Twelve Cooks. Eleven Cookbooks. And The Internet.
By Karen and Erica
W
e regularly cook for our families, as do many women—and some men. We’re not exactly chefs, but we put a lot into our creations.
Our menus have changed a bit over the years. Before spouses, we lived on popcorn and white wine. Before children, we spent time creating elegant dinners by candlelight. While children were young, first we mushed up whatever we were eating so they would not have to eat that jarred stuff, then we became expert at crepes with Nutella, mac and cheese, and chocolate chip cookies. That expertise is still called upon when the children visit, but cooking for two usually means fish and vegetables.
One structural part of cooking has changed over time. We used to cook mostly from cookbooks. Now, we often search the internet, asking what we can cook with whatever we have. Frozen cod, tamarind, scallions and rice? There’s a recipe for that! We also asked ChatGPT—its offering in Comments!
Still, nothing beats a good cookbook. They can give you taste and history and nuance, and allow you to travel to far off lands. Here are some relatively new ones (two introduced by daughters) that we use now:
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Yotam Ottolenghi, Simple. Not really that simple, but good.
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Alison Roman, Nothing Fancy. Well, a little fancy. And delicious.
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Molly Baz, Cook This Book. Very fun. And also tasty.
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Marcus Samuelsson, The Soul Of A New Cuisine: Foods, Flavors and Inspiration from Africa. A whole new world of flavor.
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Mary Bissau, The Arab Table. So much to learn. So delicious.
Many of these chefs also have excellent blogs or newsletters. We especially like Alison Roman’s, because she is funny and forgiving.
Why do we cook? Because we think it is part of life. You miss half the fun when you order in—the smell of the foods you have chosen to put together. You miss the thrill of discovery when you create something yummy. (Of course you also miss the despair of cooking something inedible, as sometimes happens!) We find we do some of our best thinking while our hands are busy with food. (Kneading bread dough is really good for thought!) And home cooked food is healthier—we can control things like sugar and salt.
And there’s the shopping. We love green markets, especially as the weather gets better, for us and for the produce and the chickens and their eggs. Whatever’s in season—now, ramps, spring garlic, radishes—all look so painterly when the sun is shining. And we like stores full of foods we need to learn how to use. Like Sahadi’s for Middle Eastern.
The wonderful cooks we grew up with (from the culinary perspective) inspired us early and often. Here are just a few guides from long ago that we still use:
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Julee Russo and Sheila Lukins: The Silver Palate Cookbook. This one really started it all for us, just when we were learning to entertain in our one room apartments. First published in 1982, it taught us how to approach food and cooking. We made California Shellfish Stew (lots of Zinfandel) about a million times for important guests. Like cute guys.
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Julia Child: Her TV show is a hoot. Oh! I spilled my wine in the soup and the eggs fell on the floor! The French Chef Cookbook was our introduction to French cooking. Actually any cooking. We lived for the day we could properly make French onion soup. Eventually, we did.
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Marcella Hazan, The Classic Italian Cookbook: The Art of Italian Cooking and the Italian Art of Eating. Since 1973, the quintessential tome for anyone interested in cooking Italian food.
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James Beard started us baking bread on cold winter days. Beard on Bread: A Cookbook is a delight. So is whole wheat soda bread.
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Alice Waters: She founded Chez Panisse, in Berkeley, California, and became an early advocate for sustainable, local, and organic food. We enjoy reading The Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook as much as cooking from it. Try these meatballs.
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Edna Lewis: She helped to elevate Southern cuisine to national prominence in the US. The Taste of Country Cooking is considered an archetype of American culinary literature. We grew up knowing nothing of Southern food, but we learned. Grits and shrimp?
Do you cook? What are your favorites?
Love cookbooks… Anything by Elizabeth David,Diana Henry and Claudia Roden. Suzanne Goins book Sunday Suppers at Lucques. And about a thousand others….
Love cooking and cookbooks- right now- going through my mom’ and aunt’s(recently passed) books given to me over the years. One of my recent favorites-Wine country women of Napa Valley.
From ChatGPT:
Sure! Here’s a recipe for Cod with Tamarind Sauce:
Ingredients:
● 4 cod fillets
● 1/4 cup tamarind paste
● 1/4 cup water
● 2 cloves garlic, minced
● 2 tablespoons soy sauce
● 1 tablespoon honey
● 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
● Salt and pepper to taste
● Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Instructions:
Pre-heat your oven to 375°F (190°C).
In a small bowl, mix the tamarind paste, water, minced garlic, soy sauce, honey,
vegetable oil, salt and pepper together. Stir well until the ingredients are
combined.
Place the cod fillets in a baking dish. Pour the tamarind sauce over the fillets,
making sure they are coated evenly.
Bake the cod in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until the fish is
cooked through and flakes easily with a fork.
Once the cod is cooked, remove the dish from the oven and allow it to cool for a
few minutes.
Serve the cod fillets hot, drizzled with some of the remaining tamarind sauce.
You can also sprinkle some chopped fresh cilantro on top for added flavor and color.
Enjoy your delicious cod with tamarind sauce!
Still cooking from the same cookbooks bought in the 1980s: the iconic ‘Moosewood’ series; Edward Espe Brown’s ‘The Tassajara Recipe Book’; Nikki and David Goldbeck’s ‘American Whole Foods Cuisine’. All launched me as a fellow traveller in the world of vegetarian eating decades ago.
New York Times foods – Melissa Clark and Sam Sifton
I, too, still use The Silver Palate—best bread pudding recipe, anywhere! And I love Edna Lewis’s books, such soul-satisfying recipes from one of our best home grown traditions – – southern cooking.
I also love the yearly Gourmet Magazine compilation books they put out while in print and the two large Gourmet Cookbooks that came as the magazine was folding. The best!
I enjoy watching the Saturday cooking shows on PBS. My daughter and I recently purchased “Be a Plant-based Woman Warrior” cookbook – the mother (90 yrs young) and daughter duo have lots of fun short cooking demos on Instagram and YouTube too. They are a hoot!
Love to cook, learned with my mother by watching Julia Childs. Now I am exploring cooking Mexican, Indian and Thai cuisines.
One of my go-to’s for authentic Italian recipes is Lidia Bastianich!!
My current cookbook crush is Joshua McFadden’s "Six Seasons". Amazingly innovative & delicious dishes that focus on fresh seasonal vegetables. I find I am cooking my way through the whole book. Since my husband & I need to eat less meat & more vegetables, this beautiful cookbook really hits the spot.
Love these recipes! Thank you for sharing 🙂