Did you know that Pre-Columbian Mexican cuisine was low in fat and high in fiber and vitamins? The book opens with a short introduction outlining the history of Mexican cooking, followed by an overview of healthy eating habits, a description of the most common ingredients, and a useful guide to planning for parties.

T-Bone Whacks and Caviar Snacks is the first cookbook in America to focus on the foods of the Asian side of Russia. Filled with fascinating food history, cultural insights, and personal stories, it chronicles the culinary adventures of two intrepid Texans who lived, worked, and ate their way around Siberia and the Russian Far East. Featuring 140 traditional and modern recipes, with many illustrations, T-Bone Whacks and Caviar Snacks includes dozens of regional recipes from cooks in Asian Russia, along with recipes for the European and Tex-Mex dishes that the author and her husband cooked on the “Stoves-from-Hell” in their three Russian apartments, for intimate candlelight dinners during the dark Siberian winter and for lavish parties throughout the year. You'll learn how to make fresh seafood dishes from Russia's Far East, pine nut meringues and frozen cranberry cream from Irkutsk, enticing appetizers from the dining car of a Trans-Siberian luxury train, and flaming “Baked Siberia” (the Russian twist on Baked Alaska). And here's the bonus: All of these recipes can be made with ingredients from your local supermarket or your nearest delicatessen.

There are many gluten-free cookbooks on the market, but none like Goodbye Gluten! Roughly one-third of people in the U.S. are either gluten intolerant or have celiac disease, and for these people, eating gluten can make them sick--very sick. The engaging team of Kim Stanford and Bill Backhaus represents both these audiences, and together they have developed over 200 flavorful and tempting recipes for all types of dishes, from appetizers to desserts. Goodbye Gluten is both a cookbook and shopping guide for people who do not want gluten in their diets and are tired of missing out on their favorite foods. In each recipe the authors use everyday brand names that can be found at your local grocery store, which means you no longer have to check labels to decipher if a product is gluten-free. Another appeal of the book is its use of Texas and Tex-Mex flavors to add a kick to what can be bland fare. Goodbye Gluten makes it easy to live the gluten-free lifestyle, because it is not just a diet, but a lifestyle. With 30 color photos of the completed dishes, even the most dedicated bread-lover will want to get into the kitchen and start cooking.

An informal view of dining and entertaining the Texas way.