The Top 12: My Favorite Cookbooks of 2011
by Larry Cox on Dec. 26, 2011, under Uncategorized It was a great year for cookbooks. If there was a trend, it was the emphasis on healthier cooking. The proof of a good cookbook is, of course, in its recipes. Each cook book I receive, I examine carefully and then test at least one or two recipes from it.
These are some of my favorite cookbooks of 2011 that I featured in this blog. They are listed in no order. If you found a special cookbook this year, I hope you’ll share the title and your thoughts with me. I always love feedback.
Drum roll, please — my twelve favorite cookbooks of the year:
The Dead Celebrity Cookbook: A Resurrection of Recipes from More Than 145 Stars of Stage and Screen edited by Frank Decaro (HCI, $19.95)
This was one of the more unusual collections of the year and featured recipes for Frank Sinatra’s Barbecued Lamb, Anthony Perkin’s Tuna Salad, and Liberace’s Sticky Buns. Between terrorizing her children and making movies at Warner Brothers, Joan Crawford found time to whip up a rather tasty poached salmon in her kitchen, served with Pepsi no doubt. Packed with celebrity profiles and pop-culture ponderings, Decaro’s razor sharp wit added just the right touch.
The Brisket Book: A Tender and Juicy Love Story, Starring the World’s Favorite Comfort Food by Stephanie Pierson (Andrews McMeel, $29.99)
A well-cooked brisket is a gift from the gods. Stephanie Pierson, a regular contributor to The Atlantic, compiled recipes, butcher wisdom, cooking advice and even a brief history of brisket. This delightful collection served up traditional and non-traditional recipes. If you think you know all there is to know about preparing brisket, consider the Brisket Noodle Soup with Korean Chile. It is sensational.
The French Slow Cooker by Michele Sciolone (Houghlin Mifflin Harcourt, $22)
The slow cooker has become a necessity in most American kitchens. This fabulous cookbook begins with this modest appliance and reveals how even novice cooks can prepare French soups, stews, and other dishes. This is comfort food with a French accent.
Scicolone demonstrates that every coarse imaginable can be made by using a slow cooker and proves her point by sharing recipes for such unexpected slow cooker delights as Polenta with Sheep’s Milk Cheese and Roasted Beet Salad with Roquefort and walnuts.
Little Old Lady Recipes: Comfort Food and Kitchen Table Wisdom by Meg Favreau (Quirk, $14.95)
This nifty little cookbook was much like visiting the kitchen of your grandmother since it featured good old-fashioned home cooking with a generous helping of nostalgia. The foods in this collection salute a time when meals were hearty and good so pass the meatloaf and save room for the pecan pie!
The Food52 Cookbook: 140 Winning Recipes from Exceptional Home Cooks by Amanda Hesser & Merrill Stubbs (William Morrow, $35)
The recipes for this cookbook were generated by Food52.com, named the “Best on the Web” by Saveur. It is, in fact, one of the first ever online community cookbooks and proves that the best meals come not from professional chefs at expensive restaurants but from the kitchens of home cooks where practicality and inventiveness take center stage.
For 52 weeks, home cooks from across America competed in contests at Food52.com, and the winning recipes are featured in this collection along with a selection of other community favorites. The “Secret Ingredient Beef Stew” is almost in itself worth the price of the book.
The Apple Lover’s Cookbook by Amy Traverso (W.W. Norton & Company, $29.95)
Anyone who truly loves apples should take a bite out of this delicious cookbook. This is more than just a collection of recipes since Amy Traverso covers the whole gamut, including apple varieties, history, cooking tips, festivals, and products. The book includes a section spotlighting 60 varieties of apple, each accompanied by a full-color photo and notes of each apple’s appearance, taste, texture, best uses, origin, and availability. The recipes feature such culinary innovations as Pan-Seared Salmon with Cider-Glazed Onions and Spiced Apple Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting.
