Last week I bumped into a friend at the Borders Food aisle. I was picking up the Best Food Writing of 2009; his arms were weighed down with a stack of the latest cookbooks. As we browsed the culinary eye candy, talk turned to cookbooks that look great as opposed to those that actually are great. Sure, I love those luscious photos, but if the recipes aren’t up to snuff, then what’s the point?
This isn’t to say that I haven’t been seduced by food styling. My cookbook collection includes several that are the culinary equivalent of blonde bimbos.
With that in mind, I thought I’d share a few of my tried-and-true favorites. These are the books I turn to again and again, and they rarely disappoint. What are some of yours?
The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook (Ina Garten)
I’m usually not sucked in by celebrity chefs, but when it comes to simple, elegant preparation, Ina Garten is a genius. This is my go-to cookbook for casual entertaining. Garten’s recipes play up the inherent deliciousness of fresh ingredients, whether appetizer, main dish, decadent dessert or brunch, and rate high on the comfort-food scale. She also provides a bevy of helpful tips for hosting a stress-free gathering.
The Martha Stewart Cookbook (Martha Stewart)
Seriously, if I’m facing dinnertime and a collection of oddball ingredients, Martha’s bound to have a recipe that pulls it all together. I’ve carted this book around for near 15 years and, at 600-plus pages, that takes some dedication. Martha includes several recipes for every imaginable foodstuff; witness six different pound cakes and 23 recipes using pears. In my kitchen it functions as a comprehensive resource. I like to think of it as a more adventurous Joy of Cooking.
Sunday Suppers at Lucques (Suzanne Goin)
After checking out this cookbook from our local library about 14 times (apologies to patrons who may have wondered why certain pages are oil spattered), my husband gave me a copy for Christmas. It’s become a fast favorite. Not only is it lovely to look at, the recipes are keepers. Goin, a Chez Panisse alum and co-owner of the LA restaurant Lucques, has organized the book seasonally, offering three-course menus for winter, spring, summer and fall. While the dishes tend to be a step above basic, they prove worth the extra effort. This is the book to peruse when you are planning a special meal or have a day to indulge your inner chef.
French Country Cooking (Elizabeth David)
I am a HUGE fan of Elizabeth David. While she’s not a household name, a la Julia Child, her influence on home cooking can’t be understated. She did for England’s palate what Child did for the U.S. Two seminal books are French Country Cooking, published in 1951, and Italian Food, published in 1954. My husband will tell you that David’s coq au vin recipe is proof-positive that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Her cookbooks are the kind you can curl up with, dog-earing recipes to return to later. They read like culinary travelogues, steeped in historical references, giving the how and why of technique and ingredients.
The Minimalist Cooks at Home (Mark Bittman)
Love, love, love Mark Bittman. Like Ina Garten, he focuses on the basics, marrying fresh ingredients with simple preparation. His recipe prologues demystify a particular dish and point to ways that a creative cook could tweak or build on his basic recipe. It’s a great one to turn to if you have a piece of fish, or a chicken and need some inspiration to get you started. A bonus: most of the ingredients (beyond the main ones) are spices and staples you are likely to have on hand.
Fresh from the Farmers’ Market (Janet Fletcher)
This is one of those wild-card cookbooks, which I have no idea where it came from. A bargain bin somewhere, probably. In any case, it has been well worth the $4.99 I may have paid for it, providing a ton of inspiration. The recipes are organized seasonally and around what’s available at the farmers’ market. This is the book to turn to when you bring home a vegetable that you’ve seen a million times but never actually purchased and cooked. Fletcher also gives in-depth tips on selecting produce at its best and storing it. She has a fabulous white bean soup that I make again and again.
Silk Road Cooking (Najmieh Batmanglij)
I bought this book from The Textile Museum Shop, drawn in by the beautiful photography of people, places and food. The recipes run the length of the Silk Road, from Italy to China, and trace the transfer of techniques and foodstuffs from culture to culture. Between the pages are lessons on art and culture, historical asides and recipes that introduce unfamiliar ingredients, or present familiar ones in new ways. Whether labeled pilaf, polow, pilau, pullaou, risotto or good old sticky rice, the book contains 24 different recipes for this humble grain.
The New Moosewood Cookbook (Mollie Katzen)
I think this may have been the first cookbook I purchased. It was circa 1988 Eugene, afterall. Despite some dubious uses of tofu, Moosewood does include many delicious recipes that have stood the test of time. And, who can resist Katzen’s charming illustrations? Brazilian Black Bean soup (I’ll be posting this one soon) and Hungarian Mushroom soup are two favorites that I make to this day. I recently bought the New Moosewood Cookbook because Katzen has updated many of the recipes, making them more healthful (not as much wanton use of cheese) and more straightforward, in some cases.
Anything by Mark Bittman, but these days I tend to reach for “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian” the most.
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking – Marcella Hazan
Provencal Light – Martha Rose Shulman
(I’ve had it for years. I’ve also been making a lot of her recipes in the Times…hope she makes a cookbook out of them someday).
Bistro Cooking – Patricia Wells
A Taste of Turkish Cuisine – Nur Ilkin/Sheila Kaufman
Moosewood Restaurant Low Fat Favorites (‘though I usually make it less low fat than they intend!)
Sundays at Moosewood – rarely use this one anymore, but it was my first Moosewood book and helped spark my interest in cooking food from other countries, although nowadays I doubt that many of the recipes are very authentic.
I need to get that Marcella Hazan book! You are always talking it up. BTW, I’m thinking it’s possible that the yogurt pound cake recipe is from Provencal Light…