10 COOL BOOKS FOR SUMMER FEASTING.

Byline: Natalie Haughton Food Editor

Although the biggest crop of cookbooks is usually released in the fall/holiday season to capitalize on the gift-giving market, there's a flood of new titles this spring and summer, many designed for leisurely, fun, warm-weather eating.

``Cookbooks definitely go by season,'' says Tim Fischer, manager of Los Angeles' Cook's Library, a store stocking 6,000 to 7,000 cookbooks, memoirs, wine and food history titles, both domestic and imported. But if there are too many fall/holiday books, many publishers hold back for spring/summer release so their titles won't get lost in the shuffle, he adds, noting that in the first six months of this year, the store brought in more than 340 new titles (and 400 in the last four months of last year).

Of the 171,061 books published in the United States in 2003, 2,856 were cookbooks, according to New Jersey-based Books-In-Print. That's up from 2,072 new cookbooks published in 2002.

The number of cookbooks is mind-boggling, and there certainly is something designed to appeal to all interests and levels of cooks.

Branded cookbooks - those by an author with a television show or a restaurant - are trendy and selling well this summer, as are volumes touching on nostalgia, food memories, diet and armchair travel/cooking, says Daisy Maryles, executive editor of Publishers Weekly, a magazine serving the book industry. A lot of this year's best-selling authors - Paula Deen, Bobby Flay, Mario Batali, Giada De Laurentiis - have television shows on the Food Network, she adds, not surprising since these visible chefs/cooks are well-known commodities and have a following.

Diet books of all kinds also continue to fuel consumer interest because people want to eat well, be healthy and not deny themselves.

Summer cookbooks appeal because people have extra time to cook and enjoy it - and they are less nervous about trying new things, especially with the availability of interesting foods in supermarkets these days, notes Maryles.

Grilling books are also big this summer, says Fischer, adding that there were eight or 10 new ones, and there's more interest in reading memoirs of cooks and chefs that don't include recipes.

Other popular titles include ``Pie, Pie, Pie,'' ``True Blueberry: Delicious Recipes for Every Meal,'' ``Fresh Every Day: More Great Recipes From Foster's Market,'' ``Casa Moro: The Second Cookbook'' (a Spanish restaurant in London), ``Bill's Open Kitchen,'' ``Vegetarian Suppers'' and ``Cooking at Home on Rue Tatin.''

``Our customers (serious home cooks, chefs, empty nesters, families) love a challenge, they love to see what's new, what restaurant chefs are up to, but they want it simple,'' Fisher adds. They want the style, flavor and taste, but they don't want to run around for ingredients, especially during the summer. That's possible with volumes like ``The Instant Cook,'' ``Seriously Simple: Easy Recipes for Creative Cooks'' and Ina Garten's various books.

Here are 10 books that will dish up plenty of good summer eating and pleasure using the season's best - be it on a picnic, in your back yard or dining room, at an outing to the beach, or on a bicycle ride. Lots of them make a good summer read. Peruse and give the ones that appeal a whirl.

Natalie Haughton, [phone]

natalie.haughton(at)dailynews.com

1 ``The Garden-Fresh Vegetable Cookbook,'' by Andrea Chesman (Storey Publishing; $24.95). With the abundance of produce exploding at local markets and in home gardens, this book, filled with 275 recipes for 25 different vegetables, is a dynamic addition to any cook's library. Besides lots of easy recipes for favorite crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers, spinach, peas, salad greens, zucchini, corn, eggplant, chiles and peppers, you'll find, sow and reap info along with learning a little math for each veggie. For instance 1 pound of salad greens equals about 6 cups, loosely packed, while a pound of fresh tomatoes equals about 3 cups sliced or 1 3/4 cups diced. It's particularly helpful that chapters, organized by vegetable, progress seasonally along with harvest times, so you can readily find recipes to use all that zucchini or summer squash, tomatoes, fennel, etc. If you grow lots of veggies or want to find new uses for those you pick up during summer, spring or winter, you're more than likely to find this volume useful.

2 ``The Beach House Cookbook''by Barbara Scott-Goodman (Chronicle; $24.95). For carefree feasts on a day at the shore, or while spending a weekend or more vacationing in a beach house, Scott-Goodman offers 75 recipes - ranging from appetizers and drinks to desserts. They use the freshest fruits, vegetables, seafoods and meats of the season - available from farm stands and local markets.

