My Cookbooks
I have arranged the titles by date of publication with the newest first. These are some of my favorite cookbooks. Used book stores and sales can be a good source of some of the oldies but goodies. To introduce these books I have tried to analyze categories of usefulness:
Beginning cook--learn
Improve a skill--improve
Expand my range of menus--expand
Lack an ingredient or a tool--improvise
The Food Substitutions Bible
by David Joachim, 2010L
Improvise and improve
I use this book to improvise and to improve. When I lack an ingredient, I look up possible substitutions. This happens often with me and can lead to interesting experiments. David Joachim has listed and explained substitutions and equivalents for ingredients, equipment and techniques. The comprehensive list is arranged in a two-column table in alphabetical order. It contains a description of each ingredient and beside it possible substitutions you can use if you do not have it. In the back are general ingredient guides and measurement equivalents.
The Complete Book of 400 Soups
by Anne Sheasby, 2007
Expand
I use this book to expand my range of menus. It has good ideas and lovely pictures. The text of the recipes is rather small, though.
Maran Illustrated Cooking Basics, described in blog of 5/15/2013
by Maran Graphics & Thomson Course Technology, 2006
Learn and improve
I recommend this book for a beginning cook, adult or child, who wants to learn to prepare a variety of meals. It covers basic recipes and techniques with clear photographs to supplement the text. Practicing with these basic recipes can extend your range of cooking skills.
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Fourtieth Anniversary Edition
by Julia Child, 2005
Learn, improve and expand
This classic needs no introduction. I use it to learn, to improve and to expand my menus. The instructions are careful and complete. This anniversary edition includes It includes a special introduction by Julia Child.
The Best Recipe
by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated Magazine, 1999
Improve and eaxpand
I use this large book to improve specific food preparation techniques and expand my menu ideas. The authors describe their searches for the best way to cook leeks or the best way to make a meatloaf, for example. Disappointments are analyzed and successes are explained in detail. Their meatloaf has become a family favorite with us.
The Kitchen Companion, described in blog of 5/11/2013
by Polly Clingerman, 1994
Learn, improve, expand and improvise
I recommend this book to learn, to improve, to expand and to improvise your cooking skills. It contains chapters about ingredients, measuring, general cooking help and the basic principles of how to cook eggs, vegetables, and other foods. Sidebars include quick hints and rescues for when things go wrong. The chapter on kitchen equipment is useful even if you are working in a small borrowed kitchen. She includes a list of equipment substitutions. She also explains the differences between glass and metal baking pans as well as how square and round pans can affect browning.
Betty Crocker’s Picture Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1950
Betty Crocker’s Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1990
Learn, expand and improvise
I used the older edition to learn, to improve, to expand my cooking skills. I also fall back on it when I need to substitute or improvise. These two cookbooks are two editions of the same book, but they are not identical. The later edition omits some recipes and adds others.. The format is handy--a looseleaf binder with dividers. It has simple, basic recipes with clear explanations for all courses of meals from appetizers to desserts.
Jane Brody’s Good Food Gourmet
by Jane Brody, 1990
Jane Brody’s Good Food Book: Living the High-Carbohydrate Way
by Jane Brody, 1985
Expand
I use these two Jane Brody books to expand my menu choices, especially to look for healthy versions of favorite foods. The author, who writes on health topics for the New York Times writes, "I am simply a person who likes to eat and cook but who also likes to live--fully, long, and healthfully. . . .I enjoy good food."
Peter Christian’s Recipes
by Shirley Edes and Julia Philipson, 1985
Expand and improvise
I turn to this compilation of popular favorites served in a New Hampshire restaurant when I want to find new ideas for flavor combinations, expand my menus. It is especially good for salads, sandwiches and soups.
Light & Healthy Chinese Cooking, described in blog of 5/16/2013
by Daniel N. Jue and Teresa Chew, 1984
Learn and expand
I use this book to learn about Chinese cooking techniques and flavorings. It is beautiful. In addition to the text, the design and the layout of the pages convey ideas and information. Each recipe lists steps and ingredients in two columns. This format makes it easy to measure out the ingredients and have them ready as you proceed step by step through the instructions. The recipes are clear, easy to follow and versatile.
Cooking Light
by Susan M. McIntosh, 1983
Expand
I turn to this book for ideas. The recipes come from the magazine, Southern Living. There are dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner from appetizers through desserts.
James Beard's Theory and Practice of Good Cooking
by James Beard, 1977
Improve and expand
I use this book to learn, to improve and to expand my choices. I turn to it when I want to understand more about what is happening as I cook. James Beard explains the fundamentals that he teaches--the hows, the whys, the techniques, the basics as well as the subtle nuances of good cooking. Recipes show how to put theory into practice
Many Hands Cooking: An International Cookbook for Boys and Girls
by Terry Jouff Cooper and Marilyn Ratner, 1974
Learn and expand
I recommend this book to learn about foods from other countries and to expand your choices. It was written for children and sponsored by the US Committee for UNICEF.
