Summer is in full swing, and with it comes a never-ending array of new and refreshing cookbooks!
Whether you’re a beginner looking to improve your skills, or a pro chef looking for recipe inspiration, there’s a cookbook for you this season. With such a huge variety to choose from, we’ve cut through the clutter for you (you’re welcome)!
From books on making healthy eating fun to twists on old recipes, read on for our list of the best cookbooks out this summer.
1. Eat A Little Better: Great Flavor, Good Health, Better World
Have you always wanted to eat healthier, but it’s just too hard? We’ve all been there. Enter Sam Kass, former chef to the Obamas turned White House food policy advisor, with a cookbook that helps you keep it simple. The book is brimming with 90 healthy and sustainable recipes, along with tips to help make eating better less of a chore and more of a joy. And If you can’t trust the Obama’s chef, who can you trust?
You can get a sneak peek at some of his tips here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Eat-Little-Better-Flavor-Health/dp/0451494946
2. Gather & Graze: 120 Favorite Recipes for Tasty Good Times
Stephanie Izard was Top Chef’s first female winner, owns three restaurants in Chicago, is an Iron Chef…the list goes on.
Her second cookbook centers around cult favorite dishes from her own restaurants, along with more home-style fare. At times adventurous with creative flavor combos, such as Banh Mi Burgers, there are also more simple recipes with familiar ingredients.
You can test out one of her recipes here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Gather-Graze-Favorite-Recipes-Tasty/dp/0451495942
3. Something Old, Something New: Classic Recipes Revised
Chef and food writer Tamar Adler brings a fun twist to very traditional recipes with her second cookbook. With 100 revamped recipes, from devilled eggs to souffle, Adler removes outdated techniques and brings them into the 21st century. With seasonal menus, wine pairings, and watercolor drawings, this cookbook is just as beautiful as it is delicious.
You can sample a recipe from the book here.
Find it: http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Something-Old-Something-New/Tamar-Adler/9781476799612
4. The Austin Cookbook: Recipes and Stories from Deep in the Heart of Texas
Traditional and new Texan food meet in food writer Paula Forbes’ new cookbook. The recipes were pulled together in a very creative way – landmark Austin restaurants submitted recipes they felt best represented them. Because really, who doesn’t love barbeque and Tex-Mex!?
You can try one of her recipes here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Austin-Cookbook-Recipes-Stories-Heart/dp/1419728938
5. Coconuts & Collards: Recipes and Stories from Puerto Rico to the Deep South
Part memoir and part cookbook, Von Diaz beautifully blends together her Puerto Rican heritage with her Atlanta upbringing. Diaz joins the two cultures by mixing traditional Puerto Rican and contemporary southern recipes. She also offers updated and healthier spins on classic Puerto Rican dishes, while keeping all the great flavor.
You can check out one of her recipes here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Coconuts-Collards-Recipes-Stories-Puerto/dp/0813056659
6. Korean BBQ: Master Your Grill in Seven Sauces
If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to cook Korean BBQ, this is the book for you. Award-winning chef Bill Kim has developed 80 accessible recipes that perfectly represent his Korean heritage and Midwest upbringing. More than just recipes, this cookbook will teach you to master sauces and spice rubs, along with the fundamentals of the Korean grill.
You can take a look at one of his recipes here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Korean-BBQ-Master-Grill-Sauces/dp/0399580786
7. Saladish: A Crunchier, Grainier, Herbier, Heartier, Tastier Way with Vegtables WAY WITH VEGETABLES
Written by Ilene Rosen, who created the kale salad twenty years ago, you don’t get much more credibility when it comes to salad. Rosen has compiled 100 recipes, incorporating a wide range of ingredients, textures, and flavors. Basically, she makes salads fun (yes, it is possible).
You can view some of her recipes here.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Saladish-Crunchier-Grainier-Heartier-Vegetables/dp/1579656951
8. The Flavor Matrix: The Art and Science of Pairing Common Ingredients to Create Extrordinary Dishes
This is the perfect book for any science nerds out there or anyone who just wants to know why certain flavors work so well together. Chef James Briscione used IBM Watson to turn data into inventive recipes, with some wild pairings like black tea and tomato sauce. Briscione hones in on 58 ingredients, with each ingredient featuring a description and brief history, along with a pairing guide. This is an encyclopedia of flavor that you’ll keep coming back to for years.
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Flavor-Matrix-Science-Ingredients-Extraordinary/dp/0544809963
9. A Table in Venice: Recipes From My Home
If you’ve ever been to Venice, you may not have actually tasted true Venetian cooking. This is why food writer Skye McAlpine has put together a collection of 100 of her favourite truly Venetian recipes. If you’ve never been to Venice, this will give you a taste of it (without the expensive plane ticket).
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Table-Venice-Recipes-My-Home/dp/1524760293
10. Japan: The Cookbook
This cookbook is not for the faint of heart. Food writer Nancy Singleton Hachisu took three years to write this book and has included a whopping 400 recipes alongside 50+ recipes from Japanese chefs.
Chapters are organized by technique and span from traditional dishes like teppan-yaki to more historical dishes and fundamental ramen recipes. Sushi anyone?
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Japan-Cookbook-Nancy-Singleton-Hachisu/dp/0714874744
11. Julep: Southern Cocktails Refashioned
If you can’t make it to Alba Huerta’s Houston bar, Julep, then this book is the next best thing. Her book is filled with cocktails and bar snack recipes, from mint juleps to deviled eggs. Huerta was also named one of the country’s best bartenders, so these fun twists on southern cocktails are worth a shot…or more than one.
Get a sample of one of her delicious cocktail recipes here and click here for a full list of links to order, references and further reading!
Find it: https://www.amazon.com/Julep-Cocktails-Refashioned-Alba-Huerta/dp/0399579419
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