Friday Shout Out: Cooking The Books

Haaaaaaaaaay, it's Fridaaaaaaaaaaay. I know I can't be the only one pleased by this. Do your happy dance, whether you're in an office cube or at home, still in your jammies. (If you ARE home, still in your jammies, I envy you. Greatly.)

Today I extol the virtues of the cookbook, and books about food, period. Yesterday I visited my local farmer's market in little ol' Riverdale, Md., after I locked myself out of the house and needed some way to pass the time 'til my husband came home.

(Long story short - my house key was broken, the bottom half completely GONE. I don't know how this happened, and it really pissed me off when I made the discovery trying to get in the back door. I was even more pissed when a phone call to my husband to find out when he would arrive revealed that he knew the key was broken - the missing half was in the front door when he came home late the night before. He said he thought I knew about it when I left the house. Uh, no. Curses to long distance commutes - it took him two hours to get home after I called.)

Sooo...killing some time at the market, I found this guy, Bill Holland, and his booth. How cool is running a business, Cookbook Bazaar, selling vintage and timeless books about food? He also has a small collection of retro aprons and table linens, and cookware. I passed by his stand at the market often in rush or just distracted, not taking the time to peek at his wares. Luckily yesterday I had much time to spare, and I'm certainly glad I did.

I picked up a mint condition copy of The Healthy Hedonist for just $9, and it appears to be loaded with recipes featuring fruits and veggies in a cool, ethnic-leaning, less is more approach.
I like!

And so, I tip my hat to Mr. Holland and his love of cookbooks. I love them too, and as I usually check them out at the library, it's nice to purchase one occasionally, either for myself or as gifts. Who doesn't love thumbing through one, seeing new interpretations on classics and concepts that perhaps one has never considered but would love to try and taste? I'm all dorked out over cookbooks.

Right now I am reading a non-cooking book, Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain, my favorite rogue and cocky author/traveler extrordinaire. He lets it all hang out in this one, admitting his coked up mistakes, how he nearly screwed up his chef career, and of course takes readers on culinary journeys across the globe. He also has words to say about Her Holiness, the food Goddess of Berkley, California, Alice Waters. Leave it to Mr. Bourdain to rip into yet another food icon. It's pretty awesome.

What's your favorite cookbook? Are you reading anything food-related you'd like to recommend? Share, and share often, I say!

TGIF, and make it a lovely one, please. It's the last one of August!

Comments

  1. How to Cook Everything; cause we can't all

    Heat; which I recommend - less about cooking per se, more about insanity that is a restaurant. A lot of fun to read. Makes you appreciate the sanity of your own kitchen that much more.

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