Read on for some of our favorite books to use in our own kitchens or give as gifts, most of them by Texan authors. We love it all- you’ll find educational reads, cocktail collections, and vegetarian, carnivorous, and gluten-free options. There’s a little something for everyone! Don’t forget to shop at your local bookstore, BookPeople.
New & Noteworthy
Food52 Genius Recipes by Kristin Miglore: A compilation of recipes from chefs, cookbook authors, and bloggers, some of which have been featured on the Food52 website and have become reader staples. Plenty of new, too!
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi: The follow-up to the wildly popular Plenty, featuring over 150 vegetarian recipes and beautiful photographs.
Franklin Barbecue by Aaron Franklin and Jordan Mackay: Local restauranteur Aaron Franklin imparts his knowledge on making the best barbecue. Information on smoking, curing, sourcing, and cooking – you’ll learn all the tricks from this delicious read.
The Homesick Texan’s Family Table by Lisa Fain: From beloved food blogger Lisa Fain, aka the Homesick Texan, comes this follow-up to her wildly popular debut cookbook, featuring more than 125 recipes for wonderfully comforting, ingredient-driven Lone Star classics that the whole family will love.
The Sprouted Kitchen Bowl + Spoon by Sara and Hugh Forte: blogger Sara Forte builds upon her first cookbook by focusing on proteins, grains, and vegetables paired together for nutritious and delicious meals.
Root to Stalk Cooking by Tara Duggan: A cookbook focused on using the parts of vegetables not always utilized. Learn how to use every part of your vegetables, reduce waste, and save money!
The Bread Revolution by Peter Reinhart: Bread recipes for every baker! Peter Reinhart utilizes various flours- sprouted, nut and seed, alternative, and gluten-free to bring us over fifty recipes.
Kitchen Shelf Staples
Simply Organic: A Cookbook for Sustainable, Seasonal, and Local Ingredients by Jesse Ziffe-Cool: Jesse Ziffe-Cool compiles over 30 years of knowledge about organic, local, and sustainable food into one magnificent cookbook, including indispensable elements of her earlier cookbook, Your Organic Kitchen, which is now out of print. With 150 enticing recipes, Simply Organic encourages home cooks to embrace organics as a lifestyle rather than a fad.
Mastering The Art of French Cooking by Julia Child: Julia Child’s two-volume masterwork–one of the most popular and influential cookbooks ever published–introduced French cooking to millions of home cooks during the 1960s and ’70s.
Afield by Jesse Griffiths: Leader in the local food movement Jesse Griffiths writes about hunting, fishing and preparing your catch at home. Great for the novice and experienced hunters or chefs.
The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller: The chef/proprietor of the French Laundry—”the most exciting place to eat in the United States” (“The New York Times”)—presents 150 recipes that capture the impact of this extraordinary food.
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser: A cookbook unlike any other, The Essential New York Times Cookbook [W. W. Norton; October 25, 2010; $40.00 cloth] encompasses both innovative and classic recipes, celebrating the breadth of America’s evolving relationship with food. The cookbook began when Hesser—author of the acclaimed Cooking with Mr. Latte and former food editor for the Times—placed an ad in the Times simply asking readers for their favorite recipes the paper has ever published.
Les Halles Cookbook by Anthony Bourdain: In this long-awaited cookbook, the bestselling author of “Kitchen Confidential” reveals the hearty, delicious recipes of Les Halles and the provocative tricks of the trade that have made him a celebrated name across the globe.
The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters: Learn from one of the pioneers of the local food movement and owner of famed restaurant Chez Panisse. Embrace the seasons!
Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison: Read about the surprising relationships between vegetables, edible flowers and herbs within botanical families and how these connections help home cooks.
Local Reads
The Hip Girl’s Guide to the Kitchen by Kate Payne: xxx
Jack Allen’s Kitchen: Celebrating the Tastes of Texas by Jack Gilmore: Learn how to savor what Texas has to offer and prepare seasonal recipes in your kitchen.
Austin Breakfast Tacos by Mando Rayo and Jarod Neece: The story of the most important taco of the day! These two authors explore this Texan diet staple and collect recipes from all over Austin.
Uchi the Cookbook by Tyson Cole: For any sushi lovers out there, this offers a playful mix between Japanese tradition and multicultural tastes. Read about Tyson Cole’s path from dishwasher to restaurant owner!
Texas on the Table by Terry Thompson-Anderson: Local Terry Thompson-Anderson follows up her last successful cookbook with over 150 recipes centered around local ingredients and the people making it happen.
Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free by Karen Morgan: Eat delicious gluten-free desserts all the time with these recipes. Take that, celiac disease!
The Homesick Texan Cookbook by Lisa Fain: This native Texan re-created Tex Mex cuisine in her New York City kitchen and shares her signature comfort food dishes.
Stirring it Up with Molly Ivans: A Memoir with Recipes by Ellen Sweets: Ellen Sweets shares the recipes of public figure and “professional Texan,” Molly Ivans. The book is part memoir with 35 of her best recipes.
Boozy Reads
Austin Beer by Bitchbeer.org: A book that shares the vibrant, historic story of Austin’s beer scene complete with read-along drinking games and local beer pairings.
!Viva Tequila! by Lucinda Hutson: Hear about tales of the author’s adventures in Mexico and follow these recipes for flavorful drinks and dishes made with the agave spirit.
Tipsy Texan by David Alan: A guide to cocktails with a local twist, it also discusses the history of bars and distilleries from the Lone Star State.
Bitters by Brad Thomas Parsons: Making bitters from scratch is becoming more common in bars and homes. Recipes include customized blends from apple to coffee-pecan to root beer.
Imbibe! by David Wondrich: From absinthe to whiskey, this is a lively guide to American cocktails from a respected cocktail authority. Includes recipes from today’s top mixologists.
True Brews by Emma Christensen: How to craft fermented cider, beer, wine, sake, soda, mead, kefir and kombucha at home by Apartment Therapy The Kitchn’s Emma Christensen.
The Essential Bar Book by Jennifer Fiedler: an A-to-Z guide featuring mythology, history, recipes, tools and tricks for over 115 drinks.
The Wineslinger Chronicles by Russel Kane: With its variable climate and sun-baked soils, Kane explains how Texas is emerging as a wine-producing region.
Educational Reads
Bringing It to the Table by Wendell Berry: Essays on the origins of food answer basic questions like the difference between organic and local, small farms and large farms and more.
The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan: Examines the choices Americans make when choosing what to eat.
The Good Food Revolution by Will Allen: Professional basketball player turned farmer, Will Allen shares his story of building a highly successful urban farm and educational center.
Stuffed and Starved by Raj Patel: Investigates our world’s current food crisis, discusses the problems of starvation and obesity, and explains why we should still have hope.
Bottomfeeder by Taras Grescoe: Grescoe investigates the processes through which fish end up on our plates and how to keep our oceans in balance.
American Wasteland by Jonathan Bloom: Learn about how much food Americans waste and what we can do to change the pattern.
The Third Plate by Dan Barber: Dan Barber’s new book talks about how to move beyond farm-to-table by offering a revolutionary way of eating.
The Beautiful Edible Garden by Leslie Bennett and Stefani Bitter: The two founders of bay area landscape design firm, Star Apple Edible and Fine Gardening, give us a guide to planting and maintaining a garden full of vegetables, fruits, and herbs.
