1.- BEST CHEF BOOK

Chef books continue to multiply in all countries. There are interesting books this year from Iceland, Brazil, Portugal. There seems to be a return to classics worldwide, with a focus on just cooking. Chef books become very personal, with the chefs really showing their personality and character.

1996  US - Hubert Keller (Ten Speed)

1997  Hong Kong - Winni Brugger (John Wiley)

1998  US – Rick Bayless (Scribner)

1999  US – Thomas Keller (Artisan)

France – Jacques Chibois (Flammarion)

2000  Spain – Andrés Madrigal (Santillana)

France – Alain Dutournier (Albin Michel)

2001  Germany – Jean Claude Bourgueil (Dumont)

France – Regis Marcon (Editions Du Mirroir)

2002  Italy – Heinz Beck (Bibliotheca Culinaria)

         UK – Michel Roux (Quadrille)

2003 Switzerland – Philippe Rochat (Favre)

2004 France – Philippe Conticini (Marabout)

2005 China – Du Gong Bei (CHLIP)

BEST IN THE WORLD

FINALISTS

1.-AUSTRALIA

Bécasse

Justin North

(Hardie Grant –Australia)

At the heart of the food of Bécasse is a love of great produce. The book is a collection of sumptuous recipes and photographs, following the produce and meeting the people responsible for it.

2.-BELGIUM – FLEMISH

Puur Provence

 Wout Bru – Bistrot dEygalières – Chez Bru

 Text:Erik Verdonck

 Photography: Kris Vlegels

 (Lannoo)

Chez Bru is a paradise in Provence. The book tells a great story with very good texts and beautiful photography.

3.-BELGIUM – FRENCH

Just Cooking

 Kristof Coppens – Restaurant A priori

 Photography: Bart van Leuven

 Text: Marc Declercq

 (Lannoo-Belgium)

This could be the most beautiful and original book of the year. The design is dynamic with a great combination of colour and taste.

4.-BRAZIL

Le Saint Honoré

 Dominique Oudin, Ana Ribeiro

 Texto: Danusia Barbara

 Photos: Alexander Landau

 (Senac)

Paul Bocuse inaugurated in 1979 this restaurant in the Meridien Hotel of Rio de Janeiro. The book contains recipes from Bocuse and from the chef Dominique Oudin.

5.-CHINESE

New Generation Sichuan Recipes

 By Xiao Jian Ming

 (Sichuan Science and Technology Publishing House)

In the south of China, Sichuan is the leading region in cuisine for most Chinese. The food is spicy. This restaurant is a perfect representative of the best of Sichuan, with its new recipes rooted in tradition.

6.-FRANCE

Planète Marx

 Thierry Marx

 Photos et stylisme: Mathilde de lEcotais

 (Minerva)

The book reveals the personality and recipes of the chef of the restaurant of Chateaux Cordeilan Bages in Pavillac, next to Bordeaux. The text has to be read, the recipes visited, the photos by Matilde de lEcotais who signed the photos for Ducasse major books are master pieces. The book is very expensive, but worth it.

7.-GERMANY

Dieter Müller

 Fotografiert von Luzia Ellert

 (Collection Rolf Heyne-Germany)

Since his last Award for Best Book of the year on November 11, 2000 for Geheimisse aus Meine Küche (with Thomas Ruhl), Dieter Müller shows us that he not only grows but changes and improves, as a chef and as a Cookbook author. The enthusiast amateur will not be disappointed nor frustrated. The introduction makes success a simple adventure, and with each recipe you learn something…simple. Success is easy.

8.-GREECE

My Favorites

 (Kastaniotis)

A real chef book for professionals, the recipes are rather difficult and require serious techniques.

9.-ICELAND

Delicious Iceland

 Tales of Unique Northern Delicacies in English

 Chef Völundur Snaer Völundarson

 Text- Haukur Ágústsson

 Photos: Hreinn Hreinsson

 (Salka)

Chef Völundur has been working around the world with the best, always with Iceland in his heart; together with photographer Hreinn he now takes Iceland to your heart.

10.-JAPAN

Kaiseki – The Exquisite Cuisine of Kyotos Kikunoi Restaurant

Yoshihiro Murata, from Kikunoi Restaurant in Kyoto and Tokyo

 Photos: Masashi Kuma

 Foreword by Ferran Adria and Nobu Matsuhisa

(Kodansha International)

Kaiseki was the book that everyone wanted at the latest Frankfurt Book Fair in October 2006, and the hit of the fair for cookbooks. If you see it, you will want it.

