American Cuisine: And How It Got This Way


Paul Freedman - 2019
    In recent decades, hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza have been thought to define the nation’s palate. Not so, says food historian Paul Freedman, who demonstrates that there is an exuberant and diverse, if not always coherent, American cuisine that reflects the history of the nation itself.Combining historical rigor and culinary passion, Freedman underscores three recurrent themes—regionality, standardization, and variety—that shape a completely novel history of the United States.From the colonial period until after the Civil War, there was a patchwork of regional cooking styles that produced local standouts, such as gumbo from southern Louisiana, or clam chowder from New England. Later, this kind of regional identity was manipulated for historical effect, as in Southern cookbooks that mythologized gracious “plantation hospitality,” rendering invisible the African Americans who originated much of the region’s food.As the industrial revolution produced rapid changes in every sphere of life, the American palate dramatically shifted from local to processed. A new urban class clamored for convenient, modern meals and the freshness of regional cuisine disappeared, replaced by packaged and standardized products—such as canned peas, baloney, sliced white bread, and jarred baby food.By the early twentieth century, the era of homogenized American food was in full swing. Bolstered by nutrition “experts,” marketing consultants, and advertising executives, food companies convinced consumers that industrial food tasted fine and, more importantly, was convenient and nutritious. No group was more susceptible to the blandishments of advertisers than women, who were made feel that their husbands might stray if not satisfied with the meals provided at home. On the other hand, men wanted women to be svelte, sporty companions, not kitchen drudges. The solution companies offered was time-saving recipes using modern processed helpers. Men supposedly liked hearty food, while women were portrayed as fond of fussy, “dainty,” colorful, but tasteless dishes—tuna salad sandwiches, multicolored Jell-O, or artificial crab toppings.The 1970s saw the zenith of processed-food hegemony, but also the beginning of a food revolution in California. What became known as New American cuisine rejected the blandness of standardized food in favor of the actual taste and pleasure that seasonal, locally grown products provided. The result was a farm-to-table trend that continues to dominate.“A book to be savored” (Stephen Aron), American Cuisine is also a repository of anecdotes that will delight food lovers: how dry cereal was created by William Kellogg for people with digestive and low-energy problems; that chicken Parmesan, the beloved Italian favorite, is actually an American invention; and that Florida Key lime pie goes back only to the 1940s and was based on a recipe developed by Borden’s condensed milk. More emphatically, Freedman shows that American cuisine would be nowhere without the constant influx of immigrants, who have popularized everything from tacos to sushi rolls.“Impeccably researched, intellectually satisfying, and hugely readable” (Simon Majumdar), American Cuisine is a landmark work that sheds astonishing light on a history most of us thought we never had.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking


Julia Child - 1961
    Featuring 524 delicious recipes, in its pages home cooks will find something for everyone, from seasoned experts to beginners who love good food and long to reproduce the savory delights of French cuisine, from historic Gallic masterpieces to the seemingly artless perfection of a dish of spring-green peas. Here Julia Child, Simone Beck, and Louisette Bertholle break down the classic foods of France into a logical sequence of themes and variations rather than presenting an endless and diffuse catalogue of dishes. Throughout, the focus is on key recipes that form the backbone of French cookery and lend themselves to an infinite number of elaborations--bound to increase anyone's culinary repertoire. With over 100 instructive illustrations to guide readers every step of the way, Mastering the Art of French Cooking deserves a place of honor in every kitchen in America.

Hot Damn and Hell Yeah! Recipes for Hungry Banditos and the Dirty South Vegan Cookbook


Ryan Splint - 2005
    A unique take on southern cooking, vegan style with some tasty delectables, The Dirty South is especially for those not afraid of garlic or baking. Hot Damn and Hell Yeah is a finely illustrated collection of spicy recipes. Sizzling with great cooking ideas, these recipes are incredibly mouthwatering and the perfect addition to any vegan kitchen.

