Voracious: A Hungry Reader Cooks Her Way through Great Books


Cara Nicoletti - 2015
    Now a butcher, cook, and talented writer, she serves up stories and recipes inspired by beloved books and the food that gives their characters depth and personality. From the breakfast sausage in Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House in the Big Woods to chocolate cupcakes with peppermint buttercream from Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections, these books and the tasty treats in them put her on the road to happiness. Cooking through the books that changed her life, Nicoletti shares fifty recipes, including:* The perfect soft-boiled egg in Jane Austen's Emma* Grilled peaches with homemade ricotta in tribute to Joan Didion's "Goodbye to All That"* New England clam chowder inspired by Herman Melville's Moby-Dick* Fava bean and chicken liver mousse crostini (with a nice Chianti) after Thomas Harris's The Silence of the Lambs* Brown butter crêpes from Gillian Flynn's Gone GirlBeautifully illustrated, clever, and full of heart, Voracious will satisfy anyone who loves a fantastic meal with family and friends-or curling up with a great novel for dessert.

Do Sourdough: Slow Bread for Busy Lives


Andrew Whitley - 2014
    In Do Sourdough, Andrew Whitley – a baker for over 30 years who has 'changed the way we think about bread' – shares his simple method for making this deliciously nutritious bread at home.Having taught countless bread-making workshops, Andrew knows that we don't all have the time and patience to bake our own. Now, with time-saving tips – such as slotting the vital fermentation stage into periods when we're asleep or at work, this is bread baking for Doers. Find out:• the basic tools and ingredients you'll need • how to make your own sourdough starter• simple method for producing wonderful loaves time and again• ideas and recipe suggestions for fresh and days-old breadThe result isn't just fresh bread made with your own hands, it's the chance to learn new skills, make something to share with family and friends, and change the world – one loaf at a time.

The Art of Eating in: How I Learned to Stop Spending and Love the Stove


Cathy Erway - 2010
    An underpaid, twenty-something executive assistant in New York City, she was struggling to make ends meet when she decided to embark on a Walden- esque retreat from the high-priced eateries that drained her wallet. Though she was living in the nation's culinary capital, she decided to swear off all restaurant food. "The Art of Eating In" chronicles the delectable results of her twenty-four-month experiment, with thirty original recipes included. What began as a way to save money left Erway with a new appreciation for the simple pleasure of sharing a meal with friends at home, the subtleties of home-cooked flavors, and whether her ingredients were ethically grown. She also explored the anti-restaurant underground of supper clubs and cook-offs, and immersed herself in an array of alternative eating lifestyles from freeganism and dumpster-diving to picking tasty greens on a wild edible tour in Brooklyn's Prospect Park. Culminating in a binge that leaves her with a foodie hangover, "The Art of Eating In" is a journey to savor. Watch a Video

Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking


Nathan Myhrvold - 2010
    Just as French Impressionists upended centuries of tradition, Modernist cuisine has in recent years blown through the boundaries of the culinary arts. Borrowing techniques from the laboratory, pioneering chefs at world-renowned restaurants such as elBulli, The Fat Duck, Alinea, and wd~50 have incorporated a deeper understanding of science and advances in cooking technology into their culinary art. In Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking, Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young, and Maxime Bilet--scientists, inventors, and accomplished cooks in their own right--have created a six-volume, 2,400-page set that reveals science-inspired techniques for preparing food that ranges from the otherworldly to the sublime. The authors and their 20-person team at The Cooking Lab have achieved astounding new flavors and textures by using tools such as water baths, homogenizers, centrifuges, and ingredients such as hydrocolloids, emulsifiers, and enzymes. It is a work destined to reinvent cooking. How do you make an omelet light and tender on the outside, but rich and creamy inside? Or French fries with a light and fluffy interior and a delicate, crisp crust that doesn't go soggy? Imagine being able to encase a mussel in a gelled sphere of its own sweet and briny juice. Or to create a silky-smooth pistachio cream made from nothing more than the nuts themselves.

