Lucky foods for the new year

Eating traditional foods that are thought to bring good luck seems more necessary than ever today as the world rings in 2021. Which foods are considered lucky varies from country to country and even from region to region. Grapes play an important role in Spain, where revelers consume 12 grapes just as the clock strikes midnight, each grape representing a… read more

Mastering Bread – Shun Bread Knife Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win one copy of Mastering Bread: The Art and Practice of Handmade Sourdough, Yeast Bread, and Pastry by Marc Vetri along with a Shun bread knife. The Vetri Cucina Bread Program began over ten years ago in an effort to reclaim high-quality bread as a cornerstone to our food culture. In his latest book, Vetri and… read more

Food in fiction

While I enjoy little else more than cracking open a cookbook and devouring it like a novel - especially books that immerse themselves in a particular culture - it's fun to read other types of books where food is a prominent feature. Some books skillfully weave both recipes and prose, such as In Winter's Kitchen by Beth Dooley, which I… read more

Red Sands by Caroline Eden Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US/UK/AU/NZ giveaway to win one of three copies of Red Sands: Reportage and Recipes Through Central Asia, from Hinterland to Heartland by Caroline Eden. Wanderlust: noun a strong desire to travel For most of my life, Ive tried to be a glass is half full kind of person with spatterings of why is this glass half empty for… read more

The bucatini shortage of 2020

Among the items that were in short supply this year, pasta ranked near the top of the list. In March, I was shocked to see a huge swath of completely bare shelves where once sat myriad boxes of Barilla, Colavita, Rummo, and bevy of store brands. The only items that remained were a couple of sad whole wheat pasta products… read more

Food news antipasto

Have a refrigerator full of Christmas leftovers? Find ideas for how to use them with Yotam Ottolenghi's Boxing Day (and beyond) recipes that make use of turkey, Christmas pudding, cranberry sauce, and more. If that isn't enough inspiration, try Tim Dowling's 17 ways with leftover turkey or Diana Henry's ideas for leftover ham, turkey, stuffing, and sprouts. This week's news… read more

Best selling foods of 2020

Grocery stores had their busiest year ever in 2020 and it had a lot of drama: toilet paper hoarding, yeast and flour flying off the shelves, delays in producing and shipping, putting up plexiglass partitions in the checkout lanes, and more. Grocery store workers were on the front lines of this pandemic, and our hats are off to them as… read more

The food trends of 2020 that helped us cope

Even those of us who love to be in the kitchen were pushed to our limits this year, churning out meal after meal. When we felt drained of creativity, we turned to cookbooks and the internet to find inspiration to make it through another day of cooking. Some of us turned to baking as a respite, and it's probably fair… read more

Crafting a smaller holiday dinner

Like so many others, my husband and I are going to be alone for the holidays for the first time in many years. Even though we rarely travelled to celebrate with family, we always invited other 'orphan' friends to our home or would go to the neighbors for Christmas Eve or Christmas - and in some years, to celebrate the… read more

Best of the Best of 2020

Despite the stresses of the worldwide pandemic, there has been no shortage of wonderful new cookbooks this year. And no shortage of best food and drink book lists celebrating the cream of the crop. We have assembled 285 lists from around the world to create our 12th annual Best of the Best. It will be no surprise to anyone who… read more

The best cookbooks of 2020 by the experts

Who knows cookbooks better than the owners of specialist cookbook stores? They stock and sell thousands of cookbooks and because their stores are focused on food and drink books, they are true experts. They read the books, cook from them and then share their knowledge with their customers. When shopping for cookbook gifts this holiday season, please think about supporting… read more

Counting down the top foods of 2020

We have made dozens of new recipes and made several favorites on repeat in our house this year. While finding delicious new meals is exciting, sometimes nothing beats the comfort of tried-and-true items when inspiration and energy runs down. I've been going through my cookbooks to flag favorite recipes on my EYB bookshelf so I can easily find them but… read more

A Good Bake – Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win a copy of A Good Bake: The Art and Science of Making Perfect Pastries, Cakes, Cookies, Pies, and Breads at Home by Melissa Weller and Carolynn Carreño. If I would be forced to pick my top four baking books of 2020,  A Good Bake: The Art and Science of Making Perfect Pastries, Cakes, Cookies,… read more

