6 days Ago
The shopping frenzy, an anticipated, annual, pre-holidays event, has started. Perhaps for some it began after last year’s holiday season. Cookbooks are perfect for the food enthusiasts on your gift list.
Whether they enjoy baking, international cuisine, cooking with a specific ingredient, favorite appliance or healthy eating, there is a cookbook for them, children included. I am the go-to person for friends who need suggestions for the ideal cookbook to purchase. Fans of America’s Test Kitchen hit television show will appreciate “America’s Test Kitchen 25th Anniversary Cookbook: 500 Recipes That Changed the Way America Cooks” (2024, $45).
The book celebrates the show’s 25 seasons on air. Did you know it is the most watched cooking show on public television? The editors said: “This collection of recipes highlights ATK’s most important discoveries, brilliant techniques, counterintuitive tricks, eye-opening food science, and above all, failproof deliciousness from the past 25 years.” Each member of the show’s cast provides Q&A that will bring the reader closer to knowing about those they watch cook on the show.
Fans will enjoy their commentary describing the dishes that have become personal game changers. For example, here are a couple of Dan Souza’s five memorable scientific discoveries: “Baking soda helps ground meat remain tender; temper chocolate in the microwave for the shiniest, snappiest coating.” ATK’s signature headnotes, “Why this Recipe Works,” shares important details about each recipe.
“The Food Substitutions Bible: 8,000 Substitutions for Ingredients, Equipment & Techniques,” 3rd edition, by David Joachim is a must in my kitchen. I assume occasionally, or more often; while cooking you have run out of an important ingredient. Perhaps the pan the recipe calls for was borrowed by a friend.
Perhaps you’re looking to experiment with a recipe handed down to you by changing the flavor or texture. What do you do? Substitute. You might think the internet has the answer, however the author said,” It doesn’t always have the answer or accurate replacements.
” He gives the information needed to improvise with confidence. The vast number of substitutions cover timesaving, healthy and vegan subs. The charts and measurement tables help the cook understand the nuances of various chilies, vinegars, rice, salts, oils and other ingredients, plus how to substitute one for another.
Cooking and baking at high altitude, complete with volume and pan equivalents is discussed in easy-to-understand charts. The author writes, “Some of the greatest cooking discoveries have been and continue to be made by substituting one ingredient for another, one piece of equipment for another, or one cooking technique for another.” The visual appeal, ease of preparation, social nature and countless themes have made grazing and charcuterie boards a craze.
For those on your list who enjoy entertaining, “Grazing Boards,” a deck of 50 cards, by Theo A. Michaels (2024, Ryland, Peters & Small, $24.99) makes the perfect gift.
Along with the cards is a 64-page book beginning with guidelines and tips to create a grazing board or table. How to choose the right board, planning, shopping, slicing meats; how to choose the right balance of textures, colors and flavors; how to create visual anchors starts the booklet, followed by recipes for dips, sauces and pickles, finger foods and hot foods to incorporate on the boards. The cards have stunning photography of the board on one side with the shopping list and assembly instructions on the other side.
From a “Game Night Wings ’n’ Dips tray,” “Fruits de Mer Platter,” “Build-Your-Own Taco Tuesday” to a “Kosher Charcuterie Board,” “Butter Board,” and perfect for holiday brunch, “All-Day Brunch Sheet Pan,” there’s a theme to satisfy all tastes. Maybe you’ll even be invited to your gift recipient’s party and experience their creation from the deck. Those who enjoy Southern cooking coupled with Southern food history will welcome “When Southern Women Cook: with History, Lore, and 300 Recipes with Contributions from 70 Women Writers,” by the editors of America’s Test Kitchen, Toni Tipton-Martin and Morgan Bolling (America’s Test Kitchen, 2024, $40).
The book covers every region and flavor of the American South. The editors said, “From Texas BBQ to Gullah Geechee rice dishes, the book tells the stories of the unnamed women firing the flames of stoves at Monticello; gallant Prohibition-era rum runners; and bootleggers like ‘Queen’ Maggie Bailey, who supported her community by selling moonshine.” Southern cooking goes beyond fried chicken and biscuits (there are eight recipes for each in the book).
The recipes pay tribute to the diverse group of women who created them and their place in the history of Southern food. Morgan Bolling, executive editor of creative content for ATK’s Cook’s Country, said in the introduction: “The stories in this book show that food can be a lens through which to learn about our shared history, to pay homage to those who came before us, and to help build a better, tastier future.” The recipes include classics as well more modern ones.
