Amazon.com (ISBN 0816157642, Hardcover)

First published in 1982, The Silver Palate Cookbook was an instant smash. It offered 350 stylish but easy recipes that reflected and helped cement America's burgeoning interest in quality cooking. It acquainted cooks with "gourmet" ingredients, just beginning to appear in our markets. And it helped many a host to shine.

The collection, whose recipes range from hors d'oeuvres to sweets, now arrives in a 25th-anniversary edition, which reproduces the original text and adds color photos throughout, often dropped into the text pages. All the old favorites, including Marinated Eggplant Livia, Chicken Marbella, Blanquette de Vaeu, and Blackberry Mousse are present, along with information about ingredients, menus, quotes, and other asides--all the things that help make the book such a pleasure. It's hard to imagine a cook--and especially one who entertains--not owning Silver Palate. This printing, which includes a retrospective foreword, offers more satisfaction still while reiterating the reasons for the book's enduring appeal. --Arthur Boehm

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Amazon.com Exclusive: A Brief History of The Silver Palate Cookbook by Sheila Lukins
Twenty five years ago seems like the distant past but we still make ratatouille the same way and who would have ever dreamed that so many people would say to us, "I had Chicken Marbella at a dinner party last week and I just loved it." It took slight madness to open our little store in 1977. Florence Fabricant was writing an article on the renaissance of Columbus Avenue, where our shop was opening, we needed a name, she was on a deadline and called and said, "What are you calling your store?" We didn't know. "Why don't you call it The Silver Palate," she said. We loved it. It took sheer bravery in 1982 to write our book--who would need to buy food in our store any longer once they had all of our recipes? But that never happened for one hour. In fact, it helped us go national even further. Here we are, 25 years later, celebrating with a brand new edition of our book that finally highlights our recipes with vibrant color photographs. I once picked up the phone and someone on the other end said, "Sheila, I just baked the Decadent Chocolate Cake and my cake doesn't look like the drawing." I didn't know how to reply. I assured them the taste made up for the looks. It's bittersweet, but those problems are solved forever. While different, the color adds an exciting new dimension to the cookbook that has been a treasure to so many cooks for two and a half decades. Julee and I had a fantasy food partnership and the publication of this book has given us the opportunity to spend some wonderful time together.

Continue Reading A Brief History of The Silver Palate Cookbook

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A Springtime Menu for Amazon.com
When the weather warms us up, there is no more welcome beginning to a meal that a light swirl of noodles tangled up with crisp spring vegetables. Follow this amusing starter with a succulent roast leg of lamb, the meat we all long for in the spring. Serve our Swiss Gratin Potatoes and some haricots verts alongside. A delightful finale to this springtime luncheon is a moist carrot cake with cream cheese frosting or a delicate strawberry mousse. --Sheila Lukins and Julee Rosso Miller

Pasta Primavera Gregory

Roast Lamb with Peppercorn Crust

Carrot Cake

Strawberry Mousse

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