Rice pasta couscous : the heart of the Mediterranean kitchen
Jeff Koehler.
San Francisco, Calif. : Chronicle Books LLC, 2009.
At the heart of Mediterranean cuisine lies a trio of traditional staples: rice, pasta, and couscous. Join the author as he travels from Morocco to Syria to Italy to Spain, discovering such delectable treats as Classic Seven Vegetable Couscous and Handmade Tagliatelle with Fresh White Truffles. Along the way he tells fascinating stories of the food artisans he meets and cooks with. He prepares couscous in Algiers with Sid Ali Lahlou, the world's only commercial manufacturer of hand-rolled grains, while in Tuscany his six-year-old daughter accompanies him to a master class in making fresh pasta. 100 gorgeous photos of the dishes, ingredients, faces, and places show what it's like to live and travel in this special area of the world, and reveal how rice, pasta, and couscous have become an integral part of Mediterranean culture and today's family table.
How to make, serve and eat pasta : the complete step-by-step guide to making pasta, with 40 classic recipes shown in 500 stunning photographs
Jeni Wright.
London : Southwater, c2009.
More than just a cookbook, this is a comprehensive guide to pasta, from selecting and making the many varieties to serving perfect dishes every time. An introduction gives the history of pasta. There is an illustrated identification guide to the huge range of fresh and dried pastas, information on the main ingredients used in classic pasta sauces, essential equipment for making your own pasta, and guidelines on cooking and presenting pasta. The recipe section includes more than 30 delicious dishes using both fresh and dried pasta - so there's something to suit any occasion. Each recipe is accompanied by helpful step-by-step photographs and a picture of the finished dish, making it easy to achieve perfect results.
Giuliano Hazan's thirty minute pasta : 100 quick and easy recipes
Giuliano Hazan ; photographs by Joseph De Leo.
New York : Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2009.
Now that America’s low-carb obsession is over, home cooks are once again looking to prepare well-balanced meals that include everyone’s favorite food—pasta. Few of us, though, have the leisure to create a classic Bolognese meat sauce from scratch. For those who are as pressed for time as they arestarvedfor a toothsome bowl of beautifully sauced pasta, Giuliano Hazan has created 100 scrumptious pasta dishes that can be put together in half an hour or less.nbsp; Hazan’s repertoire—hearty pasta soups, fresh-from-the-greenmarket vegetarian dishes, and meat and seafood sauces that take their cue from the classics of Italian cuisine—will let you bring healthful, hunger-satisfying pasta back to your family’s weeknight-supper table. Included are recipes for last-minute dishes, as well as useful advice on stocking your pasta pantry, choosing cooking equipment, and figuring out which pasta shape goes with which kind of sauce.
250 true Italian pasta dishes : easy & authentic recipes : inspired by Quartino ristorante, pizzeria, wine bar
John Coletta with Nancy Ross Ryan.
Toronto : R. Rose, 2009.
Packed with professional tips and techniques, "250 True Italian Pasta Dishes" presents pasta as it was meant to be prepared and enjoyed. Chef Colletta provides key instructions, skills, and great recipes for authentic Italian pasta dishes, each carefully tested.
Flavored pastas, while used by gourmet cooks, are also a way for the at home cook to easily put an interesting meal on the table. These tasty, colorful pastas can be found at farmer's markets, crafts fairs, specialty stores, the Internet, and even some restaurants.
Flavored pasta is available in dried form as well as fresh and in a range of shapes and sizes. It can be made using any kind of pasta dough, from egg to egg-free whole wheat.
Flavors include fairly straightforward ones, such as toasted onion or garlic parsley, but also include more complex combinations, like carrot, chives and dill, and move on to challenging combinations that get away from pasta's Italian roots and into today's fusion cuisine. There are Asian combinations, such as ginger, garlic, cilantro, cayenne and leek; Caribbean flavors incorporating fruit; and Southwestern combinations with chili peppers and different varieties of corn.
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More pasta flavors
Lemon pepper Pumpkin spice Curry Whole wheat Artichoke |
While all these flavors invite experimentation, they can also present a challenge to uncertain cooks who just want to follow a recipe. Most basic cookbooks do not include recipes that take into account an impulse purchase of squid-flavored pasta. But many suppliers also provide recipes for their products, and recipes can cover a variety of dishes: entrées, chilled salads, and even dessert.
Dark chocolate pasta underlying a sauce made from fresh blackberries or other fruit lightly sautéed in butter with a bit of sugar and a dollop of sherry makes a simple but sublime dessert.
Article by: St. Louis Public Library staff
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