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Lisa
Messinger's
Cookbook Corner
Royal
Caribbean International Cookbook
By
Rudi Sodamin
 Cruise
ships are known for their lavish buffets served virtually
24 hours a day. Although you probably won't keep up
quite that pace at home, you could with Royal Caribbean
International Cookbook. More important, though, than
the frequency of your meals (ships are famous for
everything from pre-breakfast smorgasbords to decadent
midnight snack buffets), the compact book turns luxury
into your shipmate.
You
couldn't find a better captain for this particular
journey than author Rudi Sodamin. Sodamin joined Royal
Caribbean International in 1999 as Director of Culinary
Development with a mission to enhance the already
impressive shipboard dining to heretofore unheard
of levels.
It
was with good reason Royal Caribbean selected Sodamin.
In 1995, he received the title of Honorium Con Scosi
from the Maîtres Cuisiniers de France, the hospitality
industry's top award. He has been knighted by the
Club Prosper Montagne and invited by former President
Clinton to the White House as an honored member of
the Le Club de Chefs des Chefs, an exclusive culinary
organization of chefs who cook for royalty or heads
of state.
Honors,
of course, are good signs, but the proof is on the
plate. You will have more than sufficient proof after
reading Sodamin's 160-page standout. First, be tantalized
by gorgeous full-color photography of dishes like
Bahama Mama Fritters with Tangy Caribbean Cocktail
Sauce, Chilled Roasted Peach Soup, Key West Grouper
with Ginger-Orange Sauce and Banana-Pistachio Strudel
with Rum-Raisin Sauce.
Next,
of course, you'll want to taste. Make Roasted Filet
Mignon with Brandy-Peppercorn Sauce and, like with
any of the recipes, you'll be expertly re-creating
the cruise-style cuisine about which so many travelers
rave. It's nothing less than luscious; almost as rich
as a dessert. Mangospacho is a gazpacho of sorts made
with mango, water, ginger ale, rice wine vinegar,
olive oil, sugar, cucumbers, red onion and cilantro.
"Wow" will probably be the remark if you
serve it at your next dinner party. Raspberry Tiramisu
is a decadent mix including a cocoa powder sprinkling
and chocolate sticks jutting from each serving.
Are
Sodamin's the easiest or least expensive recipes on
the Seven Seas? No, but, if they were, they wouldn't
be truly reflective of the cuisine served on board.
They are, though, manageable and not all break the
bank.
Here
are samples of Sodamin's sumptuous souvenirs:
RECIPES
—Roasted
Filet Mignon with Brandy-Peppercorn Sauce
—Raspberry
Tiramisu
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Corner for additional reviews
(Updated:
01/05/07)
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