Tavern on the Green: 125 Recipes for Good Times

tavern-on-the-green On February 9, 2009 comes a new, feel-good, remember-the-booming times kind of cookbook that drops names of big stars and celebrities, along with terrific recipes, Tavern on the Green: 125 Recipes for Good Times.

Written by the owners of the famous New York City restaurant Tavern on the Green, Jennifer Oz LeRoy and her mother Kay LeRoy, this cookbook comes at just the right time. When people yearn for comfort and happy memories.

Created by Mervyn LeRoy, the producer of the film classic, “The Wizard of Oz,” the magical, otherworldly Tavern radiates Hollywood fantasies and a serene sense of well-being. The cookbook delivers both visually and viscerally. The dreamy Technicolor photos of The Tavern’s food and décor invite readers to keep turning the pages, earmarking recipes to try right away and later.

Speaking of recipes, Martha Stewart’s favorite cocktail, “Very Berry” Cosmos, appears here, as red as the slippers Dorothy wore in “Oz.” And comforting New York classics like “Penne with Spicy Vodka-Tomato Sauce” and “New York Cheesecake” deliver a sense of home-cooked food, a sense which permeates this easy-to-use cookbook.

Unable to reserve a spot at The Tavern, located in New York City’s Central Park at the corner of West Sixty-seventh Street? Take instead a leisurely romp through the LeRoys’ recipes. And keep that skillet close to hand, because the urge to jump up and cook becomes overwhelming.

The LeRoys included the following recipe in their book; this text comes from the restaurant’s Web site:

Cheesecake
Servings: 6-8

Ingredient	Amount	Measure
Cream Cheese	1	Pound
Sugar	1	Cup
Salt	1/4	Teaspoon
Sour Cream	2	Cups
Egg Yolks	5
Heavy Cream	1/4	Cup
Milk	1/2	Cup
Lemon Zest	1	Tablespoon
Orange Zest	1	Tablespoon

For the Cheesecake

Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees.
Mix the cream cheese, sugar, salt and sour cream. When it is smooth, add the egg yolks, one at a time, the heavy cream and milk. Stir in the lemon and orange zest. Mix until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a prepared 10-inch cake mould. Set in a larger pan and surround with one inch of very hot water. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour.