Authors chef Robert Oliver and academic Tracy Berno were surprised to find that most hotels in the region imported their ingredients instead of using the wealth of local produce that could be found in the markets.
It was a problem both of perception and supply - local cuisine might be all right for home but it wasn't up to hotel food - was the common feeling and, as a result, local farmers were not set up to cater for the demands of hotels.
While there may be lows in Pacific cuisine, particularly with things like canned corned beef, and meat cast-offs such as mutton flaps, chicken backs and turkey tails which other countries have off-loaded on them, the authors show there is also a wealth of fresh and flavoursome recipes.
These involve local ingredients - fish and seafood, coconut, tropical fruit and vegetables as well as those from temperate climes that grow in the hills, pork and other fresh meats, and interesting ways to cook them such as wrapping food in taro or banana leaves or cooking in an earth oven.
Although a number of recipes will be practical to cook here, this lavishly illustrated book should find a ready market in the Pacific, and, hopefully inspire chefs and home cooks there to explore their local foods.
Annabel Langbein's latest book, Anyone Can Bake: Home-baked treats made easy (pbk, $30) will appeal to people who might feel a little nervous about baking or who are new to the art, including youngsters.
Like her earlier Anyone Can Cook, the recipes have many variations and are simple and well explained.
They start with muffins, pikelets, scones and variations, and move on to loaves, slices, biscuits and cakes of all sizes.
Along the way there are pages of tips such as how to separate eggs, beat whites, make icings and fillings, cream butter and sugar, and melt chocolate.
A more sophisticated book for bakers is the Australian Women's Weekly High Tea (ACP, hbk, $35).
A pretty book with enticing photographs, it offers suggestions for teatime dainties, from egg and watercress sandwiches, through scones and little tarts, to macaroons, biscuits, and cakes small and large.
Neither book is for those watching their weight.
