I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
search for what is new, and what people think.
When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
point, 300 cookbooks later.
Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above, for
almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
5-10 years.
Many thanks for any advice,
Kent

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/031...lance&n=283155

or

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/031...Fencoding=UTF8

or

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/159...lance&n=283155

or

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/067...lance&n=283155
but you already said that

or

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/076...lance&n=283155
"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one
> must search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks ,
> and I almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975
> edition, before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's
> still the starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook".
> Next, depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella
> Hazan,'s books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's
> books["Cooking School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"].
> Only after the above, for almost everything else, do I open any of
> the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the
> last 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent
>
>

"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent


For anything dessert-wise, any book by Maida Heatter.

-Scott

Kent wrote:
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent

Well, I don't have any favorites published in the last 5-10 years. I
tend to use my mom's recipe books she got back in the 60's. They're a
series of recipe books called "Favorite Recipes of Home Economics
Teachers" published by Favorite Recipes Press. There's a volume on
desserts, one for meats, one for salads, one for vegetables, one for
foreign foods, one for casseroles and breads, and one for quick and
easy dishes. Each volume is at least 350 pages and has several recipes
on each page. The only pictures are at the beginning of each chapter,
and they're all in black and white. There are no pictures on the pages
with the actual recipes.

BbqGuy wrote:
> [bunch of links]

The classics mentioned already in other replies are inarguable. Of the
current crop of writers I most often recommend Mark Bittman's books.
"How To Cook Everything" is a modern Joy of Cooking in its broad
educational value. "The Best Recipes in the World" (or something close
to that) is both a fine collection of recipes and again has a lot of
useful info and techniques. The Minimalist books give you good food
without fuss while imparting very useful general principles. -aem

Kent wrote:
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
> point, 300 cookbooks later.

Amen! My first cookbook (same edition). I sat and read it like a novel
and still consider it "the source"

Kent wrote:

> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
> point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above, for
> almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,

I have found some good recipes in various sources, cook books, on line,
magazines and newspapers. Some of the most interesting have been from
magazines. Most cook books have all sorts of recipes that I have no use for and
are pretty much a waste of time. If I could have only one cook book it would
have to be the Joy of Cooking. It has more useful recipes and more tips than
any other I have seen.

Kent wrote:
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
> point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above, for
> almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent
>
>
>
My first reference is always to Stephanie Alexander's encyclopaedic
"Cook's Companion", now in its second edition. Can't think how I managed
without it. Well, actually I can, I used other books, which I still
refer to. Marcella Hazan is wonderful. I have Jane Grigson's "Fruit
Book" and "Vegetable Book". I have just about everything Beverley
Sutherland Smith ever published, and Charmaine Solomon's "Complete
Vegetarian Cookbook".

In recent years I have had a lot of use out of various books by Jill
Dupleix, whose recipes are in the style you might call elegant simplicity.

I confess that I do not own anything by Delia Smith or Margaret Fulton
(her Australian counterpart).

Many of my cookbooks are more used as reference works, you can tell by
the lack of stains on the pages! In this category I put various books by
Rose Levy Berenbaum, Barbara Kafka and Claudia Roden (whose "Book of
Jewish Food" is a great read). And of course the greatest reference work
of all, which is not a cookbook, is Harold McGee's mighty "On Food and
Cooking".

These days I rarely buy cookbooks of the instructional manual sort. My
latest purchase has been "The Kitchen Diaries" by Nigel Slater, which is
one of those discursive books with the recipes integrated into the
narrative, a style pioneered by the immortals Elizabeth David and M F K
Fisher.

Christine

"Dave Smith" > wrote in message
...
> Kent wrote:
>
>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>> search for what is new, and what people think.
>> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
>> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
>> starting
>> point, 300 cookbooks later.
>> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
>> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
>> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
>> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
>> for
>> almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
>> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
>> 5-10 years.
>> Many thanks for any advice,
>
> I have found some good recipes in various sources, cook books, on line,
> magazines and newspapers. Some of the most interesting have been from
> magazines. Most cook books have all sorts of recipes that I have no use
> for and
> are pretty much a waste of time. If I could have only one cook book it
> would
> have to be the Joy of Cooking. It has more useful recipes and more tips
> than
> any other I have seen.
>
>


"In Nonna's Kitchen", by Carol Field. The author wandered around Italy,
interviewing grandmothers and collecting recipes that might be lost in one
or two generations. No pictures of the food, just the grandmothers.
Fantastic book.

