What’s your favorite spice?

Normal people do not have two drawers chock full of herbs and spices - at least that is what my friends tell me. In this respect, if not several others, I am happily abnormal. Baking and cooking are my main hobbies and passions, things I do when I have time and think about doing when I don't have time. This… read more

Cook with Me & How to Cook Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win a copy of Cook with Me: More Than 150 Recipes for the Home Cook by Alex Guarnaschelli and a copy of How to Cook: Building Blocks and 100 Simple Recipes for a Lifetime of Meals by Hugh Acheson. In Cook with Me Alex delivers 150 recipes complimented by insightful and heartfelt reflections. She shares… read more

Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love – New Cookbook 2021

As I was updating the 2021 cookbook preview, I learned that Ottolenghi will have another cookbook coming out this autumn/fall: Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love (UK 9/30/2021; US 10/19/2021 and CA 10/19/2021). You can preorder the book now and it is something to look forward to for Ottolenghi fans! From Amazon: For the first time, Yotam Ottolenghi teams up with… read more

Great British Chefs Hacks Electronic Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our worldwide contest to win one of five electronic copies of Great British Chefs: Hacks: How Chefs Make Dishes Go from Good to Great. In my prior promotions on Great British Chef titles, I shared the following information regarding the Great British Chefs (GBC) website: Search by recipe name or recipe type or find all the recipes of your favorite chef. Our EYB Library has… read more

The difference between raisins, sultanas, and currants

When it comes to dried fruit, raisins are king. Although humble in appearance, they are found in a variety of savory and sweet recipes in almost every food culture in the world. Have you ever wondered about the difference between raisins and sultanas (aka golden raisins)? And did you know there is another dried grape product that goes by another… read more

January 2021 EYB 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: Modern Comfort Food by Ina Garten or The Flavor Equation: The Science of Great Cooking Explained: More Than 100 Essential Recipes by Nik SharmaBaking Selection: Pie month: The Book on Pie by Erin McDowell, Pie Camp by Kate McDermott, Pie for Everyone by Petra… read more

Food news antipasto

Over a year ago, we received news that a new scripted series about the life of Julia Child would be coming to HBO Max. At the time of the last announcement, Joan Cusack was slated to be in the starring role. We've finally received an update on this project. Filming has begun, but two-time BAFTA (British Academy of Film &… read more

When AI makes recipes

Artificial intelligence has been used to solve intractable mathematical problems, create eerie deep-fake videos, and make dancing robots. Now we can add recipe developer to the long list of AI achievements, thanks to Google. Researchers at Google Cloud, inspired by the surge in baking searches during the pandemic, "decided to dive a little deeper into the trend and try to… read more

This week: 2021 cookbooks, recipes, giveaways, previews and more

2021 is looking like another stellar year for cookbook lovers. This year we have books coming from Julia Turshen, Dorie Greenspan, Eric Ripert, Rose Levy Beranbaum, Zoë François, Pepper Teigen (Chrissy’s mom), Carla Lalli Music, Joshua McFadden, Giada De Laurentis, Sybil Kapoor, Rosie Birkett, Mary Berg, Emma Galloway, Ross Joseph Dobson, Tom Parker Bowles, Michael Smith, Chetna Makan, Bobby Flay,… read more

Google’s top recipe searches of 2020

After cooking morning, noon, and night, who among us wasn't desperate to find new recipes last year? Most readers here likely opted to use the EYB Library to search for what to cook for the next meal, but of course worldwide, Google is the top English-language search engine. Naturally they have kept track of what people searched for in 2020,… read more

Why is 350 degrees such a common oven temperature?

Arguably the most common oven temperature for baked goods like cookies, cakes, and enriched breads is 350°F (~180°C). For most of us, it's the default setting on our oven's control panel. How did bakers land on this as the 'magic number' for so many items? Speaking with Vox, award-wining Pastry Chef Michael Laiskonis provides the answers. The key criteria for… read more

Croatian Desserts – Worldwide Giveaway

Enter our worldwide giveaway to win a copy of Croatian Desserts: 50 Authentic Recipes To Make At Home by Andrea Pisac. On January 1st, I wrote about a new-to-me dessert cookbook that I found myself enamored with - Croatian Desserts: 50 Authentic Recipes To Make At Home. Over the last two weeks, I have spent a great deal of time… read more

