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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 5, 2015 14:57:56 GMT -5
Let's talk about cookbooks! Favorites, least favorites, anything in between.
I've lost track of how many people I've given Ruhlman's Twenty, a great combination of basic skills teaching, food science background, and terrific recipes. This Christmas I got Jeff Koehler's book Spain, and the three recipes I've tried so far have all worked well, including last night's meal (technically an appetizer), eggplant stuffed with tomatoes, onions, and ground lamb, topped with breadcrumbs, and broiled.
On the other hand, it seems like I try something from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything: The Basics, I get flummoxed by bad ratios/quantities and the food ends up too dry, too wet, or some other defect.
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LazBro
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Post by LazBro on Jan 5, 2015 16:10:53 GMT -5
I think Pedantic Editor Type references Bittman often, so maybe she'll have some tips on making his recipes work for you. I have never done well with cookbooks, though I do like to read them. Unless I'm baking, in which I do understand I need to be precise, my approach to recipes tends to be: read, read again, try to memorize, go to store without ever looking again. |
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Baron von Costume
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Post by Baron von Costume on Jan 5, 2015 16:18:24 GMT -5
I haven't picked up Twenty yet but I love his Charcuterie...
I received the Bouchon Bakery book for xmas to go with my French Laundry cookbook. It will probably be a while before I bake something from it but I really can't wait to have the time.
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Post by sarapen on Jan 5, 2015 16:26:21 GMT -5
I unfortunately can't remember the title, but I remember flipping through a cookbook of Chinese American cooking at the bookstore. It was some kind of memoir lite thing where the author would share a childhood anecdote about each dish, and half of the author's stories seemed to be passive-agressive sniping about her mother.
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Post by pairesta on Jan 5, 2015 16:28:04 GMT -5
Cookbooks are just about the only books I get and read anymore.
Ruhlman's ratio book is pretty awesome too, until it gets into stuff like ratios for stock.
I've repeatedly plugged the Momofuku cookbook here and no exception now. Everything I've made out of it has been delicious.
Got Sean Brock's book Heritage for Christmas. Used his grits recipe technique to make polenta and it was the best polenta I've ever made, so that's a promising start.
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 5, 2015 16:48:44 GMT -5
I've repeatedly plugged the Momofuku cookbook here and no exception now. Everything I've made out of it has been delicious. That's on my wish list for sure. Sean Brock's too. Last year I enjoyed making 5-6 things from Fuchsia Dunlop's Every Grain of Rice. I had to adapt a bit, based on what was available at H Mart and my ability to quickly calculate the measurements (which are all in metric), but everything turned out very tasty. That inspired an Asian cooking phase which has left a permanent mark on my pantry, including giant bags of dried Thai chiles and dried shrimp. I never did use the dried shrimp for anything. Maybe it's time to dive back into Dunlop. |
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Post by pairesta on Jan 5, 2015 16:51:55 GMT -5
Oh yeah, I have Every Grain of Rice too, and it's been foolproof as well. I don't seem to remember the quantities as only given in metric measurements though.
I too have dried shrimp and scallops sitting around from when I cooked out of it.
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jan 5, 2015 16:52:09 GMT -5
I'm with you, Ron Howard Voice, about Bittman's "How To Cook Everything". I've never had any success with that book, and sometimes feel like it's a personal failing because everyone else seems to love it. My current favorite cookbook is Amy Thielen's "The New Midwestern Table". I haven't cooked a ton from it, but what I have tried has been awesome. And everything in it looks so fascinating; it's like a whole book of a life an alternate-universe me would be rocking. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jan 5, 2015 16:53:48 GMT -5
Oh hi.  I have Bittman's how to cook everything app and really haven't had any problems. His brownie recipe stuck like hell, but I think that was pan error. I have made several cookies, his bean burgers, various other dishes... I will say sometimes I have to tweak things a bit. The bean burgers were a bit wet, for instance. I tend to cook somewhat intuitively, but I like the app and the starting points. I also like Alton Brown's cookbook which is really a textbook. It's good for understanding the whys. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 5, 2015 17:35:38 GMT -5
My current favorite cookbook is Amy Thielen's "The New Midwestern Table". I haven't cooked a ton from it, but what I have tried has been awesome. And everything in it looks so fascinating; it's like a whole book of a life an alternate-universe me would be rocking. Want to go into a little more about this? It sounds interesting, and there are some great praise quotes from big names, but I'm a little surprised that Midwestern food could be "fascinating". As a Hoosier, I thought our food was pretty dull... |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 5, 2015 20:22:58 GMT -5
I don't seem to remember the quantities as only given in metric measurements though. Oops, you're right! My complaint was about a different number...it doesn't say "Serves #", though this is because most of them are small plates, I guess. |
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Post by ganews on Jan 5, 2015 21:53:16 GMT -5
I have a whole shelf! Much sentimental value.
