Cookbooks/Chef-driven books
Mar 30, 2010 | 4:54 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,944
Cookbooks/Chef-driven books
I've recently started building a cookbook collection which currently holds:
1) Gordon Ramsay: 3-star chef
2) Gordon Ramsay's Healthy Appetite
3) Savoring Mexico
4) Savoring Provence (both these are from Williams-Sonoma)
5) The food of Thailand
6) Mediterranean Cuisine: Turkey
What books do you have and like?
1) Gordon Ramsay: 3-star chef
2) Gordon Ramsay's Healthy Appetite
3) Savoring Mexico
4) Savoring Provence (both these are from Williams-Sonoma)
5) The food of Thailand
6) Mediterranean Cuisine: Turkey
What books do you have and like?
Mar 30, 2010 | 8:34 pm
#3
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Wenatchee, WA
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My favorites are two classics from Diana Kennedy, "The Cuisines of Mexico," and "Recipes from the Regional Cooks of Mexico." My understanding is that she consulted with Fonda San Miguel in Austin (my favorite Mexican restaurant) when they started.
Mar 31, 2010 | 3:09 am
#4
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: London
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Posts: 2,391
I've recently started building a cookbook collection which currently holds:
1) Gordon Ramsay: 3-star chef
2) Gordon Ramsay's Healthy Appetite
3) Savoring Mexico
4) Savoring Provence (both these are from Williams-Sonoma)
5) The food of Thailand
6) Mediterranean Cuisine: Turkey
What books do you have and like?
1) Gordon Ramsay: 3-star chef
2) Gordon Ramsay's Healthy Appetite
3) Savoring Mexico
4) Savoring Provence (both these are from Williams-Sonoma)
5) The food of Thailand
6) Mediterranean Cuisine: Turkey
What books do you have and like?
Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles cookbook
Giorgio Locatelli 'Made in Italy'
Most of Nigel Slater's books
Mar 31, 2010 | 3:33 am
#5
Join Date: Mar 2008
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Yes they are and he is basically the only chef I even watch on TV anymore. His recipes are good but his show and explanations are great. I have used his ideas more times then I can remember and they are always great.
I watch Nigella Lawson also but it really isn't for the food.
I watch Nigella Lawson also but it really isn't for the food.
Mar 31, 2010 | 9:53 am
#6
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Funny about Nigella. I started watching her because of the food, she made a clementine or mandrine orange cake that was spectacular.
You boiled them for two and a half hours, then ran them throught the food processor, etc. When I first tracked her down I didn't have a clue what she looked like, I fully expected the same grandmother in an apron on all the Italian PBS cooking shows.
Nigella's cookbooks are quite good too, be they bought for the stories or not
You boiled them for two and a half hours, then ran them throught the food processor, etc. When I first tracked her down I didn't have a clue what she looked like, I fully expected the same grandmother in an apron on all the Italian PBS cooking shows.
Nigella's cookbooks are quite good too, be they bought for the stories or not
Mar 31, 2010 | 10:15 am
#7
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Another vote for Nigel Slater (assume they are available in the US). Great food, invariably tastes good, nothing too complex and well focussed on seasonal produce. My only criticsm would be a slight deficit of fish receipes v meat. The Kitchen Diaries is my favourite.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Meat Cookbook is another cracker.
^ to Giorgio Locatelli too.
Regretably Nigella is a little less alluring in the flesh (or she was the Sunday I saw her buying Nespresso capsules in Selfridges).
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Meat Cookbook is another cracker.
^ to Giorgio Locatelli too.
Regretably Nigella is a little less alluring in the flesh (or she was the Sunday I saw her buying Nespresso capsules in Selfridges).
Mar 31, 2010 | 11:48 am
#8
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Another vote for Nigel Slater (assume they are available in the US). Great food, invariably tastes good, nothing too complex and well focussed on seasonal produce. My only criticsm would be a slight deficit of fish receipes v meat. The Kitchen Diaries is my favourite.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Meat Cookbook is another cracker.
^ to Giorgio Locatelli too.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Meat Cookbook is another cracker.
^ to Giorgio Locatelli too.
Noooooo, don't shatter the illusion! (Anyway, I've moved onto Sophie Dahl and not for her rather lackluster cookery)
Mar 31, 2010 | 1:55 pm
#10
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I've been thinking of picking up Ad Hoc by him. I've heard his three books are very informative in terms of what to buy, what to use, why do x....Sounds like something you could take with you outside of just the book's recipes.
Mar 31, 2010 | 2:20 pm
#11
Join Date: Apr 2005
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"The Man who Ate the world"
Before becoming engrossed in cookbooks, some "prep" reading about food, restaurants and chefs can be rewarding and educational. I still enjoy some of the classic "food-writers".
I'm in the process of donating a 400+/- volume collection to the state's "Technical College" which has a "Culinary Arts" department designed to train chefs, managers, etc., for other than "haute cuisine' duty.
Before becoming engrossed in cookbooks, some "prep" reading about food, restaurants and chefs can be rewarding and educational. I still enjoy some of the classic "food-writers".
I'm in the process of donating a 400+/- volume collection to the state's "Technical College" which has a "Culinary Arts" department designed to train chefs, managers, etc., for other than "haute cuisine' duty.
Mar 31, 2010 | 3:05 pm
#12
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 9,740
I watched Alton Brown last night (I think...), where he made some sort of lamb curry using a home-made tandoor(i) oven (created out of a terra cotta flower pot). I enjoyed watching the episode, but I kept thinking to myself "this meal requires way too much work."
Mar 31, 2010 | 3:14 pm
#13
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I've got books by pretty much everyone, including some that most folks probably don't have (Helen Corbitt, anyone except TMOliver???) and a first edition "Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management"
I've met Gordon Ramsay (he was charming), Jamie Oliver and Gennaro Contaldo (on a BA flight from LGW to Pisa, with Jason Flemyng for some reason), and Wolfgang Puck (short and sweet).
If you're starting a cookbook collection, I would recommend getting a copy of Larousse Gastronomique and some Julia Child books.
I've met Gordon Ramsay (he was charming), Jamie Oliver and Gennaro Contaldo (on a BA flight from LGW to Pisa, with Jason Flemyng for some reason), and Wolfgang Puck (short and sweet).
If you're starting a cookbook collection, I would recommend getting a copy of Larousse Gastronomique and some Julia Child books.
Mar 31, 2010 | 4:01 pm
#14
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On a similar note, I would recommend Locatelli's book 'Made in Italy'. Aside from the fabulous recipes, I learned so much about genuine Italian food.
Mar 31, 2010 | 7:23 pm
#15
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They are hugely informative. I read both 'French Laundry' and 'Bouchon' before I started to try any of the recipes.
On a similar note, I would recommend Locatelli's book 'Made in Italy'. Aside from the fabulous recipes, I learned so much about genuine Italian food.
On a similar note, I would recommend Locatelli's book 'Made in Italy'. Aside from the fabulous recipes, I learned so much about genuine Italian food.
I keep eying the Keller books, but they are always in the wrapping. I hate the idea of spending $50 a pop for a book I can at least check out before purchasing.
Last edited by Shangri-La; Mar 31, 2010 at 9:06 pm