Lisa Messinger's
Cookbooks of the Week

The Essential Cuisines of Mexico
By Diana Kennedy (Clarkson Potter)

You know when your home is also considered a research center for Mexican cuisine that you've made more than a few outstanding tacos. Diana Kennedy's adobe house in Michoacan, Mexico, has earned just that honor. And the 300 recipes in Kennedy's The Essential Cuisines of Mexico will show you why. The book is more than a greatest hits collection: It's all three of the previous books (The Cuisines of Mexico, The Tortilla Book and Mexican Regional Cooking) that made her a star in this field. For your convenience when cooking, everything has been organized into 22 chapters by subject such as Soups, Pork, Beef, Tortillas and Desserts. As expected from a respected pro like Kennedy, recipes are extremely well written and easy to prepare.

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