Joy of Cooking - the cookbook I specifically requested for Christmas after I was one semester into college and realized I would have to get an apartment the following year. I don't know why I requested it, really. I guess because my mother (who hates to cook) had a copy. Good for baking, odds and ends.
Where's Mom Now That I Need Her - received at the same time as above, this is actually pretty good for a college student. Alternate title: How to Make Pretty OK Casseroles and other super basic stuff.
Here, There, and Everywhere - in senior year of college, Lifemate and I drove to Disney World for spring break (really). On I-75 we saw a bunch of billboards advertising a store with over one million books for sale, so seems like a good place to stop. Turns out to be a Bible warehouse but wandering around I found a section of cookbooks of the type sold for church fundraisers. I bought this one for three bucks, and it's a compilation of recipes gathered my missionaries around the world. It's got some great stuff!
Just Desserts - fundraiser cookbook from my grandmother's sorority, which includes the family recipe for Pennsylvania Dutch funny cake
The Playboy Bar Guide - must be 40 years old; from my grandfather's shelf. For classy drunks
A Complete Set of TimeLife Recipes of the World - also from my grandfather, the only real cook in the family still living. A giant set of hardbound books each dedicated to a different country or region of the world, also some 40-50 years old. Great photography and articles like Life Magazine. Actual recipes are contained in annoying spiral-bound accompanying notebooks. I'll try something out of these books once in a blue moon, but I have only ever repeated a few of them.
What's Cooking in Thomson - Methodist church cookbook from my dad's hometown
The Schwenkfelder Cook Book - real Pennsylvania Dutch recipes from another old church
Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant - parting gift from the scientist I worked with at my postdoc, dedicated but never actually used!
set of clippings - over a hundred clips out of newspapers, magazines, and wherever of recipe my grandfather felt were worth cutting out, all in one box
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outforawalk
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Post by outforawalk on Jan 5, 2015 22:46:32 GMT -5
We have a fair number, and I'd say the highlights are: The Simple Art of Perfect Baking by Flo Braker - My favorite pie crust recipe (the milk pastry one) came from here, and everything else I've made has been super good. The Vegetable Dishes I can't Live Without by Mollie Katzen - Good for new ways of eating vegetables, also as a quick reference for how long they take. Mrs. Chiang's Szechwan Cookbook by Jung-Feng Chiang - My husband's family is Chinese and this is the book every household has. Our general references are Bittman, The New Best Recipe, and The Gourmet Cookbook - I slightly prefer the Gourmet but don't use any of them too often. I grew up with the Joy of Cooking and would probably rather have that, but wouldn't be able to tolerate getting a new version that has the WRONG version of Ohio Shaker Lemon Pie. They went and changed it and made it like a lemon bar, which may still be tasty but is so not the point. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jan 5, 2015 22:52:08 GMT -5
I should note I own many more cookbooks. Many are church fundraiser varieties with weird ass casseroles. One is from Marshall Fields and has modern takes on the Walnut room dishes. A coworker gave me a cookbook from Spice Islands co, copyright 1961, with recipes heavily featuring their spice blends and msg. Also meat jello. So much aspic.
I just don't use many of them regularly.
