The Cookbook Shelves We Dream About
Photo by Daniel Krieger1/10Daniel Krieger and Jordana Rothman, Photographer and Food Writer
"One of the most impactful books on our shelf is the Gourmet Cookbook by Libby Hillman. My grandmother, Ruth Krieger, lived near Libby and helped her test recipes for that book. Noah and Rae Bernamoff, who wrote The Mile End Cookbook, are neighbors and very dear friends. Their collection of nice, Jewish recipes has a lot of resonance, since we are both Jewish and grew up with those flavors.
Jordana loves collecting indie food magazines, especially Cherry Bombe. The two Oishinbo books are also hers. Oishinbo is a Japanese manga series about a food writer named Shirō Yamaoka.
I also snuck in a few books that I've photographed including The Old Fashioned, the Ivan Ramen book, and Harold Dieterle's Kitchen Notebook."
Photo by José Andrés2/10José Andrés, Chef/Owner, Minibar
- The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adrià by Ferran Adrià & Arzak: Ferran and Juan Mari are two of the most renowned Spanish chefs and have been large influences.
- Oishinbo Mangas, by Tetsu Kariya and Akin Hanasaki.
- Physiology of Taste by Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin: This includes the famous quote “tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.” When it was published, philosophers weren’t really writing about food.
- Chemistry of Cookery by Matthieu Williams: José owns the first edition, the book is about the relationship between cooking and science.
- Le Guide Culinaire by Escoffier: Escoffier is the grandfather of cooking, so this cookbook is a must.
- The Virginia Housewife by Mary Randolph:The 1851 edition book played a huge role in inspiring the menu at America Eats Tavern.
- La Cocina Española by Mesonero Mayor de Castilla Candido.
Photo by Dorie Greenspan3/10Dorie Greenspan, cookbook author
"Desserts and Pastries by Gaston Lenôtre was a life-changing book for me. I bought it when I was teaching myself how to bake, and I still turn to it today as a reference for things French. Carême, a 19th century pastry chef, said that pastry is the sister art to architecture. As I built each cake in Lenôtre’s book, putting one component on top of another, I came to understand what Carême meant. The book was my bible as I began baking; today it’s my treasure."
Photo by Nick Fauchald4/10Nick Fauchald, publisher, Short Stack Editions
From the midcentury illustrations to the ornate still-life food photography, Picture Cook Book is one of the best visual cookbooks. Au Pied du Cochon: The Album proved to me that self-publishing is sometimes the best option—I keep it handy for jolts of inspiration. After I landed my first food-writing job, I bought The Elements of Taste by Gray Kunz and Peter Kaminsky. Cooking as Courtship by Susan Weigand is actually a great guide for being a better all-around host. Before Julie Powell cooked her way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, I did the same as a curious college student. I still kick myself for missing out on the book and movie deals. And if it’s Tuesday night and I don’t know what cook, I reach for The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater. I can pick any dish from Short Stack Editions and trust that it’ll teach me something new about an ingredient I love. Among my stacks of spiral-bound cookbooks is Scandinavian Recipes, which re-teaches me how to make lefse or krumkake.
Photo by Elissa Altman5/10Elissa Altman, blogger, Poor Man's Feast
"These books represent who I am as a cook, writer, and food lover; for me, they're my bedrock, and the place where my love of cooking and food was born. I adore Deborah Madison's books because they taught me that vegetarian food was far more than lentil nut loaf. The Art of Simple Food is my go-to for classic, simple preparations; it's brilliantly and lovingly written. I discovered Unplugged on the kitchen bookshelf of a house I rented in Mill Valley, and the simplicity with which Viana describes food and the act of cooking is visceral. Mediterranean Cooking made me fall in love with Paula Wolfert; it's the first cookbook that I ever read, cover-to-cover, like a novel."
Photo by Hugh Acheson6/10Hugh Acheson, Chef/Owner, 5 &10
"Edna Lewis, who wrote The Taste of Country Cooking, was a badass. To me, she is the best definer of what Southern food really is: fresh, seasonal fare from our community. From A Great American Cook, I like to make Brick Chicken with Rosé Wine, Peas, and Bacon. Whether it's a quiet meal with my family, or a more elaborate affair cooking for guests, you cannot go wrong with a perfectly cooked chicken, and the spatchcocked or butterflied preparation of the chicken in this dish allows for a quick meal in no time."
Photo by Marcus Samuelsson7/10Marcus Samuelsson, chef/owner, Red Rooster in New York
- Southern Homecoming Traditions: Recipes and Remembrances Hardcover by Carolyn Quick Tillery. This is both a cookbook and deep dive into the historic black colleges that comprise the Atlanta University Center.
- Fried & True: More than 50 Recipes for America's Best Fried Chicken and Sides by Lee Brian Schrager and Adeena Sussman. As a huge fan of the bird, this is an incredible collection of all the ways to love fried chicken.
- The Swedish Table by Helene Henderson. Helene is an African American, Swedish-born chef who learned how to cook in Luleå, Sweden.
- Harlem by Jonathan Gill. A remarkable history of Harlem that continually inspires.
- Heritage by Sean Brock. A stunningly beautiful book that truly celebrates the rich history of southern food traditions.
Photo by Jacques Pépin8/10Jacques Pépin, Chef
"I have learned from all my books. The oldest is Alexandre Dumas's The Great Dictionary of Cooking (published in 1873) and my most used is Larousse Gastronomique."
Photo by Samin Nosrat9/10Samin Nosrat, chef and food writer
"The Joy of Cooking. What cookbook shelf is complete without it? It's like a security blanket, Google, and your grandmother wrapped into one.
Often, it's the books about food and cooking, rather than traditional cookbooks, that speak most directly to my heart. From Garlic to Onions by Najaf Daryabandari is the Iranian equivalent to The Joy of Cooking. A friend brought this set back from Iran for me a few years ago, and now any time I want to know the authentic method or ingredients for a Persian recipe, I just ask Mr. Daryabandari, like every single home cook in Iran has for the past several decades. And my single most beloved cookbook is Beyond Nose to Tail, by Fergus Henderson. This playful book exudes a love of people first, and food second, and I love it."
Photo by Ted Lee10/10Ted Lee, cookbook author
"Ha! Close to impossible to narrow down the 1500 titles in my cookbook collection to an “ideal” shelf. But let’s just say this stretch of 15 is dynamite: two-thirds southern classics, real stove-side companions, and told stories of lives in the kitchen. But my favorite of these is Eugene Walter's American Cooking: Southern Style from the Time-Life Foods of the World Series, published in my birth year. Walter’s beautifully written journeys to real families' tables in different regions around the South, coupled with Mark Kaufmann’s amazing photos, are a total immersion in the wondrousness of our food culture. And the recipes for the iconic regional southern dishes in it are excellent and true."