Food news antipasto

Reading raw numbers of infections and deaths does little to illustrate the personal toll the coronavirus is taking on individuals. One story that puts names to the numbers in a visceral way involves food, which makes the impact even greater for a food lover like me. The Charleston Post-Courier published a story about a handful of coronavirus victims that includes… read more

More gingerbread house eye candy

I just can't resist posting one last item about gingerbread houses. This one comes from an annual contest hosted by The Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina (incidentally, one of my all-time favorite cities in the US). This year the contest was virtual, like so many others, but that did not limit the creativity or excellence of the… read more

December 2020 New Cookbook Review

Welcome to the last month of 2020. The number of releases is even smaller than usual for December as there were about a dozen books moved to 2021. To check out what is coming next year, my 2021 preview post is continually being updated. Some reminders before we discuss this month's titles. Last month, I published my gift guides for the… read more

This week: Kransekake and Baumkuchen cakes, cookbook and product giveaways, EYBD Previews and more!

You may have guessed that I have an unhealthy obsession with all things baking. One of this week's (many) bakes that pulled me into its sugary vortex is the Kransekake cake. Its towering magnificence has me making promises to myself to dust off my kransekake molds. Kransekake from Sweet Paul Magazine, Winter 2015 (#23) by Paul Lowe The kransekage which translates to wreath cake… read more

December 2020 Eat Your Books Cookbook Club Summary

Each month we offer at least four cooking options in our Eat Your Books Cookbook Club. This month we’ve been cooking from the following titles: Main Selection: Simply: Easy Everyday Dishes from the Bestselling Author of Persiana by Sabrina GhayourBaking Selection: One Tin Bakes: Sweet and Simple Traybakes, Pies, Bars and Buns by Edd Kimber * online recipes from the book here and share any of your… read more

London chefs share their Christmas dinner secrets

You might have your holiday meal plan down pat, but I will confess that I haven't even started putting together a menu. That is not only because there will be just two of us, I am a champion procrastinator. I have begun the process of deciding what to make, but could use a little help. That is why I was… read more

Toblerone Cookbook: 40 Fabulous Baking Treats

Enter our US giveaway to win one of three copies of Toblerone Cookbook: 40 Fabulous Baking Treats by Kyle Books. Toblerone's legendary almond and honey triangular chocolate bar is loved the world over and sold everywhere, from international airports to local corner shops. This beautifully packaged, fabulously fun cookery book celebrates the versatility of this iconic chocolate bar (which comes… read more

Why you should set your desserts on fire

Let's face it, 2020 has been a calamity for almost everyone across the globe. I recently saw a commemorative candle that sums up what a lot of people feel about the year: a dumpster fire. Since the world is literally and figuratively on fire this year, why not keep the flames going through your cooking? Kidding aside, adding fire to… read more

January 2021 Great Big Cookbook Club Roundup

As our members know, each month we offer at least four cooking options in our Eat Your Books Cookbook Club. There are other fun cookbook clubs around the interwebs and we’d like to highlight those for those members who might want to cook or bake something other than our choices. We will try to keep you up-to-date on these clubs’ choices… read more

The Book on Pie and a JK Adams Pastry Board Giveaway

Enter our US/CA giveaway to win one of three copies of The Book on Pie: Everything You Need to Know to Bake Perfect Pies by Erin Jeanne McDowell with one grand prize winner in the US receiving The Ultimate Pastry Board from JK Adams as well! The Book on Pie: Everything You Need to Know to Bake Perfect Pies by Erin Jeanne… read more

Cookies from around the world or around the block

For a few years, the term procrastibaking has been employed to describe any time someone bakes when they should be doing something else such as working or doing the laundry. Today, I've been working on promotions and end of the month posts and my thoughts kept wandering to other fun things I want to do such as decorate the tree… read more

Baking Cookbook Bundle Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win a bundle of four fantastic baking titles. One winner will receive a copy of each of these titles: Snacking Cakes: Simple Treats for Anytime Cravings by Yossy Arefi, The Good Book of Southern Baking: A Revival of Biscuits, Cakes, and Cornbread by Kelly Fields and Kate Heddings, Dessert Person: Recipes and Guidance for Baking… read more
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