Book Reviews

In the Kitchen

During the holidays, many of us spend countless hours in the kitchen preparing both family favorites and perhaps new delights that we've found in a magazine or cookbook. But sometimes these creative culinary ventures fail and we're left with a collapsed chocolate cake or gravy that just won't thicken. In How to Break an Egg (The Taunton Press, 2005) the readers, editors, and contributors of Fine Cooking magazine reveal more than 1,400 tips and techniques to save even the biggest kitchen disaster. Tips include salvaging a dry cake with simple sugar syrup, choosing the right molasses for your baked goods, and cutting goat cheese with dental floss. The countless tips are sure to come in handy this holiday season.

The American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund both estimate that 30 to 40 percent of all cancers can be prevented with a diet rich colorful fruits and vegetables and whole grains. In Healing Gourmet: Eat to Fight Cancer (McGraw-Hill, 2005) the editors of Healing Gourmet along with Simin Liu, M.D., Kathy McManus, M.S., R.D., and John A. Carlino, C.E.C. shed light on these anti-oxidant and vitamin-rich foods and also include information on healing herbs and spices. With more than fifty recipes as well as a meal plan to get you started, this book is a perfect tool for those looking to live a healthy, well-rounded life.

—M.B.W.

November/December 2005