46 replies to this topic

[DMS]

I have many cookbooks - probably around 35 or so. Some books I use more than others, some I have just to read, and some for reference. I haven't cooked my way through an entire cookbook though which is something I would like to do. The books I have, for one reason or another, don't seem to be great candidates for cooking completely. Many are large recipe collections (like Bittman, Joy of Cooking, Martha Stewart). I want the book to teach me a way or style of cooking and give an education or flavor of the writer.

The best candidate I own currently is James Peterson's Cooking. I reference this book often as I like Peterson as a writer, but it hasn't really bitten me to want to cook through it. Sally Schneider's New Way to Cook might also be, but I was pretty disappointed in that book and didn't really like the methods. I tend to cook mostly American with some French, Italian and Mexican. I haven't cooked much Indian or Eastern food. Candidates from initial looking around might be Alice Waters Art of Simple Food or Jamie Oliver Cook with Jamie which seemed interesting. I don't want a massive tome that would take forever. I am a decent cook and a pretty lousy baker. If I could get suggestions for excellent, accessible cookbooks that would be a great candidate to cook through, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks -
Dennis

[Chris Amirault]

Interesting, pretty small, teaches you things... Hmmmm...

Tom Collichio's Think Like a Chef.

Grace Young's Breath of the Wok.

Fergus Henderson's Nose to Tail Eating

I'll keep thinking.

[Dave the Cook]

I'll second Think Like a Chef; it seems to be exactly what you're looking for. Also consider:

Emeril's New New Orleans Cooking: lots of restaurant techniques successfully refashioned for the home kitchen.

Simple Italian Cooking: just what it says, with Mario's touch.

[JimS]

I was going to suggest Marcella Hazan's Classic Italian Cook Book, but it seems to have gone out of print. It's worth playing the used book store lotto for though.

[stuartlikesstrudel]

I was going to suggest Marcella Hazan's Classic Italian Cook Book, but it seems to have gone out of print. It's worth playing the used book store lotto for though.

Jim, I was thinking the same thing... a friend of mine just got given it (so i wonder if it's not OOP after all?) and I had a look through and was thinking how much I could learn from the in-depth, rigorous exploration of the various topics. Even if you decided to cook 5 or 10 things from each section, you'd learn a lot about Italian flavours and techniques, a wide variety of types of meal.

I am trying to hold off buying the book myself, it looks like an excellent resource.

[maggiethecat]

For fun,great food,and a breath of l'ancien regime I'd recommend Edouard de Pomianes's "French Cooking in Ten Minutes."

[djyee100]

I've been tempted to cook through Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food myself. It's the only cookbook where I've considered doing that, too. The cookbook is like a primer for the Chez Panisse style. Not only that business about fresh local seasonal organic, blah, blah--the recipes are examples of great home cooking, very do-able and cook-able, and some of the recipes are quick too. I've cooked over 30 recipes from this book, and I've recommended it to others. Some of the recipes in the book are the best I've ever tasted for that particular dish. The technique is sound, and sometimes innovative and more efficient compared to classic methods. Waters has her own way of doing things.

As with all of Alice Waters' recipes, you must have access to great ingredients, especially great produce, and you must be willing to spend money on food. Her recipes emphasize natural flavors, so you have to start with a baseline of flavorful ingredients.

I've also cooked a great deal out of Judy Rodgers' Zuni Cafe Cookbook, which has tasty recipes and great explanation of her technique. Another favorite has been Annie Somerville's Everyday Greens, if you ever want to explore exemplary vegetarian cooking.

[DMS]

There are some wonderful suggestions here! Many of these books are out OOP so they will have to be tracked down used or at a library which is fine. I have some digging to do and look forward to any more suggestions!

Dennis

[twoshoes]

I'll second the recommendation of The Art of Simple Food.
great simple recipes w/ fresh local ingredients and fantastic results.

