How to Cook a Tart

by Nina Killham, Colin Dickerman (Editor)

Cookbook author Jasmine March's life is like a perfectly prepared béchamel-rich, satisfying, and drenched in butter. But even a great béchamel curdles sometimes. Her husband, Daniel, has taken up with one of his Zone-dieting drama students; Careme, her daughter, is bent on starving herself to death; and Jasmine's fellow foodies have had just about enough of her astronomically caloric recipes. To make matters worse, her publisher is threatening to cancel her contract. And then there's the small matter of the dead body she finds one morning on her kitchen floor.

Filled with mouth-watering descriptions of Jasmine's creations-venison stew with Madeira and juniper berries, crispy chicken breasts stuffed with goat cheese and mint-Nina Killham's smart and spirited first novel is good enough to eat.

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Mystery, Food, Foodie, Humor, Book Club

256 pages, Paperback

First published October 4, 2002

Reviews

[Darcie K · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe I read this. I blame it on review blurbs like "smart, sexy, hilarious, and not to be missed." Thanks for nothing, Washington Post. Sometimes a book with a pink cover is just what a girl needs. I can't ever imagine that need being fulfilled by this particular pink-covered disappointment. The descriptions of cuisine are laudable, but the plot, characters, and surprise ending weren't enough to redeem the food writing. Booo.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything about How to Cook a Tart, the debut novel from Washington Post food writer Nina Killham, is too much. Its heroine, cookbook author Jasmine March, is a rotund creation, a lover of cream and butter and pork and all manner of excess. Food governs her. She's given to ruminations along these lines: "of all the herbs, Jasmine thought, basil was her soul mate. Basil was sensuous, liking to stretch out green and silky under a hot sun with its feet covered in cool soil." Her husband Daniel is having an affair with a woman of the opposite extreme: an actress named Tina who's a skinny-limbed disciple of the Zone diet. Jasmine's daughter Careme is--what else?--an anorexic. Killham pushes these characters off the precipice of probability when Tina is found dead in Jasmine's kitchen, a brownie stuffed in her mouth. --Claire Dederer --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
I must warn, I was very disappointed in the ending; Renee.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed "How to Cook a Tart." I truly did. I do agree, however, after reading other reviews, that EVERYTHING in this book was stretched, however. One only needs to know the basis of the novel to laugh at the far-fetched-ness: Jasmine, the protagonist, is a cookbook author and an avid lover of foods fatty and healthy alike (more on the fatty side). Her husband is having an affair with a stick-thin actress on the Zone diet. AND their daughter, Careme? She's an anorexic.

Careme isn't really a believable anorexic, however. Instead of being an obsession, her anorexia comes off as more of a habit, or a game. The difficulty and the inner struggle aren't portrayed at all in here, instead she is somehow able to focus on other things, such as losing her virginity???

And the ending was stunning. I'm not really giving anything away here, because it gives this away on the synopsis on the back of the book, but the story ends with a murder? And eating the human meat? I wasn't geared up for this kind of change. Suddenly a cute, lighthearted book was turned into a murder mystery in the last 20 pages. Whoa!

In conclusion, "How to Cook a Tart" was a fun read. Jasmine was a lovable character, and we even come to like Daniel, her cheating husband. Despite it's flaws, it will remain on my bookshelf for a rainy day.

[Jessie Leigh · Rating 1 out of 5]

No.

I think that says it best.

[Donna Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this peculiar book. In spite of its many bad reviews, I found it to be smart and witty. I loved the way the author mixes cooking technique with life philosophy. For example:
“It was all about absorption, Jasmine thought. In cooking as in life, the more you absorbed of life and the world and flavors around you, the richer you would be. The better tasting you would be philosophically. But Jasmine had been careless. At the last minute, unsure of herself, she had sprinkled in too much salt. Maybe in life she had been careless too. Maybe she had not absorbed enough of what was going on in her own household. Maybe someone close to her was simmering with troubles and she had tossed in too much salt. Instead of testing and tasting and finding out what was really going on.”
Also, the ties between eating and sex were kinda fun.
Three stars because it took a while for the story to click, and even longer for the characters to matter to me.