Tassajara Bread Book
by Edward Espe Brown, 1970
Learn and improve
I have used this book to learn to make various breads, to improve and vary my techniques and to expand my choices. It has good directions for various yeasted breads, quick breads and even desserts. It comes from the San Francisco Zen Center.
The Bisquick Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1964
Learn
I turn to this for quick and easy recipes for baked goods using a biscuit mix.
Joy of Cooking
by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker, 1962
Learn, improve, expand and improvise
I have used this book for years—to learn, to improve, to expand and to improvise. It is still an excellent one-volume comprehensive cookbook and reference book.
Easy Home Baking
Published by the makers of King Arthur Flour, Sands, Taylor & Wood Co., about 1960
Learn
I have relied on this for years for quick breads, yeast breads, pastries, cookies and cakes. They are all basic, well-tested recipes.
Elena’s Secrets of Mexican Cooking
by Elena Zelayeta, 1958
Learn and expand
I have learned about flavors of Mexican cooking and expanded my menus by consulting this book. The author has adapted Mexican and Spanish cooking "to suit the palates of my American friends."
French Cooking for the Home
by Louis Diat, 1956
Learn and expand
I have used this book to learn about simple and basic French foods, and to expand my menus. The author "catered to the haut monde in the great kitchens of Ritz hotels." But he writes with personal warmth of "the simple but delicious cookery of the French countryside." The recipes are basic and achievable. The book is a tribute to his mother's cooking at home. I am especially interested in soups made with leeks and potatoes. Here I found a simple potato and leek soup similar to American chowders. Later I discovered that the cold, puréed soup called vichyssoise was a twentieth century American innovation associated with Louis Diat.
Early American Recipes
by Heloise Frost, 1953
Learn
I turn to this small, spiral-bound cookbook for traditional New England recipes like baked beans.
America's Cook Book
Compiled by the Home Institute of the NY Herald Tribune, 1938
Learn, improve and expand
This was one of my mother's favorite cookbooks. It is comprehensive. I think she used it to learn, to improve and to expand her menus. I turn to it to find older ways of combining ingredients and preparing foods. There are 1000 pages and a good index. Modifications of basic recipes are explained along with the basic recipe.
**PLEASE NOTE: Some of the recipes we use are family recipes.
Beginning cook--learn
Improve a skill--improve
Expand my range of menus--expand
Lack an ingredient or a tool--improvise
The Food Substitutions Bible
by David Joachim, 2010L
Improvise and improve
I use this book to improvise and to improve. When I lack an ingredient, I look up possible substitutions. This happens often with me and can lead to interesting experiments. David Joachim has listed and explained substitutions and equivalents for ingredients, equipment and techniques. The comprehensive list is arranged in a two-column table in alphabetical order. It contains a description of each ingredient and beside it possible substitutions you can use if you do not have it. In the back are general ingredient guides and measurement equivalents.
The Complete Book of 400 Soups
by Anne Sheasby, 2007
Expand
I use this book to expand my range of menus. It has good ideas and lovely pictures. The text of the recipes is rather small, though.
Maran Illustrated Cooking Basics, described in blog of 5/15/2013
by Maran Graphics & Thomson Course Technology, 2006
Learn and improve
I recommend this book for a beginning cook, adult or child, who wants to learn to prepare a variety of meals. It covers basic recipes and techniques with clear photographs to supplement the text. Practicing with these basic recipes can extend your range of cooking skills.
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Fourtieth Anniversary Edition
by Julia Child, 2005
Learn, improve and expand
This classic needs no introduction. I use it to learn, to improve and to expand my menus. The instructions are careful and complete. This anniversary edition includes It includes a special introduction by Julia Child.
The Best Recipe
by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated Magazine, 1999
Improve and eaxpand
I use this large book to improve specific food preparation techniques and expand my menu ideas. The authors describe their searches for the best way to cook leeks or the best way to make a meatloaf, for example. Disappointments are analyzed and successes are explained in detail. Their meatloaf has become a family favorite with us.
The Kitchen Companion, described in blog of 5/11/2013
by Polly Clingerman, 1994
Learn, improve, expand and improvise
I recommend this book to learn, to improve, to expand and to improvise your cooking skills. It contains chapters about ingredients, measuring, general cooking help and the basic principles of how to cook eggs, vegetables, and other foods. Sidebars include quick hints and rescues for when things go wrong. The chapter on kitchen equipment is useful even if you are working in a small borrowed kitchen. She includes a list of equipment substitutions. She also explains the differences between glass and metal baking pans as well as how square and round pans can affect browning.