February 2021 Great Big Cookbook Club Summary

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. Please note the addition of Kitchen Arts & Letters, The Sunday… read more

Sticking to a ‘dry January’ has never been easier

Following the indulgence and excess that can happen during the end-of-year holiday season, people frequently cut back on both food and drink when the new year rolls around. Some take a 'dry January' pledge, opting not to drink any alcoholic beverages during the entire month. In the past this meant a rather boring drink selection, but not these days. Increasing… read more

The Roads to Rome and Old World Italian Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win one of each of the following titles: The Roads to Rome by Jarrett Wrisley and Paolo Vitaletti and Old World Italian: Recipes and Secrets from Our Travels in Italy by Mimi Thorisson. Take a culinary journey to Italy with these two beautiful cookbooks as your tour guides. We will begin on the road to… read more

Food new antipasto

Tales of kitchen disasters never fail to entertain me, perhaps because I have had so many of them in my own kitchen. From charcoal caramel to accidentally pouring out long-simmering stock, messes and mix-ups are part of everyone's culinary journey. For your amusement, here's a small gallery of kitchen disasters to make you feel better about your own mishaps. Le… read more

Ovenly – Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US giveaway to win one of three copies of Ovenly, Updated Edition: Sweet and Salty Recipes from New York's Most Creative Bakery by Agatha Kulaga and Erin Patinkin. The recent publication of an updated edition of Ovenly: Sweet and Salty Recipes from New York's Most Creative Bakery reminded me just how amazing this title is. I volunteered to… read more

The case for following the recipe exactly

Normally when the calendar turns over to January I write a post about New Year's food resolutions. I think all of us have enough pressure on us this year without adding to it, so I skipped the resolution post. However, some of you might have made one anyway, like the The New York Times' Genevieve Ko did. Her resolution is… read more

This week: Pound cakes, recipes, giveaways and previews

This week I had planned to feature recipes for a healthy start to the new year. After having a personally difficult week compounded by the happenings in the US in regards to the attack on the Capitol and with COVID still running rampant worldwide, I went for comfort again. Black & white pound cake from Food52 While I love baking… read more

Nathalie Dupree’s downsizing auction boasts many treasures

Beloved Southern cookbook author Nathalie Dupree and her husband Jack Bass have retired and moved from Charleston, South Carolina to be closer to family. As part of the downsizing for their new home, they are having an estate sale, and the treasures to be found there are amazing. Nathalie not only wrote cookbooks, but was a featured culinary writer for the… read more

Pioneering chef Albert Roux has died

We have sad news to report: Albert Roux, a chef who helped revolutionize fine dining in London, has died at the age of 85. Along with his brother Michel, Albert founded Britain's first Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Gavroche. That pioneering restaurant helped launch the careers of many of the UK's best known chefs, including Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White. Food… read more

Africola – Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US/CA/UK/AU giveaway to win a copy of Africola: Slow Food Fast Words Cult Chef by Duncan Welgemoed. Duncan Welgemoed's approach to food is fearless, take-no-prisoners, bold and exciting, inspired by his South African heritage. His multi-awarded, South Australian-based restaurant Africola serves food that is cooked on fire, in embers or ashes, in ovens, or cast iron pots -… read more

The grocery shopping blues

I enter the supermarket like an MI6 agent on a mission: furtive glances to identify maskless patrons, determined movements as I methodically toss items into the cart, and brisk steps to the next aisle because time is of the essence. This is not the way I shopped in January 2020. In those halcyon days, my shopping trips were leisurely and… read more

Australian Food – Cookbook Giveaway

Enter our US/CA/UK/AU giveaway to win a copy of Australian Food by Bill Granger. In the 20 years since Bill Granger published his first book of recipes, Sydney Food, the world has fallen in love with the joyfully casual Australian way of eating. As a self-taught cook, straight out of art school, Bill furnished his first street-corner eatery in minimalist… read more

Food news antipasto

With 2020 in the rearview mirror, we can take a look back at the year and find the few bright spots. For many people, those happy moments involved food. The Guardian asked its readers to tell them which new ingredient discoveries they made in 2020, and the results are fascinating, ranging from the comforting to the exotic. Croissant dough keeps… read more
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