If you have someone on your list who is a fan of some of Vancouver\u2019s top restaurants, you can always choose from three new books, \u2018C Food\u2019 from C Restaurant, and a pair from the two Top Table Restaurant Group stalwarts Araxi and Blue Water. Last year Top Table put out a cookbook from West, one of my favourites is Vij\u2019s, and the one that Rob Feenie did a few years ago when he was still at Lumiere stands the test of time.<\/p>\n Really neat new idea I saw at Barbara-jo\u2019s Books to Cooks yesterday. A series of three little books, each one called Cook the Hood, one each featuring the restaurants, food businesses and food security agencies from the neighbourhoods of Commercial Drive, Kitsilano and the West End. There are little profiles of the businesses and restaurants and some of their favourite recipes, so for example from La Grotta Del Formaggio you get a great recipe for Ricotta and Spinach Cannelloni. Proceeds from the sales of each book go to the local food security agencies. Just $12 each.<\/p>\n Mark Bittman: How to Cook Everything, or The Best Recipes in the World Bread Books: Two of the most popular this year are Artisan Breads Every Day by Peter Reinhart, and My Bread by Jim Lahey, \u2018No Work No Knead Method\u2019. You bake his breads in a pot. Preferably cast iron or enamelled steel. Those are for the person who has a few hours on their hands every week. I used to bake bread every week when I lived in Prince Rupert and once you do the initial labour of mixing the ingredients together the rest is easy. Links to Top Cookbook Lists of 2009<\/p>\n Serious Eats<\/a><\/p>\n The Independent<\/a><\/p>\n Holiday Books – The New York Times<\/a><\/p>\n NY Times – 25 More Cookbooks<\/a><\/p>\n Epicurious<\/a><\/p>\n NPR: Best Cookbooks of 2009<\/a><\/p>\n Kiwee 2 in 1 Kiwi tool Chef\u2019n Cuisinart Electric Spice & nut Grinder Tomato Saver Fox Run Muffin Baking Cups Cupcake Creations Cupcake on the Go Cuisipro Decorating Pen Kitchen Basics Silicone Oven Mitts Asstd colors Ove Glove I also like the line of mitts called \u2018The Ove Glove\u2019, available at Canadian Tire and Home Hardware. These are fully fingered gloves you slide on that are made of space age materials Nomex and Kevlar to protect you up to almost 500 degrees F and they also have silicon grip strips on the outside so nothing should slip out of your grasp. A little more expensive at $19.99 each<\/p>\n OXO Good Grips \u201cTOP\u201d Containers $3.98 – $12.98<\/p>\n Rouge O 2 Electronic Wine Breather The Perfect Cube Ice Tray Ice Orb Fusionbrand Messermeister Peelers Asstd Straight, Serrated, Julienne Edges New Breville Variable Temperature Kettle This is for die-hard French Fry lovers whose doctors have told them they have to cut down on the grease. This is a hot air cooker that rotates your fries in a non-stick drum. You can cook a whole kilo of fries with only 1 tablespoon of oil. <\/p>\n Pros: much lighter in fat \u2018fried\u2019 foods that are still crispy, can use to \u2018stir-fry\u2019 other kinds of foods like chicken wings or drumsticks, or even stews.<\/p>\n Cons: Relatively noisy if you don\u2019t have other sounds going on in the kitchen. It\u2019s slow. 1 kilo of fries takes about half an hour to cook.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Food Gifts:<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes to food gifts\u2026you should have already made them! I made all kinds of jams, jellies and preserves this summer, so I can just go into my pantry and come up with an amazing array of goodies to add to a gift basket.<\/p>\n But, if you don\u2019t have that kind of stuff on hand, you might want to try your local craft fair or winter farmers market. Or the Holiday Market <\/a>that is on this Saturday, Dec. 12th, in Vancouver at the Croatian Cultural Centre on Commercial Drive.<\/p>\n Chocolate is always a safe bet, but please buy good quality chocolate. <\/p>\n When making up a gift basket, go with the looks more than the quantity. Don\u2019t use a basket! Use a funky looking colander, an old pot you can dress up, anything that will look a little more unusual. Cheese boards or Charcuterie Boards are hot this year, try finding those from a local artisan, and then for gifts which are meant to be opened and\/or consumed the day you deliver them, load them up with nice meats, cheeses and the accompaniments like dried fruits and nuts, grapes, compotes and mustards. <\/p>\n I will be talking about more gadgets on Friday at 8:20am on CBC Radio One's The Early Edition with Rick Cluff. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Here are my notes from the program airing on CBC Radio's BC Almanac today: Books - large crop of cookbooks for this year Our favourite stars from Canada\u2019s Food Network have books out this holiday season, including The Best of … Continue reading ![\"Fresh](\"\/images\/old\/6a00d8341f728c53ef012876311697970c-800wi.jpg\")
<\/a> Our favourite stars from Canada\u2019s Food Network have books out this holiday season, including The Best of Chef at Home, by gentle giant Michael Smith.
Anna Olson \u2013 Fresh \u2013 Seasonally Inspired Recipes
Ricardo \u2013 Meals for Every Occasion and
Laura Calder French Taste \u2013 Elegant Everyday Eating<\/p>\n<\/a>If you\u2019re looking for a good overall cookbook to give as a gift that will stay in the family for years, or even act as a doorstop, there are a few I recommend:<\/p>\n
Delia Smith\u2019s Delia\u2019s Complete How To Cook
And for anyone who regrets the demise of Gourmet Magazine, there is a huge new cookbook out from the editors of Gourmet called Gourmet Today, Over 1000 Recipes for How We Cook Today. You know these recipes are going to cook because they all have been extensively tested over the years in the Gourmet Test Kitchen…may it rest in peace!
