The Food Lover's Guide to Chocolate and Vanilla - Hardcover

Do you crave chocolate? Swoon at the scent of vanilla? Whether you love one or both, Sharon Tyler Herbst's succinctly informative study of the pair will delight you. The history of each along with descriptions of how vanilla beans and cocoa are cultivated and processed into sublime edibles are intriguing. Herbst briefs you on all the forms chocolate and vanilla take, then moves on to recipes for dishes made with each and with both. These 40 recipes are seductive, sumptuous and mostly simple. Nearly all are over the top for sheer hedonism, including Chocolate Whipped Cream, Vanilla Curd (like lemon curd but oh, my!) and Black Magic Mousse. Herbst includes generous amounts of useful cooking information such as how to beat egg whites or to select and handle fresh berries.

Herbst, the author of several cookbooks and food-related titles (e.g., A Food Lover's Tiptionary, LJ 3/15/94), appears regularly on Good Morning America to offer her kitchen tips. In these two titles, the first of a new series, she offers recipes and information on that favorite all-American combo, meat and potatoes, and on two favorite dessert flavorings, whether on their own or together. Not surprisingly, each book is filled with valuable tip boxes and the type of useful culinary facts that are her expertise. The introduction to meat is particularly good, covering buying, storing, and cooking techniques. And her recipes are good too. She describes her desserts as "seriously indulgent," and most are delectable, from Black Magic Mousse to Dream Cream. Meat and potato choices include Plum Crazy Pork Chops and Spiced-Twice Potato Hash. While each book includes only 35 recipes, the series is based on an appealing concept, and these titles seem likely to be popular.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.