"Vegetables", by James Peterson

"Old Mother Ashby" > wrote in message
...
> Kent wrote:
>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>> search for what is new, and what people think.
>> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
>> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
>> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
>> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
>> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
>> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
>> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
>> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
>> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
>> 5-10 years.
>> Many thanks for any advice,
>> Kent
>>
>>
>>
> My first reference is always to Stephanie Alexander's encyclopaedic
> "Cook's Companion", now in its second edition. Can't think how I managed
> without it. Well, actually I can, I used other books, which I still refer
> to. Marcella Hazan is wonderful. I have Jane Grigson's "Fruit Book" and
> "Vegetable Book". I have just about everything Beverley Sutherland Smith
> ever published, and Charmaine Solomon's "Complete Vegetarian Cookbook".
>
> In recent years I have had a lot of use out of various books by Jill
> Dupleix, whose recipes are in the style you might call elegant simplicity.
>
> I confess that I do not own anything by Delia Smith or Margaret Fulton
> (her Australian counterpart).
>
> Many of my cookbooks are more used as reference works, you can tell by the
> lack of stains on the pages! In this category I put various books by Rose
> Levy Berenbaum, Barbara Kafka and Claudia Roden (whose "Book of Jewish
> Food" is a great read). And of course the greatest reference work of all,
> which is not a cookbook, is Harold McGee's mighty "On Food and Cooking".
>
> These days I rarely buy cookbooks of the instructional manual sort. My
> latest purchase has been "The Kitchen Diaries" by Nigel Slater, which is
> one of those discursive books with the recipes integrated into the
> narrative, a style pioneered by the immortals Elizabeth David and M F K
> Fisher.
>
> Christine

Another vote for Marcella Hazan. "Marcella Cucina" is a great book. She
cooks and writes like a normal person, not a celebrity. The recipes leave
lots of room for improvisation. No exclusive & trendy ingredients that one
must order from some overpriced boutique in Manhattan.

In article >,
says...
> I have found some good recipes in various sources, cook books, on line,
> magazines and newspapers. Some of the most interesting have been from
> magazines. Most cook books have all sorts of recipes that I have no use for and
> are pretty much a waste of time. If I could have only one cook book it would
> have to be the Joy of Cooking. It has more useful recipes and more tips than
> any other I have seen.
>
>
>

I agree that JOC is a gem, but it is not in the same league as Julia's
first book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you want good food,
use JOC. If you want great food and a cooking lesson to boot, use
Mastering. Don't look for a lot of quick and cheap recipes, but if you
love good food enough to put in some extra effort and expense, this is
the one.

--
Peter Aitken
Visit my recipe and kitchen myths pages at www.pgacon.com/cooking.htm

"Peter A" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> says...
>> I have found some good recipes in various sources, cook books, on line,
>> magazines and newspapers. Some of the most interesting have been from
>> magazines. Most cook books have all sorts of recipes that I have no use
>> for and
>> are pretty much a waste of time. If I could have only one cook book it
>> would
>> have to be the Joy of Cooking. It has more useful recipes and more tips
>> than
>> any other I have seen.
>>
>>
>>
>
> I agree that JOC is a gem, but it is not in the same league as Julia's
> first book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you want good food,
> use JOC. If you want great food and a cooking lesson to boot, use
> Mastering. Don't look for a lot of quick and cheap recipes, but if you
> love good food enough to put in some extra effort and expense, this is
> the one.

I think the point here is that there some great chefs, but not many are good
teachers. Julia and the JOC authors were good teachers.

Kent wrote:
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe


What cookbook do you open when you want to find a particular recipe and
what are your favorite cookbooks are two different questions. Like you,
I reach for Joy of Cooking when I know I want to make souffle (for
example) and need to know basic recipe and technique, but there are lots
of other reasons for a cookbook to become a favorite.


After Joy, the next book I use a lot for basic information is The
Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash. Sometimes I just need to know
what to do with a vegetable, and she always has the answer plus useful
tables along the lines of how many pounds equals how much grated.


