NEW & NOTEWORTHY.

New companion: Here's an essential that every serious cook needs - the ``Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Companion: The A to Z Guide to Everyday Cooking Equipment & Ingredients'' (Time Life; $24.95). The 479-page volume, with its handy 9x6-inch size, is loaded with a wealth of info - including techniques, terms, cooking methods, how-to's, selection, storage and preparation of ingredients, equipment and cookware, and much more. For ease, entries are presented in alphabetical order. Unlike some other references, this one includes more than 800 line drawings and numerous charts for easy, at-a-glance references of things like the volume of standard baking pans, substitutions and equivalents of common ingredients, key temperatures in cooking, measurement equivalents (including metric), sugar syrup stages and more. We highly recommend investing in this user-friendly guide and keeping it handy in the kitchen. It would make a great holiday gift for your favorite cook.

- Natalie Haughton

Harvest tidings

These charming glazed stoneware bud vases offer an autumn harvest year-round. They are handmade in Berkeley. The eggplant vase ($35) is 6 inches tall, the crookneck squash ($30) is 7 inches tall, and the zucchini ($28) about 9 inches. They're available through Sur La Table, [phone].

- Chicago Tribune 

Fabulous chewies

If you're fond of caramel and pecans, you're bound to love Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines from Lammes Candies in Austin, Texas. The company still uses a 107-year-old family recipe to turn out the rich, buttery pecan creations. Each comes individually wrapped, and unlike the sugary texture and flavor usually associated with pralines, these taste like chewy, buttery caramels, loaded with pecans. The company's most popular selection, the Texas Chewies (15 pieces to a pound), are available in 1-, 2-, 3- and 5-pound gift boxes and range from $22.20 (1 pound) to $33.90 (2 pounds) and $61.50 (5 pounds). The chewies are also available, covered in chocolate, in 10-ounce boxes for $18.75. Prices include shipping. Also available are other chocolate, nut and caramel creations like Longhorns (chocolate, pecans and caramel), Peanut Paws (peanuts folded into caramel and covered with milk chocolate) and Cashew Critters (cashews nestled in caramel and chocolate) with prices of $19.20 for 11- or 12-ounce boxes. I'd opt for the original Chewies, which are fabulous and almost addictive! Bet you can't eat just one! Keep them in mind for holiday gifts.

- N.H.

ENTERTAIN LIKE A PRO

Want to hear how the pros and celebrities entertain and celebrate the holidays? Grab a copy of the In Style Entertaining issue now on newsstands. It's full of terrific ideas - from lavish to more down-to-earth - and designed to make your parties more creative, less stressful and more fun. Even if you don't entertain, it makes an interesting read - about who's doing what and how. For instance, you'll learn about the best parties famous people have attended - like Malcolm Forbes' Moroccan Bash in 1989, Truman Capote's Black-and-White Ball at the Plaza Hotel in New York in 1966 and the Millennium Party at the Ritz, Boston, in 2000. We particularly enjoyed a feature on the best desserts available by mail (selected by a panel of top pastry chefs), as well as wines to serve at home, ranging from $8 to $38 a bottle. There were lots of good tips by Colin Cowie, who offers ideas for the Art of the Cocktail Party - colorful guest list, tasty food at different stations and groovy CDs, etc. Examples of giving parties at any price - from $100 for a Super Bowl Party to $250 for a Tree Trimming Party to a $1,000 New Year's Eve Bash are included, along with specific details. And there are numerous recipes for what the stars cook - like Julianna Margulies' New Year's Morning French Toast, Lea Thompson's Olive Chicken and Kyle MacLachlan's Guacamole - and what others served (like Sela Ward and Tiffani Thiessen). You'll even find a dozen ideas for ways to say thank you, including a white-and-dark-chocolate checkers (candy) set from Dean & Deluca ($14) and 8-inch glass-beaded trivets by Anthropologie ($12 each).

- N.H.

OPENING

A new Bristol Farms is opening at 8 this morning in West Hollywood in the location formerly occupied by the famous restaurant Chasen's. The upscale market, with decor reminiscent of early Hollywood glamour, will feature a boutique restaurant with a few of the restaurant's original red- leather booths, along with a display of vintage Chasen's photographs. The market will also include several Bristol Farms firsts such as a climate- controlled wine cellar, a panini bar, a dry-aged beef locker and a Mediterranean olive bar.

- N.H.

CELEBRATE

Claimed as the largest Beaujolais nouveau celebration on the West Coast, the 17th annual Vive le Beaujolais wine and food festival Friday at the Pacific Design Center will again herald the release a day earlier of France's 2000 vintage Beaujolais nouveau wine.

The 6:30-to-10 p.m. event will show off the wares of several restaurants including Bouchon, Chez Jay, La Parisienne and Rive Gauche Cafe, as well as numerous caterers, cheese purveyors, chocolatiers, and food and wine importers, wholesalers and retailers.

Hosted by the French-American Chamber of Commerce, the festival features live music by French entertainers and a silent auction and drawing featuring trips to the South Pacific, Paris and Las Vegas.

Tickets are $45 (wine and food included). Parking is $3. For reservations, call [phone]. The Design Center is located at 8687 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood.

- Larry Lipson

CAPTION(S):

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(1) no caption (``Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Companion: The A to Z Guide to Everyday Cooking Equipment & Ingredients)

(2) no caption (Stoneware bud vases)

(3) no caption (Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines)

(4) no caption (In Style Entertaining)