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The Best Cookbook In Your House


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Looking for personal recommendations for the best cookbook you have in your house.

 

Wifey can spend hours thumbing through cookbooks old and new, and we try to spend each weekend cooking something new. We have about 100 cookbooks from all over the world, and we're looking for some new titles.

 

We have four favorites:

 

1) Rao's Cookbook (from the famous Harlem restaurant)

2) The Barbeque Bible (a must for anyone who owns a grill and takes it seriously)

3) Dear S.O.S. (A collection of LA-based restaurant recipes from the LA Times)

4) Cucina & Famiglia (which we tracked down after watching "Big Night")

 

Any and all suggestions appreciated. Bonus points if you reference specific recipes from the books.

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You being a WOP would appreciate the "Wise Guy's Cookbook" by Henry Hill. I don't cook off recipes, I make my own. The book is a fun read. Some good tips, too.

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We have The Mafia Cookbook by Joseph "Joe Dogs" Iannuzzi. Very good read with some nice recipes.
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By far, it's Moosewood Cooks At Home. You can check it out here.

 

Healthy food that is really awesome. Wife and I really can't find any recipes from this that aren't great. Best part is that many/most of the recipes are for smaller amounts (2-4 servings).

 

If you're really looking for a constant source of great recipes I urge you to try Cooking Light magazine. It's amazing how many recipes we have tried from there, and I can't remember coming across one that didn't taste awesome. And health is a primary concern for them, so you always have the fat, protein, and carb contents of each one.

 

Best part is, once you've used their recipes for a little while, you'll notice that your cupboard has a lot of the needed ingredients already.

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From the sound of your post, I assume the book factor is important to you, but if you're ever just looking for something new to cook I usually just go to allrecipes.com. Lots of recipes and they have big user base who do a lot of rating. That's the big thing for me. I don't cook often, so when I do I like to be fairly certain the recipe I choose is good. The feeback also includes lots of changes to the orginal recipe to make them better.

Like I said, not the book feel that I think you are looking for, but just for a new recipe idea every now and then it's worth a look.

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By far, it's Moosewood Cooks At Home. You can check it out here.

 

Healthy food that is really awesome. Wife and I really can't find any recipes from this that aren't great. Best part is that many/most of the recipes are for smaller amounts (2-4 servings).

 

If you're really looking for a constant source of great recipes I urge you to try Cooking Light magazine. It's amazing how many recipes we have tried from there, and I can't remember coming across one that didn't taste awesome. And health is a primary concern for them, so you always have the fat, protein, and carb contents of each one.

 

Best part is, once you've used their recipes for a little while, you'll notice that your cupboard has a lot of the needed ingredients already.

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We get Cooking Light (and you're dead on with your description of it) and Bon Appetite. I particularly like their annual Barbeque issues and Thanksgiving/Christmas issues. Moosewood looks to have some great recipes. Thanks for that, Rubes.
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From the sound of your post, I assume the book factor is important to you, but if you're ever just looking for something new to cook I usually just go to allrecipes.com.  Lots of recipes and they have big user base who do a lot of rating.  That's the big thing for me.  I don't cook often, so when I do I like to be fairly certain the recipe I choose is good.  The feeback also includes lots of changes to the orginal recipe to make them better.

Like I said, not the book feel that I think you are looking for, but just for a new recipe idea every now and then it's worth a look.

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You're right. We prefer a narrative with the recipes, but we also use epicurious.com and others, and it's great to have reviews and recommendations so we don't waste our time.
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I use cookbooks, on occasion...but, usually as a "guide" or to get ideas. I rarely follow recipies. I've always loved THIS cookbook:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/038524511...glance&n=283155

 

Lidia Bastianich owns Felidia (a GREAT restaurant in NYC) and has a PBS cooking show. I didn't know that when I first was given the book. I've since become a fan of hers. As my family is Southern Italian and Siciian, i learned to cook a particular way.

 

Lidia is from WAY North in Istria, and her style and many of her ingredients were new to me. I've actually followed a few of the recipies and they were awesome. There is also a very good discussion of Italian wine as well as wine and food pairing advice. This is one terrific cookbook.

 

An easy favorite recipie from the book (which is very adaptable as well) is a shrimp and capellini/angel hair with basil, garlic, etc. Basic...but, well thought out and balanced

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Why did I not have to open that to know, Ed.

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I'll 3rd that

 

Damn, Ed...break my heart. I actually know those people. Savannah is a small town. Ever eat at Miss Wilkes boarding house?

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I've eaten there Bib. Lived on St. Simons Island for 5 years and went to Savannah all the time. St. Simons has a ton of good restaraunts also. Really miss that Southern cooking and fresh seafood!

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Damn, Ed...break my heart. I actually know those people. Savannah is a small town. Ever eat at Miss Wilkes boarding house?

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Spend lots of time in Savannah Paul. The last five years I've rented a big house on Tybee Island, have nephews who compete in the Rugby tournament there and spent a lot of time in the Irish pub with new york city cops and firefighters. What a great city for a party. Great restaurants. Mrs. Wilkes is closed now, or so I hear.

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