Light Pasta Sauces

I've been cooking out of this wonderful book for almost fifteen years in two different countries. I've written preparation dates and comments on almost every page: this book is a precious part of my life story! I love the format of one recipe per page with a beautiful photo of the plated dish, orderly ingredient list, and clear, concise instructions along with notes and variations at the bottom of the page. I've made most of the over one hundred recipes and have never been disappointed, which is more than I can say about most of the over four hundred cookbooks I own. *LOL* I don't actually cook "light" so I recommend substituting butter for margarine, 2% milk for skim, "real" sour cream, etc. These are my "Go To" recipes for any night of the week and informal company dinners any season of the year. You'll find sauces that would be right at home in Italy (ask my DIL); then travel around the world from Scandinavia to Asia to Mexico to the good old USA with sauces featuring Cheese, Salmon, Crab, Shrimp, Tuna and other seafood, Chicken and other poultry, Beef, Pork, Veggies ... many of which make great cold Pasta Salads. I could go on but I'm inspired to go try one of the few recipes I missed in this "Must Have" book!

In its almost 50 parts, all written by experienced cooks and cook book writers, HP Books' "The Book of ... Cooking" series takes you to the cuisines of various regions of the U.S. and around the world; all in easy to follow, well-explained recipes. This installment, the Book of Light Pasta Sauces, starts with a brief introduction to the basics of pasta cooking, and then presents recipe suggestions for all major types of pasta sauces, from (red) meat sauces to cheese and egg sauces. Special chapters are dedicated to poultry sauces, fish and shellfish sauces and vegetable sauces. Classics such as sauce Bolognese, ratatouille, a (somewhat) lighter version of carbonara sauce, napoletana, tomato and mushroom sauces appear next to unique recipes such as tuna and lemon, curried monkfish, Mexican pork, marinated turkey and mint, shredded beef and ginger, shrimp and yellow pepper, and smoked trout with lime sauce. From Asian cabbage to wild mushroom and thyme sauce, this collection of recipes, while not all-encompassing, presents a boatload of (relatively) low-calorie alternatives to the traditionally most fattening component of pasta dishes - the sauce. Also recommended for fans of Italian cooking: This series' installments on pasta, antipasti, and pizzas and Italian breads. Also recommended: Around the World Cookbook Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home: Fast and Easy Recipes for Any Day Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant: Ethnic and Regional Recipes from the Cooks at the Legendary Restaurant (Cookery) Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian: More Than 650 Meatless Recipes from Around the World On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals (4th Edition) Textbook only Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition - 2006

I purchased this as a gift for Christmas and after my wife looked through it I now have to buy one for her. The variety of recipes and good directions and pictures make this one a great gift for anyone who likes pasta