Tag Archives: Anthony Bourdain

2019 Gift Guide, Books

PETRUCELLI PICKS: 2019 GIFT GUIDE: THE BEST FOOD & COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR

Nothing is tastier than serving up out picks for the best books of all things food. We tasted several tomes from several publishers. Here are our choices to eat up. Seconds anyone?

We actually tingle and mingle whenever Ambassador of Americana Charles Phoenix releases a new book.
Such us the wonder with Holiday Jubilee: Classic & Kitschy Festivities & Fun Party Recipes (Prospect Park Books, $29.95) in which Phoenix mixes and mingles spectacular vintage Kodachrome slides of New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Fourth of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas with his eye-popping, original recipes for epic edible centerpieces and party pleasers from his colorful Test Kitchen. Oh! We’d love to move to Phoenix!

It’s a dazzling celebration of Palestinian cuisine (more than 80 recipes), as well as a guide for armchair travelling with captivating stories and stunning travel photography. This is the beauty of Yasmin Khan’s  Zaitoun: Recipes From the Palestinian Kitchen (W. W. Norton & Company, $29.95).
Even the late Anthony Bourdain gushed “Yasmin Khan draws on her vast experience as a storyteller, cook, human rights activist, itinerant traveler and writer to create a moving, empathetic, hugely knowledgeable and utterly delicious book.”

Almost every health study published in recent years has proven that eating a more plant-based diet improves body weight, blood pressure and blood sugar, and shows that having at least one meat-free day a week is essential for anyone wishing to enjoy a healthy life.
The Meat Free Monday Cookbook (Kyle Books, $22.95), based on the trend launched by Paul, Stella and Mary McCartney in 2009, shows how simple it is to eat less meat by including irresistible vegetarian menus for every week of the year,  two main dishes, plus four other ideas for each meal of the day.
Packed with recipes such as Fruity Quinoa, Mexican Cornbread, Warm Halloumi, Apple and Radish Salad, Double Choc Crackle Cookies and Gingerbread Cake, as well as vibrant spring soups, inventive summer salads, appetizing autumn bakes and comforting winter stews, the book includes contributions from Paul and Stella, as well as from celebrity and chef supporters, such as Mario Battali, Yotam Ottolenghi, Kevin Spacey, Pink and Woody Harrelson. It really is the perfect recipe book for anyone who cares about their health, the environment and seriously delicious food.

Using easy-to-find ingredients, Indian in 7 (Kyle Books, $24.99) is packed full of dishes that anyone can effortlessly pull together any night of the week.
With years of experience teaching students howto make tasty and authentic Indian food, award-winning chef and food historian Monisha Bharadwaj shows that cooking mouthwatering Indian meals doesn’t require a cupboard stocked full of spices or a long list of obscure and unpronounceable ingredients. The tome is packed with 80 irresistible recipes, including delectable desserts as  Black Rice Pudding and Mango & Pistachio Mug Cake.

Though Foxfire Living: Design, Recipes, and Stories from the Magical Inn in the Catskills (Harper Design, $45) is a gorgeous full-color
field guide to the innovative neo-vintage design style that is the hallmark of Foxfire Mountain House, the magical inn in the Catskills, and not a true cookbook, the 30 recipes are awfully tasty. Have no reservations about making dinner and then make reservations for an overnight stay.

There’s nothing better than peppering your cookies with ginger. The wonders are found in Gingerbread Wonderland: 30 Magical Cookies, Houses & Bakes(Kyle Books, $12.99).
Packed with fun cookies and sticky gingerbread cakes, plus handy tips on how to avoid mistakes, create edible glue and utilize templates that are included, the tasty tome includes all the traditional Christmas favorites; perfect treats to slip into lunch boxes, serve up to friends at tea, give as gifts, or show off as your holiday centerpiece.

Steven Raichlen has a helluva piece of meat. In The Brisket Chronicles: How to Barbecue, Braise, Smoke, and Cure the World’s Most Epic Cut of Meat (Workman Publishing, $19.95),
the grill master shares more than 60 foolproof, mouthwatering recipes for preparing the tastiest, most versatile and most beloved cut of meat in the world—outside on the grill, as well as in the kitchen. The recipes are overwhelming delicious: Raichlen even teaches how to bake brisket into chocolate chip cookies.

