Americans are drinking more alcoholic beverages than ever, andalmost 30 percent of tipplers name wine as their drink of choice.Recent studies have touted the health benefits of wine-drinking. Sowhy is wine so intimidating? The sheer numbers and types of wines?The wine snobs with their arcane terminology? The French with theirinsufferable Frenchiness? Demystifying oenophilia and offering more than a few laughs alongthe way, Jennifer Rosen’s THE CORK JESTER?’S GUIDE TO WINE is acollection of fast, funny anecdotes and informative lessons sure toentertain both the vintage idiot and the savvy sipper. In the book’s introduction, Rosen offers a typically frankexplanation of her approach: "A wise winemaker told me, ‘Drinkingwine with a sommelier is like making love to a gynecologist: it’sbetter if they don?’t tell you everything they know.’ Instead, Ioffer a series of bite-sized stories; Trojan horses filled withfacts programmed to infiltrate and lodge in your brain, with noeffort on

What's the secret to making foolproof friands? How do you bakethe perfect piped cookie dough pinwheel? And what puts the snap inthe very best ginger snaps? Find out in "Field Guide to Cookies", ahandy pocket reference to more than 100 cookie recipes, completewith the fascinating historical background (the first known recipefor brownies was published in the 1897 Sears, Roebuck Catalogue),season (April 9 is Chinese Almond Cookie Day), and helpful bakingnotes for each delicious variety, from traditional favourites tomore exotic concoctions from all over the world. Including drop,bar, piped, rolled, puffed, sandwich, savoury, and mouldedvarieties, every cookie is illustrated in glorious full colour,with step-by-step instructions on how to prepare, bake, serve, andstore your creations. Gooey, delicious, home-baked confections arejust minutes away with "Field Guide to Cookies" in your pantry!

Kathleen Daelemans's inspiring story is familiar to millionsof readers and TV viewers. After creating a new cuisine for one ofthe world's most luxurious spas, the Grand Wailea, in Maui, Hawaii,she earned rave reviews from the New York Times, Bon Apptit, theLos Angeles Times, and Esquire. In the process, she herself lost 75pounds, dropping all the way down from a size 22 to a trim and fitsize 8. Now she tells how she did it, sharing tips and favoriterecipes for her outrageously delicious food. Kathleen, who is afrequent contributor to NBC's Today Show, is also the author ofGetting Thin and Loving Food!

Now in paperback–the debut cookbook from the beloved Italiancook, restaurateur, and public television personality. Lidia Bastianich is famous for her Italian-American cooking, butthis cookbook–her first–captures the distinctive cuisine of hernative Istria, located on Italy’s northeastern Adriatic coast nearthe border of the former Yugoslavia. This book is also her mostpersonal; in addition to the recipes, she has included numerouspersonal stories, memories, and photographs from herchildhood. With La Cucina di Lidia, you can savor antipasti such as Polentawith Fontina and Mushrooms or Shrimp and Mixed Bean Salad. Rice andpastas include Plum Gnocchi, Risotto with Squash Blossoms, andZucchini and Tagliatelle with Leek Sauce. Entrées feature fish(Swordfish in Sweet and Sour Sauce), fowl (Roast Chicken withRosemary and Orange), meat (Stuffed Breast of Veal), and game (DuckRoasted with Sauerkraut). Desserts range from Chocolate ZabaglioneCake to Apple-Custard Tart. Here is an Itali

Celebrated French chef Pierre Gagnaire offers 175 classicand yet refined recipes for everyday and special occasions, fromlazy brunches to midnight feasts. Revered for pushing theboundaries of taste and texture, Gagnaire transforms old favoriteswith a twist of originality in recipes designed for the casualcook. Four chapters include ideas for mealtimes and entertaining,from French Toast and Lemon-Rhubarb Marmalade to GrilledLine-Caught Bass to Bell Pepper Cocktails or Raspberries withParmesan. The creative recipes of this master chef will expand therepertoire of the home cook—novice or accomplished—and provide afresh, new home-dining experience

Go ahead. Get passionate about the food you eat. You don’t have to hide it. You can love food and lose weight atthe same time! The secret, which you’ll learn about in Love Foodand Live Well, is to know when to have carrot cake and when it’stime for just a carrot. For most dieters, food is the daunting factor that trips up ourbest intentions to lose weight and get fit. Let Chantel Hobbs teachyou that food is not the enemy! It’s our attitudes toward it thatdefeat us. Losing weight does not require being deprived of thefoods you love and being forced to eat boring, tasteless meals, andleft feeling hungry most of the time. Turn food into your ally byfollowing Chantel’s 80/20 rule: A full 20 percent of the time,splurge on the foods you love and incorporate them intocelebrations and social occasions. The remaining 80 percent of thetime, choose food on the basis of delivering maximum fuel for yourbody and ultimate health. Simply by having freedom in what you eat,you can train yourself in

The daughter of a British Foreign Service officer, MoiraHodgson spent her childhood in many a strange and exotic land. Shediscovered American food in Saigon, ate wild boar in Berlin, andlearned how to prepare potatoes from her eccentric Irishgrandmother. Today, Hodgson has a well-deserved reputation as adiscerning critic whose columns in the New York Observer were devoured by dedicated food lovers for two decades. A delightful memoir of meals from around the world—completewith recipes— It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time reflectsHodgson’s talent for connecting her love of food and travel withthe people and places in her life. Whether she’s dining on Moroccan mechoui , a whole lamb baked for a day over coals, orstruggling to entertain in a tiny Greenwich Village apartment, herreminiscences are always a treat.

Why do we overeat time and time again? Why do we make poordiet choices while we want to be healthy? What makes losing weightso difficult? These and many other vital questions are addressed in 12 Steps to Raw Foods in an open and sincere dialogue. Basedon the latest scientific research, Victoria Boutenko explains thenumerous benefits of choosing a diet of fresh rather than cookedfoods. This book contains self-tests and questionnaires that helpthe reader to determine if they have hidden eating patterns thatundermine their health. Using examples from life, the authorexplores the most common reasons for people to make unhealthyeating choices. Rather than simply praising the benefits of raw foods, this bookoffers helpful tips and coping techniques to form and maintain new,healthy patterns. Learn how to make a raw food restaurant card thatmakes dining with co-workers easy and enjoyable. Discover threemagic sentences that enable you to refuse your mother-in-law’sapple pie without offending her. Find out how to

In this completely updated and expanded edition of herinternational bestseller, Jancis Robinson, one of the world's mostrespected wine authorities, offers an engaging introduction to theenjoyment of wine.