[Jonna Harris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I enjoyed the majority of this novel, but the ending was so absurd that it was completely ruined for me. I enjoyed the rich food and cooking descriptions, as well as the rich characters, even if they were almost too rich. I was wondering where the murder mystery part came into the storyline, only to find it stuck in the last twenty pages like an afterthought. The author would have done better to leave it out, as it was poorly thought out and distasteful. If the story had concluded a different way it would have been much more enjoyable.

[Debra Hale-Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, I bought the book because the independent booksellers recommended it on their Booksense list. I also was impressed by the food angle. Well, there's not much food writing herein. OK, I can deal with that. The plot was a bit over the top. But I can deal with that, too. But the ending, excuse me. It was so stupid, it was insulting. Did the Booksense seller really read the whole book??

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

This started out as a light, fun read, but I was unprepared for the gruesome conclusion. I can't recommend this book. In fact, it's the first time I threw away a book rather than passing it on to another reader.

[Marshaferz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delicious! A fast, fun read - not deep by any stretch, but a great "summer book." And I want that pumpkin ravioli recipe!

[Emma DeWyse · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn’t get through it

[Lobo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eredetileg: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/20...

Jasmine March tinédzserként fedezte fel a szakácskönyveket és úgy olvasta őket, mintha regények lennének, hogy aztán az életben is kipróbálgassa a recepteket. Sőt ő ennél tovább ment és csodás dolgokat kreált, imádta az ételeket, a főzést, úgyhogy evidens, szakácskönyvíró lett belőle. Csakhogy korunkban eljárt felette az idő, hisz a szakácskönyv-írás kegyetlen egy pálya, rengetegen vannak és mindenki minél finomabb, könnyebb, zsír és kalóriaszegény bűntetlen és egzotikus kreálmányt igyekszik rátukmálni az olvasójára, vagy éppen a főzőműsor nézőjére. Jasmine életének célja pedig, hogy az amerikai konyhába visszacsempéssze az ízeket, a vajat és a zsírt. Mert az evés és a főzés igazi élvezet, ennek ő maga élő példája.

A regény azonban úgy indul mint egy igazi krimi: Ez a nap is jól kezdődik, gondolta magában Jasmine March, amint lenézett férje ifjú szeretőjére, aki élettelenül hevert a konyhapadlón…

S miközben megtudjuk az előzményeket, a pech sorozatot, ami a hullához vezet felvonulnak a szereplőnk. Főhősnőnk finom ételek receptkönyvét visszadobta a kiadója, ezért elhatározza, hogy Gasztrofeminista lesz.Daniel, a férje rákattant a rostgazdag étrendre, mert a tiszta beleket tartja a legfontosabbnak és rábeszéli magát egy szeretőre is, hisz mindjárt 40 éves és csak a középosztálybeli veszteseknek nincs. Választottja az egyik tanítványa, a csontsovány Tina, aki félállásban titkárnő, színésziskolába jár és még nem döntötte el, hogy mi akar lenni (híres színésznő, gazdag, gazdag ember felesége, vagy sokat szerepel a Jó reggelt Amerikában!). A lány életének irányítója dr. Zóna, aki rávezette a fehérje imádatára. Jasmine lánya, Careme pedig ételgerilla, nem eszik, lenézi az anyját, sznob barátnői vannak és még aeroánius is lesz, azaz csak levegőn él, na és persze kamasz, 16 éves és szeretné végre elveszíteni a szüzességét is. És akkor ott van a szomszéd, aki állandóan diétázik, ugyanakkor mindig csal egy kicsit, ezért aztán állandóan nagyobb méretű melegítőket kell vennie.

Igazából nem sikerül rokonszenvezni senkivel a könyv lapjain, vannak pillanatok, amikor Jasmine és a megszállottsága egyszerűen undorító. Ám amikor a szerző újból visszatér a hullához és a megoldáshoz, fergeteges fekete komédia kerekedik.

A karaktereknek nem is személyiségük, hanem gasztronómiai profiljuk van. A könyv kíméletlen szatíra étel és diéta megszállott korunknak. Az étel egyszerre a megoldás és a fenyegetés is, mindenre a válasz és minden konfliktus alapja, oka, a probléma veleje. A szerző valamikor a Washington Post receptírója volt, tehát nem csoda, hogy tud kíméletlen
és igaz képet festeni erről az iparágról.

