Adventures in the Kitchen: 175 New Recipes from Spago, Chinois on Main, Postrio and Eureka

Wolfgang Puck is a legendary chef. His endlessly imaginative cuisine delights countless diners at his world-renowned California restaurants: Spago, Chinois on Main, Postrio, Eureka, and his latest, Granita. Now, Adventures in the Kitchen offers over 175 great new recipes that enable food lovers to recreate Puck's wonderful dishes at home.

Whether preparing food for two or for twenty, cooks will discover here refreshingly innovative dishes combining cuisines and techniques from the Orient, Italy, and France from which Puck has brilliantly created a tempting new American cuisine. Each recipe expresses Puck's passion for fresh ingredients, simple and elegant presentation, and, most of all, his joyful and exciting approach to food. The emphasis is on lighter, more healthful dishes featuring fish, poultry, and vegetables, often grilled or roasted.

Begin your adventure with one of Puck's appetizers, such as Sauteed Crabcakes with Sweet Red Pepper Sauce or Sizzling Calamari Salad with Potato Strings. Try some of the pizzas and pastas that Puck has made famous, such as Spicy Scallop Pizza, Spicy Chicken Pizza, or Duck Ravioli with Red Pepper Sauce. Exquisite main dishes include Seared Tuna Steak au Poivre, Grilled Swordfish with Tomatillo Vinaigrette, and Chinois Roasted Squab on Pan-fried Noodles with Spicy Mushroom Sauce. To accompany these delights, try one of Puck's vegetable dishes, perhaps Sauteed Baby Vegetables or Black Bean Ragout. And for a dazzling finale, whip up one of over two dozen mouth-watering desserts, including Pumpkin Pie with Cranberry Marmalade, Cinnamon Ice Cream, or Whiskey Fudge Cake. If you still have room for breakfast the next morning, Puck's incomparable Granola and his Poached Egg on Sausage Patty with Spicy Salsa make delicious starters. And to make any dish sparkle, try a recipe from the Dressings, Sauces, and Condiments chapter, such as Spicy CinnamonChili Paste or Spago House Salad Dressing.

Adventures in the Kitchen features inspiring color photographs of many of the dishes included here and is illustrated throughout with instructive line drawings.

Wolfgang Puck began his formal chef's training in Austria at age fourteen. He continued his apprenticeship at L'Oustau de Baumaniere in Provence and further developed his culinary creativity at Hotel de Paris in Monaco and Maxim's in Paris, both world-renowned three-star restaurants. Shortly after his arrival in the United States in 1973, he drew crowds to Los Angeles's Ma Maison, where he was chef and part owner. He now owns five spectacular restaurants in California, each one a fantastic creation designed by his wife and partner, Barbara Lazaroff. Spago, their first adventure in restaurateuring, has been a Los Angeles phenomenon since it opened in 1982. Their second restaurant, Chinois on Main, opened in 1983 and features inventive and interpretive Chinese-French cuisine. San Francisco boasts Postrio, whose menus are inspired by the local Italian and Asian communities. In 1990 the Puck-Lazaroff duo opened Eureka Brewery. and Restaurant, where Puck serves up his celebrated pizzas along with homemade breads and charcuterie. Their latest adventure, opened in August 1991, is Granita, which offers Puck's interpretation of the flavors and dishes of the Mediterranean.

In addition to Adventures in the Kitchen, Wolfgang Puck is the author of The Wolfgang Puck Cookbook, which Craig Claiborne calls "a modem classic," and Wolfgang Puck's Modern French Cooking.