Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World


Mark Pendergrast - 1999
    In this updated edition of the classic work, Mark Pendergrast reviews the dramatic changes in coffee culture over the past decade, from the disastrous “Coffee Crisis” that caused global prices to plummet to the rise of the Fair Trade movement and the “third-wave” of quality-obsessed coffee connoisseurs. As the scope of coffee culture continues to expand, Uncommon Grounds remains more than ever a brilliantly entertaining guide to the currents of one of the world’s favorite beverages.

Bourbon, Straight: The Uncut and Unfiltered Story of American Whiskey


Charles K. Cowdery - 2004
    In it, readers will discover the history of the American whiskey industry, how American whiskey is made and marketed, the differences among various types of American whiskey (bourbon, rye, Tennessee) and how they compare to other world whiskies. Readers also will meet the many fascinating characters who have made American whiskey what it is today, whether they be famous, infamous or largely unknown. All major producers and brands are discussed. The book includes a complete tasting guide with 35 detailed product reviews. Bourbon, Straight: The Uncut and Unfiltered Story of American Whiskey, is for fans of American whiskey, but also for readers who just enjoy a good tale steeped in American culture and heritage. Bourbon, Straight is richly detailed, clear, authoritative, insightful, independent and fun to read.

Eat Dirt: Why Leaky Gut May Be the Root Cause of Your Health Problems and 5 Surprising Steps to Cure It


Josh Axe - 2016
    Josh Axe delivers a groundbreaking, indispensable guide for understanding, diagnosing, and treating one of the most discussed yet little-understood health conditions: leaky gut syndrome.Do you have a leaky gut? For 80% of the population the answer is “yes”—and most people don’t even realize it. Leaky gut syndrome is the root cause of a litany of ailments, including: chronic inflammation, allergies, autoimmune diseases, hypothyroidism, adrenal fatigue, diabetes, and even arthritis.To keep us in good health, our gut relies on maintaining a symbiotic relationship with trillions of microorganisms that live in our digestive tract. When our digestive system is out of whack, serious health problems can manifest and our intestinal walls can develop microscopic holes, allowing undigested food particles, bacteria, and toxins to seep into the bloodstream. This condition is known as leaky gut syndrome.In Eat Dirt, Dr. Josh Axe explains that what we regard as modern “improvements” to our food supply—including refrigeration, sanitation, and modified grains—have damaged our intestinal health. In fact, the same organisms in soil that allow plants and animals to flourish are the ones we need for gut health. In Eat Dirt, Dr. Axe explains that it’s essential to get a little “dirty” in our daily lives in order to support our gut bacteria and prevent leaky gut syndrome. Dr. Axe offers simple ways to get these needed microbes, from incorporating local honey and bee pollen into your diet to forgoing hand sanitizers and even ingesting a little probiotic-rich soil.Because leaky gut manifests differently in every individual, Dr. Axe also identifies the five main “gut types” and offers customizable plans—including diet, supplement, and lifestyle recommendations—to dramatically improve gut health in just thirty days. With a simple diet plan, recipes, and practical advice, Eat Dirt will help readers restore gut health and eliminate leaky gut for good.

The Flavour Thesaurus: Pairings, Recipes and Ideas for the Creative Cook


Niki Segnit - 2010
    "Following the instructions in a recipe is like parroting pre-formed sentences from a phrasebook. Forming an understanding of how flavors work together, on the other hand, is like learning the language: it allows you to express yourself freely, to improvise, to cook a dish the way you want to cook it.""The Flavor Thesaurus "is the inquisitive cook's guide to acquiring that understanding--to learning the language of flavor.Breaking the vast universe of ingredients down to 99 essential flavors, Segnit suggests classic and less well-known pairings for each, grouping almost 1,000 entries into flavor families like "Green & Grassy," "Berry & Bush" and "Creamy Fruity." But "The Flavor Thesaurus" is much more than just a reference book, seasoning the mix of culinary science, culture and expert knowledge with the author's own insights and opinions, all presented in her witty, engaging and highly readable style. As appealing to the novice cook as to the experienced professional, "The Flavor Thesaurus "will not only immeasurably improve your cooking--it's the sort of book that might keep you up at night reading.""Cooking is an art, like writing or painting, and great cooks are artists. And although the ultimate source of creativity remains elusive, all painters have their color wheel, all writers their vocabulary. And now, in the form of this beautiful, entertaining and exhaustively researched book, cooks have their own collection of essential knowledge: "The Flavor Thesaurus."

