FROM THE PUBLISHER

Whether you want to know: what a passion fruit looks like the recipe for the perfect birthday cake how to use a clay pot how to bone and stuff a duck for a special dinner or a soup-to-nuts menu for Thanksgiving Barnes and Noble Essentials of Cooking is the only book you will need on the kitchen shelf!

Here's a virtual encyclopedia of everything today's cook needs to know, from selecting raw ingredients, to preparation, to cooking, and finally, to the presentation of a delicious meal at the table. This extraordinary book is divided into three sections:

Part One: the Purchase and Preparation of Food is a stunning visual reference of raw ingredients and a step-by-step guide to preparation techniques. In today's increasingly complex and hectic world, even shopping at the supermarket has become a challenge. Almost everyday, new fruits and vegetables, new spices and sauces, new cuts of meat and types of fish show up at the supermarket. This section is designed to eliminate the confusion and broaden the cook's horizon by stimulating a real understanding of food and a thorough knowledge of how to buy it, as well as encouraging experimentation with unfamiliar foods and flavors.

Part Two: Equipment explains how to sort through the avalanche of new products now available in the marketplace. The authors explain how to choose, use, and maintain the most popular kitchen utensils and products by exploring the fundamental principle of good design. They alsi introduce the newest devices and explain how to get the best out of thise that are worth owning.

Part Three: Recipes presents a repertoire of more than 459 excellent recipes that reflect the natural flavor of good ingredients -- the essnce of all the bast home cooking. For bith the novice and experienced cook, hre are heartwarming, unpretentious, delicious dishes that are both east to prepare and a blessing to serve. Included also are menu suggestions and traditional holiday meals.