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone


Deborah Madison - 1997
    After her many years as a teacher and writer, she realized that there was no comprehensive primer for vegetarian cooking, no single book that taught vegetarians basic cooking techniques, how to combine ingredients, and how to present vegetarian dishes with style. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone teaches readers how to build flavor into vegetable dishes, how to develop vegetable stocks, and how to choose, care for, and cook the many vegetables available to cooks today. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is in every way Deborah Madison’s magnum opus, featuring 1,400 recipes suitable for committed vegetarians, vegans (in most cases), and everyone else who loves good food. For nonvegetarians, the recipes can be served alongside meat, fish, or fowl and incorporated into a truly contemporary style of eating that emphasizes vegetables and fruits for health and well-being.Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is the most comprehensive vegetarian cookbook ever published. The recipes, which range from appetizers to desserts, are colorful and imaginative as well as familiar and comforting. Madison introduces readers to innovative main course salads; warm and cold soups; vegetable braises and cobblers; golden-crusted gratins; Italian favorites like pasta, polenta, pizza, and risotto; savory tarts and galettes; grilled sandwiches and quesadillas; and creative dishes using grains and heirloom beans. At the heart of the book is the A-to-Z vegetable chapter, which describes the unique personalities of readily available vegetables, the sauces and seasonings that best complement them, and the simplest ways to prepare them. “Becoming a Cook” teaches cooking basics, from holding a knife to planning a menu, and “Foundations of Flavor” discusses how to use sauces, herbs, spices, oils, and vinegars to add flavor and character to meatless dishes. In each chapter, the recipes range from those suitable for everyday dining to dishes for special occasions. And through it all, Madison presents a philosophy of cooking that is both practical and inspiring.Despite its focus on meatless cooking, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is not just for vegetarians—it's for everyone interested in learning how to cook vegetables creatively, healthfully, and passionately. The recipes are remarkably straightforward, using easy-to-find ingredients in inspiring combinations. Some are simple, others more complex, but all are written with an eye toward the seasonality of produce. Madison's joyful and free-spirited approach to cooking will send you into the kitchen with confidence and enthusiasm. Whether you are a kitchen novice or an experienced cook, this wonderful cookbook has something for everyone.

Batch: Over 200 Recipes, Tips and Techniques for a Well Preserved Kitchen


Joel MacCharles - 2016
    Batch packs everything you’ll ever need to know about preserving into one cohesive bible. Joel and Dana’s passion project takes a deep dive into the fundamentals of preserving and offers both simple and adventurous, and totally flavor-forward recipes.” —Chef Curtis Stone, New York Times bestselling author and chef/owner of Maude Restaurant     Joel and Dana’s journey into preserving began with an innocent lesson in making jam. Almost a decade later, WellPreserved.ca is an extraordinary resource for both beginners and experts alike. Their much-anticipated first cookbook showcases seven different preserving techniques—waterbath canning, pressure canning, dehydrating, fermenting, cellaring, salting & smoking, and infusing—and takes readers on a trip to the market in twenty-five ingredients. Within each ingredient chapter, you’ll find multiple preserving recipes using the different methods. From apples, pears, peaches and rhubarb, to asparagus, peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes, and covering a variety of meat and fish, Batch teaches you everything you need to know to get the most out of your kitchen. With their signature approachable and fun style, Joel and Dana showcase techniques for a variety of skill levels, explain how to batch your recipes to make two preserves at once, give you multiple options for preserving in ten minutes or less, and serve up mouthwatering center-of-the-plate meals that take your preserves from the pantry to the table. With personal anecdotes, creative and incredible recipes, and beautiful photography and illustrations, Batch will show you how to incorporate preserving into your life and your community.

