The evolution of queer cookbooks

In 2024, seeing a cookbook that celebrates queer culture wouldn't cause anyone to so much as bat an eyelash, but that has not always been the case. Decades ago, a queer cookbook would have been coded or you would have to know that the author was part of the LGBTQ+ community to understand it as such. A lot of people… read more

The “little luxuries” trend

Supermarket checkout aisles are always filled with impulse buy items - chocolate bars and candy, cold drinks, and other things to tempt us as we wait to be checked out. Some retailers have expanded on this idea in times of high inflation when people are hesitating to put larger items into their carts, including the CEO of Whole Foods who… read more

June 2024 New Cookbook Review

Can you believe that we are now halfway through 2024! You can keep track of what is coming this year with our 2024 Cookbook Preview and don’t forget that you can create a wishlist and share it with your loved ones. Our June 2024 EYB Cookbook Club Summary and July 2024 Great Big Cookbook Club Summary can be found at the links provided. Last May we announced that… read more

The best way to clean oil stains

Since I wrote about dishwashing liquid yesterday, I thought it would be appropriate to follow up with another post about cleaning. I'm a messy cook and often forget to don an apron so I end up with spills and splatters on my clothing. Few things are worse than a grease or oil stain, which is why I was keenly interested… read more

Don’t go changing those kitchen fragrances

There are some kitchen scents that I find nearly intoxicating, such as onions and garlic sweating in olive oil, baking bread, and ripe peaches as they are being sliced. I must admit that I also like the smell of dishwashing liquid as the sink fills with suds - at least until recently. A few months ago, the brand I used… read more

Food news antipasto

Many fans of The Bear probably have a crush on the lead character, played by Jeremy Allen White. He's incredibly buff, which some critics say is unrealistic for the role. Is Carmy too fit to be a chef? That's the question Amanda Gabriele put to several industry experts, including chefs, and the reviews are mixed. While chefs have a reputation… read more

Pride Month: How some cookbook stores are celebrating

In the United States and most parts of the world, Pride Month is celebrated in June which is dedicated to the celebration and commemoration of LGBTQIA+ pride. Several of our favorite cookbook stores have events planned this month. Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks is part of the Lower East Side Pride Bookstore Crawl in New York City. This coming Saturday, June 29th,… read more

The copyright conundrum

Should chefs be able to copyright recipes? It's a perennial question in the industry and the debate has raged on for decades. There are problems with other chefs making bank using a recipe developed by a colleague or mentor, but it is diabolically difficult to parse what would qualify as a dish unique enough to be afforded a copyright protection.… read more

Yellow onions vs. white onions – which to use when

A few weeks ago I saw a video by Rick Bayless where he said something to the effect of "friends don't let friend use yellow onions." He was adamant that white onions were better for most Mexican dishes. Bayless did allow that red onions could work in a few applications, but warned viewers to steer clear of yellow onions when… read more

June 2024 EYB Cookbook Club Summary

Each month we offer at least four cooking options in our Eat Your Books Cookbook Club. This month we cooked from our favorite recipe from any cookbook, magazine, blog or online option. We are having a midyear catchup. In September, we will start cooking from new and classic titles. We hope that sharing our favorite recipes will help our Members discover… read more

Dolci!: American Baking with an Italian Accent – Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win one of two copies of Dolci!: American Baking with an Italian Accent by Renato Poliafito. This title will be released on June 25th and we have special permission to publish the index early for this promotion's purposes. Please be sure to note the author's events that we have shared on our Calendar. Co-founder and… read more

The bro-ification of beverages

After purchasing a home espresso maker in an effort to curb my expensive latte habit, I quickly realized that getting a great latte was going to be more complicated than just throwing some grounds into the portafilter (a term I just recently learned) and pressing the start button. This meant I needed to do some reading on the subject. As… read more

Forget trends, bring back the croissant

We've written before about croissants made in various shapes plus croissant mashups like the Cronut, the Cruffin, and more recently, Crookies. While chefs like Lune's Kate Reid say that the evolution of yeasted, laminated dough is helping the bottom line of bakeries around the world, Eater's Jaya Saxena says enough is enough. She believes the trends are harming the pastry… read more