Feeding a Family: A Real-Life Plan for Making Dinner Work


Sarah Waldman - 2017
    We all strive for a nightly dinner that is both a happy occasion and nutritionally fulfilling, but so often we feel we fall short. Busy family schedules, long work days, and the stress of meal planning leave us feeling overwhelmed and stuck in a mealtime rut. In"Feeding a Family," nutritionist and mom Sarah Waldman gives you the tools to reclaim dinner! Through forty complete menus organized by season, you'll discover healthy meals that are simple enough that they can be prepared on a busy weeknight. Sarah takes the guess work out of dinner by offering up the sides and desserts that perfectly pair with her entrees. Along the way, she offers tips on mealtime prep, ways to involve the kids, and ideas for turning leftovers into a different meal the next night. Gain confidence in shopping for, planning, and cooking simple, nourishing evening meals for your loved ones so that family dinners can be relaxed and fun."

The Bread and the Knife: A Life in 26 Bites


Dawn Drzal - 2018
    F. K. Fisher in The Gastronomical Me, food is more than a metaphor in The Bread and the Knife. It is the organizing principle of an existence. Starting with "A Is for Al Dente," the loosely linked chapters evoke an alphabet of food memories that recount a woman’s emotional growth from the challenges of youth to professional accomplishment, marriage, and divorce. Betrayal is embodied in an overripe melon, her awakening in a Béarnaise sauce. Passion fruit juice portends the end of a first marriage, while tarte Tatin offers redemption. Each letter serves up a surprising variation on the struggle for self-knowledge, the joy and pain of familial and romantic love, and food’s astonishing ability to connect us with both the living and the dead. Ranging from her grandmother's suburban kitchen to an elegant New York restaurant, a longhouse in Borneo, and a palace in Rajasthan, The Bread and the Knife charts the vicissitudes of a woman forced to swallow some hard truths about herself while discovering that the universe can dispense surprising second chances.

The Language of Food: A Linguist Reads the Menu


Dan Jurafsky - 2014
    Thirteen chapters evoke the joy and discovery of reading a menu dotted with the sharp-eyed annotations of a linguist.Jurafsky points out the subtle meanings hidden in filler words like "rich" and "crispy," zeroes in on the metaphors and storytelling tropes we rely on in restaurant reviews, and charts a microuniverse of marketing language on the back of a bag of potato chips.The fascinating journey through The Language of Food uncovers a global atlas of culinary influences. With Jurafsky's insight, words like ketchup, macaron, and even salad become living fossils that contain the patterns of early global exploration that predate our modern fusion-filled world.From ancient recipes preserved in Sumerian song lyrics to colonial shipping routes that first connected East and West, Jurafsky paints a vibrant portrait of how our foods developed. A surprising history of culinary exchange—a sharing of ideas and culture as much as ingredients and flavors—lies just beneath the surface of our daily snacks, soups, and suppers.

Letters to a Young Chef


Daniel Boulud - 2003
    A modern improviser with a classical foundation (a little rock 'n' roll and a lot of Mozart, he'd say), he speaks with the authority that comes from a lifetime of preparing, presenting, and thinking about food-an ancient calling with universal resonance. In Letters to a Young Chef, Boulud speaks not only of how to make a career as a chef in today's world, but also of why one should want to do so in the first place. As he himself puts it, it is "a tasty life." The love of food and the obsession with flavors, ingredients, and techniques are the chef's source of strength, helping the young chef to survive and flourish during the long years of apprenticeship and their necessary sacrifices. Part memoir, part advice book, part cookbook, part reverie, this delicious new book will delight and enlighten chefs of all kinds, from passionate amateurs to serious professionals.

The Super Easy Air Fryer Cookbook: Crave-Worthy Recipes for Healthier Fried Favorites


Brandi Crawford - 2018
    Now, you can enjoy the full taste of your favorite fried foods—without any of the guilt—when you whip up easy meals in minutes with The Super Easy Air Fryer Cookbook.

The Soup Peddler's Slow and Difficult Soups: Recipes and Reveries


David Ansel - 2005
    He dubbed his loyal customers "Soupies," and as word of his grassroots soup service spread, his delivery roster grew into a veritable Cult of the Bowl.THE SOUP PEDDLER'S SLOW & DIFFICULT SOUPS is David's heart- and belly-warming story of his second soup season peddling to the slacker-philosophers, artist-activists, and celebrity-eccentrics of Bouldin Creek. On his route, you'll meet a cross-dressing mayoral candidate, a radical coterie of plant liberators, a scheming ice cream man, and Alex the Wonder Dog, among others. To season his stories, David shares 35 of his most popular soups, with eclectic recipes like South Austin Chili, Alaskan Salmon Chowder, Smoked Tomato Bisque, Schav (Jewish sorrel soup), and Ajiaco (Colombian chicken-corn soup).A loving homage to the art, science, and joy of soup, and a taste of simpler times in our modern fast-food nation, SLOW & DIFFICULT SOUPS is a rousing reminder of our basic need to connect to our food-and those who cook, deliver, and slurp it.

