THE GREAT FOOD PROCESSOR COOKBOOK

If you're in the market for a ""space-age"" machine, Tarr will help you select the one best suited to your needs--assuming you can afford such a costly luxury gadget. Having previously churned out a wide assortment of ""easy"" and ""super-easy"" cookbooks, Taxx is enthusiastic about all three: the compact, chic Cuisinart; the more family-oriented, bulkier KitchenAid K5A; and the does-everything Starmix. She does point out that each has some limitations and drawbacks. The Cuisinart, basically a cutting machine, won't whip egg whites or cream; the KitchenAid doesn't chop but does (with attachments) knead bread; the Starmix is most versatile but relatively noisy and, Tarr hints, its construction may be less than perfect. The recipes, adapted for all the processors, tend toward swanky dinner-party fare. Certainly, there are any number of unique and legitimate uses: Passover haroset, usually a time-consuming, messy production, becomes simplicity itself; homemade butter, plain or flavored with almonds, lobster, chives, or anchovies, can be accomplished with ease; and pates, souffles, and vegetable dishes are vastly simplified. But. . . it would have been helpful if Tart had indicated where a blender would do the job just as well. Vichyssoise, and other cream soups and salad dressings are not necessarily improved by using fancier equipment. And prices are not discussed here at all. These may be the ""hottest"" specialty items going, but subtract the trendy, prestige element and consider the odds.