Umami Bomb

June 3, 2019
Pelzel (Toast) turns her attention to the tang of umami in this compact work that includes a surprising number of desserts. Each chapter pays homage to a different key ingredient: Aged cheeses are at the heart of the first chapter (with a recipe for risotto with asparagus, peas, and aged gouda), while the second finds unique uses for soy sauce including adding it to a buttercream frosting that pairs with a treat called No Reason Chocolate Cake. Tomatoes are the key to chapter three, with choices including simple roasted tomatoes and a roasted tomato tart with pesto and goat cheese. Mushrooms and caramelized onions each get their own chapters, too, as does miso, which tops an assortment of vegetables and is ingeniously deployed in a miso butterscotch sundae with vanilla ice cream and smoked almonds. Not all sources of umami are tangible, as exemplified by a chapter that explores smoke and includes recipes for Romanian smoky eggplant dip, and smoky sesame caramel corn. Photographer Kate Sears uses bright pastel backgrounds to help each dish jump off the page, and Pelzel provides clear instructions and crisp commentary. This satisfying and handy take on the fifth taste will please vegetarians and omnivores alike.