Betty Crocker’s Picture Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1950
Betty Crocker’s Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1990
Learn, expand and improvise
I used the older edition to learn, to improve, to expand my cooking skills. I also fall back on it when I need to substitute or improvise. These two cookbooks are two editions of the same book, but they are not identical. The later edition omits some recipes and adds others.. The format is handy--a looseleaf binder with dividers. It has simple, basic recipes with clear explanations for all courses of meals from appetizers to desserts.
Jane Brody’s Good Food Gourmet
by Jane Brody, 1990
Jane Brody’s Good Food Book: Living the High-Carbohydrate Way
by Jane Brody, 1985
Expand
I use these two Jane Brody books to expand my menu choices, especially to look for healthy versions of favorite foods. The author, who writes on health topics for the New York Times writes, "I am simply a person who likes to eat and cook but who also likes to live--fully, long, and healthfully. . . .I enjoy good food."
Peter Christian’s Recipes
by Shirley Edes and Julia Philipson, 1985
Expand and improvise
I turn to this compilation of popular favorites served in a New Hampshire restaurant when I want to find new ideas for flavor combinations, expand my menus. It is especially good for salads, sandwiches and soups.
Light & Healthy Chinese Cooking, described in blog of 5/16/2013
by Daniel N. Jue and Teresa Chew, 1984
Learn and expand
I use this book to learn about Chinese cooking techniques and flavorings. It is beautiful. In addition to the text, the design and the layout of the pages convey ideas and information. Each recipe lists steps and ingredients in two columns. This format makes it easy to measure out the ingredients and have them ready as you proceed step by step through the instructions. The recipes are clear, easy to follow and versatile.
Cooking Light
by Susan M. McIntosh, 1983
Expand
I turn to this book for ideas. The recipes come from the magazine, Southern Living. There are dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner from appetizers through desserts.
James Beard's Theory and Practice of Good Cooking
by James Beard, 1977
Improve and expand
I use this book to learn, to improve and to expand my choices. I turn to it when I want to understand more about what is happening as I cook. James Beard explains the fundamentals that he teaches--the hows, the whys, the techniques, the basics as well as the subtle nuances of good cooking. Recipes show how to put theory into practice
Many Hands Cooking: An International Cookbook for Boys and Girls
by Terry Jouff Cooper and Marilyn Ratner, 1974
Learn and expand
I recommend this book to learn about foods from other countries and to expand your choices. It was written for children and sponsored by the US Committee for UNICEF.
Tassajara Bread Book
by Edward Espe Brown, 1970
Learn and improve
I have used this book to learn to make various breads, to improve and vary my techniques and to expand my choices. It has good directions for various yeasted breads, quick breads and even desserts. It comes from the San Francisco Zen Center.
The Bisquick Cookbook
by the Betty Crocker Editors, 1964
Learn
I turn to this for quick and easy recipes for baked goods using a biscuit mix.
Joy of Cooking
by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker, 1962
Learn, improve, expand and improvise
I have used this book for years—to learn, to improve, to expand and to improvise. It is still an excellent one-volume comprehensive cookbook and reference book.
Easy Home Baking
Published by the makers of King Arthur Flour, Sands, Taylor & Wood Co., about 1960
Learn
I have relied on this for years for quick breads, yeast breads, pastries, cookies and cakes. They are all basic, well-tested recipes.
Elena’s Secrets of Mexican Cooking
by Elena Zelayeta, 1958
Learn and expand
I have learned about flavors of Mexican cooking and expanded my menus by consulting this book. The author has adapted Mexican and Spanish cooking "to suit the palates of my American friends."
French Cooking for the Home
by Louis Diat, 1956
Learn and expand
I have used this book to learn about simple and basic French foods, and to expand my menus. The author "catered to the haut monde in the great kitchens of Ritz hotels." But he writes with personal warmth of "the simple but delicious cookery of the French countryside." The recipes are basic and achievable. The book is a tribute to his mother's cooking at home. I am especially interested in soups made with leeks and potatoes. Here I found a simple potato and leek soup similar to American chowders. Later I discovered that the cold, puréed soup called vichyssoise was a twentieth century American innovation associated with Louis Diat.
Early American Recipes
by Heloise Frost, 1953
Learn
I turn to this small, spiral-bound cookbook for traditional New England recipes like baked beans.
America's Cook Book
Compiled by the Home Institute of the NY Herald Tribune, 1938
Learn, improve and expand
This was one of my mother's favorite cookbooks. It is comprehensive. I think she used it to learn, to improve and to expand her menus. I turn to it to find older ways of combining ingredients and preparing foods. There are 1000 pages and a good index. Modifications of basic recipes are explained along with the basic recipe.
**PLEASE NOTE: Some of the recipes we use are family recipes.