[nakji]

I second Marcella Hazan. I've cooked through her"Marcella's Italian Kitchen" (except for the lengthy chapter on veal recipes - I can't get my hands on any veal), and learned so much. The dishes are uniformly delicious; although they will increase your olive oil consumption to an exponential degree. Any time I have a vegetable I don't know what to do with on my hands, I open up one of my Marcella books and sure enough, there's a simple recipe - hardly ever more than a handful of ingredients - that has me looking at that vegetable in a new way. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is still in print, isn't it? I just purchased a copy in Hong Kong.

[ScoopKW]

At the risk of sounding like a fanboy -- Anthony Bourdain's "Les Halles Cookbook."

That will get you through the bulk of the classics, and is VERY light on baking. (Actually, I don't think there are any baked goods or desserts in the book.)

[JimS]

Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is still in print, isn't it? I just purchased a copy in Hong Kong.

Essentials is still in print. The Classic Italian Cook Book (the old one from the seventies) is out of print. However, there are quite a few available on eBay.

[twoshoes]

I second Marcella Hazan. I've cooked through her"Marcella's Italian Kitchen" (except for the lengthy chapter on veal recipes - I can't get my hands on any veal), and learned so much. The dishes are uniformly delicious; although they will increase your olive oil consumption to an exponential degree. Any time I have a vegetable I don't know what to do with on my hands, I open up one of my Marcella books and sure enough, there's a simple recipe - hardly ever more than a handful of ingredients - that has me looking at that vegetable in a new way. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is still in print, isn't it? I just purchased a copy in Hong Kong.

I picked up essentials of classic italian cooking for $5 at the local big box store.

[nakji]

The Classic Italian Cook Book (the old one from the seventies) is out of print. However, there are quite a few available on eBay.

According to the preface of my copy of Essentials, it's made up of The Classic Italian Cookbook and its sequel. Is there any reason to recommend the original "Classic" over "Essentials"- other than the fact it's no doubt shorter?

[JimS]

According to the preface of my copy of Essentials, it's made up of The Classic Italian Cookbook and its sequel. Is there any reason to recommend the original "Classic" over "Essentials"- other than the fact it's no doubt shorter?

Didn't know that was a combination of the two Classics. If so, it's definitely a better choice...and is readily available. I haven't bought an Italian cookbook since the mid eighties. Those two plus Bugialli on Pasta and my Mother are all of the Italian cooking I'll ever need!

[djyee100]

Abebooks, the used booksellers consortium, also has Classic Italian Cook Book at various prices.
http://www.abebooks.... Book&x=81&y=13

FYI, book condition terms (always hard to find on their website) are given here:
http://www.abebooks....llerIndex.shtml

My two cents...I've cooked out of both Classic Italian Cook Book and Marcella's Italian Kitchen, and I like the food and the writing in Italian Kitchen better.

[Kevin72]

According to the preface of my copy of Essentials, it's made up of The Classic Italian Cookbook and its sequel. Is there any reason to recommend the original "Classic" over "Essentials"- other than the fact it's no doubt shorter?

It's not a straight up combination of the two: they're both streamlined and combined. So you miss some recipes. Also if memory serves they remove the menu suggestions--what to serve each dish with--that was with each recipe in "Classic".

I think "Classic" is worth tracking down and I did more or less cook my way through it for my first year of cooking, so I think it's a great candidate for this project.

[kalypso]

You've gotten a lot of suggestions for Italian cookbooks to cook through, I'd like to suggest a Mexican one.

Salsas That Cook by Rick Bayless. It's still in print and easily acquirable on Amazon.

Here's what I like about this cookbook. The first chapter contains 8 different basic salsa recipes. Each recipe is scaled for 3 different yields and each recipe also contains suggestions for chile substitutions if the ones specified aren't available in your area, or you simply want to change up the flavor profile of the salsa. The remainder of the cookbook contains 50 recipes (everything from sopa to postre) using one of the 8 basic salsas.

The one thing about Rick's recipes is that they almost always work, they're structurally very sound. You'll learn some technique working your way through the book, most of the ingredients are fairly easy to source and won't cost you an arm and a leg, and it's small enough that the task of cooking through a cookbook won't seem so daunting.

