12 Days of Cookbooks (!!!) — Chatting About The Season’s New Books with Margaret Roach
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♬♬♬ It’s the most wonderful time of the year… ♬♬♬
I hum this to myself a lot: When my first CSA arrives in June. When the first good tomatoes all but fall of the vine in early September. When snowflakes the size of golf balls drop from the sky. AND, most of all, when it’s time to talk about cookbooks with my friend Margaret Roach, the master gardener behind A Way to Garden
Last year, we talked about all-time favorites, the first books we ever owned, and the ones with the most besmirched pages. This year, we’ve kept our chat to the latest crop: the fall and winter 2018 cookbooks, and we hope our chat might give you some ideas for gift giving this season. Rest assured, there is something for everyone — the bakers, the boozers, the pie lovers, the pizza lovers, the Ina fans, the Dorie fans, the gadget collectors, and more.
Read the transcript or listen here.
I have not had a chance to cook from all of the books we discussed, and there are many others I haven’t even had a chance to page through yet, namely Emily: The Cookbook, which is #1 on my Christmas wishlist—Santa, hope you’re reading. That said, I have cooked from a number of the season’s new books, and I’ve included some notes below.
ALSO, Margaret and I are each giving away 12 cookbooks (!!!). To enter, leave a comment below: tell me what your favorite cookbook is for gifting (or just your favorite) and a little bit about why. Now, go double your chances to win by copying your comment into the comment box over at Margaret’s website.
Starting Monday Dec. 3, 2018, we’ll each draw one random winner a day through Dec. 14th. Here’s the order of the 12 Days of giveaways. The list will be updated daily to reflect the winner.
- Season: UPDATE: Winner is Cara Priddy
- Everyday Dorie UPDATE: Winner is Frank Wilk
- Israeli Soul: UPDATE: Winner is KARA P.
- Cooking with Scraps: UPDATE: Winner is Katherine Hubbard
- Sister Pie: UPDATE: Winner is Renee D
- Cook Like a Pro: UPDATE: Winner is Jo Kurdzeil
- Genius Desserts: UPDATE: Winner is Susan Rode
- Skinny Taste One and Done: UPDATE: Winner is Amy Olmsted
- All About Cake: UPDATE: Winner is Marie Guiles
- Milk Street Tuesday Nights: UPDATE: Winner is Sarah Bach
- Comfort in an Instant: UPDATE: WINNER is Michelle Swift
- Now and Again: UPDATE: WINNER is Paulina Muratore
One entry per person. Entries end at midnight Thursday, Dec. 13, before the final drawing. U.S. only. Good luck to all.
Category #1: Weeknight-ish/Everyday Cooking
Cook90: On January 1st 2016, David Tamarkin of Epicurious resolved to cook more — to cook 3 meals a day for an entire month — an experiment he called “Cook90”. In the end, he emerged a better, faster, and healthier cook, and he has since inspired hundreds of thousands of others to take the challenge. His cookbook, Cook90, outlines exactly how to do it: recipes, strategies, meal plans, and more.
Category #2: Global Flavors
Category #3: Baking
Category #4: Nose-to-Tail
Waste Not: Learned about this one through Margaret and her podcast with Top Chef star Tiffany Derry. Waste Not is a new cookbook from the James Beard Foundation and a campaign of anti-food waste advocacy spearheaded by that organization.
Now and Again: The latest from Julia Turshen, who believes a complete meal doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive, that leftovers can lead to inventive/fun cooking, and that gathering people around the table for a meal is a good thing. Organize both by season and menu — a brunch or an easy Thanksgiving. Helpful tips about what can be made ahead of time. Each menu is followed by a section called “It’s Me Again,” which offers a few recipes for using the leftovers.
And last but not least:
Rebekah Peppler’s Apéritif: For Francophiles and beyond, Apèritif offers recipes for both classic and modern French cocktails, along with French-inspired bites and hors d’oeuvres.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
740 Comments on “12 Days of Cookbooks (!!!) — Chatting About The Season’s New Books with Margaret Roach”
I love anything by Julia Turshen! Her substitutions/different flavor ideas at the end of each recipe are so inspiring. I also love her lists at the end of each book!