Fish & Shellfish: The Definitive Cook's Companion


James Peterson - 1996
    Author James Peterson, who wrote the book Sauces, a James Beard Cookbook of the Year winner, and the incomparable Splendid Soups, once again demonstrates his connoisseurship with Fish & Shellfish, a monumental cookbook that will take its rightful place as the first and last word on seafood preparation and cooking.Fish & Shellfish demonstrates every conceivable method for preparing sumptuous meals of fish and shellfish, from baking, braising, deep-frying, grilling and broiling to poaching, panfrying, marinating, curing and smoking, steaming, and microwaving. Whether your taste runs strictly to shellfish or to everything seafood, Fish & Shellfish offers the equivalent of a complete cookbook on each subject. Within the chapters on finfish you'll learn how to prepare enticing recipes remarkable for their ease of preparation, their versatility, and their originality Here Peterson offers such splendid flavors and textures as succulent Stuffed Striped Bass with Spinach, Shrimp, and Mushrooms; crunchy Halibut Fillets with Curry, Herbs, and Almond Crust; delicate Salmon Fillets A la Nage with Julienned Vegetables; savory Braised Tuna with Vegetables; and fiery Thai-Style Swordfish Satay.If it's shellfish you prefer, there are pages and pages of recipes for baking, frying, steaming, or serving raw everything in a shell, including mussels, clams, oysters, scallops, lobster, shrimp, crab, and crayfish. Peterson explains how to judge freshness and how to prepare shellfish delights, including lemony-flavored Steamed Mussels with Thai Green Curry; aromatic Littleneck Clams in Black BeanScented Broth; a simple and comforting Linguine with Clam Sauce; elegant Hot Oysters with Leeks and White Wine Sauce; rich and savory Braised Scallops with Tomatoes and Fresh Basil; Steamed Lobster with Coconut Milk and Thai Spices; Shrimp with Tomato Sauce, Saffron Aioli, and Pesto; hit-the-spot Sautéed Crab Cakes; and Japanese Style Grilled Squid, to name but a few of the brilliant and vast array of wonderful seafood selections.Fish & Shellfishalso offers techniques for preparing raw, marinated, cured, and smoked fish.As you exploreFish & Shellfish, you'll learn not only the essentials of seafood preparation but everything in between, including how to make a curry sauce, which red wines to cook with, how to fry parsley, and how to make Vietnamese dipping sauces. You'll learn the secrets of a variety of coatings, how to blacken fish, add stuffings, and deglaze the pan for sauces, as well as discover the delights of salsas, chutneys, relishes, mayonnaises, and butters.Here is seafood in every incarnation, from soups, stews, and pastas to mousses, soufflés, and salads. Try everything from pureed Marseilles-Style Fish Soup and Moroccan Swordfish Tagine with Olives and Saffron to Homemade Cuttlefish-Ink Linguine, and Crayfish Stew with Tomatoes, Sorrel, and Vegetables.Jim Peterson has traveled the world and brought back the best international seafood flavors, textures, and techniques. Now you can improvise on your own with Thai marinades, Indian spices and condiments, and Japanese grilling methods, all of which play off more familiar ingredients to produce memorable dishes.At the end of Fish & Shellfish you'll find a complete Finfish Dictionary, where you'll learn all you need to know about more than sixty species of saltwater and freshwater fish. There's also a 32-page section of color photographs that pictures many of the mouthwatering recipes in the book. And the step-by-step pictorials in the color section will show you how to prepare fish and shellfish for cooking.James Peterson's books have been hailed as the most companionable and dependable of cooking guides. Replete with tables, timing charts, advice about equipment, safety preparations, a glossary of foreign ingredients, and an exhaustive index, Fish & Shellfish will give you the power of flexibility and spontaneity as it transforms you into an accomplished seafood cook. Here is a fundamental cookbook that you will come to depend on every time you think seafood-and now you'll be thinking seafood all the time.

4 Ingredients or Less Cookbook: Fast, Practical & Healthy Meal Options


Maria Holmes - 2013
    My tested recipes have short ingredient lists and easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions.Each recipe require four ingredients or less (EXCLUDING WATER, OIL, COOKING SPRAY, SALT, PEPPER, AND OTHER OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS).These recipes were also designed with your health in mind, and each recipe includes a nutritional analysis.In the introduction to the book, you will discover 5 simple tips that can significantly reduce the time you spend in the kitchen preparing meals.But the "meat and potatoes" of this book are the amazingly simple to prepare recipes, including:Grilled Shrimp BrushettaWild Mushroom PizzaThai Shrimp CurrySweet Potato and Pomegranate Spinach SaladCreole Chicken SoupPortobello PaninisToasted Israeli Couscous with CherriesChocolate-Raspberry-Coconut CakeYou will also get 5 superfast menus that will make weeknight cooking quick and easy, with streamlined "game plans" and quick recipes that will help you put a main dish and a delicious side on the table in a snap.These are quick and easy recipes that will bring exciting new possibilities to your dining table, and most importantly, they will help you find more time to enjoy life

