites with garlic aioli, Cuban-style calzone, BBQ parsnip, and curried potato and root-veggie samosa with onion chutney. Delicious all round. With a shakshuka prep and veggie posters from Murray Meadows Farm this book really details the rural life in Newfoundland. Ingredients are only listed in Imperial measurements, and there is no table of metric equivalents. But, for a change, the index entries are large enough to read. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. 4.BIBIMBAP & other Asian-inspired rice & noodle bowl recipes (Ryland, Peters & Small, 2023, 160 pages, ISBN 978-1-78879-555-5 $25 USD hardbound) is largely by Louise Pickford, a food writer-stylist currently based in France with 15 or so cookbooks to her credit. Five other Ryland food authors' recipes are from Atsuko Ikeda, Jackie Kearney, Kathy Kordalis, Jenny Linford, and Uyen Luu. The book attempts to lay out plans for ease of preparation of rice and noodles: one-pot dishes in soups, salads, and stir-fries based on dishes from Korea, Cambodia, Burma, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia. Korea's Bibimbap is the iconic dish (fried egg on top of rice, seasoned veggies, kimchi, and gochujang sauce). Indeed, bibim means mixing and bap means cooked rice. The dish is often used as a base for many one bowl rice/noodle dishes. Pickford arranges her book by need: the first section is easy does it , followed by fresh & cool , soul satisfying , warming spice , and umami rich . As a tested Supertaster, I headed for that last chapter first. She's got BBQ pork noodle bowls with dipping sauce, wild garlic miso pork stir fry, mushroom udon, an ultimate banh mi rice bowl [I didn't miss the baguette at all], and duck red curry over rice among others. This is a great looking book with all the RP&S food photos in place. Ingredients are mainly listed in Imperial measurements with some metric volumes, but there is no table of metric equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. BEST OF BRIDGE EVERYDAY CELEBRATIONS (Robert Rose, 2023, 256 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0708-7 $34.95 CAD hardbound) is by Emily Richards and Sylvia Kong who have been extending the Best of Bridge franchise by creating new material for new books. They had previously written Best of Bridge Weekday Suppers and Best of Bridge Comfort Food. This latest book has 125 recipes for family and friends on the theme of everyday celebrations such as home birthdays, entertaining, neighbourhood potlucks, or just a small party for a foursome that is joyous and festive. As such it is very useful for anybody who wishes a basic cook book for the upscale kitchen. Typical dishes include breakfast sandwiches that use speedy bagels, zucchini noodle soup, Asian coleslaw chicken salad with Thai and Vietnamese flavours, instant pot beef stew -- all the warm foods that are quick and easy to make for the cooler seasons. Some updating includes more plant-based options and multi-cultural preps (spatchcocked chicken, veggie pot stickers, crispy Korean fried chicken trips, individual beef Wellington packs, tofu banh mi, cilantro lime rice). But he familiar hand-lettered font has disappeared. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both metric and avoirdupois measurements; so there is no need for a table of equivalents. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. DIABETES CREATE YOUR PLATE MEAL PREP COOKBOOK (Robert Rose, 2022, 288 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0707-0 $29.95 CAD paper covers) is by Toby Amidor, cookbook author and dietitian with eight books, some with Robert Rose such as The Best 3-Ingredient Cookbook . Here she expands on the concept of the Diabetes Plate Method for make-ahead meals. She's got 100 preps and five different meal plans spread over from the beginner to the experienced cook. Along the way she's got tips and advice for creating multiple dishes at one time and shopping, cooking and ingredient substitutions. The idea behind a meal prep is to create balanced diabetes-friendly plates of food to better control blood sugar levels. Different storage containers are noted to accommodate different styles of storing. For example, Rubbermaid offers a package of 10 containers and more, up to 44 pieces or so. Storage is either in the freezer or refrigerator, and she presents tables to allow for food safety. The basic principle is to create your plate: half of the space is for non-starchy veggies such as cauliflower or kale, spinach, broccoli rabe, and the like. One-quarter of the container is a lean protein (meat, fish, seafood, eggs, plant-based), while the remaining quarter has carbo food such as grains, starchy veggies, fruit, milk or yogurt. Add some healthy non-saturated fats and/or a tiny quantity of saturated fats such as butter. And away you go taking it easy on any appetizers or desserts that are not part of the equation. Every prep has an icon which indicates those recipes that are freezer-friendly, one-pot, vegetarian, vegan, 30-minutes or less, dairy-free, gluten-free. Typical meal plates include spicy chicken meatballs, sriracha yogurt dip, chicken noodle soup, herbed garlic-butter pork chops, or veggie-loaded meatloaf. An important chapter of the book deals with dressings, condiments, and sauces such as teriyaki marinade, BBQ sauce, pesto, peanut dressing, and mango salsa. This book is a boon for those diabetics who need to grab and go . The index is very thorough and comprehensive. My faves (I'm pre-diabetic) are the eggplant with tomatoes and cumin, and the chicken cacciatore. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both avoirdupois and metric measurements; it is the Robert Rose style. