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This season's installment of cookbook suggestions was made with an eye towards both merchandising and the changing profile of America's consumers — that of aging Baby Boomers. As to the former, several of the books reviewed below are perfect for cross-merchandising around the store, helping to sell everything from fresh produce to the ingredients needed to make truffles. As I've said many times before, books sell food and food sells books. Even if you are not ready or able to commit space to a cookbook section, a thoughtful selection of cookbooks can enhance any department's impact. They also make excellent additions to gift baskets and displays, as well as prompt impulse sales at the point-of-purchase.

In regard to the latter, I believe that increasingly people referencing cookbooks for more than just recipes. Oh sure, it is still necessary to find out what to do with that lamb shank you just brought home, and even professional pastry chefs adhere rigidly to recipes, even if they are their own. But cookbooks can provide so much more — a glimpse into another culture, guidance on health and nutrition, ideas for entertaining, ingredient descriptions, historical insights, profiles of interesting and inspiring people in the culinaryfield, and how to remove stubborn stains from those aluminum pots and pans (all of which can be found within the books below). The segment of the population that is most likely to seek out this kind of information tends to be the Baby Boomers, many of whom already know at least the basics of cooking — even if it's been a while since they've actually plied their skills at the stove. According to a recent article in The New York Times concerning a new wave of films featuring some of the legends of the silver screen who are at the age most people would be retiring, 60 is the new 40. While that's very good news for those of us who are closer to 60 than 40, it is also good news for retailers who can market to a more sophisticated clientele who are traveling, eating in fine restaurants and have more time to cook, read, and entertain.

According to research by Time Magazine about aging Boomers going back to college, there are more than 78 million Baby Boomers in the U.S. More than 20 million of them have at least one college degree, and 45 million have some college experience. They say that on average, 7,918 Americans turn 60 every day (roughly 330 every hour). That's a market to be reckoned with, and while not all of them are shopping in gourmet stores, many of them are, and they have plenty of money with which to do it. With all that said, the following is a look at some of the books you would do well to stock in your store this season. Here's to happy reading and eating.

REVIEWS
Melissa's Great Book of Produce
It's fitting that Melissa Hernandez should be one of the co-creators of Melissa's Great Book of Produce: Everything You Need to Know About Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (John Wiley & Sons). After all, the trendsetting Melissa's World Variety Produce was named for her by her parents, Joe and Sharon Hernandez, when they founded the company in 1984. Since then, Melissa's has introduced American consumers to many delicious and exotic fruits and vegetables, and initiated trends like the use of baby vegetables in restaurants from coast to coast. Who better then to produce a book that will surely be a must-have for gourmet retailers (whether they actually sell fresh produce or not), chefs and foodies everywhere? Melissa's Great Book of Produce was written by Cathy Thomas, food editor at the Orange County Register, along with her co-creators Sharon Hernandez, Corporate Chef Ida Rodriguez, "Produce Expert" Robert Schueller and of course, Melissa. The book is neatly divided in two sections — fruits and vegetables — and each entry is clear and concise, with essential information about seasonal availability, buying and storing, basic methods of preparation, cooking, nutritional data, serving suggestions and more. In addition, there are 100 excellent recipes to showcase the produce at its best. The photography by Nick Koon practically leaps off the page and makes you want to fire up the stove or the grill. This could well be the definitive book on the subject for some time to come.

La Bonne Cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange
Perhaps the most important book to come out of the 20th century — at least in terms of French home cookery — is La Bonne Cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange (Ten Speed Press) translated by Paul Aratow. Originally published in 1927 in France, it has never been translated into English until now. Madame Saint-Ange was both a professional cook and a housewife cooking at home. With this book, she sought to provide guidance to French home cooks in all matters culinary, with indispensable tips on everything from plucking and cleaning fresh fowl to whether or not to gut a red mullet (Carême insisted not) to relating the custom of the coup du milieu, the "midway shot" of kirsch taken during a classic fondue au fromage. It was the recipes from this book that Aratow, as founding chef/partner, used to open famed Berkeley restaurant Chez Panisse. Aratow has long since left the stoves for a career in Hollywood, but thankfully, he returned long enough to translate the book that accompanied his culinary coming-of-age as a young student in Paris. La Bonne Cuisine is more than nostalgic since Madame Saint-Ange's recipes and advice are as relevant today as they were in France between the wars and offers, in the words of John Thorne, "as clear a picture as we can ever hope to get of the workings of the French home kitchen at a time when the meals that came from it were justly the pride of France."

