Most Loved Holiday Favourites.

Ann Turner is Financial and Budget Manager at the University of British
Columbia Library.

The time-tested recipes in Company’s Coming cookbooks have been staples in Canadian kitchens for more than 20 years. These two additions to the “Most Loved” series gather the best of the best in their genres and present them beautifully. Mouth-watering, full-colour food portraits at every page-turn make these books pretty enough for the coffee table, but their hard cover, lie-flat bindings are built for real-world use in the kitchen. The recipe layouts, which are the same as those in the popular soft cover Company’s Coming series, feature easy-to-read, bold-faced ingredients lists, conventional and metric measurements, and methods clearly set out in paragraphs. Serving suggestions and preparation tips appear in sidebars, and nutritional information follows each recipe. Each volume concludes with an index to the tips as well as a recipe index by title, key words, and type of dish.

Most-Loved Stir Fries contains 75 recipes are grouped by principal ingredient: beef, chicken, fish and seafood, pork, and vegetables. They include a selection of popular Chinese, Japanese, and Thai dishes, plus some recipes adapted from other cuisines. The special sauces and seasonings that impart the characteristic flavours are generally available in supermarkets, as are the fresh vegetables that make these such healthy, appetizing meals. Most recipes serve 4–6.

Holiday Favourites contains over a hundred festive foods from around the world. While some of these dishes require more work than everyday meals, many include tips for advance preparation and storage. Yields are group sized at 8–12 servings. The recipes cover holiday feasting from beginning to end: breakfasts; appetizers and beverages; salads and soups; entrees and trimmings; side dishes; and desserts and other sweet treats. These are party-pretty recipes that can make any meal special. In addition to the preparation tips that are a hallmark of Company’s Coming, this collection includes sidebars of holiday trivia to help set the festive mood.