I like the Silver Palate cookbooks and the old Mollie Katzen and
Moosewood cookbooks. I don't feel like getting up and going to the
other room to get the titles right, but I like the ethnic cookbooks so I
can make an authentic Greek recipe or a Thai one. I like those to have
lots of pictures and sometimes just look at the pictures.


--Lia

Besides the obvious listed above, there is one I found by
accident......"Never Trust a Skinny Cook" by Arlene Conant.

She states flat out that when she got married she didn't have a clue...then
proceeded to find one (sort of like Julia). Plain food, uses some canned
items, but it is a good way to start out with minimal failure.

-Ginny

On Sun, 4 Jun 2006 12:38:07 -0700, "Kent" > wrote:

>I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>search for what is new, and what people think.
>When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
>almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>before anything else.

Me too (1964 edition). My paperback copy is in three sections now, and
most of the pages are food-stained.

Jo Anne

Goomba38 wrote:
>
> Kent wrote:
> > I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> > search for what is new, and what people think.
> > When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> > almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> > before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
> > point, 300 cookbooks later.
>
> Amen! My first cookbook (same edition). I sat and read it like a novel
> and still consider it "the source"

Ditto & Ditto! I consider JoC to be the "bible" of my kitchen. I even
gave my college kid the new edition of the JoC when he went to live on
his own. I have the 1975 copy, but I also had to buy another new
edition (along with son's) to have for one of my own <g>.

Sky

Skyhooks > wrote in
:

> Goomba38 wrote:
>>
>> Kent wrote:
>> > I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then
>> > one must search for what is new, and what people think.
>> > When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks ,
>> > and I almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975
>> > edition, before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's
>> > still the starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
>>
>> Amen! My first cookbook (same edition). I sat and read it like a
>> novel and still consider it "the source"
>
> Ditto & Ditto! I consider JoC to be the "bible" of my kitchen. I
> even gave my college kid the new edition of the JoC when he went to
> live on his own. I have the 1975 copy, but I also had to buy another
> new edition (along with son's) to have for one of my own <g>.
>
> Sky


Mom couldn't cook.
Pop buys Mom 1957 + 1959 Gourmet Magazine Cookbook volumes.
Mom becomes gourmet cook.
Pop starts having heart attacks.
Pop goes on weight watchers.
Family suffers.
Andy inherits cookbooks.
Andy learns how to cook.
Andy goes on diet.

And so it goes.

Andy

Skyhooks wrote:

> >
> Ditto & Ditto! I consider JoC to be the "bible" of my kitchen. I even
> gave my college kid the new edition of the JoC when he went to live on
> his own. I have the 1975 copy, but I also had to buy another new
> edition (along with son's) to have for one of my own <g>.
>

There have been lots of other recipe books, mostly for various styles of
ethnicity's, but Joy of Cooking can do it all. It has all sorts of basic recipes,
basic instructions and lots of good tips. If I could only have one, that is the one
I would want.

Kent wrote:
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.

Not necessarily my favourite but a very good one is "How to Cook and
Eat in Chinese" by Buwei Yang Chao.

It is a bit like the JOC for Chinese cooking.

John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about buying
the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last edition (1974)
written by the Rombauers without help from anyone else. The "Joys" published
after this date were added to by Ethan Becker. One rewrite took the original
famous emergency dish "tuna noodle casserole" and added cheese to it! That's
almost sacrilegious!!

"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent
>
>

Skyhooks wrote:

> Goomba38 wrote:
>
>>Kent wrote:
>>
>>>I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>>>search for what is new, and what people think.
>>>When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
>>>almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>>>before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
>>>point, 300 cookbooks later.
>>
>>Amen! My first cookbook (same edition). I sat and read it like a novel
>>and still consider it "the source"
>
>
> Ditto & Ditto! I consider JoC to be the "bible" of my kitchen. I even
> gave my college kid the new edition of the JoC when he went to live on
> his own. I have the 1975 copy, but I also had to buy another new
> edition (along with son's) to have for one of my own <g>.
>
> Sky

Perhaps i missed the reference but i like the Fanny Farmer better than
the JOC.

My favourite of more esoteric cook books is the August Escoffier Guide
Culinaire, though i rarely make any of the recipes as he writes them, i
find it is very good for inspiration.

