available, with over 1170 listed on Amazon alone. In stark contrast, there are only 200 Greek and 400 Spanish cookbooks.

So when Scott Conant's "New Italian Cooking" arrived in the mail, I was not expecting very much. Scott is a well-known Manhattan restaurateur with a well deserved reputation for innovative and sophisticated Italian cuisine. He was the recipient of a James Beard award for Best Restaurant in the country in 2003. Despite my prejudices, his cookbook had such a striking cover that I sat down and flicked through it.

The problem with there being so many Italian cookbooks on the market is that it's hard to tell the good from the bad. Many of them are simply rehashes of traditional Italian recipes with little new content. Italian cooking is one of the most dynamic styles in Europe with much innovation and reinvention happening all the time. Our somewhat jaded view of chicken Parmesan or spaghetti with tomato sauce is probably more grounded in family traditions, than it is in the cooking of Italy today. Recipes like grilled shrimp with mint, orange and fennel couscous hint at how contemporary this cookbook is.

Having got past my Italian cookbook thing, this one turned out to be a delight. It's beautifully produced, has fantastic recipes and the photography is gorgeous. Scott seems to understand the limitations of home cooks and includes many simple recipes that can be prepared in a very short period of time, which makes it ideal for midweek cooking ideas. On the other hand, there are plenty of recipes suited for cooking over a long weekend, or if you have to entertain the boss and want to impress.

The book is broken up into sections including "Small Tastes", Pasta, Risotto, Main Courses, Vegetables and Side Dishes and of course my favorite, Sweets and Cheeses. There's a nice section on the ingredients and where appropriate a little editorial about the recipe. Overall the book is really nicely laid out. The recipes are easy-to-follow and Scott's style is approachable and enjoyable.

We decided to try, "chicken breast topped with peas, asparagus, tarragon and melted Fontina cheese". From the pictures you can see that this is a pretty dish. The combination of browned chicken with peas, asparagus and cheese make for a mouthwatering dish. Overall cooking time was only about half an hour. We enjoyed the chicken with some rice and it was an excellent tasty meal, ideal for midweek fare. Enthused by our success we also tried an appetizer recipe, "Fried Zucchini with Anchovy Mayonnaise". This basically involves the breading and pan frying zucchini, although the breadcrumbs involved were Panko (Japanese style breadcrumbs). The fried zucchini was served with a home made mayonnaise, somewhat spiced up with anchovy. This made a delicious appetizer which was crunchy, tasty and very enjoyable.

The book has around 30 color photographs that are absolutely gorgeous. We used it on our bookstand in the kitchen like a piece of artwork for several weeks. If anything, this is the only shortcoming of the book - it could really do with a ton more pictures, to go with what are great recipes. If you are like me, you really only ever cook recipes that are accompanied by pictures. Food is extremely visual and it was the pictures that drew me to select the two recipes that we chose. I know that full-color photography is expensive, but it's the thing that makes the difference between a great cookbook and the mediocre one.

Overall, this is a tremendous book. It contains a wide selection of very innovative and exciting recipes that are well within the scope of the average home cook. It's one of those books that you can grab when you are desperate for an idea and use as a planning guide for a sophisticated meal.