January 2009

Features

• Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Easy Island Cooking

  Working on a rickety picnic table in a rustic open-air kitchen, star chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten creates a sensational New Year’s Day meal for his family and a few close friends to eat under the palms.

• Comfort Food: English Style

  British tastemakers are reclaiming their national traditions and drawing inspiration from all kinds of classics—from shepherd’s pie to wedgwood china to historic coaching inns.

• Cooking at Home: $100 Dinner Party for 10 People

  Gerald Hirigoyen, one of the world’s most remarkable chef-winemakers, hosts a terrific Basque dinner on a budget of only $10 per person—including wine.

• Cooking at Home: Comfort Classics

  Turkey casseroles and root beer floats may seem like they belong in a time capsule from another era, but they’re actually a trend—again.

• Cooking at Home: Easy, Exotic Recipes

  A packet of udon noodles is certainly cheaper than a flight to Tokyo, but it can also be transporting. Here, recipes for vicarious travel from star cookbook authors of ’09.

• Editor’s Letter

• America’s Next Great Italian Restaurants and Their Simplest Recipes

  The most exciting new restaurants of 2009 are all Italian. But that may be the only thing they have in common: Whether an elegant L.A. dining room, a cheese-centric spot in the Art Institute of Chicago or a trattoria from a star chef in a New York City suburb, each place is unique. Here, a sneak preview of the dishes we can’t wait to try.

• Best Wines for Every Month of 2009

  Lettie Teague has planned out a full year of wine in her 2009 Wine Diary (.pdf format). Below, we’ve excerpted her picks, along with recipes, features and many more bottles for each month.

• What’s New on Foodandwine.com

  New features and recipes only available at foodandwine.com.

• What to Cook Now: Trendsetting Ingredients

  Peri peri chicken, soy-sauce crystals, Dutch cheese and more.

• What to Cook Now: Trendsetting Products

  Italian craft beer, healthy chips, old-school gins and more.

• What to Cook Now: Trendsetting Recipes, Ingredients and Products

  At F&W, we pride ourselves on our powers of prediction. One trend stands out for 2009: The increasing desire to cook at home. Here, we highlight some incredible new ingredients, products and recipes—from peri peri chicken, healthy chips and incredible dishes like chef Alex Raij’s Tuna Bocadillos (right).