Recipes for Our Daughters: Family Favorites and Recipes from Outstanding Women

Moms Rothstein and Neft, who met when their girls started kindergarten, originally planned this to be a compilation of their families' favorite recipes and crash-cooking advice--a thoughtful gift for their daughters on the occasion of their college graduation. They decided to go one step further, soliciting the recipes that role models such as Katie Couric, Nora Ephron, Perri Klass, M.D., Rosalynn Carter and a number of political, business and arts heroines would pass on to their own children. Many contributors explain why their chosen dishes hold special meaning. Cokie Roberts offers Okra Stew, which reminds her of her native Louisiana; U.S. Senator Patty Murray suggests that readers use apples from her home state of Washington in her pie recipe. Humor is sprinkled throughout--playwright Wendy Wasserstein, for example, merely gives the phone number for New York City's Shun Lee West restaurant. Silliness aside, the many practical culinary tips--such as how to test baking powder for freshness, buy flour or distinguish between raw and hard boiled eggs--are bound to prevent many a kitchen disaster. Dishes range from simple standbys like Lipton onion soup mixed with sour cream as a party dip, to the sophisticated Chicken Provence, contributed by lingerie designer Josie Natori. Possibly the most useful pages for those graduating to their own apartments are in the""Troubleshooting"" section, which offers answers to a list of""what can I do if?"" questions along with equivalent charts, storage and diet advice. All in all, here's a gift book that ought to be used plenty by anyone lucky enough to receive it.