In Cookie Class 120 Irresistible Decorating Ideas For Any Occasion (Harper Design, $24.99), Jenny Keller shares her no-fail, easy tried-and-true recipes for cookies and a basic buttercream icing that can be turned into a variety of different treats with just a few tweaks and adjustments.
Each cookie decoration is easily achievable following Jenny’s simple step-by-step photographs and practical advice. Even the most inexperienced bakers can create cookies that look like they came out of a bakery case.

America’s Test Kitchen once again brings their scientific know-how, rigorous testing and hands-on learning to kids. In The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs (Sourcebooks Explore, $19.99), they will easily learn how to make  soft pretzels, empanadas, brownies and pies. Step-by-step photos of tips and techniques will help young chefs feel like pros in their own kitchen.
By empowering young chefs to make their own choices in the kitchen, America’s Test Kitchen is building a new generation of confident cooks, engaged eaters, and curious experimenters. Bravo!

Gooseberry Patch has released a new must-have for every kitchen: Foolproof Christmas ($17.95). We found the more than 230 recipes shared by home cooks across the country indeed foolproof . . . easy to make dishes such as Mashed Potato Cake, Holly Jolly Party Mix, Chicken Parmesan Soup and Mrs. Claus’ Microwave Fudge.
Readers also share Sweet Christmas Memories, true-life recollections that made us laugh an cry. Simply delicious!

New York Times bestselling author and Food Network star Hannah Hart is back with her biggest book ever: My Drunk Kitchen Holidays! How to Celebrate and Savor the Year: A Cookbook (Plume, $28). In a world where everyone is looking for some good news and something to celebrate, Hart is there with nearly 50 ideas, arranged into 12 months of themes and recipes for how to celebrate with family and friends.
A collection of recipes, activities and suggestions about hilarious and joyous ways to celebrate with family, friends, pets, even your entire community, the book features a fabulous celebration of Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Christmas that is inclusive and incredibly hilarious.

In Creating the Sweet World of White House Desserts (White House Historical Association , $65), Roland Mesnier, pastry chef to five presidents, recalls the stunning desserts he created for White House State Dinners, formal events and family celebrations.
For the first time, he reveals the secrets of mold making and sugar work and shares recipes, all adapted for home kitchens. Of special interest are descriptions and illustrations of the dozens of molds now in the chef’s collection. Here, Mesnier and his assistant Mark Ramsdell help make professional desserts possible for cooks of all abilities and offer insights into the concerns and accomplishments of the White House pastry kitchen.

In Whole in One: Complete, Healthy Meals in a Single Pot, Sheet Pan, or Skillet (Da Capo Lifelong Books, $30), James Beard Award winner and bestselling cookbook author Ellie Krieger shows you how to create a meal in a single pot, sheet pan, baking dish or skillet . . . no additional gadgets or tools required.
Divided by main ingredients (meat, poultry, seafood, vegetarian, dessert) and further separated into sheet pan, baking dish, skillet and pot-cooked meals, the 125 nutritionally complete dinner recipes (plus healthy desserts) can each be prepared simply. Yum!

Michelle Lopez has figured out how to have her cake and eat it too. In Weeknight Baking: Recipes to Fit Your Schedule, (Simon & Schuster, $35), Lopez shares recipes for drool-worthy confections, along with charming stories and time-saving tips and tricks.
From everyday favorites like “Almost No Mess Shortbread” and “Better-Than-Supernatural Fudge Brownies” to showstoppers like “a Modern Red Velvet Cake” and “Peanut Butter Pretzel Pie” (it’s vegan!), she reveals the secrets to baking on a schedule.

 

Books, CDs, Music

Paul Stanley gives fans a KISS and a tour of his life, from the kitchen to the stage

Wanna go backstage at a KISS concert? We cab guarantee fans one thing: In Backstage Pass, (HarperOne, $27.99) Paul Stanley, legendary frontman and rhythm guitarist of the group, offers grants fans an all-access backstage pass to his personal life, and shows them how to pursue a royal rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle of their own offering hard-won advice and rules to live by from a rock n’ roll legend.

Backstage PassIn this follow-up to his popular bestseller Face the Music, Paul takes us deeper into his personal life and his home life on and off the stage, revealing what he eats, drinks, and does with his friends and family, he’s learned from a lifetime at the frontman of the iconic band KISS, and how he brings his unique sensibility not only to his superstar music career but to every area of his life—from the business to parenting to health and happiness, to the kitchen and the bar to the gym and the office.

