Customer Reviews

Food To Die For: Secrets from Kay Scarpetta's Kitchen

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This book will be primarily of interest to those who have read and enjoyed the Kay Scarpetta novels, like to cook from scratch, and do not know much about how to make high quality Italian pasta dishes.

I suggest you buy the book for yourself and try it out before giving it as a gift. For many people, this will not be an appropriate choice because of aversions to the death and danger themes in the novels, their own cooking interests, or their current level of cooking knowledge. For example, if I gave this book to my favorite Italian aunt, she would chase me out of the house with a pan in her hand, feeling that I had insulted her wonderful cooking!

If you are like me, you enjoy the stories about Ms. Patricia Cornwell's fictional heroine, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, chief medical examiner of Virginia. While trying to save the lives of Virginia's citizens, her own life and those of her friends and family are often at risk. Where Shakespeare had his clowns and fools to relieve the tension, food helps in these novels. "After Scarpetta puts her hands on death all day, she needs to come home to abundant beauty, wine, and delicious food with family and friends."

Ms. Cornwell reports that "like Scarpetta, I cook intuitively and sometimes whimsically." For example, she found that pizza crust turns out better with olive oil and honey. As a result, she thinks that "people should approach cooking with the heart and not as technicians." "Many of my signature dishes, such as my Scarpetta Stew, never come out the same way twice."
"But I am all of my characters, so I can cook like Lucy and Marino, too." The restaurant recipes come from actual restaurants mentioned in the books. In some cases, the restaurants made up the recipes to respond to requests from patrons who are Cornwell fans. You get the addresses for the restaurants, as well, in case you would like to visit any of them.

This unique cookbook combines several interesting and tasty elements: Excerpts from 11 of her novels referencing food (Postmortem, Body of Evidence, All that Remains, Cruel and Unusual, The Body Farm, From Potter's Field, Cause of Death, Unnatural Exposure, Point of Origin, Black Notice, and The Last Precinct); recipes of dishes mentioned in those books cooked by Dr. Scarpetta, her family or friends, and the restaurants the fictional characters visit; sidebars on how to prepare and store many basic Italian and French food ingredients and sauces; and gorgeous full-color photographs of each dish displayed on beautiful colored plates and printed on fine quality glossy paper. Almost all of the dishes can either be prepared quickly or by using advance preparation, completed quickly. So they are good for a person who wants a tasty meal after working all day.

As an example of how this works together, each book's section opens with two pages of quotes. Unnatural Exposure includes the quote, "A shadow passed over her face as she opened a jar of horseradish." This section has Kay's Stew with Red Wine and Garlic (containing many more ingredients than I would ever have thought of for a stew) which she served Marino for Halloween dinner. This is followed by a lengthy sidebar about tomatoes, describing varieties, buying, storing, and preparing them. Next, is Jumbo Shrimp with Bev's Kicked by a Horse Cocktail Sauce which Kay had during a dinner with Wesley. Bev is the woman who helped Kay pick out the seafood at the store. There's also Bev's Lump Crab Cakes. The final recipe is Lila's Clam Stew (a recipe Lila was selling on the street for 25 cents before dying of smallpox).

So the book has a strong literary flavor, as well as a distinct preference for vivid Continental tastes. The earliest recipes are almost all southern Italian, but then move into northern Italy, and later branch out into some basic French dishes (such as onion soup and Béchamel sauce). There's an English breakfast, a little standard American food, and a couple of Southern specialties (baby back ribs and Jack Daniels chocolate-pecan pie).

There's a heavy accent on using very fresh, high quality ingredients. You are encouraged to make your own pasta (but you are told how to use purchased pasta, if you insist). People who know Italian cooking very well will mainly be interested in the variations here of standard dishes. People who do not know Italian cooking will find an easy and pleasant introduction awaiting them. There are also suggestions for what staples to keep in the pantry, what partially-made items to keep in the freezer, and what fresh ingredients to buy weekly at the store.

I think the most fun way to use this book would be to hold theme dinners with friends, where each person does one dish to make a whole meal. Then, you could light some candles, and take turns reading your favorite parts of a given novel as you sipped some nice wines to complement your meal.

If you want to assemble meals outside of the format of each novel, you will find that the table of contents is also organized by course in cross-referencing the whole book.

Of the dishes here, I was most interested in trying the Veal Breast Stuffed with Spinach Pistou, Pork Loin with Fig and Prosciutto Stuffing, Ravioli with Squash and Chestnut Filling, Lasagna cui Carciofi, Kay's Stew with Red Wine and Garlic, Peanut Butter and Chocolate Pie, and Crostini di Polenti con Funghi Trifolati.

May you enjoy the friendly surprises in these recipes as much as you do Ms. Cornwell's novels!

What other books can you read which will be spiced up by preparing some special food to go with them?

This is a very special and unique cookbook. Many of the recipes are based on a dish that can be found in the Kay Scarpetta novels. As fans of the series know, the chief medical examiner of Virginia likes to relax by cooking in her very fancy kitchen and the results are always mouth watering. Her creator also likes to cook and the recipes that can be found in this book are easy to follow and the results are undeniably good.

