Cookery-Bookery (Whatcha reading over there?)

MissFlitworth

I'm currently ploughing through Julia Child's "My Life in France" (which is where the cookery-bookery in the thread title comes from, just in case you thought I'd gone a bit baby talk) and loving it and it's reminding me that I really, really do love books that pivot and turn almost entirely around the subject of food, food science, food history, eating & cookery. Particular favourites over the last few years have Been 'In Defence of Food' and 'The Omnivore's Dilemma' by Michael Pollan aaaand for some reason I can't think of any others off the top of my head. I know there have been more!! I'll report back when the coffee kicks in. (cookbooks beside the bed too, rereading Yucatan Cookbook by Lyman Morton, unlikely to ever make anything from it but, like most books about food I read, it makes me want to travel).

Anyone else reading or has read an interesting food or cookery based book? Fiction or non, I'm always after recommendations. My Life in France is LOVELY if you haven't read it, highly recommend. Although I am jealous because it's an experience I'd like to have but it's not one that could be repeated now.

(although the description of the Normandy duck press squicked me out slightly. http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/15/44/1544bfda11e138fa27565b94dfe101a5.jpg?itok=IUl7FhrC

Minder

Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World Brilliant history.

Cheshire Cat

Minder wrote: »

Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World Brilliant history.

That sounds really interesting! Have just ordered it at the bookdepository.

I love reading cookery books. One of my favourite ones is Falling Cloudberries: a world of family recipes by Tessa Kiros. The author was born in London to a Finnish mother and a Greek-Cypriot father. The family then moved to South Africa, Tessa now lives in Italy. Interesting story and great recipes!

I also love the Inspector Montalbano books. He is very preoccupied with good food :cool:

nompere

This is one of my favourite books - actually it's three, so it's not quite a expensive as it looks at first.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Elizabeth-David-Classics-Mediterranean-Country/dp/1902304276/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1430778217&sr=1-1&keywords=elizabeth+david+cookery+books

So many great ideas, and it's fascinating when she talks about things which are so common to us now, but were almost unheard of 60 years ago.

sdp

Really enjoying the The Ballymaloe Cookbook (Revised and Updated 50-Year-Anniversary Edition )
http://www.gillmacmillanbooks.ie/cookery/cookery/the-ballymaloe-cookbook-
nice bit of history and old recipes that we know and love.
also waiting for this to arrive , http://www.bookdepository.com/Preserving-Food-without-Freezing-or-Canning-Gardeners-Farmers-Centre-Terre-Vivante/9781933392592
As I do a lot of preserving , and always looking for new ways to do it.

Loire

MissFlitworth wrote: »

I'm currently ploughing through Julia Child's "My Life in France"

I read this book and loved it. Her husband was party of some gentleman's club that would organise dining out in Paris' top restaurants....sounds like an amazing time.

There's a film too called Julia & Julia with Meryl Streep about a blogger cooking one of Julia Childs recipes each day for 365 days. Interesting film too.

Loire.

pwurple

If you like Julia Child's book, check out Raymond Blanc's "A taste of my life". I really enjoyed it.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Taste-My-Life-Raymond-Blanc/dp/0552157317/ref=la_B000APMTEK_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1430840319&sr=1-2

GrahamThomas

Recently picked up a copy of Sabrina Ghayour's Persiana cookbook. It's all Persian and Middle Eastern recipes, can't wait to try out a few of them

Whistlejacket

My current favourites, in no particular order:

Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi
The Forgotten Skills of Cooking by Darina Allen (if I had to pick one cookbook for the rest of my life this would be it)
How to Eat by Nigella (obvious I know, but still such a well written testimony to real food)
Food Rules and The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan (there is so much bad "science"/quackery/rubbish written about food; these aren't, and he's not above telling a joke against himself)
Anything by Nigel Slater, he writes so well. I wouldn't give him 10 seconds on TV but I love his cook books.

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazer. It's a novel set in the American civil war, not a cook book. But most of the characters spend the book hungry and food from the era is described in vivid detail; every time I read it I end up starving and craving cornbread!