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. THE BEST 3-INGREDIENT COOKBOOK: 100 fast & easy recipes for everyone (Robert Rose, 2020, 224 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0678-3, $29.95 CAD paperbound) is by Toby Amidor, RD, cookbook author and nutrition expert who has also authored Diabetes Plate Meal Prep for Robert Rose. It's a nifty book that relies on your pantry: the recipes call for three or fewer ingredients plus some everyday pantry items. The common pantry staples to always keep on hand include olive oil, salt, and black pepper, with occasionally water. Other items that are shelf-stable or freezer-friendly can be purchased well-ahead of the meals, and include pasta, quinoa, tinned tuna/beans/salmon, and frozen veggies. The benefits of using only three ingredients is mostly for simplification and time savings in shopping, preparation, and clean up. Each recipe has materials for three different serving sizes (usually one, two or four). She uses a variety of food icons to represent those recipes that are freezer-friendly, one pot, 15 minutes or less, vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free. This book is ideal for students, single people, or those in a hurry. So she has a valuable basic primer on how to cook. She outlines some of the best recipes for just one person (with page references) such as avocado-egg toast, roasted sweet potato and chickpea bowl, thyme poached halibut and maple soy salmon. And a similar listing for two people and again, a similar listing for families. Her arrangement is typical such as smoothies and breakfasts, snacks, soups, salads, lunches, and dinners with some added sides. Dishes include pesto stuffed mushrooms, roasted red pepper and hummus wrap, breaded pork chops, black bean patties, cheesy polenta, skillet turkey with sweet potatoes and spinach. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both avoirdupois and metric measurements; it is the Robert Rose style. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. THE BEST CAST IRON BAKING BOOK: recipes for breads, pies, biscuits & more (Robert Rose, 2021, 192 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0683-7, $24.95 CAD paperbound) is by Roxanne Wyss and Kathy Moore, both cookbook authors, food consultants, cooking teachers and bloggers. They have written 17 cookbooks, mostly on baking more recipes and thoughts can be found at their blog www.pluggedintocooking.com. Most of the 80 preps in their latest book can also be used with 10 inch skillets and Dutch ovens. The first 30 pages address the issues of maintenance and proper care, use of parchment paper, and some pantry notes. Preps open with slow-rise breads (many are no-kneads, flatbreads/pizza, breads and rolls most of the savouries in the book). Other topics include sweet breads, coffee cakes, cobblers, biscuits, scones, pies, cookies, and brownies. Among the seven dessert recipes they've included tarte tatin and dutch babies. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both avoirdupois and metric measurements; it is the Robert Rose style. Quality/Price rating is 91 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. THE EDGY VEG; easy eats -- quick, tasty, vegan (Robert Rose, 2022, 256 pages, ISBN 978-0-7788-0703-2, $34.95 CAD hardbound) is by Candice Hutchings, who produces the Edgy Veg YouTube channel and blog. This is her follow-up to The Edgy Veg: 138 Carnivore-Approved Vegan Recipes , but it is also a simpler everyday little sister to her foundational first book with about 100 new and different but easy preps. She's got a dozen brekkies (pumpkin scones, banana bread muffins, breakfast beans), a dozen salads, a dozen soups, a dozen appetizers, two dozen mains, a dozen sides, six potent potables, and nine desserts. Plus she's got an all-knowing sassy in-your-face-style, just the same as her YouTube channel. Excellent photography, typeface and index. Her four recipe icons are very useful: symbols for 15 minutes or less , one pot/one pan , gluten-free and great for entertaining . Nothing here takes longer than 45 minutes tops. Preparations have their ingredients listed in both avoirdupois and metric measurements; it is the Robert Rose style. Quality/Price rating is 92 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. CASABLANCA; my Moroccan food (Firefly Books, 2018, 2023, 224 pages, ISBN 978-0-2281-0086-7, $39.95 CAD hardbound) is by Nargisse Benkabbou, a native of Morocco (www.mymoroccanfood.com) and now living in London. She's done everything such as developing new cooking techniques, recipe development, cooking schools, food photography, and guest chefing. Her book was originally published by Octopus in the UK; this is the North American reissue. Here are 100 recipes for modern and traditional dishes to be served for family and entertaining. Her primer has elements for ras el hanout spice mix, preserved lemons, harissa paste, couscous, Moroccan tea, and, of course, the tagine. Typical dishes include sweet potato and feta maakouda, artichoke and baby potato and preserved lemon tagine, zucchini and thyme and beef shin tagine, kefta and olive toast, and chicken mchermel. Great photography of the finished plates with (thankfully) few or no touristic photos. But all ingredients are expressed in avoirdupois, not metric. So the book could have been improved if it had also used metric in the recipes, or at least had a metric conversion chart. