Holiday Gift Guide For Cooks and Cookbook Lovers

The season is upon us – so much to do, so little time. In an effort to keep you informed, I’ve put together a comprehensive list of suggestions for the cook in your life (or for yourself!)  My various gift guides from last year can be found at the links below. I’m hoping to update these in the next week. 

• Cookbooks for Holiday Cooking & Baking 
• Cookbook Gift Guide for New to Advanced Cooks 
• Cookbook Gift Guide for Bakers
• Cookbook Gift Guide for Entertainers

For the chef who has almost everything:

Anova Culinary Sous Vide Precision Cooker Bluetooth, Immersion Circulator  (US), for UK click here. Professional chefs have obtained incredible results for years with this technique that heats and circulates water in the pot, evenly cooking food to a precise temperature. Cook everything from meats, fish and vegetables to soups, and desserts and it’s easy to use.  If I can sous vide, anyone can. Today, there is a special Black Friday Week deal (it’s 30 percent off) be sure to check it out. To go along with, I highly recommend these two titles Sous Vide at Home: The Modern Technique for Perfectly Cooked Meals by Lisa Q. Fetterman (you can find out more about this title on my promotion article) and Thomas Keller’s Under Pressure. 

Silpat Entremet Silicone Baking Pan (for UK shoppers use this link) is a non-stick silicone baking pan that fits 13-inch by 18-inch cookie sheet (for stability). This pan is is a life saver for sticky dishes – honey roasted chicken, maple roasted carrots, pecan bars and the like – easy clean up, top quality and Made in France since 1965. I love Silpat products and any of their baking mats are wonderful. 

Le Creuset Signature Enameled Cast-Iron 5-1/2-Quart Round French (Dutch) Oven every serious cook needs a piece of Le Creuset. This pot will last a lifetime, will be a workhorse in your kitchen and look great doing it. I am also taken with Le Creuset’s  stainless steel line. Check out my promotion to find more information about Le Creuset, their new cookbook (which I highly recommend) and enter our giveaway for a piece of stainless cookware. 

And while we are talking cast iron enamel,  I absolutely adore the Old Dutch 60-Inch Cookware Stand, Graphite, I have two. These sturdy stands fit perfectly in a corner of your kitchen and can stack multiple items – I have all my cast iron enamel on these stands but you could store stoneware, stainless steel pots, even cookbooks.  The quality is top notch and they look stylish. These cookware stands are simple to put together and all of us can use storage options in our kitchens.

Staub cast iron cookware is another wonderful option for gift giving. Staub comes in a variety of sizes and colors and they have the most adorable knobs that are as addictive as the cookware. The fish, snail, rooster, cow, rabbit and pig knobs are whimiscal and would be a welcomed gift for those who already have Le Creuset or Staub (they are interchangeable) or as a stocking stuffer if Santa already has a dutch oven under the tree. 

Global 7-inch Hollow Edge Asian Chef’s Knife is on my wishlist for my birthday or the holidays. I have one of those awful birthdays that comes days before Christmas. Do not, I repeat, do not send me a Christmas related birthday gift. Global knives are top quality and just look sharp (I’m here all night, tip your wait staff). I am looking for the perfect knife and I believe this is it. 

Gift ideas for the busy cook

It is no secret that I love the Instant Pot. It’s a time saver, easy to use and safe – I have yet to be impaled by food shrapnel. Today through the 23rd (or as stock remains) the 3 quart, 7-in-1 mini duo is on sale for a great price of  US$51.99. My review on this pot can be found here. I’m sure sometime soon the 6 quart or 9 quart Instant Pot will be the subject of a holiday deal. Keep checking our Facebook page for updates (and please like us!)

There are several great cookbooks that I would recommend for the Instant Pot.

Gifts for the artisanal cook: 

A Passion for Pasta by Carmela Sophia Sereno is a beautiful book that reminds me of the joy that can be found in making homemade pasta.  I love my Kitchen aid attachments (and pasta extruders) – but when I want to just enjoy the process, I use the Marcato’s pasta machine – and as Carmela states in her book – it makes for a silkier consistency. For some reason, using the pasta roller and cutter by hand feels a bit more homemade than the motorized versions – although you can buy a motor for the Marcato. Another tool I am enjoying is Marcato’s ravioli tablet – it is just gorgeous and more sturdy than previous models. I still like to hand cut or stamp raviolis occasionally but using the tablet helps you to crank out ten ravioli at a time. A few other tools you might enjoy are the pasta wheel, also a time saver and allows the cutting of pasta and noodles of any length with nine interchangeable wheels. Also, I love Marcato’s pasta drying rack because it is gorgeous! More information can be found on Carmela’s book and these products on my promotion. 