"English Cookery" by Cesarini and Kenton

"Jewish Cookery" by Leah Wolf

"Talisman Cook Book" by Ada Boni

are just a few of my favourites.
---
JL

> wrote in message
ups.com...
>
> Kent wrote:
>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>> search for what is new, and what people think.
>
> Not necessarily my favourite but a very good one is "How to Cook and
> Eat in Chinese" by Buwei Yang Chao.
>
> It is a bit like the JOC for Chinese cooking.
>
> John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

Yes...I've tried many, but that is the one that comes to hand most often. A
really good balanced book....

Bill
>

Kent wrote:
> If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about buying
> the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last edition (1974)
> written by the Rombauers without help from anyone else. The "Joys" published
> after this date were added to by Ethan Becker. One rewrite took the original
> famous emergency dish "tuna noodle casserole" and added cheese to it! That's
> almost sacrilegious!!

Hahaaa! I have both the 1974 and most recent edition (1997) and cannot
resist comparing them when I'm looking up a recipe. I usually find
that recipes are not that much different, but if they are, I'll use my
best judgement and personal tastes, depending on what the differences
are. They really are wonderful books, no matter which edition you
have.

Sandy

Kent wrote:

> If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about buying
> the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last edition (1974)
> written by the Rombauers without help from anyone else. The "Joys" published
> after this date were added to by Ethan Becker. One rewrite took the original
> famous emergency dish "tuna noodle casserole" and added cheese to it! That's
> almost sacrilegious!!

I prefer the older editions, too. I've had many over the years. My
first, the one I made cakes from when I was a kid, still had the
recipe for cleaning and cooking a porcupine.

My first major revelation into the world of food was reading
the JOC "Know Your Ingredients" chapter in grade school.

--
Reg

Kent wrote:
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the starting
> point, 300 cookbooks later.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent

I'm a big cookbook collector (and user) too! When we remodeled our
kitchen last year, I insisted on turning a lame "desk" area (read,
"crap collector") into a bookcase for my most used cookbooks. Best
thing I ever did! Anyway, JoC is of course a standby, as well as "The
Best Recipe" by Cooks Illustrated editors, "Mastering the Art of French
Cooking" by Julia et.al, "Julia and Jacques at Home" (Child and Pepin),
and "The NY Times Cookbook" by Craig Claiborne. I've become more
interested in baking in the recent years, and now I am crazy about "The
Secrets of Baking" by Sherry Yard, and "The Martha Stewart Baking
Handbook" by MS.

Sandy

"Reg" > wrote in message
. com...
> Kent wrote:
>
> > If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about
buying
> > the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last edition (1974)
> > written by the Rombauers without help from anyone else. The "Joys"
published
> > after this date were added to by Ethan Becker. One rewrite took the
original
> > famous emergency dish "tuna noodle casserole" and added cheese to it!
That's
> > almost sacrilegious!!
>
> I prefer the older editions, too. I've had many over the years. My
> first, the one I made cakes from when I was a kid, still had the
> recipe for cleaning and cooking a porcupine.
>
> My first major revelation into the world of food was reading
> the JOC "Know Your Ingredients" chapter in grade school.
>
> --
> Reg
>

I have most of the versions of the JOC starting with the 1943 version (wish
I had the 1931 version, but too pricey) which is a hoot. I sometimes sit
down and read it like a novel. It was published because of shortages during
WW II.

I don't think the Ethan Becker versions have the same flair that his
grandmother had.

Chris in Pearland, TX

Oh pshaw, on Mon 05 Jun 2006 06:15:11p, Reg meant to say...

> Kent wrote:
>
>> If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about
>> buying the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last
>> edition (1974) written by the Rombauers without help from anyone else.
>> The "Joys" published after this date were added to by Ethan Becker. One
>> rewrite took the original famous emergency dish "tuna noodle casserole"
>> and added cheese to it! That's almost sacrilegious!!
>
> I prefer the older editions, too. I've had many over the years. My
> first, the one I made cakes from when I was a kid, still had the
> recipe for cleaning and cooking a porcupine.
>
> My first major revelation into the world of food was reading
> the JOC "Know Your Ingredients" chapter in grade school.

The only edition I've ever owned is from 1964, and although I've looked at
various later editions, I haven't needed or wanted them. The one I have is a
decent baseline reference for many things.

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

Oh pshaw, on Mon 05 Jun 2006 07:24:41p, Chris Marksberry meant to say...

