..........a blog about food, travel, gardening, and living the good life in Arizona.

Friday, January 8, 2016

C is for cookbooks

Of which I have many. The count today is 444 which doesn't include pamphlets or food magazines. I've been collecting cookbooks since I can remember beginning with yard sale and church cookbooks when I was a teenager. My mother had a copy of Betty Crocker that I remember vividly; it must have been her go-to source for recipes because the pages were spotted and falling out from years of use.

My collection includes many newer titles but older ones too -- from Ottolenghi's Plenty to the 1944 edition of Elena's Famous Mexican and Spanish Recipes by Elena Zelayeta and so many more in between. I could write pages about my favorites and the things I've learned from reading and experimenting with the recipes that intrigued me. These cookbooks are like old friends that I can check in with from time to time and be happily entertained.





I especially love cookbooks that are not just collections of recipes, but cookbooks that can be read like a good novel. Food writers like Laurie Colwin, Elizabeth David and M.F.K. Fisher have entertained me and taught me so much about cooking and eating well; to them I owe a debt of gratitude.

If I had to chose favorites, they would be the binders of recipes I've assembled over the years: collected from cookbooks, magazines, cooking classes and a few I developed myself. These are the tried and true recipes that I rely on time and again.

Until tomorrow... must go check on my bread dough.

No comments:

Post a Comment