Egy könnyed ponyva szerű regény, aminek van mondanivalója. Korrekt

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wat moet ik hier nou over zeggen. Leuke karakters, bij vlagen grappig maar vooral heel absurdistisch en onrealistisch. Absoluut niet mijn smaak.

[Louise Hartgen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being one of those people who lives to eat, I just knew I was going to love this book from the start. The little review of it I saw said not to read it if you were either dieting or even slightly hungry! Oh yes, a book right up my street. When I found out that Jasmine, the slightly ditsy but very lovable main character was plump, sweet-natured, open-hearted and passionate about real food, that is full-cream, high-calorie, un-emasculated full-on stick-to-your-hips heaven, I was disposed to love the book from page one, and I did.

So, here we have a woman with a nice husband, a happy family, a job she loves and everything going for her, only then, like her figure, it all goes a bit pear-shaped. This story might seem to some as light and fluffy as a well-baked Victoria sponge, but every slice of cake has a sting in its tail, so to speak, and so does this book.

I found the book brilliantly funny, very sad in places and extremely thought-provoking, as well as loving all the descriptions of the mouthwatering food! Read it and see for yourself, except not if you're dieting or even slightly hungry, the cookie jar will suffer a terrible fate!

[Clover White · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is probably one of the strangest books I have ever read. Don't even get me started on the terribly gross ending (hint: there is a double entendre in that title), but the writing itself was so uneven. On one hand, it sets out to be a book promoting eating for pleasure's sake, and not worrying about calories and fat content-- but on the other hand, it has lots of decidedly fat-phobic descriptions of the characters. One time, the main character bemoans cookbooks that promote unrealistic recipes-- then it lays out the highly gourmet recipes she writes. It's really for the ending that I gave this the lowest rating, but it was also just poorly written. Very sad that it's the only book I read in a week's time.

[Mary Beth Marion · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up because Anthony Bourdain had a favorable review blurb on it, and he hates everything, so I figured "how bad could it be?" Note to self: that question should never be a reason to purchase a book. I couldn't push myself beyond the first 50 pages of this one, so I'm putting it down for a day when I'm simply desperate for something to read and there is nothing else in the house - not even a cereal box. Got it at a used book store, and am very glad I didn't pay full price. Vapid, uninteresting people, and I don't really care what happens to any of them. I can't really recommend this one to anyone.

[Ruby · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was freaking garbage. I picked this up because there was a blurb from Anthony Bourdain on the back. Either someone paid him royally for a quote or caught him doing something really illegal or he owed someone a favor.

It started off boring. Got a little more interesting about 25% through it and I was ok (though not very engaged in the story) until the last few chapters. Then it just went to complete, trite, forced, stupidity.

I got this at a thrift store for either fifty cents or a dollar. I want my money back.

Zero stars if I could.

[Maryse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bien que je n’aie pas dévoré ce petit roman à la même vitesse qu’un best-seller, j’ai apprécié le divertissement qu’il m’a offert. L’héroïne, Jasmine, nous offre des répliques délicieuses, et la description que fait l’autrice des plats qu’elle prépare avec amour, avec sensualité, avec tendresse, nous donne envie de humer les effluves dégagés par ses mets. Personnellement, j’ai hâte de respirer les fines herbes de mon potager!

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was interesting. When I was reading it mostly I didn't think much about what was going on but when I was telling a friend about it, I realized that what happens is really crazy and kind of creepy. It didn't seem creepy at the time though.

[Mommalibrarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The women's issue is weight - to have it or reject it. This is a super light romp through food styles with lots of yummy ingredient lists. Definitely not recommended for vegetarians. Views of the teenage daughter ring too true. Main plot and ending were weak.

