2015 Holiday Gift Guide: 10 Cookbooks for the Global Gourmand

These unique international cookbooks are sure to please foodies, travelers, and adventurous home chefs alike! Pin to save for your shopping list, and read more details below:

These ten cookbooks span the globe and would be a welcome addition to any kitchen shelf!

Paperback, $19.95

1. The Ghana Cookbook
     Fran Osseo-Asare and Barbara Baëta

“ . . . destined to become an African culinary classic.”
—Jessica B. Harris, author of The Africa Cookbook

Ghana’s cuisine is vibrant, healthful and eminently appealing, with plenty of gluten-free and vegetarian options too. Ghana is becoming a popular travel destination and its cuisine has caught the attention of celebrity chefs and food writers from Anthony Bourdain to Tim Carman. These 140 recipes cover the best of Ghana’s culinary offerings—from Jollof Rice to Palm Nut Soup loaded with seafood, meat and vegetables—and feature “African superfoods” such as dried hibiscus flowers, tamarind, red palm oil and egusi melon seeds.

Hardcover, $22.50

2. Latin Twist: 
Traditional & Modern Cocktails
Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack and Vianney Rodriguez

New from the co-author of Muy Bueno!

For the mixologist or party planner on your list, this is the only cocktail book that celebrates the signature drinks of all 18 Latin American countries and Spain. There is a drink in this book for every occasion--and season! Try holiday favorites like creamy Coquito, Mexican Christmas Punch, or warming Canelazo from Ecuador. Bookmark the luscious Passion Fruit Caipirinha from Brazil, Chile's fruity Borgoña, or a Mezcal Paloma for warm weather. Clear instructions and gorgeous color photos make it easy to mix up a glass or pitcher of crowd-pleasing cocktails.

Paperback, $22.50

3. The Kerala Kitchen
Lathika George

If you’re looking for a different kind of Indian cookbook, this distinctive cookbook-memoir gives you a taste of one of India’s most celebrated cuisines. Once Kerala lured seafarers and spice traders. Today ayurvedic massage resorts and backwater cruises make Kerala a top tourist destination, but spices still draw both travelers and gourmands to its rich culinary heritage. Kerala native Lathika George captures the flavors of the Syrian Christian community in Kerala through 150 delectable recipes and the unforgettable stories that accompany them.

Paperback, $18.95

4. Estonian Tastes and Traditions
Karin Annus Karner

The simple, satisfying cuisine of Estonia, the northernmost of the Baltic nations, is waiting to be discovered. At its heart are staples such as potatoes, pork, preserved fish, and dark bread. Sauces are made from milk, sour cream, or cottage cheese and the main flavorings are salt and pepper, onions, and fresh herbs. Estonians still observe the old culinary traditions. Christmas Eve (Jõululaupäev) is still celebrated with roast pork (seapraad), blood sausage (verivorstid), sweetbreads (magussaiad), and gingersnap cookies (piparkoogid). With numerous recipes for hearty breads, pancakes, sauces and satisfying stews and entrees, this cookbook brings the best of the Baltic to your table!

Hardcover, $35 | Paperback, $22.50

5. Muy Bueno: 
Three Generations of Authentic Mexican Flavor
Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack, Veronica Gonzalez, Evangelina Soza

Celebrate family and heritage with this bestselling Hippocrene cookbook!

"Siéntate a comer, esta muy bueno! Sit down and eat, it’s very good!"
     This was how Jesusita Mendias-Soza always welcomed guests to her table. The same words served as inspiration for her daughter Evangelina and granddaughters Yvette and Veronica, who wanted to honor her memory and preserve their family's recipes and stories for their children.
Fans of the Muy Bueno Cookbook blog will enjoy this collection of flavorful Mexican recipes, heartwarming family stories, and beautiful photography. Spanning three generations, Muy Bueno offers over 100 recipes: traditional old-world northern Mexican recipes from Jesusita's kitchen; comforting south of the border home-style dishes from Evangelina; and innovative Latin fusion recipes from Yvette and Veronica. Also includes a chile glossary with photos and guide to the Mexican pantry.

