cover image The Cook's Book of Intense Flavors: 101 Surprising Flavor Combinations and Extraordinary Recipes that Excite Your Palate and Pleasure Your Senses

The Cook's Book of Intense Flavors: 101 Surprising Flavor Combinations and Extraordinary Recipes that Excite Your Palate and Pleasure Your Senses

Robert and Molly Krause, Fair Winds (QDS, dist.) $26 (288p) ISBN 9781592334322

This husband and wife debut is an extraordinary guide for cooks interested in broadening their horizons and expanding their palates. Over seven chapters, the restaurateurs show how three key ingredients can work in concert to create a memorable and unique dish. Cooks of all skill levels will get plenty of mileage from over 100 recipes ranging from the criminally easy (Jack and Coke Ice Cream) to the time-intensive, like Duck Prosciutto Salad (the duck needs to hang in a refrigerator for two weeks before serving). Some, like Beyond Oysters Rockefeller come together quickly and can even be used in other dishes, while others, such as Foie Gras-Stuffed Pumpkin with Truffled Toast are center stage affairs. Patient, comprehensive instructions (Molly Krause also teaches cooking) ensure that first-timers attempting Chocolate Souffle with Kahlua-Chocolate Sauce and Whipped Cream or Tea-and-Lime Cured Salmon have the confidence and guidance to achieve good results. Though some dishes, like Marrow Jam, made from roasted bone marrow, citrus zest, garlic, and parsley, might not make it to many tables, there are plenty of must-try dishes and updated classics that will. (Oct.)