Cookbook Profile: Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook

The Bride & Groom
First and Forever Cookbook

by Mary Corpening Barber & Sara Corpening Whiteford
with Rebecca Chastenet de Géry

Bride & Groom
Here is the perfect gift for newlyweds: the first and only cookbook they will ever need. Bestselling authors Sara Corpening Whiteford and Mary Corpening Barber start the bride and groom off right with the equipment necessary to begin cooking in their new home, valuable tips on getting the pantry stocked, and 125 recipes for every occasion.

They start with basic recipes every cook should have at his or her fingertips: mayonnaise, chicken stock, marinara, sauce, Caesar dressing, cranberry relish, and more. Building from there, they offer 13 recipes for appetizers, finger foods, and snacks, from an easy guacamole to the more complex Caramelized Onion, Gruyere and Olive Tarts.

Every home cook needs a fool-proof recipe for chicken soup, and the Corpening twins have included one. They also include their mother's recipe for Cabbage Soup, updated for busy couples that can't spend all day in the kitchen.

Unique and special to the book are recipes Mary and Sara collected from their mother when they each got married, now updated for today's cook. Here is a delicious slice of Americana: Better Than Grandma's Meat Loaf, Beef Burgundy, Classic Lasagna and Personalized Chicken Potpies. Separate sections for entrees and side dishes follow, with an entire section on breakfast and brunch. The chapter on Sweets makes the mouth water: Oooey-Gooey Caramel Candy Brownies, Puckery Lemon Parfaits with Summer Berries, and a different recipe for chocolate chip cookies from each author.

The Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook is a thorough introduction to newlywed cooking. It offers menu ideas for cooking side-by-side with your spouse; Breakfast in Bed, Elegant Supper for Two, and Romantic Picnic. The authors devote an entire chapter to holidays and special occasions, including a cocktail party, a fireside gathering, and of course the first anniversary. Knowing how little time we all have, the book devotes an entire chapter to quick-to-make dinners and desserts.

While Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook is a complete introduction to cooking, it is also completely accessible. The twins' warm, Southern tone infuses each recipe and set of instructions so that every newlywed cooking from this book will feel confident in the kitchen. With a glossary of cooking terms, a guide to seasonal fruits and vegetables, and a section of ultrafast dinners ideas, The Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook will create happy memories.

About the Authors

Twins Mary Barber and Sara Whiteford are the owners of Thymes Two Catering in San Francisco. Their previous best-selling books include Smoothies, Super Smoothies, Cocktail Food, Skewer It!, and Wraps, all available from Chronicle Books. Susie Cushner is a Boston based photographer, whose work can be seen in Gourmet, Metropolitan Hoine, Martha Stewart Living, Saveur, and Real Simple as well as in the Cape Cod Table and Quick Pickles from Chronicle Books

Buy the Book!

The Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook
by Mary Corpening Barber & Sara Corpening Whiteford
with Rebecca Chastenet de Géry
Photographs by Susie Cushner
Chronicle Books
$35.00 hardcover
272 pages
ISBN: 0-8118-3493-X
Information provided by the publisher.