[Charlotte · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ok; it was funny at times, and it was pretty engaging. It wasn't an epic or anything, but it was enjoyable enough.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was ok. i admit it - i bought this book solely for the title! (and that fact that was on the clearance rack)

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry. I hated this book
the more I read it. Mean
spirited humor just hits
me the wrong way.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHY I CHOSE THIS BOOK
The book “How to Cook a Tart” by Nina Killham was a great pick. I wish I could tell you why I picked this book up but there really isn’t much to it. I was perusing a book shelf in my classroom and the cover and title struck my fancy. The cover was bright pink and I love to bake so I saw tart and became interested. After that I read the back cover and the mentions of murder, disordered eating, and infidelity seemed like a wickedly-interesting trio.

SUMMARY
This novel started “In media res” finding Jasmine peering over a dead body in her kitchen. How do you not want to hear more after that? The next potion got into Jasmine’s childhood, she grew up in a family with a mother who didn’t cook well. To Jasmine, this was boring and she felt as though something needed to change. Jasmine began studying and experimenting. She would preside over cookbooks for hours and use her kitchen as a lab for conjuring up masterpieces and pairings that she imagined. This followed Jasmine into adulthood where she became a pretty well-known cook book author. Conflict arose when Jasmine’s style of cooking started to become frowned upon.
Jasmine’s cook books were filled with butter, drizzled with oil, and then doused in red wine. The issue was people no longer wanted to indulge. They wanted clean, fat-free, dairy-free, and gluten-substituted recipes. Jasmine is absolutely against this because she believes food is way more than that. It’s to be enjoyed and cherished not just used for fuel. This way of thinking drew in her husband, Daniel. Daniel is an aspiring actor waiting for his big break at 40 years old. He is teaching acting lessons that bring in even less money than one would think. Together, the married couple has a daughter Careme.
Careme is a sassy teenager who despises her mother and everything she stands for. She wants nothing more than to be skinny and gorgeous which she finds nearly impossible with her mothers cooking. This is part of the mother-daughter turmoil. Jasmine knows Careme had an eating disorder and tries to help but Careme not wanting to be more plump like her mother, hates the idea and dismisses Jasmine as usual.
To make family relations worse, Daniel is stepping out on his loving wife Jasmine with one of his gorgeous acting students. The best part of this plot is that Jasmine actually crosses paths with mistress and even invites her in for a cooking lesson. Daniel gets home to see both his women in his kitchen and Jasmine is assaulting the mistress Tina with a can of whipped cream. Careme unfortunately knows about her father’s disgusting activities even before Jasmine does.
The book begins to conclude with the revisiting of the dead body on Jasmine’s kitchen floor. It becomes known who the body is but it takes Daniel’s 40th birthday party and a drunk neighbor to reveal who and who that came to be.

WHAT WORKS
My favorite part about this book is that it’s told in third person omniscient. The author follows mostly Jasmine, but the other characters as well. This helps play into the plot without revealing everything all at once. The reader gets to piece together the small bits of information that are given with each character and get the satisfying “ah ha!” moment. Another tactic I enjoyed was the comparisons to food. It sounds odd but being able to compare the taste of tomato to the feeling of awkwardness is genius. It’s something that is very very rarely done. Additionally, I really liked that Jasmine is described as almost witchy. She’s plump, can cook magically, and is a bit crazy. It keeps the reader interested and questioning her motives and actions. Finally, the pace was well set. I feel the length of the book was appropriate and well detailed but didn’t run on longer than necessary.

WHAT DOESN’T WORK
You know a book is good when you struggle to think of negative things to say about it. I was very fond of this novel but if I absolutely had to say something negative, I might include how frequently the author used the word “padded”. I’m not sure why but it definitely irritated me. Another thing I may say is that the book isn’t super eventful, so if you're someone who gets bored, I wouldn’t recommend it. For me that wasn’t an issue and I couldn’t put the book down. To add on, there were some points where I didn’t want the perspective to switch; the plot was so detailed and suspenseful. I was entranced by Careme’s story but then it would switch to Jasmine, ect. In summary, I would recommend this novel to anyone. It’s light but deep, yet so funny and witty. Please read this novel!

