Lisa Messinger's
Cookbook of the Week

Olives, Anchovies and Capers: The Secret Ingredients of the Mediterranean Table

By Georgeanne Brennan (Chronicle)

Those who hold their noses upon hearing the words olives, anchovies and capers, will not give a hoot that they are, as Georgeanne Brennan proclaims, "the secret ingredients of the Mediterranean table." However, gourmands who dub these as delicacies, as many good cooks do, will consider Brennan's slim volume nothing less than a delicacy, too.

After informative introductions to each of her star ingredients, Brennan, an award-winning author of many cookbooks, including Apperitif, Flavors of Haute Provence, and Mediterranean Herb Cookbook, shares dozens of sophisticated-yet-simple recipes for appetizers, salads, soups, entrées, spreads, sauces and breads. Some standouts recipes include chicken soup with caper and Parmesan dumplings, anchovies and lemon on black olive bread, terrine of layered goat cheese and olives with fresh thyme, roast chicken with mustard-anchovy crust, and baked rockfish with caper and fennel stuffing.

If you are among the many who don't take a shine to these ingredients, we're not going to be the ones to say that recipes as creative and spectacular as Brennan's will make a believer out of you. Such ingredients are too strong-minded to just meld in and become a part of a bigger picture. But, if you are a fan in the first place, this snazzy book will only increase your ardor.

RECIPE: Roast Chicken with Mustard-Anchovy Crust

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