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Discerning Diner...with Elan Head
Hungry for ideas? Give the gift of good eating

I began thinking about Christmas gifts in late October—mind you, that’s thinking about them, not necessarily doing anything about them.

Wouldn’t it be great, I thought, if this year I made gifts for everyone on my list: gingerbread cookies, fudgy brownies, maybe even good, old-fashioned fruitcakes with citrus peel I candied myself.

And while I was at it, I would make everyone an elaborate origami Christmas tree ornament, too.

Well, as I sit down to write this, it’s about a week before Christmas, and I can tell just by looking at my calendar that the baking thing is probably not going to happen.

The candied citrus peel is most definitely not going to happen.

And I made it through about four 12-piece origami ornaments before my right index finger started to blister.

Obviously, I’ve had to rethink my gift list. A number of the people on it—people who were originally slated to receive a glorious, honey-drenched pain d’epices around now—will instead be getting a cookbook for Christmas, so that in their spare time they can make this spice cake themselves.

This I where I invoke the old proverb, “Give a man a pain d’epices and you’ve fed him for a day. Teach a man how to make a pain d’epices and you’ve successfully delegated your holiday baking.”

Not that cookbooks are bad gifts; quite the opposite. They’re an obvious choice for the food nerds on your list, but are equally suitable for college students, bachelors, newlyweds or the husband who’s buying himself a new gas grill for Christmas.

Naturally, there are some issues of tact to consider. A cookbook—of any type—is probably not the right choice for someone who is sensitive about his or her weight.

And if you think that a cookbook will send a “subtle” hint—of any type—to its recipient, well, watch out.

But I’ll leave it to you, Gentle Reader, to navigate those misty fjords of etiquette. Meantime, here are some of the books I’m excited about this Christmas:

Zingerman’s Guide to Good Eating, by Ari Weinzweig: Passionate but lighthearted, this fat volume is not so much a cookbook as a first course in foodie-hood. Weinzweig is a founding partner of the famous Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor, Mich., and his apparent mission here is twofold: to provide a comprehensive guide to understanding and selecting food products, and to impart to his readers an abiding enthusiasm for the same. He succeeds on both counts.

Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates, by the Moosewood Collective. I think a lot of people learned to cook with a Moosewood cookbook—I did. And frankly, I could have done a lot worse. This renowned vegetarian restaurant in Ithaca, N.Y., puts out some great meatless cookbooks, and Celebrates continues the tradition with a collection of special-occasion menus and user-friendly recipes.

A Man, A Can, A Plan, by David Joachim. When I tell people that I love the magazine Men’s Health, they nod knowingly. But I really do read it for the articles. Inspired by their popular feature of the same name, this book of quick, nutritious recipes—demanding nominal culinary skill and a can opener—practically screams, “for the bachelor in your life!”

The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion, by King Arthur Flour. Here’s a comprehensive resource on the subject from real experts: the purveyors of America’s best flour. I love their catalog, and I love this book, too.

The Zuni Café Cookbook, by Judy Rogers. This one’s for the serious gourmet on your list. It’s a sumptuously illustrated book that’s also a beautiful read, and the recipes—they’re “advanced”—are superb.

I found all of these books at Changing Hands, our topnotch independent bookstore in Tempe. Changing Hands has an excellent cookbook section, overseen by the knowledgeable Mark Sutz. (Their other sections are pretty good, too—that’s where I rounded out my Christmas shopping.)

But what if your Christmas shopping has been done since October? Well, there are always New Year’s resolutions to think about.

Perhaps 2004 is the year you’ll learn to bake, or resolve to eat more healthfully, or become a vegetarian.

Which is where the Changing Hands New Year’s Day sale comes in: on Jan. 1, everything in the store will be 25 percent off. Happy holidays!

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