**Also available in Spanish!* 

 

Hardcover, $35

6. Healthy South Indian Cooking
Alamelu Vairavan and Particia Marquardt

A must-have for fans of Alamelu's cooking show!

Want to cook Indian food at home, but feel overwhelmed by the spices and ingredients? Fans of Alamelu Vairavan’s PBS cooking show “Healthful Indian Flavors with Alamelu” have already discovered that Indian recipes are healthier and easier to prepare than they ever dreamed. And in her signature cookbook, Alamelu breaks it down for beginners—demystifying ingredients and offering simple recipes for delicious, flavorful and nutritious Indian foods, including plenty of vegetables, dals (legumes), and rice dishes from her native South India. This is the perfect book to begin your Indian cooking journey!

Hardcover, $24.95

7. Sicilian Feasts: Expanded Edition
Giovann Bella La Marca

Giovanna La Marca is everyone’s favorite Sicilian grandmother, passing down classic recipes from her family to yours!


Sicilian Feasts was born out of her love for her native Sicily. La Marca uses simple methods and readily available ingredients to teach the straightforward and delectable everyday cooking of Sicily. The history, customs, and folklore, as well as the flavorful and varied cuisine of her beautiful Mediterranean island are well represented in these recipes and stories.

Hardcover, $35

8. Spices & Seasons: Simple, Sustainable Indian Flavors
Rinku Bhattacharya

For the gardener or farmer’s market enthusiast on your list!

Author Rinku Bhattacharya combines her two great loves-- Indian cooking and sustainable living--to give readers a simple, accessible way to cook seasonally, locally, and flavorfully. Inspired by the bounty of local produce, mostly from her own backyard, Rinku set out to create recipes for busy, time-strapped home cooks who want to blend Indian flavors into nutritious family meals. Arranged in chapters from appetizers through desserts, the cookbook includes everything from small bites, soups, seafood, meat and poultry, and vegetables, to condiments, breads, and sweets. You'll find recipes for tempting fare like Mango and Goat Cheese Mini Crisps, Roasted Red Pepper Chutney, Crisped Okra with Dry Spice Rub, Smoky Roasted Eggplant and Tomato Puree, and Red Harvest Masala Cornish Hens, to name a few.

Hardcover, $29.95

9. The New Ukrainian Cookbook
Annette Ogrodnik Corona

Hearty, satisfying classics with a few modern twists!

This Gourmand Award-winning cookbook introduces readers to the fresh foods, exquisite tastes, hospitality and generous spirit of the Ukrainian table. From classics like regional varieties of Ukrainian Borshch (red beet soup), Chicken Kyiv, and Holubtsi (stuffed cabbage rolls), to lesser-known specialties like Crispy-Fried Quail with Orange Rind and Honey, and Crimean Fish Cakes, there is something for every palate. The author explores the cuisine of her ancestors, delving into its origins and history and continuing the story into present-day Ukraine. Scattered amongst the recipes are quotes, poems, historical facts, folklore, and illustrations, creating a unique culinary exploration.

Paperback, $19.95

10. Sweet Hands: 
Island Cooking from Trinidad & Tobago
Ramin Ganeshram

Callalloo and Buss Up Shut, Mother-in-Law and Kuchela, Chip Chip and Doubles. The verbiage of Trinidad's cuisine is both lyrical and mysterious. The variety of foods from this Caribbean nation and their fanciful names tell the story of a rich and eclectic cultural heritage. A British colony from 1779 until 1962, during those years Trinidad & Tobago's population grew to include East Indian and Chinese indentured servants who worked in the sugar plantations alongside former slaves. Trinidadian food is marked by the blending of these cultures. As such, curry, Indian breads, callalloo (a soup of West African origin), and fried rice are all among the national dishes. Recipes for these dishes can be found, along with many others, such as Shrimp Creole, Beef Stew with Dumplings, and Ginger Beer.

Celebrate Easter Sicilian-Style on Pasquetta

Author Giovanna with her finished scaccia.