>
> "Reg" > wrote in message
> . com...
>> Kent wrote:
>>
>> > If anyone, based on the uniformity of this thread, is thinking about
>> > buying the "Joy of Cooking", it's very important to get the last
>> > edition (1974) written by the Rombauers without help from anyone
>> > else. The "Joys" published after this date were added to by Ethan
>> > Becker. One rewrite took the original famous emergency dish "tuna
>> > noodle casserole" and added cheese to it! That's almost
>> > sacrilegious!!
>>
>> I prefer the older editions, too. I've had many over the years. My
>> first, the one I made cakes from when I was a kid, still had the
>> recipe for cleaning and cooking a porcupine.
>>
>> My first major revelation into the world of food was reading
>> the JOC "Know Your Ingredients" chapter in grade school.
>>
>> --
>> Reg
>>
>
> I have most of the versions of the JOC starting with the 1943 version
> (wish I had the 1931 version, but too pricey) which is a hoot. I
> sometimes sit down and read it like a novel. It was published because
> of shortages during WW II.
>
> I don't think the Ethan Becker versions have the same flair that his
> grandmother had.

I have my mom's 1944 edition of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook which also
has a fair number of recipes that reflect the WWII rationing; e.g.,
"Butterless, Eggless, Milkless Cake", which actually is pretty good...dark,
spicy, and full of raisins. Apart from that, there are good cake and pie
recipes that I have used many times.

It's a fun read to understand a very different generation of cooking.

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

"Wayne Boatwright" <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in message
28.19...

> I have my mom's 1944 edition of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook which also
> has a fair number of recipes that reflect the WWII rationing; e.g.,
> "Butterless, Eggless, Milkless Cake", which actually is pretty
> good...dark,
> spicy, and full of raisins. Apart from that, there are good cake and pie
> recipes that I have used many times.
>
> It's a fun read to understand a very different generation of cooking.


It's amazing how resourceful people were during that war, in terms of
finding ways to deal with rationing. In comparison, it's disgusting nowadays
that if it's suggested that people should use less gasoline, it's considered
unpatriotic.

I rotate my cookbooks for bedtime reading. I don't find I have any
favorites. I do find that I cook most from what I have read recently OR from
books that I can find my way through easily. Because I know them well, or
because their typography is particularly good. Bad typography can be a
reason for never getting to know a book well, as can bad translations.

All of this is assuming the recipes are good enough, of course.

All in all, I don't think I have answered your question

>"Wayne Boatwright" <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in message
. 228.19...
>
>> I have my mom's 1944 edition of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook which also
>> has a fair number of recipes that reflect the WWII rationing; e.g.,
>> "Butterless, Eggless, Milkless Cake", which actually is pretty
>> good...dark,
>> spicy, and full of raisins. Apart from that, there are good cake and pie
>> recipes that I have used many times.
>>
My wife got a Good Housekeeping cookbook when we got married. ( ca 1962 )
It had been her kitchen "bible" throughout the years.
She later gifted it to a daughter-in-law. ( and still misses it )

<rj>

"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
> search for what is new, and what people think.
> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
> 5-10 years.
> Many thanks for any advice,
> Kent

Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any prepared
food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and Google it and you
will get many recipes for it to choose from.

Results 1 - 10 of about 345,000 for cumberland sauce. (0.52 seconds)

See? 0.52 seconds! Try to find Cumberland sauce in the indexes of all your
cookbooks. It'll take you awhile, if it's there at all!


--Rich

"Rich" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Kent" > wrote in message
> . ..
>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one must
>> search for what is new, and what people think.
>> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and I
>> almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
>> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
>> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
>> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
>> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
>> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
>> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
>> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the last
>> 5-10 years.
>> Many thanks for any advice,
>> Kent
>
> Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any
> prepared food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and Google
> it and you will get many recipes for it to choose from.
>
> Results 1 - 10 of about 345,000 for cumberland sauce. (0.52 seconds)
>
> See? 0.52 seconds! Try to find Cumberland sauce in the indexes of all your
> cookbooks. It'll take you awhile, if it's there at all!
>
>
> --Rich
>

This assume that your computer is running when you're cooking, and that you
want to use electricity to read all the time.

