Reading Room

This week's Reading Room will put a smile on the faces of anyone who loves to eat and cook. Cut out the coupon (available only in the newspaper) to enjoy 25% discount, on the featured books, at Kinokuniya Bookstore.

Food, glorious food

Classic Stars Desserts
Author: Emily Luchetti
Publisher: Chronicle Books, 312 pages 

EMILY Luchetti is the executive pastry chef at Farallon Restaurant in San Francisco and author of a number of best-selling dessert cook books, including the sadly out-of-print Stars' Desserts and Four Star Desserts. However, Classic Stars Desserts compiles 150 recipes from the latter two books.   

Stars was a famous restaurant in San Francisco in the 80s and 90s, especially well-known for its desserts, the very best of which are included here, accompanied by suggestions for the best wine to pair with each sweet. Photography by Sheri Giblin helps make this collection simply irresistible. 

Delicious: 5 of the Best
Author: Valli Little
Publisher: Quadrille Publishing, 256 pages 

THE recipes here are from Delicious, the stylish food magazine for those who love good, yummy food and fuss-free cooking. Several categories are presented, each with five easy-to-follow recipes that will solve most of your dinner party woes. Starters, soups, main courses, desserts are all covered in this practical guide to delicious, simple food that you can prepare in any kitchen. 

Twist of the Wrist: Quick Flavorful Meals with Ingredients from Jars, Cans, Bags, and Boxes
Authors: Nancy Silverton, with Carolyn Carrero
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf, 272 pages 

THE title of this book may make you think that budget meals are the name of the game, but the cans, jars, bags and boxes Los Angeles baker and chef Nancy Silverton has in her pantry are from up-market delis and supermarkets, and probably cost more than the fresh ingredients used by the average Malaysian. Still, if you're willing to spend a bit extra and you're interested in learning a quick trick or two, Twist of the Wrist is full of fun, innovative recipes with surprising and (often) exotic ingredients.   

Use the handy inventory guide to ensure that your cupboards are always stocked with the right ingredients with which you can whip up impressive meals in minutes. A great book for anyone who's adventurous in the kitchen but doesn't have a lot of time to dawdle! 

Small Bites, Big Nights
Author: Govind Armstrong
Publisher: Clarkson N Potter Publishers, 256 pages 

IT'S obvious from the way he writes that executive chef and co-owner of Los Angeles restaurant Table 8, Govind Armstrong, is passionate about food and derives great joy from cooking. Small Bites describes with enthusiasm and liveliness the preparation of cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, dinner party dishes and comfort food.   

There are also chapters called Sexy Savouries and Lounge Foods, which feature interesting recipes like Scotch Quail Eggs with Chorizo and Smashed Spuds with Sliced Beef and Blue Cheese. And no matter how posh the dishes sound, the recipes seem surprisingly do-able ... at least in theory.   

Kitchen Diaries: A Year in the Kitchen with Nigel Slater
Author: Nigel Slater
Publisher: Fourth Estate, 400 pages 

LONDON Observer columnist Nigel Slater spends a year making notes about what he eats and cooks, and what prompts him to prepare the various dishes featured: the weather, his moods and so on.   

There are lots of comfort-type food like double ginger cake, eggplant, tomato, and lemongrass curry, and spiced roast potatoes with yoghurt and mint, and Slater’s descriptions of the circumstances surrounding the cooking and eating of these dishes, although mostly quite brief, are thoroughly evocative and bewitching.   

Some readers will appreciate Slater's recommendations on where to shop for specific ingredients, but if you don’t live in London or anywhere in Britain you might find his local references rather unhelpful. 

Wonderfoods: The Best Nutrition and Recipes for Optimum Health
Author: Natalie Savona
Publisher: Quadrille Publishing, 320 pages 

EATING the right kinds of food can make a big difference to our well-being and, in this useful and informative book, Natalie Savona lists 70 “wonderfoods” that we can use to help us achieve optimum health in various areas, like digestion, mind, skin and immunity. There are also 120 recipes for dishes of various styles, so that you can put into practice everything you've learnt about what's really good to eat!