This year, take a Sicilian approach to your spring or Easter celebrations with a recipe by Sicilian Feasts author, Giovanna Bellia La Marca. Her Sausage and Ricotta Roll is certain to satisfy appetites after a day filled with Easter egg hunting!

Pasquetta ("little Easter") is celebrated on the Monday after Easter which extends the Easter holiday in Italy. This Sausage and Ricotta Roll is a filled bread recipe made for Pasquetta,  a special day when families and friends gather in their summer houses or plan a picnic to share delicious food that everybody prepares and brings for the occasion. Slices of this scaccia are filling finger food, and equally delicious hot or cold.

This is admittedly a rich dish and is traditionally made with lard in the dough and filling, as a sort of reward after weeks of fasting during the Lenten period. Although Crisco is used here you can choose the more traditional method if you celebrated Lent, or if you just want to enjoy a very hearty meal! 

Sausage and Ricotta Roll

Scaccia cu' ricotta e sausizza 

Prepare the dough:

4 cups flour

1 tbsp SAF Instant Yeast

4 tsps KA Bread Improver

2 ozs Butter Flavored Crisco

1 cup warm water

Assemble the roll:

Risen dough (above)

1 1/2 lbs fresh Italian Deli ricotta

1 1/2 lbs Italian sausage

2 ozs lard at room temperature,

1 egg, beaten for glazing

Giovanna rolls out the dough.

Place a tsp of King Arthur bread improver in each measuring cup, fill with flour, even out the top and place in the food processor. Add the yeast, salt, and shortening, and process until the shortening breaks down and mixes into the flour. Add the water and process until the dough forms. Remove to a counter, shape into a ball, coat with a few drops of olive oil, cover with an inverted bowl and let rise until doubled in bulk.

Roll out the dough into a long rectangle. Spread the lard on the surface, dot with ricotta and sausage in a checker board pattern along the center length of the rectangle.

Filled and ready to start folding!

Fold the two short ends over the filling, then fold one of the long sides towards the center, brush with beaten egg, and fold the second side over the first.

Cover the filling with one side, brush with egg, fold the other side over the first. Shape into a horse shoe, place in a baking pan seam side down. Then brush with beaten egg, prick the surface with a fork along the two sides, and bake in a preheated 375º oven for 50 minutes, cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake another 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven, cover with a towel and let cool for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.

Buona Pasqua!

For more recipes like this one, purchase Sicilian Feasts on our website, or your local bookstore. For updates on upcoming cookbook releases, as well as recipes and information on our current catalog connect with Hippocrene Books on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. 

Giovanna Bellia La Marca was born in Ragusa, Sicily. She came to the United States at the age of 10, and has since then kept alive her love of the island with frequent trips there. Retired after a career as an art and Italian teacher, she now teaches cooking classes at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City and leads culinary tours of Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. La Marca is author of Language and Travel Guide to Sicily and The Cooking of Emilia-Romagna, both published by Hippocrene Books. She resides in Cliffside Park, New Jersey.  


For a Sicilian dessert for your Easter or spring celebrations, find Giovanna's recipe for a sweet and colorful Cassata Siciliana. 


Learn Sicilian!
Here are a few terms in the Sicilian dialect. 

Buona Pasqua!	Happy Easter!
formaggio	cheese
pane	bread
pasta ri pani	bread dough
Pasquetta	little Easter
primavera	spring
sausizza	sausage

Cassata Siciliana by author Giovanna Bellia La Marca

At the beginning of the month, the extended Hippocrene family got together to celebrate the 87th birthday of George Blagowidow, our President and Publisher. George founded Hippocrene Books 40 years ago, and the number of languages and cultures represented in our catalogue is a reflection of his own travels and multilinguistic talents. After singing "Happy Birthday" in English, Polish and Russian, we enjoyed a fabulously sweet and moist Cassata Siciliana made by Giovanna Bellia La Marca, author of Sicilian Feasts.


"This party cake is best made one day ahead and allowed to well absorb the marsala wine; although it can also be made and served the same day," Giovanna notes.  Having tasted the results of a day of soaking, I say: be patient! The candied fruits are colorful and festive, and combined with the size of the cake, it makes a beautiful centerpiece for a party of ten or more.


