Joanne Weir's More Cooking in the Wine Country

Starred review from April 16, 2001
In this companion volume to her first wine-country cuisine book, Weir Cooking: Recipes from the Wine Country, Weir, a San Francisco chef who hosts a PBS cooking show, invites readers to sample the flavors of northern California through Mediterranean cooking. Weir's recipes are lusty and unpretentious, emphasizing fresh, seasonal ingredients, and her lucid writing makes seamlessly accessible the few that are more complex. With relaxed, reassuring confidence, Weir guides the reader through such challenges as making "the perfect risotto" and peeling fava beans, and she pays special attention to the blending of sweet, salty, sour and bitter and the result is magical. Endive with Gorgonzola, Caramelized Onions and Fig Jam; Heirloom Tomato Bisque; Hazelnut-crusted Salmon with Fennel Salad; and Summer Bread Pudding with Berries are luscious, startling in their contrasts. Weir's wine recommendations for each dish Shiraz with risotto, pinot noir with Turkish Pizza are as well considered as the recipes themselves: "We must make small celebrations of whatever catches our fancy." For those who love to live and eat well, Mediterranean or Californian-style, this book is reason enough to celebrate. Agent, Doe Coover. (Apr. 18) Forecast: Weir releases this delightful, artistic and accessible cookbook in anticipation of the April 26 airing of Weir Cooking in the Wine Country II on PBS. The mediagenic Weir is fast becoming a household name, particularly because her style is both instructive and inspiring; like her first volume, this companion work should be a popular seller.

March 15, 2001
This follow-up to Weir Cooking: Recipes from the Wine Country and companion volume to her latest PBS series offers more of the fresh, vibrant recipes Weir is known for. Weir is also author of From Tapas to Meze: First Courses from the Mediterranean Shores, and her love of Mediterranean cuisines is evident in many of the recipes here, from Greek Summer Vegetable Salad to Spicy North African Mussels to Grilled Lamb with Aromatic Moroccan Salts. Most of the recipes are uncomplicated Weir also worked at Alice Waters's Chez Panisse, where using the best ingredients and highlighting their flavors is the style, and her culinary training there shows. Recommended for most collections.

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2001
Through her PBS program, Chef Joanne Weir has introduced many to the New California cuisine. "Joanne Weir's More Cooking in the "Wine Country brings together recipes from her latest cooking series. This New California cuisine modulates themes already common in Mediterranean cuisine. But now California's chefs are beginning to pick up ideas from beyond Italy, France, Spain, and Greece and moving into less familiar African and Middle Eastern traditions. Thus, harissa, Morocco's peppery sauce, puts in an appearance, and Weir's salads include bulgur, the Middle Eastern grain. Preserved lemons add their own grace notes. Fans of the television series will demand this new volume. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2001, American Library Association.)