texasmesquite

Favorite cookbooks, Chapter 2

Source: The Florida Times-Union



By DAN MACDONALD, Special to the Times-Union

When stumped for a gift, check out a bookstore's cookbook section. Even if the present is for someone who doesn't cook much, we all eat. The book may just be the inspiration that changes someone's life.



That's what I found out when I asked readers to name their favorite cookbooks. These aren't just cooking manuals. They are memories. Memories of trips taken, people met, moments shared and meals prepared.
Cookbooks reflect a person's food passions. Maybe it's a certain cuisine or a style of cooking. Maybe it is food eaten while on that dream vacation. Or maybe it's the food prepared by a favorite chef.
Today's list includes ethnic cookbooks, those remembered for sentimental reasons, ones compiled by celebrity chefs and even a couple plugging local cookbook authors. (Read last week's column that kicked off this two-part series.)
Ethnic

"My favorite cookbook is Sheila Lukins' All Around the World Cookbook. I pull out this cookbook when I am feeling adventurous and want to try to re-create a taste sensation that I have experienced in a restaurant. I like the use of unusual ingredients, and the challenge of finding them locally."
Wight Greger

"I'm not sure if (The Frugal Gourmet on our Immigrant Ancestors) is even in print. I got it as a gift about 15 years ago. It starts with a high-level history of immigration into the U.S., and its culinary impact and then is chock-full of wonderful recipes from dozens of countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and South America. They are easy to make, and I have never been disappointed with any of the dishes."
Jorge Miyares
"My favorite cook book is an oldie (I'm an oldie, too). It's The Spice Cookbook by Avanelle Day and Lillie Stuckey, printed in 1964. It begins with short histories of spices but more importantly, the majority of recipes use dried spices that are on hand. The Shrimp Scampi recipe is a winner, as are most of their salads and salad dressings. I don't think I've tried a recipe that wasn't a success."
Mary Jo Myers
"Creme de Colorado Cookbook by The Junior League of Denver is my favorite. The recipes are wonderful [the book falls open to Nutty Wild Rice Salad and Grandma's Boardinghouse Meat Loaf], good for family or company meals, and the instructions are laid out in a precise step-by-step format. An interesting extra is the "Colorado Wild" chapter. Probably won't make anything with pheasant, grouse or elk in this lifetime, but it covers venison, duck and quail."
Sharyn Myles
My friend Jay Solomon prefaced his choice with this: "My favorite is by Richard Nixon's chef, titled, I Am Not a Cook." He got serious and suggested: "The Silver Spoon, first published in English 2005 by Phaidon Press, no authors are noted. It's the translation of Il Cucchiaio d'argento, first published in Italian in 1950 - and the best selling Italian cookbook for 50 years. It's described as '. . . the bible of authentic Italian cooking,' the go-to source for all kinds of cooking. The thing goes more than 1,200 pages and weighs close to 6 pounds."
Jay Solomon
"The Antisocial Cookbook. It was published in 1968 by the makers of Binaca. It features very aromatic dishes featuring garlic, onions and stinky cheeses. The recipe for mashed potatoes uses lots of garlic and cloves."
Sally Chappell

