Puff Pastry Perfection or Wine for Women

Puff Pastry Perfection: More than 175 Recipes for Appetizers, Entrees, and Sweets Made with Frozen Puff Pastry Dough

Author: Camilla V Saulsbury

Puff pastry is the royalty of pastries—crisp, flaky, and especially light, it literally rises to any occasion. And although preparing homemade puff pastry is a labor-intensive process, Puff Pastry Perfection shows that a package of frozen puff pastry sheets makes the magnificence of puff pastry accessible to home cooks everywhere.

Puff Pastry Perfection has eliminated the guesswork. At a cost of less than four dollars, one 17.3-ounce package from a grocer’s freezer section delivers two perfect puff pastry sheets, prerolled and ready to use in recipes ranging from the first course to the last.

Oh, the enchanting creations that await! Frozen puff pastry can be used to quickly and easily render classics such as napoleons, cream puffs, strudels, turnovers, palmiers, mille-feuille, and French tarts. It can be twisted into appetizer sticks, cut into tartlet shapes, used as a quick pie or quiche crust, folder over savory appetizer fillings, molded over casserole fillings to create one-step pot pit “lids,” or rolled and sliced into elegant, but oh-so-easy cookies.

Puff Pastry Perfection is more than just another collection of baked goods. It is a burst of extraordinary flavors that surprise and delight, along with foolproof instructions to make home cooks into baking heroes.

The result? How about portobello napoleons, wasabi shrimp puffs, dried cherry and almond baked brie, or spicy cumin cheese straws for starters? For supper consider chile relleno quiche, puff pastry po’boys, pizza bianco with prosciutto, arugula and parmesan or chipotle and cheese beef pot pie. Next, the sweets: miniatures such as ginger-lime sugar twists, southern pecan crisps, fresh mango napoleons, and puff pastry cinnamon rolls, all perfect for teatime or an anytime nibble. And finally the grand desserts: from lemon-blackberry cobbler to chocolate-walnut strudel to caramel apple dumplings, there’s a sweet treat for every taste and occasion.

Book review: The American Political Tradition and the Men Who Made It or The Dollar Crisis

Wine for Women: A Guide to Buying, Pairing, and Sharing Wine

Author: Leslie Sbrocco

"Wine is not to fear or revere, but to enjoy," says Leslie Sbrocco, wine expert. And that's exactly what she shows you how to do in Wine for Women, the first wine book written exclusively for women -- the majority of wine consumers.

In Wine for Women, Leslie Sbrocco scraps the stuffy wine-speak and deals with what women really want to know about wine. The book includes shopping guides with hundreds of recommended wines, quick ideas for wine-friendly meals, and creative tips for sharing wine with family and friends.

Organized into easy-to-manage sections, Wine for Women appeals to all levels of wine lovers. From Sauvignon Blanc to Chenin Blanc, Merlot to Malbec, and pink wines to dessert wines, Leslie Sbrocco makes her enormous knowledge of wine entertaining enough for the serious wine lover and accessible enough so any novice can feel like an expert.

Each chapter focuses on a different variety of wine, and covers what Leslie calls the big three -- how to buy, pair, and share wine. You'll learn how to make smart buying decisions in stores and restaurants. Leslie also gives you practical advice for pairing wine and food and offers insights on entertaining with wine, whether you're having an informal picnic or planning the most formal of weddings.

Confused between Chardonnay and Champagne? Think little black dress versus sequins. And Pinot Gris? Think your wine wardrobe's basic jeans. With her relaxed, friendly approach, Leslie makes it easy to understand the differences between wines and encourages women to explore and enjoy wine in their everyday lives.

Keep Wine for Women in your kitchen. Bring it into your living room.Refer to it before you hit the wine shop, or when you just want an excuse to read, relax, and have a sip of something that's really you.

Publishers Weekly

Some readers, men in particular, will bridle at the title of this introductory guide by first-time author Sbrocco. What follows, however, is an informed yet accessible approach that places wine back in its traditional place at the center of the family dinner table and at the heart of everyday celebrations. Writing for women who have to rush home from demanding jobs to prepare the family meal, Sbrocco caps off chapters on different grapes and all styles of wine with a section called "Design-a-Dinner" that offers easy-to-prepare recipes and pantry staples matched to wines-creamed spinach and grilled steak or pasta with gorgonzola walnut sauce for Cabernet Sauvignon, for example. Basing her choice to speak specifically to women on industry research that confirms that women buy more wine than men (including high-end bottles), Sbrocco compares different grape varieties and styles to wardrobe essentials-Chardonnay is basic black while Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp white shirt, and peppery, intense Syrah is that "must-have" red accessory. A gimmick? No doubt about it, but the analogy works very well. Anyone who has ever tasted a good Pinot Noir knows that it truly is like "seductive satin." Come to think of it, big, powerful, indigenous American Zinfandel really does have the swaggering sex appeal of black leather pants. Sbrocco includes knowledgeable yet democratic shopping guides in every price range and peppers her narrative with myriad facts about wine, tips for entertaining and trips to wine country, as well as colorful descriptions of her travels to great wine-growing regions around the world. In the end, this is a breezy yet memorable and everyday practical resource that should appeal to all women with an interest in wine. (Oct.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Do women need their own guide to wine? Sbrocco, a columnist and wine expert, thinks so, arguing that most wine consumers are women looking for smart ways to buy wine, pair it with foods, and share it with friends and family. To meet this need, Sbrocco delivers a medley of wine-related information, covering various regions, identifying wines to give as gifts, and offering menu suggestions. She excels at describing key characteristics of varietals and how climate and geography impact flavor and quality. On the other hand, her analogies to clothing (Chardonnay, for example, is the "basic black dress" of the wine world) are distracting, and the multiple sections and numerous sidebars found in each chapter are confusing. While it doesn't quite succeed as gender-specific guide, this is still a concise introduction for anyone-female or male-to the world of wine (see the index and directory of wine-related web sites). An optional purchase for medium to large public libraries; serious collections should pass.-Andrea Dietze, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Table of Contents:

	Acknowledgments	ix
	Introduction: Why a Wine Book for Women?	1
	Building the Essential Wine Wardrobe	6
Aisle 1	White Wine
	Chardonnay/White Burgundy: The "Basic Black" of White Wine	21
	Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio: The "Denim" of White Wine	48
	Sauvignon Blanc/Sancerre: The "Crisp White Shirt" Wine	64
	Riesling/Gewurztraminer: The "Spring Dresses" of Whites	86
	Viognier, Chenin Blanc, and Semillon: The "Femmes Fatales" of Whites	108
Aisle 2	Red Wine
	Cabernet Sauvignon/Bordeaux: The "Classic Suit" Red	127
	Merlot/Bordeaux: The "Wrap Me in Cashmere" Red	152
	Syrah/Shiraz: The "Red-Hot" Red	170
	Pinot Noir/Burgundy: The "Seductive Satin" Red	191
	Sangiovese/Chianti: The Sleek "Italian Heels"	214
	Zinfandel: The "Love 'Em Like Leather" Reds	233
	The Other Hot Reds: It's Raining Reds, Hallelujah!	249
Aisle 3	Pink, Bubbly, and Sweet
	Rose: The "Beachwear" Wine	263
	Champagne/Sparkling Wines: Make Mine "Sequins and Suede"	274
	Dessert Wines: The "Pajamas" of Vino	292
	Checkout Counter: Resources	309
	Index	323