Good luck

[Anna N]

You've gotten a lot of suggestions for Italian cookbooks to cook through, I'd like to suggest a Mexican one.

Salsas That Cook by Rick Bayless. It's still in print and easily acquirable on Amazon.

....

This is the first time I have heard of this book. Looked it up on Amazon and it looks very good. Not that I am planning on cooking through a book - but I will be on the lookout for this one. Thanks for pointing it out.

If I were to try to cook through a book I think my first choice would be Ad Hoc at Home.

[JAZ]

If you're looking for something accessible, I would recommend a book called Fresh and Fast by Marie Simmons. Marie was a recipe developer for Cooking Light and Bon Appetit for years, so her recipes are always written very clearly and work well. It's in print (paperback) and available from Amazon -- if you're interested in checking it out, Amazon lets you look inside.

[kalypso]

If you're looking for something accessible, I would recommend a book called Fresh and Fast by Marie Simmons. Marie was a recipe developer for Cooking Light and Bon Appetit for years, so her recipes are always written very clearly and work well. It's in print (paperback) and available from Amazon -- if you're interested in checking it out, Amazon lets you look inside.

Ditto. Marie's recipes are always so well done and easy to use. Loved the Egg book.

[kalypso]

This is the first time I have heard of this book. Looked it up on Amazon and it looks very good. Not that I am planning on cooking through a book - but I will be on the lookout for this one. Thanks for pointing it out.

IIRC, this book came out not too far in advance of the first One Plate at a Time. I think it kind of fell through the cracks because it wasn't a big flashy book. This is by far the best cookbook for someone just getting started on cooking Mexican cuisine (which can be terribly laborious) at home. But because of the way it's structured, even old-hands at Mexican cooking can find interesting and delicious things to make as well. It's definitely not dumbed down Mexican.

I've been cooking my way through Zarela Martinez's Veracruz cookbook off and on over the last couple of years with great success. Haven't made one recipe yet that was a dud. It's another option for the OP. Rick's Everyday Mexican is also a possibility. I've cooked a lot out of that with good success. The first part of this one has a bunch of pretty interesting salad dressing recipes, not something you see in most Mexican cookbooks

[Dianabanana]

According to the preface of my copy of Essentials, it's made up of The Classic Italian Cookbook and its sequel. Is there any reason to recommend the original "Classic" over "Essentials"- other than the fact it's no doubt shorter?

It's not a straight up combination of the two: they're both streamlined and combined. So you miss some recipes. Also if memory serves they remove the menu suggestions--what to serve each dish with--that was with each recipe in "Classic".

I think "Classic" is worth tracking down and I did more or less cook my way through it for my first year of cooking, so I think it's a great candidate for this project.

"Essentials" is not a straight-up reprint. Not only are some recipes missing, but I was recently reading that the editors of "Essentials" arbitrarily reduced the fat content of many of the recipes to comport with current health sensibilities.

[peterm2]

This thread has some great ideas, many of which I'm looking forward to trying out this summer. Although it may not be the first cookbook you cook through, I've enjoyed working my way through Eileen Yin-Fei Lo's Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking. I'd tried several of the highly-recommended Chinese cooking books but hadn't found one I particularly liked (one of her older books came closest) until this one came out. It's organized by region, not by course, and provides excellent advice including brand recommendations - important for me as I wander the aisles of my Asian grocery (although her recommendation of a particular Mason jar brand struck me as a bit too much). It has really helped me figure out what had always been the most mysterious style of cooking.

[jm chen]

If I were to try to cook through a book I think my first choice would be Ad Hoc at Home.

Seconded. It has recipes that range from dead simple (sauteed scallops) to multi-day complexities (Catalan beef stew), lots of salads and sides, a few desserts, really a nice range of techniques and flavors. It seems to be a good "stretch" book for an experienced home cook.

