Gardner Museum Cafe Cookbook

When Conroy began cooking at Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Cafe three years ago, she had one convection oven, one electric frying pan and two soup warmers. The 125-odd recipes in this imaginative and appealing collection demonstrate her ingenuity under such circumstances, and busy cooks and those with closet-sized kitchens will appreciate her understandable lack of fuss. Among the 30 soups, there's tomato-lentil with cinnamon, white bean soup with ham and spinach, and a divine gingered cream of carrot concoction. Quiches, luncheon pies, hot and cold main dishes, and salads follow, with such standouts as a smoked scallop pie, bluefish with spicy tomato sauce, and chicken and pesto with tortellini. In an effort to nourish the soul as well as the body, the book is illustrated with reproductions from the museum collection. October