Keep meals and menus carefree, vibrant, casual and spontaneous, and a breeze to prepare, so you can cook and entertain in a relaxed manner, advises the author. Enjoy stylish creations such as Lobster Rolls, Red Snapper With Creamy Tomato-Basil Sauce, Thai Barbecued Chicken, BLT Salad with Buttermilk-Blue Cheese Dressing, and Peach and Blueberry Cobbler. Grab your shades, shorts or bathing suit, sandals, blanket or towel and head for the beach.

3 ``Bobby Flay's Grilling for Life: 75 Healthier Ideas for Big Flavor From the Fire'' by Bobby Flay with Stephanie Banyas and Sally Jackson (Scribner; $22). Flay fans won't want to miss this volume (his sixth cookbook) fusing two of the chef's passions - grilling and healthy food. Although the focus is on delicious, well-balanced and healthy creations, this is not a diet book. ``I am not a nutritionist. I am not looking to create a new diet fad. What I am looking to do is to show how a healthy lifestyle can be enhanced by delicious meals from the grill,'' writes Flay, a supporter of doing everything in moderation.

A lot of nutritionally sound recipes are bland, lack flavor and are not exciting to eat, he notes. Flay concentrates on big flavors using herbs, spices, zests, vinegars and more without added fat, sugar, sodium or calories found in many marinades. A nutritional analysis is included with each recipe, providing calories, carbs, fat, protein, sodium, cholesterol and fiber per serving.

Who can resist the likes of Grilled Antipasto With Gorgonzola Vinaigrette, Grilled Beef Filet With Arugula and Parmesan, Grilled Chicken Breasts Stuffed With Goat Cheese With Green Chile-Cilantro Sauce or Grilled Apricots With Bittersweet Chocolate and Almonds? Yum!

4 ``Gourmet Preserves Chez Madelaine,'' by Madelaine Bullwinkel (Surrey Books; $14.95). If you want to try your hand at jams, jellies, marmalades and preserves, this is a must-have. Bullwinkel, a Chicago-based cooking school owner with a passion for preserving, has spent 30 years, developing, testing and tasting the 150 recipes (110 for preserves; 40 for other items such as breads, muffins, scones, waffles, desserts like trifles, cheesecakes, tarts, etc., to serve with or made with them) packed in this volume. Most of them (preserves) utilize natural rather than commercial pectin and thus use less sugar or none at all.

There's a chapter dedicated to a thorough review of techniques and equipment necessary for preserving, along with the chart on various fruits that have high, good and low pectin levels. Bullwinkel advises using fruit picked at the peak of ripeness and making jam, jelly or marmalade in small batches. Most of the recipes appear easily doable - even for first-timers.

5 ``Punch,'' by Colleen Mullaney (Chronicle Books; $14.95). If you're gathering friends for a summer party, perk it up with a big bowl of frosty, fruity, thirst-quenching punch. Once popular, then relegated to the ``passe'' trends file, punch is finding favor again on the party scene with the young, hip and others, notes the author. ``There are really no rules to punch making. Anyone who can stir with a spoon can concoct a batch of punch. The art lies in the choosing of those ingredients to make a harmonious hooch.''

You'll find twists on favorite classics such as sangrias, lemonade, margaritas and champagne punch; more modern drinks like fruit smoothies, mango tango, rose hip and hibiscus tea punch, and coffee on the cubes. So next time you need liquid inspiration, with or without alcohol, browse this small but jam-packed 30-plus recipe volume illustrated with a color photo of each drink.

6 ``Church Suppers: 722 Favorite Recipes From Our Church Communities,'' edited by Barbara Greenman (Black Dog & Leventhal; $19.95). Church and community cooks are a source of some of America's best-loved recipes, treasures passed down from generation to generation. In this collection, compiled from more than 50 church cookbooks throughout the country, you'll find recipes mirroring the diversity of regional foods - Seafood Gumbo, Beef Jambalaya, Key Lime Pie, Blueberry Buckle and Cornbread Salad - to name a few.

Several versions of some dishes (for instance, five chicken salads, seven meatloaves and three baked bean variations) are included along with brand names in recipes where given (substitute other brands available as desired). Some recipes are missing can and jar sizes - so you'll have to make an educated guess in those instances - usually not a problem for veteran cooks.

This book offers down-home, real food, some of it from yesteryear (Jell-O salads, canned soups, etc.). For those who would like a sampling of church cookbooks rolled into one - this is a bargain volume with lots of bang for your buck. It's filled with plenty of options for not only church but other potlucks throughout the year.

