Welcome to the book buffet

Each fall a fresh crop of Canadian cookbooks are produced in time for the big gift-giving season. Despite the economic gloom, there is much to appreciate in our vast country and it has been a productive and bountiful year for cookbook authors. All but one of the books on this page feature homegrown talent.

A Taste of Canada, A Culinary Journey by Rose Murray (Whitecap Books $35):
This volume shows us just how distinctive Canada cuisine really is and how our land, climate and people shape it.

With beautiful food and landscape photography, it is much more than a cookbook. It is historical, anecdotal, a travelogue and a wonderful read. Here is a lovely coffee table book that will also make it to the kitchen — often.

Crème Brûlée: More Than 50 Decadent Recipes by Dominique and Cindy Duby (Whitecap Books $20):  
This is an extensive single subject book as it explores the history of crème brûlée; the science of making of crème brûlée; basic ingredients and equipment requirements; the cooking process; sweet and savoury alternatives; and wine pairings. 

The Dubys are chocolatiers, chefs, and founders and owners of the acclaimed chocolate atelier and virtual boutique Wild Sweets. If your recipient has a sense of adventure (and humour), give this with a bag of sugar and a mini blowtorch.  

Menus for an Orchard Table, Celebrating the Food & Wine of the Okanagan by Heidi Noble (Whitecap Books, $35):
This book is a collection of seasonal recipes from Joie Wines and Farm Cooking School’s renowned outdoor orchard dinners. The recipes are divided into the courses and matched with regional wines.  

The Main: Recipes by Anthony Sedlak (Whitecap Books, $30):
This release is the accompanying book to the same named show on the Food Network.

Sedlak chooses one ingredient as the focus for a variety of dishes and creates dinner menus around it. Timing is everything when planning and executing a dinner, so the timing tips for the 45 menus is helpful.
 
In the Kitchen with Anna: New Ways with the Classics, by Anna Olson (Whitecap Books, $30):
Like the one before, this book also accompanies Olson’s latest Food Network series, providing refreshing takes on dishes that have stood the test of time. Whether improving the nutritional value of a dish or finding faster ways to create the same flavours, the classics are reinvented with home kitchens in mind.

Friday Night Dinners by Bonnie Stern (Random House Canada, $50):
This is the latest cookbook by this well-known Canadian cooking teacher and author. Bonnie celebrates Friday night dinner as the way to start the weekend with menus for every season and occasion, holidays, barbecues, fast suppers and feasts. Bonnie’s son Mark took the photographs, providing a very rustic, homey feel, just right for dinners for family and friends.