Doña Tomás: Discovering Authentic Mexican Cooking
Any Mexican food lover in the East San Francisco Bay Area already knows that the food of Doña Tomás is some of the most innovative and at the same time authentic in Northern California. Co-owners/chefs Dona Savitsky and Thomas Schnetz, along with Mike Wille have now launched their first cookbook to showcase their delicious food, Doña Tomás: Discovering Authentic Mexican Cooking (Ten Speed Press). The book, like the restaurant, stresses the importance of using authentic Mexican ingredients and fresh, locally grown (when possible) meat and produce, and their thorough glossary of ingredients are alone worth the price of the book. They also celebrate the regional cooking of Mexico, as well as the traditional eating habits from Mexico. It is appropriate then that the book is divided not by courses, but by meals — Breakfast (desayuno), Lunch (almuerzo) and Dinner (cena), with additional chapters on basics, salads and side dishes and broths and sauces. Graphically, the book is a delight, with chapter title pages looking like the old advertisements one sees painted on the sides of buildings in Mexico, and sumptuous photographs of the plated food and ingredients. This book should take a proud place in anyone's Mexican cookbook library, and in promotions for Mexican foods.

Taco Testimony
While we're traveling and eating south of the border, be sure to check out Taco Testimony: Meditations on Family, Food, and Culture (Rio Nuevo Publishers, www.rionuevo.com ) by award-winning author Denise Chávez. The book is kind of part memoir, part cookbook as Chávez explores the history, lore and preparation of tacos, a food that we in the north have always treated lightly but to other cultures are a way of life. Encompassing the tortillas made from corn — one of the most sacred of foods for the early Native Americans — and the almost limitless array of fillings, tacos are a little world unto themselves. "Tacos are sacred to me," writes Chávez as she shares many of her family recipes plus tips on shopping, cooking and serving these tasty hand-held delicacies.

Flavors of Portugal
Living in the 21st century it's easy to forget that Portugal once ruled the high seas, had colonies around the world where their influence remains to this day and were among the first spice traders at a time when spices were almost more valuable than gold. The cooking is infused with the spices from the East, New World ingredients like potatoes, tomatoes and chocolate, and their own indigenous seafood, sausages, vegetables, herbs and wine. In her new book, Flavors of Portugal (Thunder Bay Press), Tania Gomes, an Australian graphic designer of Portuguese parents, brings the Portuguese table to life in a lovely bilingual compendium of traditional recipes. Inspired by her mother's cooking, the book features beautiful photography of not only the food but scenes of Portuguese life, both past and present. Sabores de Portugal (bilingual remember) is a wonderful addition to the international cooking library.

Marie Claire Series
With an eye toward merchandising, I recommend a smart little series from Thunder Bay Press authored by Michele Cranston. Cranston is the food editor for Marie Claire Australia. The series includes Marie Claire Zesty and Marie Claire Crisp, and the newest ones due out in December, Marie Claire Easy and Marie Claire Spicy, Easy feature simple recipes ranging from light salads to simple Asian dishes, all constituting light, fresh food. Spicy is all about aromatics, from dips and salads to spicy main dishes. The books in the series are all well photographed as you would imagine, coming from such a famous fashion magazine, and they are like the food contained within — bright, fresh-looking and uncluttered. These will do well in point-of-purchase counter displays, gift baskets, or cross-merchandised around the store.

Tomatoes & Mozzarella
Some foods are just meant to go together. As any southern Italian can tell you, there is something about the flavors and textures of good tomatoes and Mozzarella, and if you thought they were only good for pizza and Caprese salad, you'll be surprised when you read Tomatoes & Mozzarella (Harvard Common Press) by Hallie Harron and Shelley Sikora. The two offer 100 recipes for this classic pair of ingredients that includes soups, sandwiches and main dishes, and such clever ideas as Deviled Tomatoes, Wild Mushroom Macaroni & Cheese, Crispy Mozzarella Chips, and Spicy Fried Green Tomato & Mozzarella Pie. Written by two veteran culinary professionals, the book is colorful and well photographed, and is perfect for gift baskets and other cross-merchandising endeavors.

