Recent-ish Cookbooks

Last evening was a perfect winter night. There was a light dusting of snow and the air was crisp and still. I needed to pick up a book from the library and so I bundled up and headed downtown. I drove and parked by St. Mary's Church downtown. It is a fabulous location. I got out of my little car, which nestled between the massive (Romanesque Revival, to be precise) church and Washington Square Park. Moonlight streamed serenely as I looked at the charming little waterwheel fountain in the church grounds. To the north, in dramatic contrast to the august ambience of St Mary's you will find our dapper whipper-snapper, the Bausch and Lomb building. I love how Rochester has all these different styles of architecture living next to each other!

I stepped into the cozy warmth of the library and found my book. I was about to head out when 'Once upon a Tart' caught my eye. I remembered coming across the book almost a year ago. I had enjoyed it very much. It is stylish and whats more, the recipes work beautifully! The writing is fun too, no frills, kinda masculine and yet with loving attention to detail!

One of my favorites is the apple batter cake. It turned out flavorful and satisfying, in a rustic, charming sort of way. Clearly Frank Mentesana and Jerome Audureau love what they do and they're very good at it.


Also came upon Gale Gand's 'Short and Sweet'. Wouldn't this be great theme for a blogging event! The book is well-laid out and interestingly enough, organized by the time it takes to make/bake the recipes. Its a pretty eclectic collection and includes a section about baking with kids :-) My favorite recipe from this one is passionfruit mousse. Turned out very good - tart, luscious and exotic!