Ellington

OK, it's not really pornography—it's more like high-art erotica—but if you want an aphrodisiac with absolutely no calories, do I have a book suggestion for you. "La Figa: Visions of Food Form" by Chef Tiberio Simone with photography by Matt Freedman (Book Publishers Network, 2011, $39.95) is a gorgeous, adults-only coffee-table book. Or perhaps it would be better on the night stand.

Simone, a James Beard Foundation Award-winning chef from Italy, created the edible food that is styled onto beautiful (and largely naked) models of both genders and of various ages and ethnicities, in this magical photo book that is anything but trashy.

It is sexy, though. Some photos—such as red strawberries arranged as a heart on the buttocks of a dark model or a model in a tub full of cherries—are more suggestive. Others reveal even more so don't leave the book within a child's reach.

But the models and their bare skin are merely the canvas here. The food is the star and main course, reminding you just how luscious a ripe avocado can be.

Bon appétit.