Thanks for your cookbook review, it gave me some holiday gift ideas. You asked for ideas for Italian cookbooks. Here are my suggestions: I love Edward Giobbi’s cookbooks, “Italian Family Cooking” and “ Pleasures of the Good Earth” both have a broad survey of recipes for home cooking from Italy intermixed with stories of his Italian family’s life in Italy and America involving family meals, cooking, gardens, and eating seasonally fresh food. Food from his early years in a poor immigrant family, food thru the years as a struggling young painter. He even cooked food for America’s Test Kitchens, and during his long friendship with Craig Claireborne ,all while as an accomplished artist, gardener and cook, creating with his wife, a family centered around art and food. I also love Patricia Wells “Trattoria”. As a winner of both the Beard Foundation and Julia Child awards for two of her cookbooks, she also has had a long career as a food critic for the International Herald Tribune. In this 1993 recipe book she has sampled trattoria food over all of Italy bringing the reader with her. Amazingly she managed to get over 150 trattoria cooks to share their best recipes with her. The directions and tips are excellent and every recipe I have tried was successful and that’s from antipasto to deserts. Her Caponata recipe is the best of many I have found and coincidentally I had just put a her Frittata Freda alla Rustica in the oven as I sat down to watch this program. Lots of easy recipes to enjoy. All three of my suggestions are found in used bookstores and on-line. When I come across them I have purchased extras to share with family and friends. Hopefully you and your readers will search for them and enjoy discovering new to you recipes for wonderful Italian food.
Oh wow, thank you for the great suggestions! I appreciate you giving me a few to choose from. I also want to add a few Indian cookbooks. That’s the thing about food, there’s so many great impactful cultures.
Not counting the more science/method focued books, like Salt Fat Acid Heat and Foodlab, my big one I use as a springboard for a quick reference is Joy of Cooking. It feels like it makes up the backbone of American cooking as it's been reprinted and revised for nearly a century now. While it doesn't go too in-depth on any one topic, it does cover a shockingly wide number of topics and dishes.
great video . The only thing that i would do different is to mention that Julia Childs book while iconic is NOT easy to follow. Most home cooks can easily find a better french cookbook . For example Jacque Pepin Essentials , or Dorie Greenspan Around my French Table or David Liebovitz My Paris Kitchen and more.
Both Clare saffitz dessert books are FANTASTIC. the details and set up are really fun and easy. The first book is more advanced than the most r🎉cent release. Great great great suggestions… Clare and the CUA baking boot camp are great “fancy” baking/pastries guides, for everyday people.
I’m glad I could help. I have a collection going and my wife bought me a leather bound book last year so I could start our own family cookbook for our kids.
I’d like to second Joy of Cooking. I have my mom’s copy here somewhere, that must be 50 years old. Side note, JoC was last updated in 2019 by Irma Rombauer’s grandson, Ethan Becker of Becker Knife & Tool (Kabar), and his wife. Until recently, 90% of my cooking has been on the grill, so as far as recommendations, I’d offer Weber’s New Real Grilling by Jaime Purviance. This book was a game-changer for me. Lastly, I didn’t know ATK produced cookbooks, but of course they do! I’m going to order one tonight. Thanks for the suggestions.
Do you have some cookbooks you would recommend? Let me know in the comments below!
Thanks for your cookbook review, it gave me some holiday gift ideas.
You asked for ideas for Italian cookbooks. Here are my suggestions:
I love Edward Giobbi’s cookbooks, “Italian Family Cooking” and “ Pleasures of the Good Earth” both have a broad survey of recipes for home cooking from Italy intermixed with stories of his Italian family’s life in Italy and America involving family meals, cooking, gardens, and eating seasonally fresh food. Food from his early years in a poor immigrant family, food thru the years as a struggling young painter. He even cooked food for America’s Test Kitchens, and during his long friendship with Craig Claireborne ,all while as an accomplished artist, gardener and cook, creating with his wife, a family centered around art and food.
I also love Patricia Wells “Trattoria”. As a winner of both the Beard Foundation and Julia Child awards for two of her cookbooks, she also has had a long career as a food critic for the International Herald Tribune. In this 1993 recipe book she has sampled trattoria food over all of Italy bringing the reader with her. Amazingly she managed to get over 150 trattoria cooks to share their best recipes with her. The directions and tips are excellent and every recipe I have tried was successful and that’s from antipasto to deserts. Her Caponata recipe is the best of many I have found and coincidentally I had just put a her Frittata Freda alla Rustica in the oven as I sat down to watch this program. Lots of easy recipes to enjoy.
All three of my suggestions are found in used bookstores and on-line. When I come across them I have purchased extras to share with family and friends. Hopefully you and your readers will search for them and enjoy discovering new to you recipes for wonderful Italian food.
Oh wow, thank you for the great suggestions! I appreciate you giving me a few to choose from. I also want to add a few Indian cookbooks. That’s the thing about food, there’s so many great impactful cultures.
Not counting the more science/method focued books, like Salt Fat Acid Heat and Foodlab, my big one I use as a springboard for a quick reference is Joy of Cooking. It feels like it makes up the backbone of American cooking as it's been reprinted and revised for nearly a century now. While it doesn't go too in-depth on any one topic, it does cover a shockingly wide number of topics and dishes.
I do have the joy of cooking, great point. I might do a part 2 depending on how well this video does. There are so many great books!
Great books!
I love Carla lollipop music books especially her first one
great video . The only thing that i would do different is to mention that Julia Childs book while iconic is NOT easy to follow. Most home cooks can easily find a better french cookbook . For example Jacque Pepin Essentials , or Dorie Greenspan Around my French Table or David Liebovitz My Paris Kitchen and more.
Great suggestions Tom, thanks!
Glad you enjoyed the video!
Both Clare saffitz dessert books are FANTASTIC. the details and set up are really fun and easy. The first book is more advanced than the most r🎉cent release. Great great great suggestions… Clare and the CUA baking boot camp are great “fancy” baking/pastries guides, for everyday people.
Oh man, dessert books are another great topic. I may need to do a part 2 or 3 on this video lol. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for this list. I too am a big cookbook fan, always on the lookout for good, helpful cooking ideas and recipes.
I’m glad I could help. I have a collection going and my wife bought me a leather bound book last year so I could start our own family cookbook for our kids.
I’d like to second Joy of Cooking. I have my mom’s copy here somewhere, that must be 50 years old. Side note, JoC was last updated in 2019 by Irma Rombauer’s grandson, Ethan Becker of Becker Knife & Tool (Kabar), and his wife.
Until recently, 90% of my cooking has been on the grill, so as far as recommendations, I’d offer Weber’s New Real Grilling by Jaime Purviance. This book was a game-changer for me.
Lastly, I didn’t know ATK produced cookbooks, but of course they do! I’m going to order one tonight. Thanks for the suggestions.
I can’t believe I forgot about joy of cooking! The video was getting long though 😂