(Personally, the cookbook I'm no doubt closest to cooking my way through is The Perfect Scoop, and I've probably still got at least 30 ice creams, sorbets, and "vessels" to go. But everything I make from that book turns out perfect the first time, which is kind of amazing.)

[nakji]

"Essentials" is not a straight-up reprint. Not only are some recipes missing, but I was recently reading that the editors of "Essentials" arbitrarily reduced the fat content of many of the recipes to comport with current health sensibilities.

Shocking news, this. But since getting used to each of her recipes starting with 1/3 cup of olive oil in "Italian Kitchen", I just add that to the pan now as a default. Nevertheless, it sounds like seeking out the original is worth it.

If I were to try to cook through a book I think my first choice would be Ad Hoc at Home.

Another great suggestion! I bought this in February with the intention of cooking through it, but have given up the project, as I can't get most of the ingredients - but if I could, I would definitely be working my way through it.

[DMS]

Thanks for the discussion! I ordered Colicchio's book last week but it hasn't arrived yet. There are some wonderful suggestions above and I plan on checking out all of them. The reviews of the Edouard de Pomiane book are really delightful! I haven't seen Ad Hoc, or any of Keller's books actually, and I don't own any Marcella Hazan either. I will definitely go the Abebooks route on her older book. The reason I have so many books is I am an off and on again member of The Good Cook cookbook club (4 for $1 kind of deal). It is difficult to buy books from them though as they only carry new releases, and often I won't buy a book unseen until there is substantial experience with it in the ether. I am looking to fill certain niches now and need to pare down my collection. Many books will go as some new ones come in and the quality and meaning of my cookbooks increases.

[peterm2]

In case you're interested, Amazon just lowered the price on Ad Hoc At Home by about $4 today, making it 45% off and about equal to the used price online anywhere.

[hansjoakim]

I'd like to suggest "The Complete Robuchon" - a terrific book filled with basic, French home cooking recipes.

[dougal]

I have many cookbooks - probably around 35 or so. Some books I use more than others, some I have just to read, and some for reference. I haven't cooked my way through an entire cookbook though which is something I would like to do. The books I have, for one reason or another, don't seem to be great candidates for cooking completely. Many are large recipe collections (like Bittman, Joy of Cooking, Martha Stewart). I want the book to teach me a way or style of cooking and give an education or flavor of the writer.

... I am a decent cook and a pretty lousy baker. If I could get suggestions for excellent, accessible cookbooks that would be a great candidate to cook through, I would greatly appreciate it.

... I haven't seen Ad Hoc, or any of Keller's books actually, ... I am looking to fill certain niches now and need to pare down my collection. Many books will go as some new ones come in and the quality and meaning of my cookbooks increases.

Ummm.
You have about 35 books, and want to pare down, yet fill niches?

Honestly, 35 isn't "many".
You don't have the same problem as the rest of us!



I think you need to choose a destination before the guide-book.


I'm not sure whether you are saying that you'd like to work on the baking area.
If you were looking for a seriously accessible bread book to work through, Bertinet's "Dough" springs to mind, but Dan Lepard's "Art of Handmade Bread" (its original UK version is called "The Handmade Loaf") would be a much more demanding, broad-ranging and worthwhile project. (And, in paperback, its easily affordable - as are the ingredients!)
Mary Berry's (BBC-published) "Foolproof Cakes" strikes me as the sort of cake book that would be helpful (IF ONLY it were easily available in the USA!) Shortish, with lots of helpful process illustrations (not just of the ideal end-product) and yet covering a fair range of different home-achievable cakes, pastries and biscuits.



And incidentally, Ad Hoc is surely the ONLY Keller book that any sane home cook might ever, even for a whimsical moment, consider cooking from cover to cover.

If you are looking to improve daily eating and move away from recipes as straitjackets, then I'd suggest having a look at Nigel Slater's "Appetite". Relaxed, simple and yet far from ordinary.

Me? I'd quite like to work right through Bertolli's "Cooking by Hand" ...

Edited by dougal, 11 May 2010 - 06:03 AM.