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jan 6, 2015 10:37:29 GMT -5
Want to go into a little more about this? It sounds interesting, and there are some great praise quotes from big names, but I'm a little surprised that Midwestern food could be "fascinating". As a Hoosier, I thought our food was pretty dull... See, that's exactly the thing! WHO KNEW MIDWESTERN COOKING WAS COOL? Heh. The book is just lovely, for starters, with gorgeous photography and a really engaging writing style. There's a fair deal of text about the cultural food heritage in the area, and local sourcing information, and whatnot. And then many of the recipes are compelling presentations of, well... the title of the book says it all, I guess.  So far I've had the homemade ricotta with husk cherry chutney, the sweet-and-sour meatballs, and the pounded cheese with port syrup and walnuts. A friend who seems to cook almost exclusively from this book recommends highly the hash brown cake with frying peppers and the beef runzas. I'd really like to try the maple-glazed pork belly, the creamed rutabaga, the rice pudding with candied pineapple and rum cherries, the spring chicken pot pie, the braunschweiger... Basically, it's a really invigorating look at a cuisine that seems very familiar, but for me, actually isn't. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 6, 2015 11:31:55 GMT -5
Want to go into a little more about this? It sounds interesting, and there are some great praise quotes from big names, but I'm a little surprised that Midwestern food could be "fascinating". As a Hoosier, I thought our food was pretty dull... See, that's exactly the thing! WHO KNEW MIDWESTERN COOKING WAS COOL? Heh. The book is just lovely, for starters, with gorgeous photography and a really engaging writing style. There's a fair deal of text about the cultural food heritage in the area, and local sourcing information, and whatnot. And then many of the recipes are compelling presentations of, well... the title of the book says it all, I guess. So far I've had the homemade ricotta with husk cherry chutney, the sweet-and-sour meatballs, and the pounded cheese with port syrup and walnuts. A friend who seems to cook almost exclusively from this book recommends highly the hash brown cake with frying peppers and the beef runzas. I'd really like to try the maple-glazed pork belly, the creamed rutabaga, the rice pudding with candied pineapple and rum cherries, the spring chicken pot pie, the braunschweiger... Basically, it's a really invigorating look at a cuisine that seems very familiar, but for me, actually isn't. Interesting! The Sweet-and-sour meatballs aren't just grape jelly and chili sauce? That's what I was raised on. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Jan 6, 2015 11:33:02 GMT -5
A very relevant new cookbook review was published in the NYTimes today. Worth quoting at length. "Cookbooks today fall largely into two camps. There is glossy art-house food erotica assembled by chefs eager to set down markers of regional pride, of particular aesthetic technique, of gastronomic genius. Cooking from those books is like making a paint-by-numbers Ingres or Hockney. You get the shape and the color and the line. But the dish is never really art. "And there are lifestyle bibles, aspirational guides to a better and often more ethical way of being. These cookbooks offer recipes for change, a chance to consider quinoa as a regular ingredient, the ability to alter your diet from selfish to one engaged with a wider story about health and happiness. Was that really what you wanted for dinner? "Rare is the cookbook that acknowledges the simple truth that there aren’t really all that many recipes in the world. There is just technique, and practice, and joy and love, and at the end of it something simple and delicious on the plate, something that the reader may not have considered making before cracking the spine of the book." Sam Sifton on "Twelve Recipes"I feel like we could have a nice debate about that quote. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jan 6, 2015 11:45:50 GMT -5
"Rare is the cookbook that acknowledges the simple truth that there aren’t really all that many recipes in the world. There is just technique, and practice, and joy and love, and at the end of it something simple and delicious on the plate, something that the reader may not have considered making before cracking the spine of the book." Sam Sifton on "Twelve Recipes"I feel like we could have a nice debate about that quote. I feel like Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for the Food is basically in that "rare" category. There are recipes, but it is more about the how and why of cooking, acknowledging that technique matters as much as ingredients. I would also include a few other categories ... "gimmick" cookbooks aimed at beginners -- easy recipes for Crockpots, or college students, or with limited ingredients fundraiser/community cookbooks with Aunt Jean's Macaroni Salad or Grandma's apple pie, sometimes with 4 recipes for punch |
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Ice Cream Planet
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Post by Ice Cream Planet on Jan 6, 2015 13:05:22 GMT -5
Two of my favorite cookbooks are Jerusalem and Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. I absolutely love their fusion of Middle Eastern and European cookery. Everyone should have a copy of Jerusalem.
Since I have a sweet tooth, I also really love David Lebovitz's work. Ready for Dessert is particularly delightful.
As far as Japanese cuisine, can't recommend Hiroko Shimbo's The Japanese Kitchen enough.