[Virginie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am still looking for someone to discuss this book with irl because more than a year after reading, I am still SHOOK. About 90% of the book was honestly a slog to read through. The husband? A narcissistic ass who deals with his failed professional life and fading looks by having the most predictable, joyless affair ever put on paper. The daughter? A self-obsessed A-hole who looks down on her mother's every life decision and develops an eating disorder out of sheer desire to rebel against her mother. The only parts that intrigued me were the mother's, and moreso for the lush descriptions of the foods she cooks than anything else. Otherwise, she's lazy and gluttonous, and passive rather than active throughout most of the book. Somehow, I motivated myself to keep reading... only to be rewarded by the most insane conclusion to any book I've ever read! It's like a movie that had Martin Scorsese as the director suddenly swapped him out in the finale for Mel Brooks. It's insane, it's weird as hell, it probably takes someone equally as weird to enjoy the juxtaposition of both styles in one book, but here I am more than a year later writing this review. In a world full of forgettable books, this one stands out. If that's not worthy of 4 stars, then what is?

[Beth Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

HOW TO COOK A TART is the perfect recipe--especially if they love all things culinary. It's the perfect blend of humor (self-deprecating--as if there's any other kind?), varied points of view (which all cleverly come together at the end), romance, family dysfunction, and mystery. The result is a dizzying concoction with an ending I didn't see coming.

I'm a teacher with a classroom library, and I'm still not sure where to fit this book, genre-wise. It's largely realistic fiction, which is where I had it stowed, but its shocking ending--that comes out of nowhere--enables it to sit comfortably among mystery/thrillers.

I loved that I didn't have any expectations about this read. I wanted something lighter--after reading a few intense books, and I wanted something shorter. I went into this story without a single expectation, which I think makes for the best reading experience. I started it and was immediately hooked by Killham's intriguing opener. So, after a few dates, I decided to commit to this one, and it was a quick, fun ride.

Killham does a great job at making our mouths water. Until she doesn't. At the end.

[Davelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to start out by saying though I did not enjoy this book, I think the author is immensely talented. In the beginning, it was hard for me to read this book. I could not relate to any of the characters and did not particularly like any of them. I hated their choices and decided I would give this book one star. As I continued, this book turned into quite the page turner. I was shocked at who the killer was and admired how clever the turns were. I'm glad I decided to finish the book! I look forward to future works by this author (as long as they focus on different characters). 2.5 stars

[Phylisha Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a very different kind of read. You have a wife who definitely plus size and loves to cook and prepares way over te top calorie laden dishes. Then you have the husband who is a drama teacher who's having an affair with one of his adult drama students. This situation of course went to heck in a handbasket once the the wife discovered it. This book ends in a really weird and gross way (the wife got her own back), but the writing was good. The title should give you a hint of how it played out.

[DaShannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not for the faint of heart. I picked it up because of the pink cover with the chef's knife. But that's a bit misleading. I liked the book but it was not the light, cozy mystery read I was expecting. It is a dark comedy about a woman whose husband has taken up with a young tart and, well, it does not end well. It is a clever story line with a twist of an ending, one not easily guessed. Enjoyable read!

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book based on the reviews and the blurb; the writing is really sensory heavy--extremely descriptive food porn and sensual. I can see how it could go either way for readers--those who see themselves in the main character and revel in it, and those who see themselves in any of the characters and cannot bear it. This was a DNF for me, because I fell into the latter category.

[JEM · Rating 2 out of 5]

About 1/3 in, and I'm not sure I like anybody. I guess I like Jasmine, but she is obstinate. Refuses to listen to people's concerns with her less than healthy cooking. And crushing on her daughter's love interest? Ick.

Not crazy about the storyline of the daughter's quest to lose her virginity. I hope the author does something good for Jasmine and the daughter.

Every character is about eating. If this a metaphor for something, I'm not getting it. Every character about eating: Jasmine with fat, Careme determined to be skinny, Daniel doing the cleanse, the grad student vegan encouraging the cleanse, Troy hot for Jasmine's cooking. And the amateurish intervention with Careme's bulemic friend? Ugh.

How is Daniel doing the cleanse and still eating Jasmine's cooking? And how is he sleeping on the couch in the living room and not hear a chainsaw in the kitchen? And Careme is in her bathroom and doesn't hear the chainsaw in the kitchen? Hard pressed to imagine an upper middle class home with a layout to make that possible.

This book kept my interest, but not always in a good way.