Madhur Jaffrey received the Cookbook Hall of Fame Award for An Invitation to Indian Cooking (Alfred A. Knopf) at the 2006 James Beard Foundation Awards, America's premier culinary honours event, on Monday, May 8, in New York , according to a MarketWire press release.

The award for the Cookbook of the Year went to Hungry Planet: What the World Eats , by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio (Ten Speed Press). With documentary photography and insightful text, the authors offer snapshots of families across the world with displays of all the foods they eat in a week. The awards committee said in a statement: " Hungry Planet reminds us that we all have something in common: mealtime."

Established in 1990, the awards recognise excellence in books, restaurants and chefs, in broadcasting and print journalism, as well as restaurant design and industry achievement. Seventy award recipients were named this year. Winners get bronze medallions engraved with the image of James Beard.

A festive celebration followed the awards ceremony, featuring classic and contemporary fare from more than 20 chefs from New Orleans and a live jazz band. Another highlight was a new exhibit from The Southern Food and Beverage Museum, which documented the efforts of New Orleans restaurants to support their city after the hurricane.

New Orleans's restaurant community was collectively honored with the Humanitarian of the Year Award for its efforts to recover and serve its community after it was struck by Hurricane Katrina. The restaurant and chef awards committee said in a statement: "Their generosity carried the first evidence for many outsiders and for the few remaining locals that New Orleans is a city worth saving."

Outstanding Chef went to Alfred Portale of Gotham Bar & Grill, New York City. The honour for Outstanding Restaurant was presented to The French Laundry in Yountville, California . The French Laundry's chef, Corey Lee, was named Rising Star Chef of the Year. The award goes to a young chef who shows great promise before the age of 30.

Outstanding Restaurateur went to Daniel Boulud (Daniel, DB Bistro Moderne and Café Boulud in New York, Palm Beach and Las Vegas ). Johnny Iuzzini of Jean Georges in New York City was named Outstanding Pastry Chef. The Modern, also in New York City, got the awards for Best New Restaurant and Outstanding Restaurant Design.

Judith Jones, Vice-President and Senior Editor at Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, got the Lifetime Achievement Award for her prolific career which spans 50 years and includes the publication of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking and other major works in cookbook publishing.

Award nominees and winners are judged by more than 600 F&B industry professionals who vote by confidential ballot. An independent accounting firm tabulates the ballots.