The table of contents is broken down in two ways. The first one is by the book the dish appears in and the second is by the different courses which include soups, appetizers, side dishes, dinner entries and desserts. This beautifully illustrated cookbook will be appreciated by anyone who likes to cook not just Scarpetta readers and is the perfect gift for the holiday season.

Harriet Klausner

As a Patricia Cornwell fan, I was dubious about buying a spin-off book and possibly destroying my image of Dr. Scarpetta. However, my curiosity (and stomach) finally overcame my reservations. This book is absolutely wonderful! I entertain often and our guests haved raved over every dish we've made from this book. I'm lucky enough to live in a state where fresh ingredients are easy to find, including fresh vegetables and the fresh mozzarella which is so prevalent throughout this book (it really makes a difference!) The tips on what to keep in the pantry are priceless, as are Patricia Cornwell's personal notes and snippets of her novels which pair with each recipe better than a fine wine, and gives the reader not only a recipe but the heart and soul and inspiration to warm your heart as well as your tummy.

I checked the book out from the library because I am a huge Dr. Scarpetta fan. I was hesitant to make the recipies due to the lengthy list of ingredients in most of them, but the 4 recipies I have tried were amazing! I just made one of them tonight and I am still drooling over it. The fresh pasta is the BEST recipie I have tried (and I have tried a lot), and it makes a HUGE difference! The stew was soooo good, granted, it took a while, but it was worth it!!! I love this book, I plan to buy it. Worth the investment for the cook who loves great recipies!

The Kay Scarpetta series/books are for readers who like mystery and forensic science. Once I begin, I'll read until the book is finished.
I'm Italian and was raised on 'ethnic' dishes. It's wonderful to read about the food Kay prepares throughout these books. I enjoy cooking, but my kitchen cannot compare to the one that "Kay uses"! I cook for joyous events, birthdays, holidays; I cook when I'm feeling down, angry, or need to let off some steam.
As I read about the dishes being prepared by Kay, I can almost smell them simmering on her stovetop or baking in her oven!
FOOD TO DIE FOR: SECRETS FROM KAY SCARPETTA'S KITCHEN; is a cookbook for the true Scarpetta fan. Dividing the sections of this cookbook based on the individual Scarpetta books; taking the paragraphs and dialogue from the individual book chapters and placing them alongside the recipie is a refreshing way to reminiscence about the prior books I read.
Some of the recipies involve more ingredients and preparation time than what I am used to, but I'm going to give them all a try.
Throughout the cookbook are notes written by the author, Patricia Cornwell. It gives her readers a little more insight into her books, characters, recipies; and of course for me - I still think Kay Scarpetta is Patricia Cornwell!

I was not impressed with Cornwell's first attempt at a cookbook, but this one is wonderful. I got the book as a gift and I love it. The stew takes a long time to make, but it is well worth it! I get requests for it all the time. I like how she includes references to the books that the recipes are featured in. I can't wait to make the lasagna with porcini mushrooms. You don't have to be a cook to follow her directions. I recommend this to all Patricia Cornwell fans.

For years I've lusted after the intriguing foods that Kay whips together after a tough day at the morgue! I've wondered just how she makes her pizza dough, what her lasagne really tastes like, and her secrets for making fresh pastas and her garlic soup. This book has satisfied all of my culinary desires about Kay, and the recipes sound as intriguing as the novels they originated from. I tried the Jack Daniels Chocolate Pecan Pie for Thanksgiving and it truly was to die for! I found the recipe hints and instructions to be very accurate and helpful, since I'm not an expert cook. Now I'm looking forward to trying Kay's Stew with Red Wine and Garlic this weekend, it sounds like the perfect dish for this winter season! When spring comes, I'm going to dip into the salads.

I've always loved detetive novels where the author writes about food. I always wanted the recipies from PC's novels (would re-read each food passage to look for hints and ideas).

Well - once I saw that this book was available, I ordered it right away! I got it this morning - I'm carrying it around while I do other things! Keep showing my daughter and husband what they will be eating for awhile!

I love the tips and tricks, I love the details (what's she got in her pantry, what's in the freezer, where she gets her favorite products).

Already started a shopping list - I was pretty happy to say that I have most items in my pantry. I am a cookbook collector, and this book really is a lot of fun (I'm only half way through!).

I can't wait to get to the grilled pizza - this has been driving me crazy for years on how to make that!

This book is a winner - it surpasses the expectation of some great recipes that had my mouth watering as I read Cornwell's books. Now I get the delighted looks and the emphatic 'ahhs'as I present these culinary delights to my friends and family. Recipes are simple but have great detail in the making and presentation. This book has my indepth respect as a great recipebook!

This is a great cook book and really does make my mouth water just thinking about it. I really enjoyed the Crab cakes and would recommend them to anyone. Most of her recipies are pretty simple and they are all delicious. I say... Dive in!