The Santa Fe School of Cooking Cookbook: Spirited Southwestern Recipes

As a New Mexican, it's difficult to not be biased but I will say this, if there is only room for one Southwestern cookbook on your shelf then this one is it! Susan Curtis, the author and owner of the school, does an magnificent job of presenting a variety of delicious recipes which give an excellent overview of the diversity of the cuisine of the region. The recipes range from simple and traditional New Mexican fare such as Green Chile Stew to more contemporary Southwestern cuisine like Lime Marinated Grilled Salmon (a personal favorite that I serve for company regularly.) Susan has produced a book that contains recipes which are clear, concise and very easy to follow. In addition to excellent recipes, she includes descriptions of all of the ingredients and tips on using them. There are also many stories which convey the history and development of the foods of the area. It's truly a cookbook that you can just enjoy reading since there is so much more than just recipes between it's covers. Many of the recipes are from the classes taught at the school. If you're fortunate enough to visit Santa Fe then a class at the school should be on your "must do" list. If you can't, then this book is the next best thing!

This is a wonderful book! I bought a copy when I attended a class at the Santa Fe School of Cooking but someone was "helping" me in the kitchen and spilled something on it. Most of the pages were stuck together before I found out about it. It has some of my very favorite recipes in it so I was glad to finally replace it with a new copy. Try the cookbook and if you are in Santa Fe, be sure to sign up for a great class at the School.

We consider this cookbook as one of the best southwest cookbooks available. Not only that, but we've been to the school in Santa Fe. It was a great experience to just be there. This cookbook is written by those living the culture of the foods. It's real stuff!

"The heart and soul of the School is the agriculture upon which the food is based. Many of the traditional methods of growing and processing regional foods - posole, atole, chicos - are almost lost arts. The Cooking School serves as a vehicle to expose and sustain traditional lifestyles." ~Introduction The Santa Fe School of Cooking Cookbook is filled with pictures from the school and some of them are rather amusing, like the picture of the goats next to the recipe for Open-faced Quesadillas with Goat Cheese and Roast Peppers. Pictures of peppers roasting over an open grill and blue corn being crushed in a molcajete gives this cookbook a warm sunny personality. I was especially appreciative of the section on the types of chiles. De Arbol, Serrano and Jalapeño are familiar, but Pasilla and Moritas are definitely new to me. Delicious Recipes Include: Blue Corn Pancakes Guacamole Black Bean Soup Wild Mint and Lamb Soup Jicama Salad with Watercress, Radishes, and Chiles Chicken Enchiladas Grilled Shrimp in Achiote Marinade Sopaipillas Spiced Winter Pears with Ginger Crème Sauce The Indian Fry Bread is easy to make and makes you feel a different connection to the earth and culture. It is different to fry bread and makes you feel like you are participating in some ancient breadmaking ritual as you pat out the dough by hand (Or you can roll it out, but I learned how to make it that way from my father's sister). The recipes for Fresh Tortillas will take your cooking to new levels or homemade bliss and there is also a recipe for Green Chile Sauce and the smoky dipping sauce called Chipotle. Spiced Bananas with Rum and a recipe for Pumpkin Cheesecake make this truly collectible. Each recipe has a story and there are cooks notes and plenty of pictures that will make you wish you were gathering the produce and walking through sunny fields of corn. I've walked barefoot in New Mexico and fell in love with the Sopaipillas and the warm earth and even survived a hailstorm in my "just purchased" car. Fortunately we found shelter fast. This cookbook brought back so many memories! It might inspire a vacation to New Mexico. ~The Rebecca Review

This useful book combines contemporary cuisine with its emphasis on color, freshness and health (lime marinated grilled salmon, quesadillas with goat cheese and roasted peppers, jicama salad with watercress, radish and chiles) with hearty traditional foods (enchiladas suizas with tomatillo and cilantro salsa, green chile and cabbage soup with sausage, chiles rellenos, black bean soup).Curtis, owner of the school, scatters cooking tips throughout the book, paired with appropriate recipes - describing the character and history of blue corn with blue corn pancakes, giving the traditional version of carne adovada, a pork stew, along with the school version, using a comal (griddle) for making tortillas. Illustrated with Santa Fe scenes, gardens, ingredients and dishes, this is a festive book chock full of detail.