ottawa foodies

I thought it would be nice to hear others cookbook selections.

I have many cookbooks but I have my favorites. If i I had to suggest any cookbook as a gift I would have to say to go with the Home and Gardens cookbook or the Joy of Cooking Cookbook. Those two books have some amazing recipes and are also great for a new cook. I also like my Five Rose cook books for basic stuff...

My favourite all-rounder is, and always has been, Fannie Farmer.

She's been in my household for as long as I can remember and my family talks about her like she's a person - as in "How do you cook beets?" "Well, what does Fannie say?".

I recently converted my roomate too - he'd never heard of it before he moved in with me and now he can't keep his mitts off it.

I have a ton of fancy cookbooks, but I always come back to consult Fannie - great for both new and experienced cooks.

My favourite more newly acquired cookbook is surprisingly "Clueless in the Kitchen" - even though I'm not clueless. They way it's written is so accessible and really encourages the cook to experiment with the basic recipes. Fantastic for a new cook, and good staple recipes with good writing for the more experienced cook.

Neither of these have pictures - which is weird because whenever I'm browsing cookbook shelves in a store, I never even LOOK at the ones with no pictures. Go figure.

My favorite cookbook right now, and for the past 4 years, has been Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites. It's a vegetarian cookbook and this one is just one of their collectives. I really want to get more of these and come to think of it....it's time to do some cookbook shopping! This book even has a glossary of cooking techniques and terms in the back which is always helpful, especially if you've never heard of a type of grain or herb they are talking about in the recipes. Also, they break down the recipes into sections like: vegan, children's faves, quick and easy meals, and 10% fat or less. My boyfriend's moms almost vegan partner turned us on to these cookbooks and I'm so glad he did!!

I have always been a fan of "Fannie Farmer," while my wife swears by "Better Homes and Gardens"; both of us are starting to come around to the other's point of view. :-) We also enjoy "Glorious French Food" by James Peterson, partly for the recipes (we made Duck a L'Orange for Thanksgiving instead of turkey: delicious!) but mostly for his detailed advice on ingredients and cooking techniques.

I'm a fan of "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. It's a great overall resource for anything you might be craving. I also have the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, and while I've only made one recipe from it (the Foccaccia), it was amazing!

We have so many cookbooks I would not know where to start! Joy of Cooking for the basics (although we never exactly follow the recipes in it, it gives good information on cooking temps and times, and everything in it is solid. For entertainment value I love Nigella Lawson's How to be a Domestic Goddess. I love the way she writes about food.

I agree that the Fannie Farmer is best - always reliable. Some others I frequently pull from are three from the Donna Hay collection (Off the Shelf, Instant Entertaining and Instant Cook - www.donnahay.com.au) as well as an Italian cook book called "Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking" (www.amazon.com). A recent purchase that I think I'm going to love although have yet just skimmed the surface is "Little Foods of the Mediterranean" (it has 500 recipes!). Had a bunch of people over for New Years for 12 courses of tapas - could have used that book at the planning stage!