What Einstein Told His Cook: Kitchen Science Explained


Robert L. Wolke - 2002
    Chemistry professor and syndicated Washington Post food columnist Robert L. Wolke provides over 100 reliable and witty explanations, while debunking misconceptions and helping you to see through confusing advertising and labeling.

Cake Confidence


Mandy Merriman - 2019
    THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING TO CELEBRATE IN LIFE, AND THERE’S NO BETTER WAY TO CELEBRATE THAN WITH SOME DECADENT, MOUTHWATERING CAKE!NO MATTER YOUR CONFIDENCE IN BAKING, Mandy Merriman—the Blondie of the popular blog Baking with Blondie—is here to help you think outside the cakebox and create easy, delicious, beautiful cakes that you’ll definitely want to show off.WITH OVER 50 CAKE AND FROSTING RECIPES, you’re sure to find the perfect cake for any summer extravaganza, neighborhood bake-off, or cozy holiday retreat with flavors including• Hot-Fudge Sundae• Maple Cinnamon• Honey-Roasted Peanut Butter• Brown Butter Banana Salted Caramel• Chocolate-Dipped Strawberry• Cotton Candy• Fruity Pebbles• Caramel Apple Cider• Neapolitan• And more!SO DUST OFF YOUR APRON, mixer, and piping bags and get ready to create some buttercream joy!

The Micronutrient Miracle: The 28-Day Plan to Lose Weight, Increase Your Energy, and Reverse Disease


Jayson Calton - 2015
    More than 90 percent of all Americans are deficient in at least one of these health-promoting vitamins and minerals and don't even know it.According to nutritionists Jayson and Mira Calton, micronutrients--vitamins and minerals essential for optimum health--are being stripped from our diet and depleted by our lifestyle habits. And these deficiencies cause today's most common illnesses. Mira herself developed advanced osteoporosis at the age of 30. But with Jayson's help, she reversed her disease through micronutrient therapy. The Caltons created The Mircronutrient Miracle, an incredible cure-all program, to help you lose weight and prevent and reverse common disorders, including obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.The Micronutrient Miracle explains the truth about what you're really eating and how your habits may be depleting essential micronutrients. It also provides an easy-to-follow 28-day plan to reverse these effects by restoring your depleted micronutrients. And the best part? This book is tailor-made to work with your lifestyle, including gluten-free, low-carb, low-fat, vegan, and Paleo recipes!

Honestly Healthy: Eat with your body in mind, the alkaline way


Natasha Corrett - 2012
    Using the revolutionary new alkaline diet, it’s packed with recipes, tips and tricks to help you transform your daily routine from hectic and hurried to harmonious and holistic.Organic gourmet vegetarian cook, Natasha Corrett, and leading nutritional therapist Vicki Edgson combine their expertise in this fully illustrated guide to eating a balanced, alkaline diet that keeps the body in mind. They clearly explain the principles and benefits of this kind of eating, identifying both alkalizing and acid-forming foods, and offering the modern cook a host of flavorsome, easy-to-prepare recipes recommended for different times of the day and different stages of life.The first section deals with the basics: the principles of healthy eating, the sources of and role played by vitamins, carbohydrates and protein, the identification of alkalizing and acid-forming foods and the ways in which an alkaline diet can nourish the body without placing the digestive system under strain. Learn how to boost your immune system, increase energy levels, maintain blood sugar levels and focus your mind through healthy eating.The second section features mouth-watering recipes, from the first smoothie of the morning, through delicious salads and mains to the last healthy snack of the day. Accompanied by beautiful photographs, each recipe illustrates just how easy it is to prepare delicious and nutritious food that will make you feel great.

Skinny Bitch: A No-Nonsense, Tough-Love Guide for Savvy Girls Who Want to Stop Eating Crap and Start Looking Fabulous!


Rory Freedman - 2005
    And they'll guide you on making intelligent and educated decisions about food. They may be bitches, but they are skinny bitches. And you'll be one too--after you get with the program and start eating right.