Modern Asian Kitchen Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win one of two copies of Modern Asian Kitchen: Essential and Easy Recipes for Dim Sum, Dumplings, Stir-Fries, Ramen, Rice Bowls, Bibimbaps, Pho, and More by Kat Lieu. Modern Asian Kitchen: Essential and Easy Recipes for Dim Sum, Dumplings, Stir-Fries, Ramen, Rice Bowls, Bibimbaps, Pho, and More by Kat Lieu is the second cookbook from the… read more

July 2024 Great Big Cookbook Club Summary

As our members know, each month we offer several 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 want to get this information out to you so you can prepare… read more

Food news antipasto

The price of food has been on consumer's minds in recent months, and it's no wonder why: food costs for a "thrifty" family of four in the U.S. have increased by 50% from pre-pandemic levels. Producers claim that inflation is driving the price increases, but that doesn't tell the whole story. In an article shared on The Bittman Project, writer… read more

Father’s Day recipe ideas

Today is Father’s Day in the US, UK, and Canada. For many families the day will include outdoor cooking, meat on the grill, and picnic fare. If you are a procrastinator like me and are searching for last minute ideas, one place to look is Food Network, which has selected 35 pleasing Father's Day dinner ideas. In addition to the standard… read more

How one editor sparked a cookbook revolution

Judith Jones never set out to be a cookbook editor. “The idea of working on cookbooks never even occurred to me,” Jones wrote in her 2008 memoir, The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food. But even though it wasn't a career she sought, she ended up introducing the world to many culinary greats like Julia Child, Madhur Jaffrey, Lidia Bastianich, and… read more

A look at Dolci!, recipes, EYBD Previews and more

Before we get into the roundup, I wanted to share a little with you about a book that will be published this month: Dolci!: American Baking with an Italian Accent by Renato Poliafito and Casey Elsass. Co-founder and former co-owner of Red Hook’s Baked and co-author of the Baked titles, Renato Poliafito is getting back in touch with his roots… read more

Guild of Food Writers 2024 winners announced

The Guild of Food Writers announced the winners of its 2024 awards at a ceremony in London at the Royal Institution. At the event, Dame Prue Leith was given the Lifetime Achievement Award, a truly deserved honor. Now on to the winning books, which are a treasure trove of excellence. The First Book Award went to Painting the Plate: 52 Recipes… read more

Learning to love a food

When I was growing up, I did not like apples. I didn't like them as a snack, nor in a pie, nor as applesauce. In my mind they were an inferior fruit. This dislike persisted for nearly five decades, until suddenly I started appreciating them and even craving them. I'm not sure what spurred this change, but I now eagerly… read more

I’ll Bring Dessert Cookbook and Bakeware Giveaway

Enter our worldwide giveaway to win one of three copies of I'll Bring Dessert: Simple, Sweet Recipes for Every Occasion by Benjamina Ebuehi with one US winner receiving a set of Duralex baking items. Benjamina Ebeui is the founder of the blog Carrot and Crumb which has now transitioned over to Sweet Things, a substack newsletter. She appeared on The… read more

Food news antipasto

The first time I stepped into the Dean & Deluca store in Washington, DC's Georgetown neighborhood I was smitten. The dizzying array of imported cheese, quality olive oil, spices I hadn't heard of before, and so much more deepened my nascent love of cooking. Now Dean & Deluca is just a memory and I can only reminisce fondly about it.… read more

James Beard Cookbook and Media Award winners

In a ceremony earlier this evening in Chicago, the James Beard Foundation has announced the winners of its media awards in Chicago. You may watch the awards which were live-streamed on YouTube here. Michelle Miller, co-host of CBS This Morning, served as emcee for the event. Highlights of the cookbook awards include Sohla El-Waylly taking home top honors in the… read more

World’s 50 Best announces 2024 slate

On Wednesday evening, the World's 50 Best announced who was on its list of best restaurants in the world. The ceremony was held in Las Vegas, marking it as the culinary destination it has grown to be. In addition to the list of restaurants, there were additional awards, such as Neil Perry winning the Woodford Reserve Icon Award. You can… read more
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