There’s Joy in Cooking—Even in 2016

As Cyd puts it, she has set out to “refine the art of hanging out” by making treats that are decadent and beautiful but never formal. Her gorgeous Think Pink Faloodas, for example—sunset-colored sherbet and fruit layered with tapioca and rice noodles—are pure whimsy: Martha Stewart meets Dr. Seuss.

 

Cyd is a professional food photographer and stager (clients include Food & Wine, Kinfolk and the New York Times) and her cookbook is about as pretty as they come. This is the kind of book that you could buy just for the photos. But her recipes are more than eye candy. Each that I tested was a winner, and some, like her super simple but addictive Sweet and Salty Pumpkin Seed Clusters, were so good they will be on indefinite rotation at Chez Parson.

Food with Friends is all about making gatherings sparkle without the stress— whether those gatherings are an impromptu picnic, a dinner party or a treat with the kids.

To celebrate the birthday of my daughter’s friend, for example, we made Cyd’s Rhubarb Rose Floats. The girls, second graders, scooped the ice cream into the homemade rhubarb syrup. Then they topped each float with sparkling water and freshly whipped cream. (We skipped the candied rose petals because we didn’t have any, though they would be a lovely addition.) We could have made something more complicated—chocolate cupcakes are my default when it comes to birthdays—but the rhubarb floats were perfect: a joyful indulgence, memorable and easy enough for my sous chefs to help make, which was half the fun. Click here to see Cyd's Sugar Cookies with Edible Flowers recipe.

 

Vegan, Vegetarian, Omnivore is sure to be a lifesaver for hosts of family meals, especially around the holidays. Thomas includes a variety of menus for special occasions like Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.

 

But there’s no Tofurky here. Thomas’s emphasis throughout is on wholesome, fresh food with global influences of the sort that will be familiar to readers of American food magazines: curried roasted cauliflower, charred zucchini with lemon and mint, white gazpacho with cucumbers and grapes (see recipe here).

 

It will be no surprise to her legion of fans that Thomas’s new cookbook brings vegan and vegetarian diners in from the margins. Thomas is the author of the classic The Vegetarian Epicure (Knopf, 1972) and of Love Soup (W.W. Norton, 2009), a James Beard Award–winning compendium of vegetarian soup recipes. (Food trivia: Thomas is also an accomplished screenwriter, filmmaker and teacher of film studies. Credits include the 
Oscar-nominated El Norte and Frida, both directed by her husband, 
Gregory Nava.)

Vegan, Vegetarian, Omnivore puts the focus on how food can bring us together despite our dietary differences. Anyone who has struggled to prepare a meal that makes everyone feel welcome will appreciate this timely and useful book.

Dinner party, anyone?