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. KOREAN CUISINE; an illustrated guide (Firefly Books, 2022, 128 pages, ISBN 978-0-2281-0389-9 $19.95 CAD paperbound) is by Luna Kyung, who lives in Paris and has written books about Korean food. Ahnji is a Korean illustrator and graphic designer who also lives in France, and is a co-author. Their book was originally published in French, in France, in 2021 this is the English translation. There is a lot going on here; in addition to recipes, there are memoir materials, anecdotes, histories and background. For the food itself, there is in-depth coverage on techniques, utensils, and Korean ingredients. It's a colourful book since all of the illustrations are watercolours of food, utensils, finished plates, meal composition, tableware, staples, condiments and sauces. These are everyday dishes. But just one thought: there is no pork neck bone soup recipe. I've noticed this omission in many recent Korean cookbooks, no doubt because pork neck bones are difficult to obtain, even from a butcher. The closest bone to find is either hock trotter or spare rib bone, and even these can be hard to find, especially (for the latter) in grilling season. I mention all of this because I regard pork neck bone soup (Gamjatang), along with Bipimbap, to be a quintessential Korean dish. You can easily check out the ingredients through the Internet. It is worth trying to do because of its bounty of flavours, even if you have to use spare ribs where is no real difference in flavour, although neck fans may question that assumption. Kyung's book is full of vast quantities of everyday dishes, fermented foods, noodles, party dishes, temple food, street food, lucky foods, and even North Korean specialties. This is an extremely useful book. Quality/Price rating is 92 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. FERMENTATION; history, uses and recipes (Firefly Books, 2023, 206 pages, ISBN 978-0-2281-0411-4 $39.95 CAD hardbound) is by Mathilde Fenestraz, a Parisian journalist and cookbook author, and Stephane Ros, an art historian who wrote the book's preface and the history of fermentation chapter. It was originally published in 2022 in France. This is the North American English translation release. It is mainly a good fermentation textbook, at an affordable price, giving us a history and a listing of the many varieties of fermented food with a scope embracing meat and fish, dairy products, baked goods, alcohol drinks, kombucha, kefir, and more. There is also a section from the Institut Paul Bocuse on the theory of food pairing, with nine food and drink pairings (chocolate with tarragon, shrimp curry paste with scallops, brioche with framboise beer, and the like. Yeast and bacteria are everywhere on earth: we do rely on these living organisms to improve taste and human nutrition. The 30 recipes here are easy-peasy and cover simple foods such as pickles, salmon gravlax, and pretzels. The book could have been improved if it also used more metric in the recipes, or at least had a metric conversion chart. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing. * THE RESTAURANT/CELEBRITY COOKBOOK... +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ...is one of the hottest trends in cookbooks. Actually, they ve been around for many years, but never in such proliferation. They are automatic best sellers, since the book can be flogged at the restaurant or TV show and since the chef ends up being a celebrity somewhere, doing guest cooking or catering or even turning up on the Food Network. Most of these books will certainly appeal to fans of the chef and/or the restaurant and/or the media personality. Many of the recipes in these books actually come off the menus of the restaurants involved. Occasionally, there will be, in these books, special notes or preps, or recipes for items no longer on the menu. Stories or anecdotes will be related to the history of a dish. But because most of these books are American, they use only US volume measurements for the ingredients; sometimes there is a table of metric equivalents, but more often there is not. I ll try to point this out. The usual shtick is favourite recipes made easy for everyday cooks . There is also PR copy on demystifying ethnic ingredients . PR bumpf also includes much use of the magic phrase mouth-watering recipes as if that is what it takes to sell such a book. I keep hearing from readers, users, and other food writers that some restaurant recipes (not necessarily from these books) don t seem to work at home, but how could that be? The books all claim to be kitchen tested for the home, and many books identify the food researcher by name. Most books are loaded with tips, techniques, and advice, as well as gregarious stories about life in the restaurant world. Photos abound, usually of the chef bounding about. The celebrity books, with well-known chefs or entertainers, seem to have too much self-involvement and ego. And, of course, there are a lot of food photo shots, verging on gastroporn. There are endorsements from other celebrities in magnificent cases of logrolling. If resources are cited, they are usually American mail order firms, with websites. Some companies, though, will ship around the world, so don t ignore them altogether. Here s a rundown on the latest crop of such books * THE REISSUES, THE REPRINTS, AND THE NEWER EDITIONS... ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ...all reflect a boom in the cookbook publishing business. A paperback reprint will lower the cost to the purchaser, and also give a publisher a chance to correct egregious errors or add a postscript. Some will reissue a book in paper covers with a new layout or photos. Others will rearrange existing material to present it as more informative text while keeping the focus tight. Some magazines will reissue popular or classic recipes in an easy format. Here are some recent re-editions ... ----------------------------------------------------