I grew up with a parent who loathed Martha Stewart. Mention her name and my dad would become apoplectic. “That woman! She’s . . .!” I never understood it. After all, it was my mother, not he, who cooked the family meals and did our decorating. Who knows? Maybe he envied folks who ate bouillabaisse and coq au vin at a table adorned with homemade pine cone centerpieces and dried wild flower napkin rings. Whatever the cause, I knew that bringing a Martha Stewart cookbook or magazine into the house was tantamount to treason. That I’m a fan of one of her cookbooks, well, I can imagine what he’d say – Judas! Yet, I have to admit that I like her latest offering, Martha Stewart’s Pies & Tarts. Compiled by the editors of Martha Stewart Living, Martha Stewart’s Pies & Tarts provides 150 simple to mildly difficult recipes for pies and tarts. Whether I’m pressed for time or able to spend a few hours in the kitchen, this book has an array of sweet and …

Every now and then I get a cookbook that I not only love but also make one of my best kitchen friends. Among the members of this exclusive bunch is Nigella Lawson’s Feast (Hyperion, 2004). Similar to her first book How to Eat, Feast never fails to chase away my cooking blues or tantalize my taste buds. Possessing the tag lines “food to celebrate life” and “a feast for every reason,” Feast presents its recipes according to events. Halloween, Easter, New Year’s and Valentine’s Day all have sections as do weddings, funerals, breakfast, meatless dinners and midnight feasts. Lawson provides a little something for practically every occasion and includes her lively wit and humor with each recipe. Thumb through my copy of Feast and you’ll notice little scraps of paper scattered throughout the book. The first appears on page 44. Like the others that follow, this faded receipt indicates an exceptional dish, in this case for pink picante shrimp. Served as both an appetizer and an entree, Lawson’s paprika- and pink peppercorn-studded shrimp garner rave …

Come over for dinner more than a few times and you’re bound to re-experience my white chocolate-almond cake, strawberry yogurt pie and warm chocolate puddings. The reason for the repetition is pretty straightforward — I have about a dozen good desserts in my repertoire. If you’re in a similar position, I would suggest taking a glance at Bill Yosses’s and Melissa Clark’s The Perfect Finish (W.W. Norton and Co., 2010). You may recognize Yosses as the White House’s executive pastry chef and Clark as a food columnist for the New York Times. In The Perfect Finish the two culinary pros come together to share 80 exquisite, easy-to-make sweets. These are desserts that anyone would be happy to add to her collection. Organized according to occasion, the book begins with a section on muffins, scones, breads and pastries, foods that work perfectly for breakfast or brunch. Hence the chapter’s title, “Come for Brunch.” Cookies feature prominently in the next chapter, “Pick-Me-Ups.” Along with familiar favorites such as chocolate chip cookies and brownies, I found such uncommon …

Ask me to bake a cake and I can whip up something in a snap. Ask me to decorate that cake, to make it cute and whimsical, and I start to panic. As much as I love a bit of kitsch in the kitchen, I’m a disaster at making food fun. My smiley face pancakes will make you cry. Swan napkins? Complete ugly ducklings. Yet, somehow I’ve managed to recreate many of the adorable cupcakes featured in Karen Tack’s and Alan Richardson’s Hello Cupcake (Houghton Mifflin Company, 2008) and What’s New, Cupcake? (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010). Similar to its predecessor, What’s New, Cupcake? offers an assortment of clever but easy cupcake designs. Along with the ducks pictured on its cover, it provides steps for constructing dogs, squirrels, skunks, moose, flamingos, crocodiles, hippos, polar bears and walruses. Animals not your favorite? How about chrysanthemums, roses, apples, golf greens, badminton shuttlecocks, karaoke microphones and ants on a picnic? Follow Tack’s and Richardson’s concise instructions and you can craft any of these. Since I’m a sucker for Halloween, …