Cocina Criolla


Carmen Valldejuli - 1983
    . . [her books] are considered today to be the definitive books on island cooking."-New York TimesWritten entirely in Spanish, Cocina Criolla, the standard reference work on traditional Puerto Rican cooking, is in its 68th priniting and has special appeal to those who enjoy the island's cuisine.In addition to offering hundreds of delicious recipes, Cocina Criolla includes advice for the inexperienced cook that ranges from suggestions about the most efficient way to read a recipe to suggestions about what kitchen equipment every cook should have.Cocina Criolla no puede compararse con la generalidad de los libros de cocina. En muchos puntos difiere grandemente de 'stos. Pero por su encaje perfecto en la necesidad actual de literatura culinaria pr'ctica y 'til y por la forma detallada y caracter'stica de sus rectas es, de por s', 'nico en su clase.Cocina Criolla solucionar' muchas problemas dom'sticos y por lo tanto, est' llamad a ser un libro indespensable en el hogar.The English edition of this book, Puerto Rican Cookery, is in its 36th printing with more than 167,000 copies in print and is also available from Pelican.

Home Cooking: A Writer in the Kitchen


Laurie Colwin - 1988
    Equal parts cookbook and memoir, Laurie Colwin's "Home Cooking" combines her insightful, good-humored writing style with her lifelong passion for wonderful cuisine in essays such as "Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant," "Repulsive Dinners: A Memoir," and "Stuffed Breast of Veal: A Bad Idea." "Home Cooking" is truly a feast for body and soul.

The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Italian: Recipes from the New and Old Worlds Simplified for the American Kitchen


Jeff Smith - 1993
    Full-color photos.

Wahaca - Mexican Food at Home


Thomasina Miers - 2012
    Inspired by the flavours of Mexico but using ingredients easily found in Britain, Wahaca - Mexican Food at Home is all about cooking authentic Mexican food in your own kitchen. Mexican cooking is fresh, colourful and full of flavour, with breakfasts to get you through the day, hearty dinners, sensational puddings, and zingy cocktails. Follow Tommi on her trip through the markets, cantinas and fiestas of Mexico to discover recipes bursting with flavour you'll want to eat and share.

Einkorn: Recipes for Nature's Original Wheat


Carla Bartolucci - 2015
    Carla Bartolucci came across it when searching for an alternative grain for her daughter Giulia, who was diagnosed with gluten sensitivity in 2008. Einkorn has remained unaltered for thousands of years, which allows many, including Giulia—who suffered from mood swings, asthma, and digestive problems—to eat wheat without symptoms. Amazed by her daughter’s health transformation, Carla became a champion of this little-known, nutrient-packed grain.   Einkorn shares 100 delicious recipes for working with the grain and its flour in a wide variety of flavorful dishes, such as Yogurt Blueberry Muffins, Spinach Lasagna Bolognese, Neapolitan Pizza Margherita, and Soft & Chewy Ginger Cookies—as well as sourdough and yeasted breads like Classic French Boule and buttery Sweet Potato Rolls. This book also explores einkorn’s history, unique genetics, and superior nutrient content, while sharing Carla’s tips for using it to its full baking and cooking potential.   With eighty-five beautiful color photographs, Einkorn will introduce home cooks to a delicious ancient grain that can transform the way they eat for the better by adding more nutrition and flavor to the foods they love.

101 Things® to Do with a Dutch Oven


Vernon Winterton - 2006
    Recipes include the Mountain Man Breakfast, Sausage Spinach Wreath, Dutch Oven Stew with spicy Jalapeno Cheese Bread, Caramel Apple Cobbler, Stuffed Pork Roast, Cinnamon Rolls, Dutch Oven Pizza, Apricot Raspberry Glazed Cornish Hens, and White Chili.

Carmine's Family-Style Cookbook: More Than 100 Classic Italian Dishes to Make at Home


Michael Ronis - 2008
    Carmine's flavors are the tastes Americans love to cook and eat at home--fresh garlic, bubbling tomato sauce, and pasta boiled just to the perfect al dente. Try any of the recipes in Carmine's Family-Style Cookbook and bring home that classic Italian flavor to your family.

Great American Burger Book: How to Make Authentic Regional Hamburgers at Home


George Motz - 2016
    Author and burger expert George Motz covers traditional grilling techniques as well as how to smoke, steam, poach, and deep-fry burgers based on signature recipes from around the country. Each chapter is dedicated to a specific regional burger, from the tortilla burger of New Mexico to the classic New York–style pub burger, and from the fried onion burger of Oklahoma to Hawaii’s Loco Moco. Motz provides expert instruction, tantalizing recipes, and vibrant color photography to help you create unique variations on America’s favorite dish in your own home. Recipes feature regional burgers from: California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin.