Books for Cooks

I adore cookbooks. I adore all books, really, but books about cooking really make me happy. The funny thing is, though I've always collected cookbooks, it wasn't until a couple of years ago that I really started cooking. Back in my childless days I ate out way too much and the kitchen was a sad and neglected place. Plus I always had the excuse that the kitchen was too small -- it barely fit me and MF at the same time!

A child alters everything of course, and one of the things we quickly discovered was that eating out was no longer a pleasant experience. So out came the dusty pots and pans, the utensils that looked mysterious and dangerous to me, the unfamiliar packages of various uncooked food groups. And the cookbooks.

At first I was timid. I only tried the easiest recipes that required the least number of ingredients. I asked MF over and over "Is it OK? Is it overcooked? Do you like it?" Slowly but surely my confidence grew. I started sharing my dishes with friends and neighbors. I stopped counting the number of ingredients and relished the challenge of a complex recipe with dozens of ingredients instead.

I still revert to the no-fuss-cook-it-in-15-minutes dishes on days when I feel haggard (which is often, I admit), but I genuinely love cooking now and don't find it so intimidating. The cookbooks above are the ones I've had the most success with so far and they are:

How to Cook Everything - My go-to reference for literally everything.
The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper - The lettuce wraps!
Nigella Express - The most amazing chocolate-chocolate chip cookies ever!!
Barefoot Contessa Family Style - Pretty much everything from this book is delish
Jamie's Dinners
Celebrating the Pleasure of Cooking I got this one for free when I used to work for Pottery Barn HQ and it's a fun book to read and cook from.