With grilling season in full swing I’m sharing another quality cookbook devoted to the barbecue. Back in April I had raved about Francis Mallman’s Seven Fires Grilling the Argentinian Way (Artisan, 2009). Today Steven Raichlen’s Barbecue Planet! (Workman, 2010) has captured my attention and my trusty Coleman. Covering six continents and 60 countries, Planet Barbecue! is aimed not only at globetrotting but also at curious cooks. Filled with color photos and over 300 global recipes, it provides a fascinating glimpse at how people around the world grill food. If you like to grill, you’ve probably encountered Steven Raichlen in one form or another. He hosts the PBS cooking series “Primal Grill with Steven Raichlen,” possesses a line of grill tools and seasonings, blogs about grilling and writes award-winning cookbooks on – what else – grilling. He’s been called ‘America’s grill expert.’ After reading and cooking from Planet Barbecue! I understand why. This is a highly comprehensive yet user-friendly book. Planet Barbecue! starts with a brief discourse on the discovery of fire and beginnings of barbecuing. …

As the weather grows warmer and the days longer, I start thinking about gardens. Because I’ve neither inherited nor developed a green thumb, I usually rely upon farmers’ markets and horticulturally-gifted friends for my garden-fresh produce. However, after reading and cooking from Nigel Slater’s Tender (Ten Speed Press, 2011), I’m tempted to give gardening another try. After all, if Slater can harvest runner beans, pumpkins and eggplants on his small, London terrace, surely I could learn to grow a tomato or two. In Tender the British food writer shares his experiences planting, cooking and consuming 29 different vegetables. He offers advice on seed selection, composting, humane pest control and gardening tools. Of course, he also discusses cooking techniques, explaining that asparagus needs only a quick steaming or boiling and raw celery root a splash of flavorful vinaigrette to make them great eating. The 400 or so recipes in Tender are straightforward but delightful nonetheless. Some, such as root vegetable korma, chowder of mussels and leeks, or salad of beans, peas and Pecorino, stand on their …

Whether you’re dusting off your grill as the weather warms or toughing it out and grilling year-round in snow, sleet and freezing rain, you’ll want to check out Francis Mallmann’s Seven Fires Grilling the Argentine Way (Artisan, 2009). Employing time-honored techniques, South America’s most celebrated chef shares how to grill, both expertly and easily, meats, seafood, vegetables, fruits and breads. Everything that I’ve wanted to know about good grilling I’ve found in Seven Fires. Mallmann’s seven fires are seven methods of wood-fired cooking. These consist of cooking in wood ovens (horno de barro), spits (asador), cast-iron grates (parilla), sheets (chapa) and kettles (caldero) as well as in embers (rescoldo) and extreme heat (infiernillo). Early in the book Mallmann details how to work with these seven fires. He also covers how to build and light wood fires and how to gauge cooking temperatures. In essence he takes all the guesswork out of grilling. Fundamentals finished, Seven Fires moves on to the meat of the cookbook — recipes. Although Argentinian cuisine strongly favors beef, Mallmann gives equal …

London chef and restaurateur Yotam Ottolenghi’s second cookbook Plenty (Ebury Press, 2010) was released in the U.S. last week but, thanks to a friend in Europe, I’ve had the pleasure of cooking from his colorful book since last fall. “Pleasure” remains the key word for, thus far, every recipe that I’ve tried has been a delight to make and eat. Inspired by the “New Vegetarian column” that Ottolenghi writes for London’s Guardian newspaper, Plenty focuses on vegetables and how to cook them in flavorful, creative ways. Many of the preparations are quite simple — roasting Jerusalem artichokes or poaching baby carrots doesn’t take a lot of time or effort. Yet, because of Ottolenghi’s thoughtful use of seasonings and inventive pairing of flavors, I end up with fabulous tasting vegetables. Plenty brims with close-up, full-page, color photographs of each dish. These beautiful photos not only illustrate but also inspire different takes on the proffered vegetables. One glance at the vibrant “tomato party” or “Tamara’s ratatouille” and I start thinking of additions and pairings for these recipes. …