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Post by pairesta on Jan 6, 2015 13:07:58 GMT -5
Two of my favorite cookbooks are Jerusalem and Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. I absolutely love their fusion of Middle Eastern and European cookery. Everyone should have a copy of Jerusalem. I've been eyeballing the Jerusalem cookbook for a while. onto the wishlist it goes. |
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Ice Cream Planet
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Post by Ice Cream Planet on Jan 6, 2015 13:10:55 GMT -5
Two of my favorite cookbooks are Jerusalem and Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. I absolutely love their fusion of Middle Eastern and European cookery. Everyone should have a copy of Jerusalem. I've been eyeballing the Jerusalem cookbook for a while. onto the wishlist it goes. It's one of the few cookbooks that really jumpstarted my love of cookery. I can't recommend it enough. It's so beautiful to look at, the history of the recipes are fascinating, and the dishes themselves are delicious. Some of my favorites: *Turkey and Courgette Burgers with Green Onion and Cumin *Jerusalem Spice cookies *Roasted Chicken with Caramelized Clementines and Arak *Clementine and Almond Syrup Cake. It's really just scratching the surface. Also, lots of great vegetarian and gluten-free options, too. |
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Post by GumTurkeyles on Jan 6, 2015 13:34:32 GMT -5
Two of my favorite cookbooks are Jerusalem and Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. I absolutely love their fusion of Middle Eastern and European cookery. Everyone should have a copy of Jerusalem. Since I have a sweet tooth, I also really love David Lebovitz's work. Ready for Dessert is particularly delightful. As far as Japanese cuisine, can't recommend Hiroko Shimbo's The Japanese Kitchen enough. I got to thumb through and try a few recipes from Jerusalem, since my girlfriend's previous job had a copy on hand (hummus manufacturing). I have Hiroko's American Kitchen, and I really like it, though I'm saddened a lot of the asian vegetables referenced are hard to come by. I haven't read The Japanese Kitchen yet, but I'll add that to my list. I have dozens of cookbooks, but most I've never even opened. They were gifted to me by a chef friend who was moving out of town and no longer looked at them. Some are terrible (I recall there's a TV meals one), but Joy of Cooking was also mixed in there. I need to go through them soon. |
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Post by outforawalk on Jan 6, 2015 14:42:09 GMT -5
A very relevant new cookbook review was published in the NYTimes today. Worth quoting at length. "Cookbooks today fall largely into two camps. There is glossy art-house food erotica assembled by chefs eager to set down markers of regional pride, of particular aesthetic technique, of gastronomic genius. Cooking from those books is like making a paint-by-numbers Ingres or Hockney. You get the shape and the color and the line. But the dish is never really art. "And there are lifestyle bibles, aspirational guides to a better and often more ethical way of being. These cookbooks offer recipes for change, a chance to consider quinoa as a regular ingredient, the ability to alter your diet from selfish to one engaged with a wider story about health and happiness. Was that really what you wanted for dinner? "Rare is the cookbook that acknowledges the simple truth that there aren’t really all that many recipes in the world. There is just technique, and practice, and joy and love, and at the end of it something simple and delicious on the plate, something that the reader may not have considered making before cracking the spine of the book." Sam Sifton on "Twelve Recipes"I feel like we could have a nice debate about that quote. I pretty much agree with that quote but don't feel terribly strongly about it. I prefer nice and delicious and interesting food but frankly will happily eat almost anything. So the paint-by-numbers stuff works fairly well for me. They also give me the confidence and necessary knowledge to try something new, and then elements of that technique or flavoring or whatnot inevitably find their way into my later cooking. I think following along with other people's processes is a fairly standard and helpful learning technique, and not just in the kitchen. Also, we got Twelve Recipes for Christmas but haven't really cracked it open. I guess I should! |
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Post by pairesta on Jan 6, 2015 14:46:30 GMT -5
A very relevant new cookbook review was published in the NYTimes today. Worth quoting at length. "Cookbooks today fall largely into two camps. There is glossy art-house food erotica assembled by chefs eager to set down markers of regional pride, of particular aesthetic technique, of gastronomic genius. Cooking from those books is like making a paint-by-numbers Ingres or Hockney. You get the shape and the color and the line. But the dish is never really art. "And there are lifestyle bibles, aspirational guides to a better and often more ethical way of being. These cookbooks offer recipes for change, a chance to consider quinoa as a regular ingredient, the ability to alter your diet from selfish to one engaged with a wider story about health and happiness. Was that really what you wanted for dinner? "Rare is the cookbook that acknowledges the simple truth that there aren’t really all that many recipes in the world. There is just technique, and practice, and joy and love, and at the end of it something simple and delicious on the plate, something that the reader may not have considered making before cracking the spine of the book." Sam Sifton on "Twelve Recipes"I feel like we could have a nice debate about that quote. I guess I kind of bristle at his categorization of the first camp of books, since I turn to those most often. I just like seeing that voice, understanding that chef's perspective. Yeah, certainly alot of them are a little too demanding of the reader and likely recipes I'll never replicate, but I still learn something from them. And theres other categories, like Pedantic Editor Type mentions, also the "Extending the Brand" category of cookbooks like those from the big Food Network stars. Technique is just hard to really encapsulate. It's not that it can't be done; I certainly think Alton Brown's books are an example. But in teaching somebody that you're giving away the game. I'd say Ruhlman's books are another "technique" book. I think some british authors are good at that as well. I got Nigel Slater's Notes from the Larder book last Christmas and it's inspirational in how he just puts together these very simple, casual dinners from what he has onhand. |
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Post by Hachiman on Jan 12, 2015 5:30:01 GMT -5
For baking, you really can't go wrong with The Breadbaker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart.
