This post is all about my Favorite Cookbooks, where they are in the kitchen and how many you should get to have a versatile cookbook library.

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Published January 29, 2024
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Why have Favorite Cookbooks?

Each week, our family sits down and chooses our menu for the next week. We pull out the cookbooks and the recipe binder, then we decide what meals we all want.

Out of all the cookbooks we have, there are 5 that are used each week. They have our favorite recipes, recipes that are tried and true.

Many years ago, I created and developed a Menu book for Tyler and gifted it to him for Christmas. On each page is a different cuisine. From desserts to appetizers, Asian to Indian, Mexican and American, Cookies, Fudge, Cakes, Pies and more. Each time we LOVE a recipe, it is listed on the page. After many years, there are so many delicious and amazing recipes included in the Menu planner that we never get dull picking dinners for the week.

Favorite Cookbooks

#1 – The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook 2001-2019

This cookbook is by far, my family’s FAVORITE cookbook. We literally use it each week to make recipes that are delicious and incredibly tested and real.

The staff of the America’s Test Kitchen make it their job to perfect recipes so you can have the best dinner and dessert recipes. The show showcases recipes, tested products and reviews of foods for the perfect brand.

This America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook has some of our favorite recipes from sourdough starter, soups, steak, cheesecake, chocolate caramel cake and more. If you could have one cookbook in your kitchen arsenal, this is the BEST pick.

#2 – Milk Street by Christopher Kimball

My husband and I fell in love with Christopher Kimball while he was still on the America’s Test Kitchen show. Since his break from the show and creating the Milk Street show, he also created the cookbook. Once at a bookstore, we found this cookbook for super cheap.

Christopher Kimball and the Milk Street staff have proven recipes from all over the world. Their recipes use bold flavors and unique pairings, bringing recipes to you that you’ve never had before. They have traveled the world, searching for the BEST recipes to showcase on their show.

When we want a new and unique dinner idea, Milk Street is our go-to Favorite Cookbooks.

#3 – This Will Make It Taste Good by Vivian Howard

For a birthday, the kids and Tyler gifted me this cookbook from Vivian Howard, This Will Make It Taste Good. She had a show on PBS with her restaurant that features recipes from the deep south. She and her husband have twins and shared their lives with how to manage family and owning a restaurant.

Her flavors are bold, unique and delicious. Her other cookbook, Deep Run Roots, is a bestseller as well.

From the recipes that we have cook and baked, there has not been one that the kids ALL have not absolutely loved. Her blend of flavors to make sauces are just fantastic and delicious. For a cookbook with southern roots, this one is by far a winner deserving of this list.

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#4 – Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld

This was one of the first cookbooks I purchased for myself when starting to cook. Her recipes are created to sneak healthy food as purees into your cooking and baking.

This cookbook starts with what tools to stock your kitchen with, including tools, equipment, spices and necessary pantry items. Once you learn how to pure healthy foods like squash, carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes and much more, and how to store them, you can then learn to add the purees into your recipes.

And yes, Jessica Seinfeld IS the famous comedian, Jerry’s wife. They have three kids who were at one time picky eaters and needing to add pureed foods to recipes helped them to eat healthier.

#5 – Family Treasures Cookbook Recipes from the Heart

My mom gifted me this cookbook many years ago. She got it at a local Amish auction. This cookbook contains over 600 recipes from Amish women and their families from 1999 and 2000.

Included in the index of recipes includes breads, rolls, appetizers, dips, cookies, cakes, frostings, pies, main dishes, soup, candy, pancakes, canning, freezing, jams, jellies and much more.

Whenever I need a delicious and simple recipe with real ingredients, this cookbook always comes through.

You may also like…

For more kitchen inspiration, organization and needed tools, check out these two blog posts. How do you organize your ever-messy spice cabinet? This Spice Rack Organization System is a winner for everyone. Click the link below for details.

9 Insanely Vital Kitchen Items is the BEST list of kitchen tools and gadgets everyone needs for their kitchen. They include items to help you bake and cook like a professional.

Cookbooks can help you learn to cook, teach you techniques you don’t know about yet, and introduce you to foods and cuisines to enrich your life.

This post was all about my 5 favorite cookbooks to help you learn to cook, gain techniques, and to compile recipes for your menu.
~Monica

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