Twosomes of all kinds will rejoice in Emily Ezekiel's thoughtfully crafted ode to small-scale cooking, A Meal for Two: Recipes to Treat Your Favorite People. Ezekiel's approach to duet dining addresses the struggles of cooking for two with lots of flavorful 15-minute dishes and a selection of recipes designed to produce leftovers. Those recipes are accompanied by a second one to transform those leftovers into another tasty option, such as the crispy pork belly with fennel and potato gratin that gets a second life as a crispy pork banh mi.
Ezekiel's six sample menus invite everyone to the table: choose a "Sizzling evening menu" or "Pull it out of the bag in no time." Feed your friendship in 30 minutes with her pasta alla norma with crispy capers and ricotta salata or spend a few more minutes and treat your date to the author's take on Greek shrimp saganaki. Warm, gorgeously styled photos and friendly recipe introductions make this book a joy to read. Readers will be eager to invite a friend or loved one to dinner. --Suzanne Krohn