Sentimental

"Without hesitation the cookbook that came to mind for me is one that my mother gave me years. It is the Jacksonville Sesquicentennial Cooks Book (Bicentennial Edition). This was the third edition, published in October 1975 to celebrate America's 200th birthday in Jacksonville. It seems that the cookbook was done by committee [some very prominent]. The cookbook editor was Mrs. George M. Linville. There are actually three pages filled with names that helped to compile the cookbook.
"The recipes are simple and delicious, with many that have become family favorites over the years. As Mrs. Linville writes in the introduction, 'This Cooks' Book is offered as a record of culinary tastes of our time. In addition, it depicts, in pictures and prose, what we were and what we have become. We hope you will read its history, appreciate its art work, and lovingly prepare and enjoy its delicious food.' "
Karen Klicker
"I looked through my collection of cookbooks, and here's my favorite: Treasured Recipes From Two Cultures - American and Chinese. It's a collection published by the Women's Society of Christian Service, St. Mark's Methodist Church in Stockton, Calif.
"This was probably a book published as a church fundraiser and no longer in print (original print date 1966). The condition of the book attests to its place as a favorite, the back cover is missing, the spiral binding is fading fast, and the pages are spotted with oil and soy sauce stains.
"I treasure this book because it was a gift to me as a newlywed in 1975, from my late mother-in-law. It was my first introduction to Chinese cooking the way it is done in the home, a must-read for a bride of Irish-German ancestry, marrying into a Chinese family."
Bobbi Lum
"When I prepared a dish that my dear mother-in-law liked, she would tell me that she wanted the 'receipt.' My family would laugh behind her back, but never asked her if she meant 'recipe.' She was from Charleston, S.C.
"Several years after she had passed away, my daughter had moved to Lexington, Ky. She called one day to say, 'Mom, you are not going to believe the recipe book I bought for you today. The name of it is Charleston Receipts. It was collected by The Junior League of Charleston in 1950. My mother-in-law had the last laugh! I have used many of the 'receipts' in the book."
Annette Winter
"At a family reunion of my father's five siblings and their offspring, I was asked to compile a cookbook of family recipes. By mail and e-mail I requested recipes and received them from over 65 people. As I read them, I added a request for family stories about food and reunions in the past. I added family photos, and I now have my favorite cookbook, Memories in the Kitchen. It was well received, even had a second printing. (OK, it was for 25 more - making about 105). When I'm feeling blue I read it from cover to cover; the memories always give me a boost."
Elvira Covey
"I keep going back to my favorite cookbook[s] when I am in a pinch. And I have many cookbooks. Back in 1967, as a new bride moving to Copperas Cove, Texas, [my husband was in the Army at Fort Hood], I went to the local A&P.
"Every week the store had one in a series of cookbooks offered for $1.99, maybe less. Every few weeks another one came out so that in 12 weeks or so, one could have a whole collection. These are the Woman's Day Encyclopedia of Cooking. I have volumes 1-12 with the index."
Estelle Chisholm

Celebrity chefs

"My favorite cookbook is Fast Food My Way by Jacques Pepin. This is an outstanding cookbook for two wage-earner families and for anyone who is busy. Jacques Pepin is a classically trained French chef but definitely not a food snob. The recipes are all reasonably quick and can be prepared with about 30 minutes of work if you have basic kitchen skills."
Ed Jenkins
"My favorite cookbook for the past couple of months has been The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight & Eating Great by Pam Anderson. I also frequently use another one of her previous books, How to Cook Without a Book.
"The focus of this cookbook is great tasting fast recipes that coincidentally happen to be low in calories. Especially nice, she covers single servings of items for breakfast and lunch, and then switches to family quantities for dinner. The recipes really are fast and easy to prepare but pack a ton of flavor. Protein-wise, the focus is on poultry, seafood and lower calorie pork loin. I especially love her recipes for smoothies and salads. She also includes simple recipes for between-meal snacks and light desserts."
Harriet Upton
"Seasoned America by Paul Prudhomme is my all-time favorite. His 're-seasoning' of America's greatest recipes is magical. All the recipes in this book work."
Bill Johnston
"I'm writing about a friend of mine's cookbook. Her name is Clara LeBlanc and along with her husband, Greg, they own and operate Tidbits Restaurant and Catering. Tidbits is one of the most popular lunch restaurants, but Clara's cooking is so much more than what is available at Tidbits. She recently wrote a cookbook called Tidbits Home Recipes. The book is well organized, with easy-to-follow recipes and of course delivers incredible tasting food that features her secret seasoning."
Jeff Cohen
"My favorite is mine. The Easy Way to Gourmet with Abby has sold 1,000 copies locally, and every day I hear from people who love not only the easy recipes, but the personal bits and food for thought throughout