Happy Holidays from Hippocrene Books!

Cassata Siciliana (Sicilian Cake)

adapted from Sicilian Feasts, page 159

Old Traditions, New Family Rituals

Giovanna Bellia La Marca, author of Sicilian Feasts, Language and Travel Guide to Sicily, and, forthcoming, The Cooking of Emilia-Romagna: Culinary Treasures from Northern Italy, is with us today to share a dish from her hometown. Giovanna writes:

This is a traditional Easter dish, but since one year is entirely too long to wait for this wonderful treat, I make it several times each year--usually for a special occasion. We celebrated my birthday on June 5th and our Son-in-law's birthday on the 9th with a Sunday dinner in between the two special dates with a delicious 'Mpanata. All Americans enjoy and preserve their ethnic customs and food traditions, and many of us have established some of our own rituals.

On Easter Sunday morning, for instance, I get up quite early to prepare the showpiece of our festive dinner which is the 'Mpanata di Agnello Ragusana, the typical lamb pie which is made in my hometown of Ragusa in Sicily. I prepare the dough the night before, and I marinate the meat overnight in the refrigerator. The 'mpanata goes into the oven at 9:00 AM, it bakes for one hour, and it is then covered with a blanket or a terry cloth towel and allowed to rest and to cool very slowly so that the meat continues to steam and the bread crust absorbs the flavorful juices. We allow the 'mpanata this rest period well covered in the back seat of our car as we drive to our daughter and son-in-law's vacation house in Roscoe, New York from our home in New Jersey.

While we drive we listen to Cavalleria Rusticana by Pietro Mascagni, which is the only opera that takes place in Sicily on Easter Sunday. By the time we arrive at the scenic Catskill mountains which surround Roscoe, the 'mpanata is perfect and ready to eat. In an example of a break with tradition, I will make this delicious lamb pie for special celebrations throughout the year.

Mpanata Agnello Ragusana (Easter Lamb Pie of Ragusa)

(as featured in Sicilian Feasts, see page 95)

Author's Note: The 'mpanata is traditionally made with the bones. I ask my butcher to cube a leg of lamb with the bones as if to make a stew because when baked with the bones the meat is more succulent, but it's fine to use boned meat which makes it somewhat easier to cut and serve. Lard makes the dough tender and very flavorful, but shortening will also give a good result.

Dough for 'Mpanata

4 cups flour 1/4 cup lard or shortening
1 tbsp yeast
1 tsp salt
1 cup warm water

1. Mix the ingredients by hand, in an electric mixer with a dough hook for 10 minutes or in a food processor until the dough forms a mass.
2. Knead a few turns, shape into a ball, coat with a film of olive oil, place in a large bowl, cover and let rise. After the first rise it can be refrigerated, but bring to room temperature before using it.

Lamb Filling

2 lbs of lamb with bones or boneless
2 cloves garlic
small bunch Italian parsley
salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix the lamb with the chopped garlic and parsley, and add salt and pepper.
2. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight and until ready to assemble.

Assembly of 'Mpanata

dough
lamb filling
1 egg, beaten

1.Take the dough, divide it into a larger and smaller portion.
2. Roll the larger piece into a circle and line a large pie plate. Fill with the marinated lamb.
3. Roll out the second piece into a circle, brush the edge of the bottom crust with beaten egg, place the top crust on top of the lamb, press with the tines of a fork all around the edge to adhere both crusts. Make a decorative edge if you wish.
3. Brush the top with beaten egg, prick with a fork and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
4. Remove from the oven, cover with a towel and let stand for 2 hours before serving.

Try more of Giovanna's delicious recipes!

Giovanna Bellia La Marca was born in Ragusa, Sicily and came to the United States at the age of 10. Now a retired art and Italian teacher, she can be seen leading culinary tours of Arthur Avenue in the Bronx, and teaching at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City.

Questions? Problems with a recipe? Visit Giovanna at giovannalamarca.com.