Zabar's Blog

Recipe for Grilled Fish with Mint Sauce

from Cucina de Amalfi by Ursula Ferrigno

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

Reading this book was an armchair visit to this beautiful part of Italy. I loved the recipes and am ready to try: mini parmesan pancakes, grandmother’s spinach bread, and chicken cacciatore. After that, next on my list are two kinds of pistachio biscotti—one chocolate, the other with fig and apricot.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from Cucina di Amalfi: Sun-Drenched Recipes from Italy’s Most Magical Coastline by Ursula Ferrigno, Ryland Peters & Small, Photography by Nassima Rothacker © Ryland Peters & Small 2023

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Recipe for Little Tender Cake

from Giuseppe's Italian Bakes by Giuseppe Dell'Anno

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

I had so much fun reading this lovely cookbook. There are recipes for pistachio cookies, coffee panna cotta, and cheese bread. But first, I started with this cake that is dotted with chocolate truffles. Next on my list: a lovely fruit tart and two cookies: baci (kisses) and brutti ma buoni (ugly but good). Adoro questa torta!

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Recipe excerpted with permission from Giuseppe's Italian Bakes by Giuseppe Dell'Anno, photography by Issy Croker, published by Quadrille

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Recipe for Lemon & Chicken Soup

from A Bowl of Soup by Hannah Miles

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

This book will inspire you to expand your list of soup menus. There’s the adorably-named Sunshine soup, a spicy eggplant soup, and a garlicky-mushroom version. Plus, lots of popovers, focaccia, and muffins to serve on the side. Next on my list: a roasted cauliflower soup that is sprinkled with almonds, and some cornbread.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from A Bowl of Soup: Over 70 Delicious Recipes Including Toppings & Accompaniments by Hannah Miles, published by Ryland Peters & Small, Photographs by Alex Luck © Ryland Peters & Small

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Recipe for Maple Shortbread

from Delectable: Sweet & Savory Baking by Claudia Fleming with Catherine Young, photos by Johnny Miller

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

Make something sweet for your sweetie. This cookie is edged with sugar and scented with maple sugar. Bake off half the dough, and keep the rest in the freezer for a quick batch of this amazing treat. Next on my list: scones with whipped cream and raspberries; a savory eggplant caponata tart; and fig bars. Then, Espresso Custard with Orange; amazing cousins of the doughnut, called skiffs; and pretzels.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from Delectable: Sweet & Savory Baking (Random House Publishing Group)

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Recipe for Chocolate Shortbread

from Desserts Illustrated by America’s Test Kitchen

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

There are so many amazing recipes in this cookbook, I wasn’t sure where to start. I suggest you pick a chapter and start baking! Snack cakes was first for me. Pumpkin-chocolate, classic gingerbread, and applesauce were my choices. Then, on to pies. There’s a whole chapter devoted to variations of the beloved apple pie. After that, cakes, of course. Or try this simple and simply wonderful chocolate shortbread. Next on my list: cranberry-orange cake with olive oil. Happy baking!

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Recipe excerpted with permission from Desserts Illustrated by America’s Test Kitchen

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Recipe for Giulina’s Risi e Bisi: Rice and Peas from Veneto

from Pasta Grannies Book Two by Vicky Bennison
Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

Cook your way through Italy with some pasta grannies. I love this simple variation of risotto. It’s perfect for dinner on a cold evening. Next on my list: this Nonna Honey is going to make Anna Maria’s Ziti alla Genovese and Ida’s Chocolate Bunet, a pudding with caramel.

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Recipes excerpted with permission from Pasta Grannies: Comfort Cooking by Vicky Bennison, photos by Emma Lee, published by Hardie Grant Books.

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Recipe for Lille Bakery’s Raspberry Sugar Berliners

from New European Baking by Laurel Kratochvila
Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

This lovely book will take you on a trip through Europe, via the baking kitchen. There are all sorts of recipes for breads, pastries, and cookies that will improve your baking skills. Celebrate Chanukah with these amazing doughnuts, which are filled with a raspberry whipped cream filling. There are recipes in the book to make alternative fillings, such as a pastry cream and varieties of fruit jam. These little doughnuts are the perfect treat for the holiday. Next on my list: Wild Fennel Bread, Brioche Bread Pudding, Lemon Meringue Danishes, and a Pistachio Cloud Tarte. Halva Flan? Yes, please.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from New European Baking by Laurel Kratochvila (Prestel, 2022). Text © Laurel Kratochvila, image © Małgosia Minta.

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Recipe for Brown Sugar Snaps

from The King Arthur Baking School

Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

This book is full of detailed instructions for baking all sorts of doughs, and beautiful photographs for clear understanding of each recipe. There are sourdough and yeasted doughs, pre-ferments for pizza and bagels, and laminated dough for pastries. I was charmed by these simple cookies, and made them with a sprinkling of raw sugar. Next on my list: Ciabatta; S’mores Tart; Cream Scones; and a lovely Cocoa Streusel Coffeecake.

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Recipe for Pesto

from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking: 30th Anniversary Edition by Marcella Hazan
Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

This amazing cookbook combines two of Marcela’s classic books. The classic pesto recipe is one to make over and over. I got lost in the pasta sauce chapter. You will too. Next on my list: Chicken Fricassee, Cacciatore Style; Green Beans Pasticcio; and apple fritters.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking: 30th Anniversary Edition by Marcella Hazan. Copyright © 1992 by Marcella Hazan. Foreword copyright © 2022 by Victor Hazan. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Recipe for Orange Salad with Dates, Chillies and Preserved Lemon

from The Levantine Table by Ghillie Basan
Cookbook review by Tracey Zabar

This book is filled with recipes for Middle Eastern food, perfect for summer meals. The salad is a refreshing start to dinner—I served the chillies on the side. Next on my list: a carrot and caraway purée with yoghurt; a pide bread, sprinkled with nigella seeds; a lovely poached fish with saffron rice and caviar; and for dessert, an interesting rice pudding.

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Recipe excerpted with permission from The Levantine Table: Vibrant and Delicious Recipes from the Eastern Mediterranean and Beyond by Ghillie Basan, Photography by Steve Painter © Ryland Peters & Small

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