technique

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	SOUS–VIDE CUISINE Joan Roca and Salvador Brugués English edition published by Montagud Editores, H/B around $200 can be purchased in Australia off the shelf at Ecotel or you will need to order it from your favourite book seller Sous–Vide is nothing new. In fact it has been in use for 30 years with average degrees of success until the last eight years. Stretching the idea, adding lower temperature cooking has led to incredible advances in recent years. This is a brilliant book fully explaining the Sous–Vide (bag cooking) method and will be of great interest to the professional cook or anyone who has bought a home vac machine. This is the future of cooking and the results when properly executed are unbelievably good (as well as idiot proof). For home cooks who are unlikely to have accurately controlled temperature water tanks use a pot of water, get it to the desired temperature on your stove-top, then keep it in the oven at the same temperature to do the cooking. A very good book and one of the things we most appreciated was good discussion as to what can go wrong. Information of this type can save so much time (and money).
	Preserving the Italian Way A collection of old-style Casalinga Italian recipes assembled by Pietro Demaio Published by Memoirs Foundation Inc. (Australia), P/B This is a book to cherish for the generosity of people who have given their recipes. It takes the full gambit from preserving in oil and vinegar, salt and sunshine right through to making use of the last of the pig fat in soap. Preserving the Italian Way chronicles the old methods for current, and future generations. There is some very useful information that can be put to good use in commercial kitchens determined to do their own thing including a cheese section. This book goes to the depth of wine making and most interesting are the liqueurs that are so common especially in the north of Italy. If you are Australian looking for the high volume alcohol to make some of the recipes them try Sydney’s Chef’s Warehouse +61 02 9211 4555 where they have Marc at 60% alcohol at very reasonable prices.
	Desserts a Lifelong Passion Michel Roux photographs Martin Brigdale Published by Conran Octopus H/B $69.95 True we seem to be dredging the past for cookbooks, but the fact is these are books remain for ever popular and always in print for a single reason, recipes that work. Michel Roux is a master recipe writer and his desserts are legendary for their elegance, flavour and technique. Add Martin Brigdale’s superb photography to fantastic content and this makes Roux’s Desserts one of my favourites. The book contains most of the classic techniques and whilst presentation might seem a little dated this books give the foundation for most dessert recipes. Everything works — miracolo!
	LAROUSSE GASTRONOMIQUE The World’s greatest cookery encyclopedia Published by Hamlyn, H/B $148.99 Do you ever wonder which books you would keep if you has to choose just 10. My top picks would be Mastering the Art of French Pastry and Larousse Gastronomique. In 30 years of cooking neither have failed (ever) and my five editions of Larousse are treasured more than most of the old books in my library. This new edition is somewhat modernised and brings into it old ingredients reintroduced into the modern French kitchen and new ingredients that have more recently been taken up by modern French chefs. This is the book you buy anyone with a serious interest in food who is just starting to collect books and explore cuisines. Most importantly unlike so many modern books of text book proportions the recipes work. As professional cooks we love the fact the no stone remains unturned in the French kitchen from bread to charcuterie to their fabulous dessert kitchen and the dozens of different types of pastries. Larousse is available in paper back, but it is a book to pass to another generation and saving for the hard copy is well worth it. We love this book — it is a book to treasure!
	Mastering the Art of French Pastry An Illustrated Course Bruce Healy & Paul Bugat With drawings by Paul Bugat and photographs by Pierre Ginet Published by Barron’s, out of print and worth any money you can get a copy for This is a book that is never lent, my most precious book. Even more precious than my first edition Larousse. Over the years it has been the bible of pastry and cake cooking valued for its technical explanations like no other book on the subject. Out of print for some time second hand copies can be purchased from Amazon and to show the respect with which this book is held it still sells for around $60 AUD. The images will appear old fashioned but the content remains as useful today as when it was first published and purchased in 84. Whilst supporting local booksellers is vital to their survival when it comes to out of print books the net becomes invaluable.
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ON FOOD AND COOKING, Science and the lore of the kitchen (latest edition 2004)
THE CURIOUS COOK – more kitchen science and lore (1992)
MCGEE ON FOOD AND COOKING (2004) Harold McGee

Few books are more useful to the professional or the curious cook and they are books found in most kitchens with a library. Why a copper bowl for egg whites, why chocolate blooms, why an artichoke should be cooked and eaten unless its pickled. These are not academic books, too intellectual for the average person to understand, they are succinct, well written and the answer to most questions one ever wanted to know about cooking, with an indexing system that doesn’t mean to need to be a rocket scientist to find what you want to know. McGee explains how things work, why they won’t. The curious cook addresses ices, the amount of sugar for particular fruits – very handy information for the professional cook, let alone a god send for the home cook with a glut of fruit and no inspiration. There are fabulous sections about persimmons, Fat and the heart, is probably the only piece of text about that subject that actually looks at the history of fat in our diet, and Food and Cancer are thoughtful and provocative. How many questions, how many answers do these wonderful books give us.
To show that McGee has a sense of humour, his first book Science and the lore of the kitchen even tackles the subject of drunkenness and hangovers. Most professional cooks would have an interest in that topic, but more useful are the chapters about honey, glucose and fructose. Academic science can be dull and threatening to the average punter, but mixed with history, anecdotes and forthright common sense explanations these are invaluable resources for professional and domestic chefs.
On Food and Cooking rates with Mastering the art of French Patisserie for me; two books that I would not cook without!

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