FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Restaurant recipes to test at home
By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor
In this continuing series on fall cookbook releases, three from restaurants:
"El Charro Cafe Cookbook" by Jane and Michael Stern with Carlotta Flores; Rutledge Hill Press, hardback, $19.99.
Recipes from the oldest family-run Mexican restaurant in the United States; a fourth-generation operation in Tucson, Ariz.
Pluses: Written, tested and researched by the "Roadfood" team of Jane and Michael Stern; they know their stuff. Recipes confined to one page or facing pages. Large, easy-to-read type. Restaurant has a commitment to low-fat, healthful foods. Recipes straightforward and doable.
Down side: Some ingredients may be hard to find here and some dishes time-consuming.
"The Blue Willow Inn Cookbook" by Jane and Michael Stern with Louis and Billie Van Dyke; Rutledge Hill Press, hardback, $19.99.
Another in the "Roadfood" series (see above), on the eatery voted "Best Small-Town Restaurant in the South" by Southern Living magazine.
Pluses: Same, easy-to-use format as above. Tested recipes, some of which made me just laugh out loud at the unabashed Southern attachment to fat, salt, sugar and prepared ingredients ("Dirt Cake" made with whipped topping, Oreos and cherry pie filling; a pineapple casserole made with Ritz crackers). You'll find all the Southern standards here.
Down side: Not for the health-conscious.
"The Zuni Cafe Cookbook" by Judy Rodgers; Norton, hardback, $35; subtitled "A Compendium of Recipes & Cooking Lessons from San Francisco's Beloved Restaurant."
Pluses: From the chef of the Bay City culinary mecca, a book that embodies her philosophy as well as her recipes. This beautiful book with its heavy, creamy paper and gorgeous photographs is big — both literally and figuratively. It's aimed at the serious student or the afficionado of food literature who appreciates rambling and detailed essays on exactly how to wash and dress a salad, for example. Zuni is a very eclectic restaurant with many Mediterranean, French and some Middle Eastern touches.
Down side: For some, this is just too much information.
More cookbooks next week.