From baking powder biscuits, cast iron baked chicken, peach cobbler to the Cuban sandwich, Po’boys, Mint Julep, Planter’s Punch and Moravian Cookies, the coverage of dishes is superb. The editors said, “The recipes present an intricate patchwork quilt that is Southern cooking.” Cooking is a hands-on activity children enjoy, allowing them to be creative, bond with the family and experience new flavors.
The 10th anniversary edition of “Cooking Class:73 Fun Recipes Kids Will Love to Make (and Eat!), by Deanna F. Cook (2024, Storey Publishing, $19.99) was recently released, a perfect gift for the kids on your gift list.
The recipes were tested by kids, making sure they understood the directions. The first chapter teaches what tools to have handy, how to measure, how to safely use a paring knife plus other kitchen tools. One, two or three spoons on each recipe denotes the skill level needed to make the recipe.
For example, one spoon: “You can cook most of these recipes without needing a hot stove or using a knife.” Kids will learn how to set a table, including creative napkin folding. The step-by-step photos with directions under each make it easy for young chefs to make the foolproof recipes.
Parents will appreciate that cleanup is covered! The chapters include: “Breakfast Café,” “Lunch Lessons,” “Snack Attack,” “Eat Your Veggies,” “My First Dinners” and “Time for Dessert.” The pull-out pages help the young chefs put the finishing touches on their creations with place cards, mealtime conversation-starter games, recipe cards, and stickers for labeling their homemade food..
.perfect for gift giving. Titles of books catch my attention, as they’re intended to.
“One Bake, Two Ways: Fifty bakes with an All-Plant Option Every Time,” by Ruby Bhogal (2024, Interlink Publishing, $35) is a title that piqued my curiosity. This one is the perfect gift for the bakers on the gift list. Bhogal, who has a degree in architecture, began baking as a hobby but then competed as a finalist on “The Great British Baking Show.
” The title features recipes, first in its conventional form, and then with a plant-based alternative. “This isn’t a book where the vegan recipes are shoved at the back or added last minute for tokenism,” she said. “This is a book where both sides of the diet are celebrated, and not one where anyone misses out.
Everyone gets cake!” The baker you gift this book to will find creative approaches to mouth-watering delights with two approaches. With recipes like these, Coconut Cake with Whipped Ricotta and Mango Cream, Fruited Focaccia with Plums, Cherries and Lemon Thyme, Dark Chocolate Velvet Tart with Dulce de Leche, and Strawberries and Macadamia Nuts; are you tempted to buy a copy for the baker in you? Halloumi burgers with smashed avocado and tomato relish, Chinese sweet corn soup with egg ribbons or whipped tahini with a mountain of panko on asparagus, the recipes in “Delicious Tonight: Foolproof Recipes for 150+ Easy Dinners,” by Nagi Maehashi, a New York Times best-selling author (2024, Countryman Press, $35), are creative, unfussy, international and clever, and anything but ordinary. The book will become the recipients cooking school, with a QR code for each recipe that leads to a how-to video.
The videos, stunning and sumptuous photos, paired with the organization of each recipe makes this a must-have, stand-out cookbook. The author writes: “I know you know how to read a recipe! But here’s a little map featuring some pointers on how to follow the recipes in this cookbook, highlighting the different elements on the page.” She explains each element: “Introduction: This is the part where I tell you why your life is not complete until you’ve made this!; Notes: Superscript numbers (footnotes) in the recipe direct you to the notes; Glossary: At the back of the book there is a glossary with information on ingredients that might not be familiar to you, or where I have something extra to say.
See glossary if text is marked with an asterisk; QR code leading to the video.” If you are familiar with the author’s website RecipeTinEats.com that has half a billion views annually, you won’t be surprised at the quality of the book and recipes within.
“Being a homebound tester and writer of everyday recipes has brought me into the public eye at a level that I just never imagined nor ever sought,” Maehashi said. “Cooking, eating, photographing, and sharing recipes of damn tasty food with people around the world, with Dozer (her dog) by my side, is what makes me happy. Full stop, end of story.
” Since we are finally getting some winter weather, at least we are in the Northeast, I want to include “A Cookbook for Winter: More than 95 Nurturing & Comforting Recipes for the Colder Months,” by Louise Pickford, (2024, Ryland Peters & Small, $30) in this cookbook roundup. I’ll be featuring this title in a future column, but for now I thought you’d want to consider this book for those on your list (or you) who live where the mercury dips on the thermometer. They’ll enjoy the hearty dishes and embrace the colder months while gathering around the table for shared moments of joy, warmth and camaraderie.
Now, happy book shopping and my best wishes for joyous holidays. Stephen Fries is professor emeritus and former coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College in New Haven, Conn. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 17 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, and three-day culinary adventures around the U.
S. He is a board member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Email him at Stephen@stephenfries.
com. For more, go to stephenfries.com .
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