The Bean Bible: A Legumaniac's Guide To Lentils, Peas, And Every Edible Bean On The Planet! - Softcover

Aliza Green is the author of five successful cookbooks, beginning with her authorial partnership with French chef Georges Perrier on Le Bec-Fin Recipes. She also co-authored ¡Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails with a Latino Twist with chef Guillermo Piernot, which won a James Beard Award for Best Single Subject Cookbook.” Beans: More than 200 Delicious, Wholesome Recipes from Around the World, appeared as one of The New York Times' top cookbooks of the year. She has also authored Field Guide to Meat and Field Guide to Produce. Green's food columns and articles appear in a variety of local and national newspapers and magazines, including in Fine Cooking, Prevention, Philadelphia Magazine, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and The National Culinary Review. She has conducted numerous cooking classes, had many television appearances, including NBC's Today Show, and radio interviews, and is a highly reputed television and print food stylist.

In the growing field of bean and grain cookbooks, Green does an above-average job with these well-written multiethnic recipes ranging from Italian Chickpea Fries to Chinese Steamed Clams with Fermented Black Bean Sauce. Her hefty introduction is packed with history, helpful information and the requisite section on minimizing gas when eating a legume-loaded diet. A legume family tree divides beans and their ilk into four major branches, and the glossary covers even rarer varieties like appaloosa beans. A sub-section on products derived from soy (i.e., soy sauce and miso) is also a winning inclusion. Best of all, Green has a knack for enlivening tired ideas. For example, her Vegetarian Chili with Red Beans and White Hominy contains butternut squash and cumin seeds. Some of the main dishes consist of several different components: Grilled Lamb Patties with Turkish White Bean Salad and Marinated Carrots, and Israeli Couscous with Eggplant Rolls and Chickpeas. And Green pays homage to recent culinary trendsAsuch as Asian Wrap Sandwiches with Shiitakes, Bean Sprouts and Hoisin Sauce (rolled in tortillas)Awithout neglecting old legume favorites like Spicy Homemade Beer Nuts. Not all recipes are vegetarian, but those that are she thoughtfully marks as such. This is a worthwhile addition to the bean cookery shelf. (July)
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