Company's Coming with Jean Paré
For those among us who are woefully and embarrassingly ignorant of our northern neighbors, Jean Paré is Canada's favorite and best-selling cookbook author and founder of Company's Coming Cookbooks, a 25-year-old publishing company with over 100 books (written by Paré) to its name and sales of over 23 million books. Her latest effort is called Timeless Recipes for All Occasions, a collection of family favorites and classic home-cooked or baked comfort food. In addition to the more than 250 recipes, there is a section called "Culinary Journey," which is essentially a culinary history of Canada and the United States beginning with the dawn of the twentieth century. Paré has also just launched Kids' Healthy Cooking, a charming and funny cookbook for kids that strives to make cooking fun and even, gasp, a little educational with chapters like Build Dem Bones (calcium), Fuel Your Think Tank (brain food), Power Play (protein) and Go! Go! Go! (carbs). And finally, it turns out Paré has had a very interesting and inspiring life that is now detailed in Jean Paré, An Appetite for Life by well-known Canadian food writer Judy Schultz. Paré is too modest and humble to have done it herself and yet wanted to share her story in hopes that it could help others. A remarkable woman, she's a prolific cookbook writer who should become more familiar to U.S. cooks.

Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook
Having known enough people who have subscribed to its methods of weight control, I thought I should mention Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook (Wiley). It's huge, with over 500 real recipes that are international in scope, and all bound into a handy five-ring binder that lays flat for cooking. The introduction gives a concise outline of the program with everything you need to know to follow the plan that is considered the #1 weight-loss method and "recognized by the medical community for its commitment to providing a program that has rigorous scientific studies to back up its claims." Certainly, it is not a fad diet — it's been around for 40 years — and indeed has helped millions of people maintain a healthy weight.

American Farmstead Cheese
"The extraordinary diversity of cheese flavors, textures, aromas, and visual characteristics almost defies the imagination, especially in light of the fact that the starting point for all cheeses is mere milk, a bland, nondescript liquid." Thus begins Professor Paul Kindstedt's brilliant new book American Farmstead Cheese: The Complete Guide to Making and Selling Artisan Cheeses (Chelsea Green Publishing www.chelseagreen.com ). Kindstedt, a professor at the University of Vermont in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, wrote the book along with several members of the Vermont Cheese Council, including Professors Todd J. Pritchard and Catherine W. Donnelly, dairy consultant Peter H. Dixon, and award-winning cheesemakers Allison Hooper and Cynthia Major. Certainly, it is appropriate that such a book would come out of the state with the largest concentration of artisan cheesemakers in the union. The book is very technical as one would expect, and yet it is very readable, even to a non-scientist. Nevertheless, it's a serious manual for serious cheesemakers and includes a fully illustrated guide to basic cheesemaking, explanations of milk composition, starter cultures (the heart of cheesemaking) and the chemistry of cheese. It also shares marketing plans and business strategies of many successful cheesemakers, as well stories of their personal setbacks and successes. This is a must-have book for anyone in the cheese business to better understand what they are selling, and certainly for anyone seriously thinking about making cheese themselves.

Truffles and Hot Chocolate
Got chocolate? In case you have any doubts about the prevailing allure of chocolate, here are some facts to consider. Chocolate is a $14.5 billion industry in the United States alone and the gourmet chocolate market has grown 20 percent every year since 2001. To take advantage of that trend, Harvard Common Press has issued two new books celebrating the brown stuff, Truffles by Dede Wilson and Hot Chocolate by Fred Thompson. Each small, brightly colored book contains 50 recipes for their perspective delicacies. Not only are these books fun and the recipes delicious, they are the right size and price point for all sorts of merchandising ideas, such as stocking stuffers at Christmas, gift baskets and countertop point-of-purchase displays for quick impulse buying, especially during the holiday and entertaining months.

Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters
The word "heirloom" gets bandied about these days, often erroneously. However, Marilynn and Sheila Brass have used it correctly in their new book Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters (Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers/distributed by Workman Publishing). The two sisters, lifelong collectors of kitchen antiques and original family recipe collections with a combined baking experience of over 110 years between them, have culled "family cookbooks, original journals, scraps of paper, and grandmother's kitchen" to collect 150 wonderful recipes for breakfast, tea parties, "bridge with the girls," holidays, or just for the love of home-baked treats, ranging from the 1800's to present day. They have meticulously tested every recipe and updated them for modern kitchens, and provided a place at the back of the book to start collecting your own family treasures. The photographs of both baked goods and kitchen antiques look enticing, although I have only seen a black & white galley in advance of publication. In color, they must be even more alluring.

Cleaning Plain & Simple
You may think this one is a bit of a stretch for a cookbook review, but Cleaning Plain & Simple (Storey Publishing) by Donna Smallin contains some great advice on cleaning the kitchen, including how to fight bacteria, disinfect sponges, how to clean small appliances, cutting boards and just about every material one will encounter in the kitchen, as well as some simple solutions to unique kitchen problems like cloudy glassware, cooking odors, or blackened aluminum cookware. Since she is a nationally recognized organizing expert, Smallin also offers some tips on organizing the kitchen for ease of cleaning and cooking.