The Southerner's Handbook: A Guide to Living the Good Life


Garden and Gun - 2013
    Now, the taste-making editors of Garden & Gun offer a compendium of essential Southern skills-drawn from tradition yet utterly modern-straight from leading experts and writers who embody the contemporary South. Beautifully designed and illustrated, this anthology-style manual includes more than 75 essays and instructional features on essential aspects of Southern life, including Food & Drink, Style, Entertaining, Home, Gardening, Sporting and The Outdoors, and Southern Tradition.The Southerner's Handbook contains such requisite information as:• How to season grits, fry okra, and shuck an oyster• How to drink bourbon, make moonshine, and mix the perfect Bloody Mary• How to fly fish, shoot a dove, and bet on a horse• How to set a sideboard, polish silver, and be a gracious host• How to break in Western boots, fold a pocket square, and embrace seersucker• How to write the Great Southern Novel, play a blues song, and tell a great storyAs flavorful, authentic, and irresistible as the land and the people who inspire it, The Southerner's Handbook is the ultimate guide to being a Southerner (no matter where you live).

Jacques Pépin More Fast Food My Way


Jacques Pépin - 2008
    Only Jacques could have come up with dishes so innovative and uncomplicated.“Minute recipes”: Nearly no-cook recipes fit for company: Cured Salmon Morsels, Glazed Sausage BitsSmashing appetizers: Scallop Pancakes, zipped together in a blender (10 minutes)Almost instant soups: Creamy Leek and Mushroom Soup (7 minutes)Fast, festive dinners: Stuffed Pork Fillet on Grape Tomatoes (18 minutes)Stunning desserts: Mini Almond Cakes in Raspberry Sauce (15 minutes)

The Rituals of Dinner: The Origins, Evolution, Eccentricities and Meaning of Table Manners


Margaret Visser - 1991
    From the ancient Greeks to modern yuppies, from cannibalism and the taking of the Eucharist to formal dinners and picnics, she thoroughly defines the eating ritual.

Ingredients: The Strange Chemistry of What We Put in Us and on Us


George Zaidan - 2020
    Coffee. Sunscreen. Vapes. George Zaidan reveals what will kill you, what won't, and why--explained with high-octane hilarity, hysterical hijinks, and other things that don't begin with the letter H. INGREDIENTS offers the perspective of a chemist on the stuff we eat, drink, inhale, and smear on ourselves. Apart from the burning question of whether you should eat that Cheeto, Zaidan explores a range of topics. Here's a helpful guide:Stuff in this book: - How bad is processed food? How sure are we?- Is sunscreen safe? Should you use it?- Is coffee good or bad for you?- What's your disease horoscope?- What is that public pool smell made of?- What happens when you overdose on fentanyl in the sun?- What do cassava plants and Soviet spies have in common?- When will you die?Stuff in other books: - Your carbon footprint- Food sustainability- GMOs- CEO pay- Science funding- Politics- Football- Baseball- Any kind of ball reallyZaidan, an MIT-trained chemist who cohosted CNBC's hit Make Me a Millionaire Inventor and wrote and voiced several TED-Ed viral videos, makes chemistry more fun than Hogwarts as he reveals exactly what science can (and can't) tell us about the packaged ingredients sold to us every day. Sugar, spinach, formaldehyde, cyanide, the ingredients of life and death, and how we know if something is good or bad for us--as well as the genius of aphids and their butts--are all discussed in exquisite detail at breakneck speed.

Apples of Uncommon Character: Heirlooms, Modern Classics, and Little-Known Wonders


Rowan Jacobsen - 2014
    Now he does the same for our favorite fruit, showing us that there is indeed life beyond Red Delicious-and even Honeycrisp. While supermarkets limit their offerings to a few waxy options, apple trees with lives spanning human generations are producing characterful varieties-and now they are in the midst of a rediscovery. From heirlooms to new designer breeds, a delicious diversity of apples is out there for the eating.Apples have strong personalities, ranging from crabby to wholesome. The Black Oxford apple is actually purple, and looks like a plum. The Knobbed Russet looks like the love child of a toad and a potato. (But don't be fooled by its looks.) The D'Arcy Spice leaves a hint of allspice on the tongue. Cut Hidden Rose open and its inner secret is revealed.With more than 150 art-quality color photographs, Apples of Uncommon Character shows us the fruit in all its glory. Jacobsen collected specimens both common and rare from all over North America, selecting 120 to feature, including the best varieties for eating, baking, and hard-cider making. Each is accompanied by a photograph, history, lore, and a list of characteristics. The book also includes 20 recipes, savory and sweet, resources for buying and growing, and a guide to the best apple festivals. It's a must-have for every foodie.

