Williams-Sonoma’s “Holiday Entertaining”
(Oxmoor House, $34.95)
At Williams-Sonoma stores and williams-sonoma.com
What it is: Gorgeous photos, practical cooking and entertaining tips and a bounty of holiday recipes. It’ll be at home on the coffee table or kitchen counter.
3 recipes we want to make: Roasted squash with maple syrup and sage cream, tarragon-stuffed chicken, gingerbread bundt cake
Great tip: “Keep fresh mint on hand for garnishing just about anything sweet.”
“Seriously Simple Holidays”
by Diane Rossen Worthington
(Chronicle, $24.95)
At Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville and Downers Grove, some Barnes & Noble bookstores and online
What it is: Got the holiday spirit but short on time? Strategies and 100-plus recipes help the cook without compromising the feast. Some use exotic ingredients but, hey, it’s the holidays!
3 recipes we want to make: Brisket with figs and butternut squash, holiday seafood gumbo, pumpkin-caramel ice cream pie
Great tip: “Cake stands are an elegant way to present many kinds of food.”
“Christmas Sweets”
by Georgeanne Brennan
(Chronicle, $18.95)
At Crate and Barrel, Anderson’s Bookshop and Amazon.com
What it is: Let the baking begin, with more than 50 recipes that cover the sweets spectrum, as well as gift and decorating ideas that incorporate the treats.
3 recipes we want to make: Mango-orange jam, chocolate-peppermint mousse, almond-butter toffee
Great tip: “It is easiest to ice cookies when they are still a little warm from the oven, as this helps the icing to spread evenly and smoothly.”
“I’m Dreaming of a Chocolate Christmas”
by Marcel Desaulniers
(Wiley, $29.95)
At Anderson’s Bookshop, some
Borders and Barnes & Noble stores and amazon.com
What it is: The maestro of chocolate returns with holiday delights that’ll play year-round. Most recipes were tested, he writes, “three to five times–or more,” in a home kitchen using supermarket ingredients.
3 recipes we want to make: Chocolate chip-pecan rum tart, chocolate gingerbread snowflakes, Hungarian chocolate walnut roll
Great tip: “For best results, toast nuts at 325 degrees.”
