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The Desperate Housewives Cookbook: Juicy Dishes and Saucy Bits    by Christopher Styler & Scott S. Tobis Amazon.com order for
Desperate Housewives Cookbook
by Christopher Styler
Order:  USA  Can
Hyperion, 2006 (2006)
Hardcover
* *   Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth

Anyone who has watched television – or for that matter, breathes – has heard of the show, The Desperate Housewives. I have in front of me The Desperate Housewives Cookbook. Okay, I thought, how good can this be? Their schtick is being actresses not cooks. However, the over 125 recipes in this really beautiful cookbook are the ones that would be used to cook the foods that these housewives and their friends and neighbors cook and eat on the show.

Take Bree Van De Kamp, for instance. She has programmed her state of the art kitchen to produce state of the art foods. Start with her Basil Puree Soup. Her menu might then include Salad of Boston Lettuce and Chili-Toasted Walnuts, Blue Cheese, and Oranges. Poached Turkey Tonnato could follow. The Fallen Apple Souffle Cake uses egg whites to give the right texture. Her Rocky Road Sweet Potatoes sound perfect for a Thanksgiving table along with Ginger-Spiked Baby Carrots. I'd sit at her table any time.

We move on to Susan who does not have Bree's culinary flair. Although how could she go wrong with Roasted Peppers and Fresh Mozzarella Topped with Arugula Salad? The Pasta with Light Tomato Sauce can't be too hard - though I guess anyone who can burn and undercook Macaroni and Cheese can ruin just about anything else. Gabrielle, who hates to cook and bamboozles someone else to do it for her, has mostly Spanish tinged recipes that seem easy to prepare, and good to boot. Lynette goes for the quick foods, ones that don't demand a lot of time or attention to detail. Edie, the flirt, uses food as an aphrodisiac – seems to work for her.

However - or whatever - food is presented in this delicious new cookbook, the recipes are tempting, innovative – who ever heard of baked asparagus, for Pete's sake? – and delicious. Some neighbors on Wisteria Lane have also submitted recipes for your perusal. Treat a fan of Desperate Housewives to their cookbook. A smart move.

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