For the Kitchen Bookshelf : ...

Heart of the Home: Notes From a Vineyard Kitchen by Susan Branch (Little, Brown: $17.95, 159 pp.).

Not the most practical book ever published for those with vision problems but this is certainly one of the warmest, prettiest books to ever pass my way. A combination of handwritten recipes and intricate watercolor drawings plus charming quotes, it is most delightful. “Heart of the Home” would make a perfect gift for recipe book collectors since each page is reminiscent of those pretty country-style recipe cards that are handed down through generations.

There’s a cozy feeling that comes with this book. It is a collection of typical, simple, home-style cooking methods, but sections devoted to crafts add to its charm. One section describes Susan Branch’s kitchen garden while another details how to make pressed flower gifts for loved ones. She elaborates on the essentials of pie crust making, gives a variety of ways to make breakfast special and offers entertaining suggestions that help make guests feel right at home.

Expect to find recipes like pan-fried chicken and cream gravy, rice pudding, potato salad plus appetizers like chicken wings, artichoke dip and guacamole right alongside those that reflect the more trendy. Nasturtiums is an appetizer suggested for summer--a plateful of big, beautiful edible orange flowers (so popular right now) stuffed with a sweetened cream cheese mixture. “Delicious!” Branch explains, and then provides some general information about the use of edible flowers in menus.

This book is truly the type of extravagance--one that you might not choose for yourself--that makes a wonderful gift.