Showcasing his unique lifestyle, Backstage Pass is a rare look at the man beneath the modern rock god persona. Paul shares fascinating details about his life—his fitness routine, philosophy, business principles, how he finds inspiration, passion, and joy after nearly 50 years filling arenas and selling out shows, and even his favorite meals, and includes recipes from friends such as Anthony Bourdain, Rocco DiSpirito and Mario Batali.

Backstage Pass divulges more true stories of the rock legend’s relationships, hardships, and wild nights, contains intimate four-color never-before-seen photos from Paul’s personal collection, and offers surprising lessons on the discipline and hard work that have made him one of the healthiest and most successful rock n’ roll frontmen in history—and a model superstar for the modern age.
This is the book for fans who love living large, but also want to kick ass at everyday life. From doing shots at the bar to enjoying a glass of red on the patio, Paul shows you how you can rock n’ roll all night and party every day—without missing a beat or looking like you do.

DVDs, TV

PBS Distribution about to serve a most tasty “American Masters: The Art of Craft,” the life and flavors of Jaqcues Pepin

Hungry for a special treat? Leave it to PBS Distribution who is about to serve American Masters: The Art of Craft on DVD. This culinary journey traces the life of Jaqcues Pépin, a young immigrant with movie-star looks and a charming Gallic accent, who elevated essential kitchen techniques to an art form to become one of America’s most beloved food icons. The delight goes on the table when it’s released June 6; the program will also be available for digital download.

The program traces his journey from his childhood in the countryside of wartime France, where his family’s tradition of running homegrown restaurants propelled him into an early culinary career.Image result for pepin jacques

At the age of 13, Pépin leaves home to begin a formal apprenticeship at the distinguished Grand Hôtel de l’Europe. His first break comes at 16, when, as the sole chef, he cooks the fireman’s banquet in the alpine resort town of Bellegarde, a success that results in his first newspaper photo op. “I start to realize that I could put some of myself in the food. It didn’t have to be exactly the way my mother wanted it to be,” says Pépin, recalling this pivotal moment in his life.

Nearly 17, Pépin moves to Paris, initially without a job, and eventually works at dozens of restaurants learning about classical cooking. He trains under Lucien Diat at the Hotel Plaza Athénée where the emphasis is on technique. Four years later, he is drafted into the Navy, but because his older brother is already on the front, Pépin is assigned to stay in Paris as a cook at Navy headquarters.

Now an accomplished chef, he is assigned to create special dinners for the top brass and becomes the personal chef for three French heads of state, including Charles de Gaulle. But Pépin understands that in the late ’50s, the cook, even if “first chef,” is really at the bottom of the social scale and viewed as the help. Not content cooking in French palaces; Pépin decides to move to the United States in ’59.

In New York, Pépin lands a job at Le Pavillon, the most influential French restaurant in the country, and soon meets the three people he calls the “Trinity of Cooking”: Craig Claiborne, food editor of The New York Times; James Beard; and Julia Child. In later years, he partners with Child on a television series, Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home, for which he and Child win a Daytime Emmy in 2001.

While at Le Pavillon, Pépin is courted for the position of “first chef” in the new Kennedy White House, a position he turns down. Instead, he goes to work in the kitchens of Howard Johnson’s hotel and restaurant chain (1960–70) where he learns about mass production, marketing, food chemistry, and American popular food.

In 1974, a near-fatal car accident is the catalyst that pushes Pépin’s life in a different direction as writer, teacher, and ultimately a media star. With his early landmark books on the fundamentals of culinary craft, La Technique (1976) and La Methôde (1978), and television shows, Pépin ushers in a new era in American food culture.

An American citizen for more than half a century, at age 81, Pépin continues to crisscross the country teaching, cooking, speaking, consulting, and enjoying the celebrity generated by 14 television shows, nearly 30 cookbooks, and accolades including the French Legion of Honor, France’s highest honor.

Interviews with Pépin’s wife Gloria and daughter Claudine, culinary stars and media personalities including José Andrés, Daniel Boulud, Anthony Bourdain, Tom Colicchio, Rachael Ray, Marcus Samuelsson and Fareed Zakaria, offer insights about the man, who with his catchphrase “happy cooking” has always emphasized honesty of ingredients, simplicity of approach, and a joy for sharing food with loved ones.

The film is produced and directed by Peter L. Stein, a Peabody Award–winning documentary filmmaker who first started working with Pépin in 1989 as producer of what became Pépin’s landmark public television series Today’s Gourmet, and who went on to oversee seven seasons of cooking programs with Pépin in the ’90s.