"The meat, dark red in color, was sliced very thin to preserve all the flavor. The air was filled with the aromas of the geese and freshly baked bread."

My Travel Adventures and Secret Recipes is a memoir hidden between the pages of a cookbook. It tells the life story of chef Wolfgang Hanau from his humble beginnings in East Prussia to the launch of his career in New York. Along his travels, Hanau served as a cook on a cruise ship, rode on the backs of elephants in Casablanca, and took part in many other adventures. Wherever he went, he took his love of food with him. Hanau's memoir stirs up poignant memories of his past, filled with the aroma of cooking food.

Hanau's writing feels personal and pleasantly ambling. Reading his memoir you almost feel as though you were sitting with him by a fireplace as he regaled you with tales of his past. With every tale he infuses his recipes with a bit of history. You're not just making apple pancakes; you're making his mother's famous apple pancakes. This little touch transforms excellent recipes into extraordinary ones.

Although the memoir adds flavor, the real star of this book is the collection of recipes. Over 200 mouth-watering dishes are gathered in the second half of the book, with many more interspersed between the pages of the memoir. The recipes are inspired by cuisines from all over the world, from New Orleans shrimp to Thai steak. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, and the recipes are exotic and sophisticated without being over-complicated. Hanau has managed to put together a book that will thrill both memoir lovers and foodies. He leaves us hungry for the promise of more stories and recipes in a sequel.

Chef Wolfgang Hanau cleverly builds his cookbook within the framework of his life's story. My Travel Adventures and Secret Recipes is a book for travellers and foodies alike.

Hanau's childhood is structured around the pleasures of food, the confines of East Prussia, and his relationship with God. He uses the metaphor of a leaf of a tree to build the setting of his childhood in East Prussia: the changing seasons, growing up and gaining recipes. He poetically returns time and again to the image of the leaf and the tree in which it falls from. A World War II hovered during the days of his youth, it created the backdrop for Hanau's memories while growing up; defining some of the many challenges his family needed to overcome. When he delves into these historical details, he does so with a compassionate and loving hand rather than a stiff recount of academic details, interlacing a secondary theme about himself beyond the recipes which dominate the book.

Food was always in the center of Hanau's family life. It was used to simultaneously celebrate, nourish and delight. Hanau's mam was teh center of his childhood and also the inspiration for his love of cooking. Recipes are embedded within the memoir.

A debut cookbook from a well-travelled chef that combines personal history with a diverse array of dishes.

Hanau opens his book with memoir, relating his childhood in the former province of East Prussia and his early career rising through the culinary ranks. Over the years, he cooked at luxury hotels in Gstaad, London, Berlin, Paris, and New York City. The prose in this opening section could have used a stronger edit (one person is called a "child and daughter," for example), but it still presents a brief, charming portrait of an adventurous young chef rubbing elbows with high society. More than 400 degrees of recipes follow, which Hanau gathered during his travels. They seem to be in random order; readers who wish to browse all the burgers or all the appetizers, for example, will have to use the table of contents to find them individually. The meals themselves cover a huge swath of cooking territory; readers will find vegan, vegitarian, and decidedly carnivorous options, as well as indulgent hotel foods and virtuous salads. Hanau favors outdoor cooking, and he presents many unique, tasty-sounding entrees for grilling aficionados, such as "Grilled Mango-Lime Pork Chops." Multiple recipes have Louisiana or Florida roots (see the "Conch Fritter Salad" or "New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp Lagniappe"), though Italian, German, French, and Asian influences appear frequently.

Hanau's hotel origins show in his elaborate presentation techniques, making this a good cookbook for anyone planning a fancy party. True to his pastry-chef training, many of the desserts, such as the "Palm Beach Linzer Torte," are chocolaty showstoppers. A few flavor combinations are off the beaten path for trendy foodies, such as berry salsa or a squash-and-tofu English muffin. Some readers may find that a handful of recipes rely too much on premade products, such as blueberry pot pie that calls for Lucky Leaf pie filling; the majority, however, are oriented around raw ingredients. Hanau writes his recipes with care and detail, including tips for navigating tricky steps. A small number of them, though, could have been better edited; "Cajun Spiced Cereal Mix," for example, lacks complete baking information.

An unwiedly but appealing collection from an adventurous culinary mind, appropriate for home chefs looking to sample a wide range of cuisines.

Congratulations on the publication of your book, My Travel Adventures and Secret Recipes. My daughter Jeka gave me a copy for Mother's Day. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your interesting autobiography and was glad to see you wrote about Jesus at the very beginning. Your employment in various locales gave me insights into places that I've never visited and I enjoyed seeing them through your eyes. Now I'm looking forward to reading and trying the recipes. You write such clear directions in the recipes.

Jeka and I enjoyed your cooking class at Oasis Compassion Agency and we realize even more what a privilege it was to learn from you.

Best wishes and blessing to you as you complete Book 2.