"JoeSpareBedroom" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Rich" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Kent" > wrote in message
>> . ..
>>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one
>>> must search for what is new, and what people think.
>>> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and
>>> I almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975 edition,
>>> before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's still the
>>> starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
>>> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook". Next,
>>> depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella Hazan,'s
>>> books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's books["Cooking
>>> School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only after the above,
>>> for almost everything else, do I open any of the remaining 290 books.
>>> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the
>>> last 5-10 years.
>>> Many thanks for any advice,
>>> Kent
>>
>> Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any
>> prepared food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and Google
>> it and you will get many recipes for it to choose from.
>>
>> Results 1 - 10 of about 345,000 for cumberland sauce. (0.52 seconds)
>>
>> See? 0.52 seconds! Try to find Cumberland sauce in the indexes of all
>> your cookbooks. It'll take you awhile, if it's there at all!
>>
>>
>> --Rich
>>
>
> This assume that your computer is running when you're cooking, and that
> you want to use electricity to read all the time.

I use the computer when I'm planning. Typically, if I'm cooking something
I've never done before, I'll sit and read several or more recipes, then I'll
just go cook it, combining the ingredients and techinques from my research
in whatever way seems right to me. I'm not much one for slavishly following
a recipe with precise measurements. Except for baked goods, that is. For
those, there is my printer. A printout of the recipe works just fine, and if
it gets a little batter or chocolate on it, who cares?
--


--Rich

"Rich" > wrote in message
...
>
> "JoeSpareBedroom" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Rich" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>>
>>> "Kent" > wrote in message
>>> . ..
>>>> I'm sure this has been asked many times before, but now and then one
>>>> must search for what is new, and what people think.
>>>> When I want to find a recipe I sit in front of our 300+ cookbooks , and
>>>> I almost always reach for the Rombauers' "Joy of Cooking", 1975
>>>> edition, before anything else. This never ceases to amaze me. It's
>>>> still the starting point, 300 cookbooks later.
>>>> Following that it's almost always Julia Child;s "The Way to Cook".
>>>> Next, depending on what I'm wanting to cook, are any of Marcella
>>>> Hazan,'s books["Classic Italian Cooking], any of Michael Field's
>>>> books["Cooking School", "Culinary Classics and Improvisations"]. Only
>>>> after the above, for almost everything else, do I open any of the
>>>> remaining 290 books.
>>>> What are your favorites? Especially newer favorites published in the
>>>> last 5-10 years.
>>>> Many thanks for any advice,
>>>> Kent
>>>
>>> Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any
>>> prepared food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and
>>> Google it and you will get many recipes for it to choose from.
>>>
>>> Results 1 - 10 of about 345,000 for cumberland sauce. (0.52 seconds)
>>>
>>> See? 0.52 seconds! Try to find Cumberland sauce in the indexes of all
>>> your cookbooks. It'll take you awhile, if it's there at all!
>>>
>>>
>>> --Rich
>>>
>>
>> This assume that your computer is running when you're cooking, and that
>> you want to use electricity to read all the time.
>
> I use the computer when I'm planning. Typically, if I'm cooking something
> I've never done before, I'll sit and read several or more recipes, then
> I'll just go cook it, combining the ingredients and techinques from my
> research in whatever way seems right to me. I'm not much one for slavishly
> following a recipe with precise measurements. Except for baked goods, that
> is. For those, there is my printer. A printout of the recipe works just
> fine, and if it gets a little batter or chocolate on it, who cares?
> --
>
>
> --Rich
>
Rich, I never use my cookbooks to cook FROM. I'll scan a recipe or write it
out and then print it for use.
I love the internet for recipes and to learn even from a recipe that I'm
making straight from the cookbook.
And of course, I get helpful hints and good advice from you guys (as in my
cream cry for help). Thanks.
Dee Dee
>
>

Oh pshaw, on Tue 06 Jun 2006 07:57:19a, <RJ> meant to say...

>
>>"Wayne Boatwright" <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> wrote in message
.228.19...
>>
>>> I have my mom's 1944 edition of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook which also
>>> has a fair number of recipes that reflect the WWII rationing; e.g.,
>>> "Butterless, Eggless, Milkless Cake", which actually is pretty
>>> good...dark, spicy, and full of raisins. Apart from that, there are good
>>> cake and pie recipes that I have used many times.
>>>
> My wife got a Good Housekeeping cookbook when we got married. ( ca 1962 )
> It had been her kitchen "bible" throughout the years.
> She later gifted it to a daughter-in-law. ( and still misses it )

I bought a Good Housekeeping cookbook in 1963, probably the same edition you
had. It's a frequent reference for me.