Anything by Julia Child is hot this year, owing to the popularity of the movie Julie and Julia with Meryl Streep doing an amazing job portraying Julia. The movie is now out on DVD, but so are a lot of Julia\u2019s old TV cooking shows and I really recommend the autobiography Julia wrote with her nephew\u2019s help called My Life in France. This book details one of the most amazing parts of her life when she lived in France for the first time and her struggles to help write and publish that magnificent tome, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It\u2019s a an amazing, amusing read. <\/p>\n<\/a> If you are looking to lead a more sustainable food life in 2010, you will find more books on this subject than ever before. Your textbook is Michael Pollan\u2019s In Defense of Food, in which he tells us to Eat Food, Not Too Much, Mostly Plants, and a cookbook or plan for eating to carry out Pollan\u2019s philosophy as well as that from some of his contemporaries is Mark Bittman\u2019s Food Matters. You might also want to try Clean Food, by Terry Walters, more than 200 recipes that give you \u2018A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source\u2019. As soon as I opened this one I discovered several bean recipes I wanted to make, and if you ask my wife she will tell you that in general I am not a fan of bean-based recipes! But who could ignore White Bean Salad with Roasted Tomatoes and Arugula, or Cucumber, Mango and Chickpea Salad. There is also the Ethical Gourmet, pictured here, by Jay Weinstein.<\/p>\n
One more book for Wine Lovers: Tony Aspler\u2019s Cellar Book. This is a great guide not only to how to construct a wine cellar, everything from a simple box to elaborate environmentally controlled renovations that cost thousands, but also how to go about stocking it. Only problem for me is that wines don\u2019t stick around long enough to be \u2018cellared\u2019. <\/p>\n<\/a><\/span>Gadgets: <\/span> All of these are available at the listed prices at Ming Wo Cookware at 23 East Pender Street in Vancouver\u2019s Chinatown with the exception of the Ove-Glove and the T-Fal ActiFry.<\/p>\n
Use the serrated edge to slice the kiwi open,
And insert the scooping edge to remove your kiwi flesh.
Secure rubber grip, no invasive cutting edge. Dishwashersafe
$5.98<\/p>\n
Designed to grind dry spices, nuts and seeds.
From flax seeds, spelt, cloves and dried herbs
Grind to a fine consistency in a matter of seconds. Simply lock bowl into place and place lid on and press down to begin grinding. Stainless base and bowl
Spec $44.99<\/p>\n
No more Saran Wrap, protects tomato from other containers in fridge.
Simple to use, just screw top on and keep tomato safe.
Looks like a tomato too
$5.50 <\/p>\n
No Muffin Pans required
Eco friendly, foodsafe, heavy duty Paper baking cups
Just simply place the baking cups onto a cookie sheet
And fill \u00bd full of your favorite recipe.
Oven, microwave and freezer safe
Available in muffin, jumbo muffin and muffin top sizes
Made in Sweden
$4.98 – $5.98 pkg <\/p>\n
Individual Cupcake Keepers
Simply twist the top off and place your iced cupcake
In it for safe transporting.
Great for lunchpacks and snacks.
$3.98 Each<\/p>\n
Decorating Pen that quickly and easily dresses up desserts and
beverages with professional results. Option for fine or thick line
Simply pull up the plunger top to fill with sauces like chocolate,
Berry, honey or icing. Simply write like a pen and gently squeeze the pliable silicone body
to decorate. Great fun for everyone, even a child can use it
Spec $9.49<\/p>\n
Heat resistant 220\u2019C \/ 425\u2019F Lined with polyester fibre
Spec $12.99 EACH<\/p>\n
Secure seal keeps food and leftovers fresh and prevents liquids from leaking even during transports.
Unique lid seals with one motion just lift the white frame to open
Airtight, watertight, leakproof seals
Freezer,microwave, dishwasher, foodsafe
Top containers stack efficiently to keep refrigerator and shelves organized. BPA free<\/p>\n
Unexpected guests, forgot to decant the wine, or simply need another bottle of wine. The Rouge O2 Is the perfect solution.
Aerate your wine in 60 seconds. Reduces Breathing time from
1 hour to under 60 seconds in a controlled process.
Bubbling air passes thru the wine releasing its full bouquet and flavor.
Runs on 2 triple A batteries which can be used on over 230 bottles
It has an automatic mechanism to ensure correct breathing time
Approved by the Wine Industry. Simple to use.
Spec $29.99<\/p>\n
No more broken shards of ice, cubes pop out perfectly
In a Perfect square shape, Food grade silicone, dishwashersafe
S\/2 for $21.98<\/p>\n
Make it \/ chill it \/ serve it \/ store it.
Serves as a cooler for dips, ice cream, salad, chills wine, champagne
and other beverages. Makes 21 cubes of ice, stores 51 in total
$19.98<\/p>\n
Bright colors, one for each edge, Green, Red, Orange
Spec $7.99<\/p>\n
Cuisipro Stainless Cookware
Tri ply bonding : S\/S interior, magnetic stainless exterior bonded to pure aluminum centre core
Suitable for all cooking surfaces, including induction
Ovensafe up to 260\u2019C \/ 500\u2019F
Quick read measure inside of pots.
Elongated hollow handles stay cool to the touch during stovetop use. Ease of handling when pans are full.
Starting at $69.99 for Try me pieces<\/p>\n
1.8 L Stainless Kettle with a \u201cHOLD TEMP\u201d function.
Take the guesswork out of making tea and coffee
Different teas require different infusion temperatures to bring out their optimum flavor and aroma. Pre-set temperatures with audible alerts
ensures the finest tasting tea with minimum effort.
5 preset brewing temperatures
Spec $119.99<\/p>\n<\/a> T-Fal ActiFry
$299.99<\/p>\n