EatingWell One-Pot Meals by Jessie Price (Countryman Press, $24.95)
The Simple Art of EatingWell Cookbook was published in 2010 and was an immediate hit. Jessie Price, a director of the food content for EatingWell magazine and cookbook editor, shows how one-pot meals can be delicious and diverse as well as easy to prepare. Her recipe highlights include Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Pimiento Cheese and Saucy Coconut-Chicken Stir-Fry.
The Ultimate Guide to Grilling: How to Do Just About Anything by Rick Browne (Skyhorse Publishing, $14.95)
Grilling has become one of this country’s most popular methods of cooking. Divided into chapters that include Fish & Shellfish, Lamb, Beef, Sauces & Marinades, Vegetarian BBQ and more, this is an excellent guide whether you are planning a huge party or simply cooking a smoky pork chop for one. In addition to the recipes, there are tips on building barbecue pits and other useful information for the backyard cook. After sampling Maple Smoked Lamb Shanks with Whisky Onion Marmalade or Grilled Shallot Steaks, you’ll never want to slap a hot dog on a bun and call it barbecue ever again.
Crazy About Cakes by Krystina Castella (Sterling, $17.95)
Following the success of her “Crazy About Cupcakes,” Castella shows new techniques for making cakes and reveals how to push the creative boundaries for decorating them. As she states, nothing says let’s celebrate quite like a well turned out cake. One of the best features of this cookbook is that Castella takes old-fashioned classics but gives them a modern twist by using less fat and more natural ingredients. My favorite recipe from “Crazy About Cakes” was the awesome Jala[emp Cake with Molasses Sauce. Yum!
The Tipsy Vegan: 75 Boozy Recipes to Turn Every Bite into Happy House by John Schlimm (Da Capo, $17)
Few cookbooks can bring together the flavors of the kitchen with the fun of the bar but John Schlimm, a member of one of the oldest brewing families in the United States, does that and more in his new festive collection. His plant-based recipes are laced with such spirited ingredients as beer or brandy to reveal the wilder side of vegetables. All I can say is that guacamole made with tequila has never been more fun.
Chocolatique: 150 Simply Elegant Recipes by Ed Engoron with Mary Goodbody (Running Press, $27)
Even the luscious cover of this book made my mouth water!
Ed Engoron traveled throughout the world in search of the best chocolate on the planet. The result is 150 recipes including those for cakes, cookies, candies, custards, tarts, trifles, ice cream and sauces. Engoron thinks outside the box as he explores such possibilities as Chocolate Dumplings, Orgasmic Chocolate Soup, and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Wontons. In addition to the recipes there are resources for purchasing pantry products, kitchen tools and equipment, ingredients, and cocoa and chocolate products.
Big Ranch, Big City Cookbooks: Recipes from Lambert’s Texas Kitchens by Louis Lambert with June Naylor (Ten Speed Press, $40)
Louis Lambert opened restaurants in Austin and Fort Worth and built an international reputation by taking cowboy cooking to a whole new level. This is not chuck-wagon chow nor fussy French bistro fare but rather a Southwestern cuisine that is nothing short of fabulous. In addition to crowd-pleasing recipes for such tasty dishes as Adobo-Grilled T-Bone with Red Chile and Cheese Enchiladas and Ginger Pear Fried Pies, Lambert shares his easy-to-follow prep instructions and colorful background stories. Lambert guides readers through a successful meal from start to finish, the next best thing to actually visiting one of his restaurants.
The Art of the Cookie: Baking Up Inspiration by the Dozen by Shelly Kaldunski (Weldon Owen, $19.95)
There are cookies and there are special cookies. This perennial dessert is given an artistic twist in this collection of 40 delectable recipes and inspiring decorating ideas. This cookbook takes readers beyond the cookie and into the wider world of pastry design, introducing translatable techniques that apply to a myriad of baked goods. Nothing is quite as satisfying as still-warm cookies fresh from the oven but decorating the treats doubles the fun.
