CELEBRATE THE BOUNTY

Struck by the ""thousands of references to food in the Bible"" and mindful of the ""spiritual nourishment"" often symbolized therein, Appleby has combined her college Bible study and her restaurant and catering background--to create this Christian prayer-and-cookbook. First, on a bed of conventional pious prose, come suggested graces and menus for special seasonal (Easter, Epiphany, etc.) and family (baptism, marriage) occasions. Then a section called ""readings and recipes"" matches Biblical quotes with recipes using the ingredients mentioned. Some of the pairings are novel (a pomegranate-juice float inspired by the Song of Solomon; deep-fried cucumber slices for "". . .a lodge in a garden of cucumbers. . ."" Isaiah 1:81); some are oddly un-Biblical (such as the cheese choices, which begin with ""Welsh rarebit""); some are just banal (shepherd's pie to match the Twenty-third Psalm)--and most are arbitrary in terms of any link with the meaning or customs of the holiday. Still, there's a fitting unhackneyed simplicity to most of the recipes; and this Bible-based celebration could find a wide audience among the devout.