Sutter Home Napa Valley Cookbook: New and Classic Recipes (Paperback)

~ James McNair (Author), Zeva Oelbaum (Photographer) "For those occasions when you want a beverage other than a glass of great Napa Valley wine, I've included a refreshing iced wine punch for..." (more)
Key Phrases: minced fresh lemon zest, including green tops, recipe introduction, Napa Valley, Salt Freshly, Sutter Home (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

James McNair, one of America's most prolific cookbook authors, is also the food spokesperson for Sutter Home Winery of St. Helena in California's Napa Valley. With The Sutter Home Napa Valley Cookbook, he joins those two activities, bringing to a wider audience the delightful marriage of good food and good wine that has become so much a part of wine-country life in California. The Trinchero family has owned and operated Sutter Home Winery since the late 1940s (it dates back to 1874), imbuing it with a Piedmontese sensibility that explains the presence of such northern Italian classics as bagna cauda and tapenade. The book is divided into chapters for starters, pasta and risotto, main dishes and accompaniments, and sweets. You'll find Grape Harvest Flat Bread as well as Summer Sangria, Frisee Salad with Grilled Pears, Cheese, and Walnuts, Penne with Roasted Eggplant and Peppers, Portobello Burger, Grilled Asparagus with Sesame Mayonnaise, Roasted New Potato Salad, and, for dessert, Fresh Fig and Peach Galettes. This combination of old European freely mixed with the flavors of new California makes for a winning cookbook from the heart of Napa.

From Publishers Weekly

The prolific McNair (James McNair's Favorites) has enjoyed a long association with the Sutter Home Winery in St. Helena, Calif., both as spokesperson and as head judge for its annual Build a Better Burger contest. Here he collects recipes from the winery's Trinchero family, Sutter Home Inn chefs and his own kitchen. The results, as expected, rely heavily on California's enviable agricultural bounty and a broad variety of wines. Traditional fare includes Old World Bagna Cauda, Evalyn's Pasta Primavera, Mulled Winter Wine and Summer Garden Gazpacho, while the unmistakable Californian accent is evident in Frisee Salad with Grilled Pears, Cheese and Walnuts and Grilled Raspberry Chicken Breasts. An appealingly unusual family recipe, Malfatti with Mushroom Marinara Sauce, introduces a type of meat dumpling described as "ravioli without the pasta casing." Among other savory entr?es are Pork Tenderloin with Pinot Noir and Prunes and Prosciutto-Wrapped Tenderloin of Beef Cabernet. Recipes are within easy reach of most cooks, even the Duck and Pork Cassoulet, which encourages the use of store-bought duck or goose confit and canned white beans. Not to be neglected are two toothsome contest winners: Portobello Burger and Siciliano Burger with Fresh Ciliegine and Sweet Tomato Butter. Wine suggestions accompany most recipes, including such desserts as Lavender Gelato and Fresh Fig and Peach Galettes, a cholesterol extravaganza-- with three sticks of butter in the pastry--that serves six. This beautiful book will bring a piece of Napa into any kitchen. (May)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811822001
• ISBN-13: 978-0811822008
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,394,648 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you like to prepare beautiful food..., August 25, 2000

By	J. Nehal "~ Jason ~" (Seven Hills, OH) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Look no further than this cookbook. It's not the biggest, but it may be the most beautifully photographed cookbook I've ever seen. Our first dinner out of this book featured the Grilled Leg of Lamb with Zinfandel Marinade with Mint Pesto and the Grape Harvest Flatbread. I'm no baker, but the bread turned out perfectly on the first try, warm and full of sweet grapes. The lamb was also wonderful, perfectly complemented by the slightly sweet, sesame-oil flavored mint pesto. Wine pairings and Napa Valley history are also featured, but the real stars of this cookbook are the easy to follow recipes. Anyone with average kitchen skills will be rewarded with visually appealing and delicious gourmet-quality dishes the first time out.