Favorite Books from Your Food Obsessed Librarians

Below are some food writing book reviews written by GPL librarians.  If you're looking for more to read, check out our Food Writing book list!

Irish Pub Cooking   published by LoveFood         Anna's Comments: Cookbooks are my weakness.   I can't seem to pass one up without stopping to thumb through it.  I have found that not all cookbooks are created equal; when you are trying to enjoy food through a book, pictures are essential. When Irish Pub Cooking came across my desk, I couldn't resist.  There is a picture to go along with every single dish, along with a brief description. Talk about a feast for your eyes! Pictures of Ireland are also interspersed throughout the book.  It is enough to make me want to get on a plane and do a culinary tour of the Emerald Isle.  Since I don't have the time, or the finances to eat my way around Ireland, this cookbook, which seems to provide quite a selection of Irish comfort food, is a great substitute. Here is a recipe that I tried out.  It was a lot sweeter than I expected thanks to the carrots.  The dumplings didn't turn out, but I used a poor substitution for the shredded suet.  The stew tasted just fine without the dumplings.  I would recommend eating this dish with a fresh loaf of soda bread. Beef in Stout with Herb Dumplings    Serves 6 Stew:2 Tbsp. Corn Oil   2 Large onions, thinly sliced   8 carrots, sliced   4 Tbsp. Flour    2 ¾ lbs. Braising beef, cubed   1 ¾ cups stout (I used Guinness)   2 tsp. Brown sugar   2 Bay leaves     1 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme   Salt and pepper Preheat the oven to 325.  Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole pot (Dutch oven).  Add the onions and carrots and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until the onions are softened. Meanwhile, place the four in a plastic bag and season well with salt and pepper.  Add the beef to the bad, tie the top, and shake well.  Do in batches if necessary.

Barefoot Contessa: How Easy is that?    by Ina Garten       Kendra's Comments:   While doing "field research" for the Slightly More Than Chips and Dips program coming up on Feb. 8, Anna has been keeping her eye out for great appetizer recipes.  There were quite a few to choose from in the newest Barefoot Contessa cook book.  Stilton and walnut crackers, grilled bread with prosciutto, savory Coeur a la crème, roasted eggplant caponata are just a few.  Don't these just sound amazing?  There are several main course dishes that sound delightful as well.  Anna made the New York Egg Cream (chocolate soda), and loved it.  It reminded her of the sodas she had when she was little.   Ina Garten's recipe for New York Egg Cream (pg. 230):for each serving It doesn't have eggs and it usually doesn't even have cream, but it sure is delicious.   Classically an egg cream was made with seltzer from a siphon - the kind of bottle with a lever at the top - but club soda from the grocery store will do just fine.   This is a classic Eastern European drink that came with Jewish immigrants to the Lower East Side of New York. Fox's U-Bet chocolate syrup is essential.   Ingredients: Fox's U-Bet chocolate flavor syrup   Cold whole milk or half-and-half   Ice-cold club soda or seltzer water   Directions: Pour 3 tablespoons of chocolate syrup and ¼ cup of milk or half-and-half into a 16 ounce glass.  While beating vigorously with a fork, slowly add club soda until the glass is almost full.  Add a straw and serve very cold.   Note:  Anna used 2% milk and Hershey's syrup, and it was still delightful .

The Flavor Thesaurus: A Compendium of Pairings, Recipes and Ideas for the Creative Cook    by Niki Segnit Kendra's Comments:   I like to cook with herbs.  I also like combining different flavors together and seeing what new creations work well together.  The problem with this experimentation, is that it can be time intensive and expensive when you screw up.  This reference book allows ample room for experimentation, while giving some hints on combining unique flavors together in ways to guarantee success (which in my mind, means edible).  This book offers up historical facts about various flavor combinations, short recipes, tips on how to mix flavors together.   For example, take a look at this excerpt for Cinnamon & Grapefruit: A half grapefruit sprinkled with cinnamon is a fine partnership.  So how about this grapefruit cheesecake with a cookie base enriched with cinnamon and honey?  Melt 6 tbsp butter and stir in 10 crushed crackers or digestive biscuits, 2 tsp ground cinnamon and 2 tbsp honey.  Press into a 8-in loose-bottomed flan tin.  Stir 3 tbsp confectioners' sugar into 1 lb mascarpone cheese, then carefully fold in the juice and grated zest of 2 grapefruits plus the finely chopped flesh of another.  Spoon onto the cookie base and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.  You could alternatively set the topping with gelatin but I like the loose, unctuous creaminess the simpler recipe gives.  -pg. 203 This book has been a hit with everyone I have shown it to.  Even if you never use a recipe, it is a hoot to see all the different ideas listed.  This is definitely a fun one to have around in a group of food lovers (or food-loving co-workers).

CookWise   by Shirley O'Corriher Anna's Comments:   My husband and I had nixed the idea of purchasing any more cookbooks.  However, when I discovered CookWise, he said we could make room for one more on our shelf.  Not only does this book have tasty recipes, but also includes science.  Corriher has combined her background in biochemistry with her enthusiasm for food to answer the question all cooks have asked - why?  Why does the bread I bake come out too dense?  Why do my chocolate chip cookies come out flat?  Why, even after marinating, is the chicken breast I cooked a bit on the dry side?  By understanding how different ingredients affect a recipe, the cook then has more flexibility to play with their food.  This is something I have a tendency to do quite often.  If baking is more your thing, then check out Corriher's BakeWise.

A Homemade Life : stories and recipes from my kitchen table   by Molly Wizenberg Kendra's Comments:   I think Molly Wizenberg and I would really hit it off if we ever had the opportunity to meet.  People who are passionate about food sometimes have a common language and skewed view of life.  For example: she believes you can tell a lot about someone by the type of potato salad they make.  I do too!  GPL has a copy of A Homemade Life available for check out, and it is food writing at its finest.  The prose is beautiful, and the descriptions are enough to make you very hungry.  I especially liked how she was able to capture the emotional pull that certain foods can mean to someone at various times in life.  I'm going to buy myself a copy of this book because I now want to try so many of the recipes!