The Grains Cookbook

The late Greene's love of his subject is clear in this collection offering over 400 recipes using grains: basic barley, corn meal, millet, oats, rice and wheat; buckwheat and wild rice (not, technically, grains); various forms of cereals, including oat bran, grits and bulgur; the ``new'' grain, triticale, a hybrid of rye and wheat developed about 100 years ago; and amaranth and quinoa, ancient but recently rediscovered high-protein grains of South America. Not merely bearers of high fiber, low-calorie protein, vitamins and minerals, grains taste goodas Greene proves so well. From appetizers to desserts, wild-oat bran risotto to grits and spinach souffle, his recipes reflect Greene's ec lec tic, international cooking style. Also provided are a history of each grain's consumption and cultivation, nutritional information, basic cooking directions, a bibliography and a mail-order source list. Throughout, Greene's stories of his encounters with grains (``Bulgur came into my life under mildly shocking circumstances: I first sampled it at a bordello in Paris'') regale readers and encourage us to cook with a free hand. BOMC Home style main selection, QPBC and Better Homes and Gardens Book Club selection. (Jan.)