11.-THE NETHERLANDS

 Savelberg Hotel-Restaurant

 Jan Lagrouw

 Illustrations: Kees Hageman & Jan Lagrouw

 (Inmerc)

 An inspiring cookbook of one of the most famous chefs in the Netherlands: Henk Savelberg. More than 50 recipes of Henk Savelbergs signature, including his most famous dish: Salade Savelberg, illustrated by magnificent full colour photographs of the recipes and his beautiful hotel restaurant.

12.-NORWAY

Tiden på Engø Gård / The Time at Engø Gård

Andreas Norland

Recipes: Per Hallundbæk

Photo: Thomas Widerberg, Finn Ståle Felberg

Layout: Frødis Skaug-Andersen

(Engø Gård)

The history of this estate is lively and personally told, and the chef work and passion makes it even more worth the efforts go outside Oslo to taste it for real.

13.-PORTUGAL

Um Chef em Sua Casa

 Jose Avillez – Premio Chef de Futuro

 (Esfera Dos Livros)

Twenty eight years old chef Jose Avillez is the great hope among the young Portuguese chefs, at the restaurant of Hotel Albatroz in Cascais. He combines quality and simplicity, inspired by his training at Troigros or the Bristol Hotel in Paris. The book shows he is equally good at catering, gourmet cuisine or cooking lessons.

14.-SPAIN – CASTELLANO

TSXXI – Tapas en la gastronomía del Siglo XXI

 Paco Roncero

 (Everest)

 Chef Pablo Roncero at the Casino de Madrid restaurant has been influenced by Ferran Adria: his recipes are full of surprises and original, with much work on textures and taste, always valuing first the product. His cooking focuses on miniature masterpieces, a symbol of our time.

15.-SPAIN – CATALAN

Tapes i Broquetes de Mallorca

Javier Soriano, Restaurante La Gran Tortuga

Photos: Tomás Dominguez

(Ediciones Benavente)

The young chef from Mallorca has won the spanish competition of Tapas and Pinchos. The book was launched at the international fair for tapas , Tapalma, in Palma de Mallorca. He offers a mix of old and new recipes, showing the influences of various periods in the history of the cuisine of Mallorca.

16.- SPAIN – EUSKERA

 Bestiarium Gastronomicae

 Andoni Luis Aduriz

 Illustrations: José Belmonte Rocandio

 (Cuadernos Mugaritz-Tabula)

The genius of Mugaritz restaurant in Renteria in the Basque area creates recipes as a tribute to Gyula Madarasz. This Hungarian created beasts before his death 75 years ago, which have been interpreted through illustrations by Jose Belmonte and 31 recipes by the chef.

17.-SWEDEN

Husmanskonst
Leif Mannerström

Text: Tord Melander

Food Photo: Tomas Yeh

Photo: Lisa Nestorson

Stylist: Sarah Bergh

(Prisma)

One of the grand old Swedish chefs goes back to the roots and shows the traditions for a young generation in a new style.

18.-TURKEY

Sonsuz Mönü

 By Chef Eyüp Kemal St Vinç

 Executive Chef, Hilton Park, Istanbul

 (Bilesim)

The Chef is from the Hilton, and has received many awards. The book is very practical, with independent entries by subjects and themes.

19.-UK

 In Search of Perfection

 Reinventing Kitchen Classics

 Heston Blumenthal

 Written in cooperation with Pascal Cariss

 Photographs by Simon Wheeler

 (BBC-Bloomsbury)

Heston Blumenthal won a Gourmand Best in the World for his first cookbook in 2003, in Barcelona, the same week he received his third Michellin Star. His new title summarizes his current work in search of perfection.

20.-USA

 The Soul of a New Cuisine, A Discovery of the Foods and Flavours of Africa

 Marcus Samuelsson, Foreword by Desmond Tutu

 (John Wiley)

Marcus Samuelsson's food reflects his life. Born in Ethiopia and raised in Sweden by adoptive parents, he draws inspiration from all around the world.

His latest cookbook is also his most personal: "The Soul of a New Cuisine: A Discovery of the Foods and Flavors of Africa," which focuses on the land of his birth. He visits The Early Show to show how African influences can be found in your grocery store and kitchen pantry.

In "The Soul of a New Cuisine," Samuelsson reconnects with his native roots through food, which is what he knows best. In the book, he writes, "For as long as I can remember, I've had Africa on my mind."

The book features more than 200 recipes, designed to help you easily fuse African influences with everyday ingredients. It's also illustrated with striking photographs. While writing the book, Samuelsson also was inspired to create an African CD.