The Art of Mexican Cooking

I keep renewing this book from the library...can't wait until it's in stock so I can finally own it. I lived in Mexico for a year, fell in love with the food, and now have discovered that I never even ate as well as Diana Kennedy must cook. Now I'm obsessed and force my boyfriend to eat homemade Mexican every single night (not really a punishment.)

My idea of heaven is a meal with savory black beans, fresh tortillas, a couple of chile rellenos in a tomato/garlic/cinnamon broth, finished off by a curdy sweet flan for dessert. Diana Kennedy steps you through the processes of each dish, and adds all the little touches to get it JUST right! Some will dispute my choices, I suppose, and prefer a turkey breast and thighs in a chile/ chocolate mole sauce, or maybe the traditional September treat of chiles en nogada (ground pork inside freshly roasted green chiles, covered with a white walnut sauce, sprinkled with persimmon seeds). She has all the recipes, they're all great.

As the title implies, this cookbook is for "Aficionados" of Mexican food. This is serious Mexican food (you won't find combo platters here). Every one of Diana Kennedy's recipes that I have tried have turned out wonderfully. If you want authentic Mexican, this is the only book you'll need.