The Return of ‘Favorites’

In 1986, a cookbook called “Centenary Favorites” was published as a fund-raiser for Centenary United Methodist Church in Los Angeles.

The goal was to build a new church in Little Tokyo. That church now stands at Central Avenue and 3rd Street, but “Centenary Favorites” went out of print.

Over the years, the church has received requests for the book, which was an excellent source of home-style Japanese and other Asian recipes. In response, the book has reappeared.

The new version is bigger and better than before because it contains 200 new recipes and has been set in larger, easy-to-read type. It also has a sturdy plastic binder that folds back so you can stand the book on the kitchen counter.

All of the recipes from the Asian section of the earlier book have been retained, including a chapter devoted to Japanese New Year dishes and a section on sushi that includes step-by-step instructions and diagrams.

The rest of the 584-page sequel is devoted primarily to Western dishes. This enables you to make turkey meat loaf, chili or chicken cacciatore, then experiment with Japanese-style pasta (udon, somen and soba), try new tofu recipes (tofu poke, fruit salad with tofu dressing) and, for dessert, bake either peanut butter chocolate chip cookies or a Japanese red bean cake.

The second edition of “Centenary Favorites” can be ordered by mail for $30 plus $6 postage and handling. Make checks payable to Centenary UMC--Cookbook Project and send to Centenary United Methodist Church, 300 S. Central Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90013. Books can also be picked up at the church on Sunday or at regional locations. Call (213) 617-9097 for more information.