Another artisanal gift would be anything from ZoZo Baking. Farbia’s pastries are stunning and delicious and I am smitten with her Persian cookie molds. For more information on ZoZo, please see my Persian baking post.

If you are in the Long Beach, California area, Feride Buyuran’s cooking classes are incredible (I watch her cooking videos on YouTube). I plan on making a trip myself. Her cookbook, Pomegranates and Saffron: A Culinary Journey to Azerbaijan is absolutely gorgeous, more information can be found on my review post.

For the cook who has everything, a set of vibrant magnetic spice jars in a modern display – spice art for your kitchen. I had to update this post to include Gneiss Spice which I discovered last night. All of their spices are certified organic, kosher and sustainably and ethically harvested, unless stated otherwise. You can build your own spice kit from a collection of over 200 seasonings! I love that the jars are about 1/4 cup size because we all want to be sure we are using the freshest product possible. We are working to bring you a promotion with this company. Just imagine how gorgeous the display to the right would look in your kitchen! I’m smitten with the rustic background. Gneiss Spice is offering EYB members 10 percent off their products using the code EYB17! 

Cookbooks from 2017 

Any cookbooks on my Fall Cookbooks preview post, I whole-heartedly recommend. These titles are must-have for cooks and bakers. In addition, other titles that would make any cookbook lover happy are:

• BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts by Stella Parks (review here)
• The Fearless Baker: Simple Secrets for Baking Like a Pro by Erin Jeanne McDowell
• French Patisserie: Master Recipes and Techniques from the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts by Ecole Ferrandi
• Modern French Pastry: Innovative Techniques, Tools and Design by Cheryl Wakerhauser
• Comfort: Delicious Bakes and Family Treats by Candice Brown
• Orange Appeal: Savory & Sweet by Jamie Schler (review here baking and savory)
• The Joys of Jewish Preserving: Modern Recipes with Traditional Roots, for Jams, Pickles, Fruit Butters, and More-for Holidays and Every Day by Emily Paster (review here)
• Ferment: A Practical Guide to the Ancient Art of Making Cultured Foods by Holly Davis (I adore this book, read a bit more about it here)
• Hazana: Jewish Vegetarian Cooking by Paola Gavin (promotion here)
• Wild Honey and Rye: Modern Polish Recipes by Ren Behan (a beautiful book that I hope to share a promotion soon)
• Chefs & Company: 75 Top Chefs Share More Than 180 Recipes to Wow Last-Minute Guests by Maria Isabella (absolutely gorgeous, promotion coming soon)
• Corsica: The Recipes by Nicolas Stromboni (another stunner, promotion coming soon)
• Two Kitchens: Family Recipes from Sicily and Rome by Rachel Roddy (review here)
• Sicily: The Cookbook: Recipes Rooted in Traditions by Melissa Muller
• Igni: The First Year by Aaron Turner (a stunning cookbook that shares the trials and tribulations of opening a restaurant)
• Osteria: 1,000 Generous and Simple Recipes from Italy’s Best Local Restaurants by Slow Food Editore
• Coastline: The Food of Mediterranean Italy, France and Spain by Lucio Galletto and David Dale (promotion here)
• The Iraqi Table by Raghad Al Safi is spectacular. I will be working on a feature for this book as it is one of the most beautiful books on Iraqi cooking I have laid eyes on. 
• The Vegetable: Recipes that Celebrate Nature by Caroline Griffiths and Vicki Valsamis (stunning book, promotion coming soon)
• Plantlab: Crafting the Future of Food by Matthew Kenney
• Rasika: Flavors of India by Ashok Bajaj and Vikram Sunderam (Indian, restaurant cookbook – beautiful)
• Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes by Alison Roman 
• Toronto Eats: 100 Signature Recipes from the City’s Best Restaurants by Amy Rosen (any of the Figure1 books are stellar; more information can be found here)
• Unforgettable: The Bold Flavors of Paula Wolfert’s Renegade Life is a must have (read full review here)

Food Literature

• Give a Girl a Knife: A Memoir by Amy Thielen (anything by Amy is a must have – review here)
• The Comfort Food Diaries: My Quest for the Perfect Dish to Mend a Broken Heart by Emily Nunn

And of course, give the gift that keeps on giving a Gift Certificate to Eat Your Books. We are running a contest right now, buy a gift certificate and be entered to win five cookbooks from 2017.  

Look for additional suggestions on our social media sites:  Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest. Following us makes sure you don’t miss any giveaways and cookbook news.  Happy Holidays!