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

Rich wrote:
>
> Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any prepared
> food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and Google it and you
> will get many recipes for it to choose from.
>
> --Rich

Many reasons. I grew up surrounded by a lot of cookbooks (parents are
book collectors) and have grown my own library which I care for and use
lovingly. As well, there are times when I want to cook *something*,
but I don't quite know what (unlike your Cumberland sauce) and I pull
out 5 or 6 cookbooks and sit with them on my lap and get some
inspiration. Family and friends know that I'm a competent cook and
have no problems with experimenting with a new dish, if only for the
sake of trying something new. I also love cookbooks with great
photography that inspires me to try something because it looks so
freakin' delicious. I've not seen many internet recipes that inspire
me that way.

Sandy

On Tue, 6 Jun 2006 16:29:43 +0200, "Jke" >
rummaged among random neurons and opined:

>I rotate my cookbooks for bedtime reading. I don't find I have any
>favorites. I do find that I cook most from what I have read recently OR from
>books that I can find my way through easily. Because I know them well, or
>because their typography is particularly good. Bad typography can be a
>reason for never getting to know a book well, as can bad translations.

My current Big Three a Joy of Cooking, James Beard's American
Cookery and Cook's Illustrated The Best Recipe. My fallbacks are
Fannie Farmer and Good Housekeeping Illustrated. I use The Way to Cook
for technique, primarily. I also surf recipes and swipe a few from the
ng. Cooking resources on the 'Net are awesome.

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA

"Most vigitaryans I iver see looked enough like their food to be
classed as cannybals."

Finley Peter Dunne (1900)

To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"

Jke > wrote:

> I rotate my cookbooks for bedtime reading. I don't find I have any
> favorites. I do find that I cook most from what I have
> read recently OR from books that I can find my way through
> easily. Because I know them well, or because their typography
> is particularly good. Bad typography can be a reason for never
> getting to know a book well, as can bad translations.

Agree on most points. I read my best/favorite cookbooks
in bed, and they are James Beard, JOC, Fannie Farmer,
Helen Brown, Elizabeth David, Marcella Hazan, and Julia Child,
and Mollie Katzen. Seldom does a full-on recipe infiltrate
to the kitchen. More likely, a notion or concept will
contaminate my thoughts, and a dish be prepared as result.

Another curiosity is recipes found within non-cook books.
A random novel will include a recipe. My favorite example
was that in "like water from chocolate" is a recipe for
"christmas rolls", which are buns stuffed with chorizo and
avocado then baked. One needs no proportions or method
to prepare this dish right, just the ingrediants. Mexican
buns as for tortas will work, as will smaller sweet buns.

S.

> wrote in message
ups.com...
>
> Rich wrote:
>>
>> Now that the internet is available, who needs a cookbook? Pick any
>> prepared
>> food, even an obscure one like, say Cumberland sauce, and Google it and
>> you
>> will get many recipes for it to choose from.
>>
>> --Rich
>
> Many reasons. I grew up surrounded by a lot of cookbooks (parents are
> book collectors) and have grown my own library which I care for and use
> lovingly. As well, there are times when I want to cook *something*,
> but I don't quite know what (unlike your Cumberland sauce) and I pull
> out 5 or 6 cookbooks and sit with them on my lap and get some
> inspiration. Family and friends know that I'm a competent cook and
> have no problems with experimenting with a new dish, if only for the
> sake of trying something new. I also love cookbooks with great
> photography that inspires me to try something because it looks so
> freakin' delicious. I've not seen many internet recipes that inspire
> me that way.

Excellent points, and I agree. My "who needs?" was really rhetorical, and
meant to point out that the availability of the internet has changed the
usage of cookbooks. I certainly don't mean to devalue cookbooks; I would
have to go count to tell you how many I have, but I'm sure it's more than
thirty. I use them much as you do, for inspiration rather than for specific
instruction. Of course, the internet can be used for inspiration, too. Try
Googling a specific ingredient or combination of ingredients along with the
word "recipes" for inspiration specific to the stuff you have on hand:

Results 1 - 10 of about 451,000 for lamb artichoke recipes. (0.49 seconds)

Is 451,000 hits enough inspiration for you?


--Rich