I love giving alice waters the art of simple food for people who have little experience cooking
I love Ina Gartens Family’s style. I give it to newly weds!
Anything by Caprial Pence
Bread Crumbs Toast! Count me in.
The two I’ve been giving are Bread Toast Crumbs and Canal House Everyday. People are always so amazed to find just how easy it is to bake their own bread!
My favorite book these days is tamar adler’s an everlasting meal. It’s such an enjoyable read I pick upconstantly, for inspiration, when I’m hungry and tired, when I’m foggy headed, when I want to feel full and excited about cooking. It’s full of cooking and eating and deliciousness and seriously superb writing.
The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters! Though Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat is catching up!
I love giving “Whole Bowls” as a gift because it hits this spot between aspirational healthy cooking really vibrant flavors in an accessible, easy to cook way. Everything I’ve cooked from it has been delicious and whenever I make something from it when I have people over I get requests for whatever recipe I used.
The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook was my first deep infatuation. I still follow her blog and instagram and Pinterest (I’m still not over it!). I love her honest and down to earth writing style, and she makes her recipes seem so attainable. Her flavors are often very comfort-driven yet still have a special quality. Plus sexy food photos will get me EVERY TIME!!
Now and Again would be great for giving or receiving!
Cook Like a Pro by Ina Garten
All time favorite cookbook is one that is local to my area–Virginia Hospitality. They have made many versions but the old school one passed down from my grandmother is my go-to for everything from the best carrot cake recipe to easiest weeknight casseroles to fancy appetizers for hosting. It has fun, old-fashioned (albeit, sometimes a little out of style) pages with tid bits for what makes a great southern host. Great content and sentimental value–my most irreplaceable cook book I own and one that I will forever cherish.
Genius Desserts
Love to cook with you and want to get more knowledge in baking. Happy holidays!
Bread, toast, crumbs is my favorite cookbook to give. It’s one I reach for often in my own home and one I know loved ones with enjoy.
Date night by Ashley Rodriguez- love the concept of good food at home with your partner!
What a lovely and generous Christmas gift! I’m excited to have a chance to win a new cookbook!
My favorites of the moment are Stella Parks’ brilliant Bravetart and Gaby Dalkin’s fun and delicious What’s Gaby Cooking. Bread Toast Crumbs is one of my favorites to gift and my copy is also very well-loved. I love giving and receiving cookbooks this time of year!
Love your cooking. Very similar to what and how I cook. I’ll go with my luck.
Bravetart, The Food Lab, Salt Fat Acid Heat, Half Baked Harvest, Cravings (1 &2), the list goes on and on…! 🙂
Cook Like a Pro is a new favorite!
I love giving Bread, Toast, Crumbs. I’ve baked almost every loaf even and made them in the most minimal kitchens. I also love giving Skinnytaste. I cook from Gina’s books often. I think Everyday Dorie will be a new favorite to gift.
Love giving and getting anything by Ottolenghi
Bread Toast Crumbs by THE Ali Stafford!!
I’m obsessed with Modern Jewish Cooking. I knew it was a winner when my non-Jewish roommate asked me to send her pictures of her favorite recipes when I moved out. She was hooked. And for good reason! The recipes are simple, straightforward and delicious. A good gift for a new cook or someone who just wants reliable recipes to change up their routines.
In often give Ina Garten cookbooks as gifts as they are so consistently good. Her recipes never disappoint!
I love gifting Date Night In for wedding showers because it’s so pretty and on theme for the event. Love so many of the books you featured here and can’t wait to check out the rest.
I love all of my moosewood cookbooks. I used to live in Ithaca and her restaurant always felt so wholesome and family/community centered. Her cookbooks make me feel the same way. Whenever I cook from them it brings my right back to that chapter of my life! Super nostalgia!
365 days of soup by William Sonoma. There are just so many lovely soup recipes.
Moosewood – healthy & delicious recipes!
I love any of Ina Garten’s books! I trust her recipes will always work!