Monday, January 26, 2009

Mexican Delights or Great Indian Feasts

Mexican Delights: A Treasury of Favorite Mexican Recipes

Author: Dorothy K Hilburn

Explore culinary fare from many different regions of Mexico with over 190 recipes. Includes wonderful spices and ingredients for the Mexican kitchen.



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Great Indian Feasts: 150 Wonderful, Simple Recipes for Every Festive Occasion

Author: Mridula Baljekar

In this sumptuous collection of Indian recipes, Mridula Baljekar (Secrets from an Indian Kitchen) offers an original twist on cooking for festive occasions.

Everyone loves a celebration, and with great celebrations come great food. In her marvelous new book, Indian chef Mridula Baljekar brings her own unique touch to food for all kinds of festivities. For the traditional Indian feasts of Diwali, Eid-Ul-Fitre, Hohiri, and Baisakhi, she has produced original and delicious recipes for each occasion. For the Christian feast days of Christmas and Easter, she has added an Indian twist to more traditional dishes. All are carefully planned and surprisingly simple to make, including Channa Dhal with Coconut; Spiced Spring Lamb Roast; Fruity Hot Cross Buns; Spiced Mustard Greens; Pilau Rice with Mini Meatballs; and Marinated Spiced Turkey. Whatever the occasion, Great Indian Feasts has the perfect dish to make it more special. Mridula Baljekar is the author of many cookbooks, including Real Fast Indian Food and Curry Lover's Cookbook.

Publishers Weekly

With its descriptions of the customs surrounding each major festival, this cookbook is as much a cultural education as it is a recipe collection. Baljekar, the U.K.'s answer to Madhur Jaffrey (she has numerous bestsellers to her name, as well as a television show and restaurant), arranges 150 flavorful recipes by festival and touches on all the important Indian holidays, including Diwali, Eid-Ul-Fitre and Christmas, representing the country's main religions of Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. Readers will be hard-pressed to find most of these dishes at any Indian restaurant; while the foods use common Indian spices like cumin and coriander, the collection offers a good opportunity to explore some of India's lesser known dishes, such as Lentil Fritters with Chilli, Ginger and Curry Leaves, served during the South Indian festival of Pongal; and Fragrant Pigeon Peas with Seasonal Vegetables, made during Durga Puja. Baljekar's interpretation of Indian Christmas is notable for its uniqueness; she features dishes like Stuffed Breasts of Chicken in Almond Sauce, and Garlic and Rosemary Naan with Truffle Oil. Alas, the book's subtitle is misleading: these recipes are laborious and require numerous ingredients. But for grand occasions when readers want to impress with uncommon food, Baljekar's book fits the bill. (May 15) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

The owner of a popular Indian restaurant just outside of London, Baljekar has also written a number of other cookbooks and hosted several British television series. Here, she presents recipes that celebrate the major Indian festivals, along with dishes for Easter and Christmas (including a contemporary Indian menu for Christmas from her restaurant). Many of the recipes feature long ingredients lists (and many Britishisms), and some of them are rather complicated. However, these are generally special-occasion dishes, and Baljekar serves up recipes not found in standard Indian cookbooks. She also provides background on the festivals and a glossary of ingredients, and there are color photographs throughout. For most subject collections. Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.



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