7 ``Sweet Gratitude: Bake a Thank-You for the Really Important People in Your Life,'' by Judith Sutton (Artisan; $15.95). Sutton makes it feasible for busy modern cooks to say thank you with a homemade creation from the kitchen. There are more than 70 quick, easy and delicious recipes, most, but not all, baked - among them cookies, brownies, bars, cakes, tarts, mousses, a few candies and such. Tips for storing, packing, shipping, making ahead, freezing, garnishing and serving are sprinkled throughout along with some whimsical watercolors.

``A home-baked treat from someone's kitchen is always special: No matter how simple, it shows that you care enough to have taken the time to make it,'' writes Sutton, noting that when time is at a premium, opt for the recipes with the clock symbol that can be made in a matter of minutes. Among them are Amazing Toffee Thins, Melt-In-Your Mouth Coconut Macaroons, Sweet Baby Lemon Scones, Brown Sugar Shortbread and Berry Tartlets With Sweet Mascarpone.

8 ``A Return to Family Picnics,'' by Russell Cronkhite (Multnomah Gifts; $32). Who doesn't enjoy a movable feast or old-fashioned picnic? Cronkhite, a former executive chef at Blair House, the guest house of the president of the United States in Washington, D.C., for 12 years (starting in 1988), notes that a picnic can be many things - ranging from a grand community celebration to a dinner for four before a concert in the park to a tea on the terrace for a small group of friends. ``I believe today's Americans are longing for the simple pleasures of old-fashioned picnics and the peaceful respite they represent,'' he writes.

Each picnic menu is designed around a theme, like Lighting Up the Summer Sky, In the Garden, At the Seashore, Alfresco Sunset and Tailgate Traditions. Recipes include the usual fried chicken, hamburgers and potato salad, plus Beef Tenderloin With Horseradish Mustard and Endive, Watercress and Baby Greens, and Jicama, Mushroom, Avocado and Pepper Salad, along with White Chocolate, Strawberry and Lemon Trifle. Mix and match as site and time restraints dictate. Or make a few homemade dishes and supplement with ready-made items from the supermarket or takeout establishments. Lots of color photos showcase some of the dishes and settings, some more appealing than others.

9 ``The Dance of Spices: Classic Indian Cooking for Today's Home Kitchen,'' by Laxmi Hiremath (Wiley; $29.95). Those who relish spiced curries, cool raitas, Tandoori chicken, naan bread and other Indian dishes will find them within their reach in this volume. Hiremath, raised in southwest India, perfected her culinary creations after arriving as a young bride in California more than 20 years ago. Currently a resident of San Ramon, she's been teaching cooking for more than a decade. Along with her more than 225 recipes, featuring traditional as well as contemporary dishes, Hiremath offers step-by-step instructions, a guide to spice blends and ingredients and tips to demystify and simplify her native cuisine and make it accessible to novice and accomplished cooks.

Peppered throughout are historical and cultural notes and memories from her childhood. She also includes a list of Indian markets throughout the country as well as two online sources for Indian ingredients. An interesting read with many tempting-sounding dishes.

10 ``Zov: Recipes and Memories From the Heart,'' by Zov Karamardian (Zov's Publishing; $34). Restaurateur Karamardian, the owner of Zov's Bistro in Tustin, Calif. (opened in 1987), shares a collection of more than 100 recipes blending contemporary Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines and cultures in this volume, which was inspired by her favorite family recipes reflecting her Armenian heritage. With these recipes - such as Fire-Roasted Eggplant Dip, Yogurt Cheese Spread, Stuffed Grape Leaves With Rice and Herbs, Crab and Shrimp Phyllo Triangles, Roasted Rack of Lamb With Pomegranate Sauce - you can re-create and experience her cuisine at home.

Her love of cooking, she notes, began at the age of 16, when she began preparing dinner for her family after they moved to San Francisco in the early '60s.

``Great cooking stems from experimenting with readily available fresh foods, herbs and spices - the kind of ingredients you can find in your local supermarket. It's all about convenience and innovation,'' she writes. Loaded with color photos, the book is designed to bring joy and delicious dining to your table.

CAPTION(S):

11 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Hot stuff

10 new cookbooks that put the yum in summer

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer

(2 -- 11 -- color) no caption (cookbooks)