World Whiskey


Charles MacLean - 2009
    Whiskeys Worth the Wait directory spreads make up the body of the book, marrying together distillery history, in-depth tasting notes, and a photograph. Guiding you through every important distilling nation - starting with the rich varieties in Scotland, going on to woody bourbon and rye in the US, and finishing with the range of varieties available in Asia and Australasia - you're sure to find a satisfying dram wherever you are.

The Angry Chef: Bad Science and the Truth about Healthy Eating


Anthony Warner - 2017
    This irreverent and intelligent expose brings sanity and good sense to one of life's great pleasures." ―Steven Pinker, author of Angels of Our Better NatureNever before have we had so much information available to us about food and health. There’s GAPS, paleo, detox, gluten-free, alkaline, the sugar conspiracy, clean eating... Unfortunately, a lot of it is not only wrong but actually harmful. So why do so many of us believe this bad science?Assembling a crack team of psychiatrists, behavioural economists, food scientists and dietitians, the Angry Chef unravels the mystery of why sensible, intelligent people are so easily taken in by the latest food fads, making brief detours for an expletive-laden rant. At the end of it all you’ll have the tools to spot pseudoscience for yourself and the Angry Chef will be off for a nice cup of tea – and it will have two sugars in it, thank you very much.

Burma Superstar: Addictive Recipes from the Crossroads of Southeast Asia


Desmond Tan - 2017
    For years, Bay Area residents and out-of-towners have packed the house--and lined up out the door--for the salads, curries, rice, and stir-fries served at Burma Superstar, a beloved Burmese restaurant with four locations in the San Francisco Bay Area. This collection of recipes includes favorites like Tea Leaf Salad, Samosa Soup, Pumpkin Pork Stew, Garlic Noodles, and Black Rice Pudding that have made the group of restaurants one of the most recognizable in the Bay Area but it also takes readers into the kitchens of Burmese home cooks, whose style of cooking drives menu inspiration. As Burma--now called Myanmar--opens up to the world after a half century of seclusion, there has never been a more exciting time to share the multi-ethnic flavors of Burma Superstar.

Eat Right 4 Your Type: The Individualized Diet Solution to Staying Healthy, Living Longer & Achieving Your Ideal Weight


Peter J. D'Adamo - 1991
    Peter D'Adamo and Catherine Whitney reveal the simple secret to healthy, vigorous, and disease-free living: basing your diet on your blood type. If you've ever suspected that not everyone should eat the same thing or do the same exercise, you're right. In fact, what foods we absorb well and how our bodies handle stress differ with each blood type. Your blood type reflects your internal chemistry. It is the key that unlocks the mysteries of disease, longevity, fitness, and emotional strength. It determines your susceptibility to illness, the foods you should eat, and ways to avoid the most troubling health problems. In Eat Right 4 Your Type, Dr. D'Adamo draws on over fifteen years of research to reveal: - Which foods, spices, teas, and condiments help maintain optimal health and ideal weight - Which vitamins and supplements to emphasize or avoid - Whether your stress is relieved better through aerobics or meditation - Whether you should walk, swim or play tennis or golf as your mode of exercise - How knowing your blood type can help you avoid many common viruses and infections and fight back against life-threatening diseases - How to slow down the aging process by avoiding factors that cause rapid cell deterioration Whether your blood type is O, A, B, or AB, Eat Right 4 Your Type will help you design a total health program that's perfect for you. MORE THAN 7 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE!

Mary Berry Everyday


Mary Berry - 2017
    With this book I hope that you will feel encouraged to create new favourites, making everyday meals into something extra-special.’ Add a little Mary magic to your cooking with 120 brand-new recipes from the inspiring new BBC series. Delicious family suppers, tempting food for sharing and plenty of sweet treats, all made with everyday ingredients and a clever twist.

On Vegetables: Modern Recipes for the Home Kitchen


Jeremy Fox - 2017
    Today he is one of America's most talked-about chefs, celebrated for the ingredient-focused cuisine he serves at the Los Angeles restaurant, Rustic Canyon Wine Bar and Seasonal Kitchen. In his first book, Fox presents his food philosophy in the form of 160 approachable recipes for the home cook. On Vegetables elevates vegetarian cooking, using creative methods and ingredient combinations to highlight the textures, flavours, and varieties of seasonal produce and including basic recipes for the larder.