I also regularly refer to The Cook's Country Cookbook from America's Test Kitchen. Its a great reference for most classic recipes.
Rick Bayless' cookbooks are our go-to for Mexican cuisine.
I'll also second Ruhlman's Twenty.
I actually have a small problem finding good Japanese cookbooks. The recipes are either too new or too traditional. I have a small collection of Japanese cookbooks because I usually find a really good recipe in each one, but have a hard time finding a book that is consistent in the quality of its recipes. So far the best one I have found for everyday recipes is Recipes of Japanese Cooking by Yuko Fujita. I recommend this one as an introduction to Japanese cuisine.
The thing I need help with is good Indian and Chinese cookbooks. I can't find a good one to save my life.
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Post by pairesta on Jan 12, 2015 6:40:25 GMT -5
The thing I need help with is good Indian and Chinese cookbooks. I can't find a good one to save my life. Classic Indian Cooking by Julie Sahni Every Grain of Rice, mentioned upthread, by Fuschia Dunlop. Mastering the Art of Chinese cooking, by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo. |
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Post-Lupin
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Post by Post-Lupin on Jan 12, 2015 8:34:22 GMT -5
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Post by Hachiman on Jan 12, 2015 17:56:19 GMT -5
The thing I need help with is good Indian and Chinese cookbooks. I can't find a good one to save my life. Classic Indian Cooking by Julie Sahni Every Grain of Rice, mentioned upthread, by Fuschia Dunlop. Mastering the Art of Chinese cooking, by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo. Cheers. Already ordered Every Grain of Rice! |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Apr 6, 2015 14:24:43 GMT -5
My current favorite cookbook is Amy Thielen's "The New Midwestern Table". I haven't cooked a ton from it, but what I have tried has been awesome. And everything in it looks so fascinating; it's like a whole book of a life an alternate-universe me would be rocking. This weekend I visited some friends and stayed on their couch. Grabbing a glass of water, I noticed "The New Midwestern Table" in their kitchen and leafed through. It is, indeed, pretty awesome-looking. I was pleased with how many recipes looked like they would not cause cardiac issues; thought, hey, if this had been Midwestern food when I was a kid, it would have been a big improvement. There is some stuff that lives way out on the fringe, Midwest-wise - e.g., I saw a pozole. |
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Post by Logoboros on Apr 6, 2015 20:46:38 GMT -5
I'm a big fan of the Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen books. Their The Science of Good Cooking is quite good as a book and not just as a recipe collection. The recipe collections are good, too, though in the smaller topical ones (in magazine or annual format) they love to reuse and recycle recipes, so you have to check them carefully if you already own others to make sure you're getting a decent proportion of new material. And I like the narratives they attach to the recipes that are all about experimenting with the best approach, ingredients, etc. for the desired final product. I've never really gotten much out of cookbooks that also try to be memoirs -- but the ATK recipes provide just the right amount of first person framing.
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So far I've had the homemade ricotta with husk cherry chutney, the sweet-and-sour meatballs, and the pounded cheese with port syrup and walnuts. A friend who seems to cook almost exclusively from this book recommends highly the hash brown cake with frying peppers and the beef runzas. I'd really like to try the maple-glazed pork belly, the creamed rutabaga, the rice pudding with candied pineapple and rum cherries, the spring chicken pot pie, the braunschweiger... Basically, it's a really invigorating look at a cuisine that seems very familiar, but for me, actually isn't.
