A
plethora of outstanding 2017 cookbooks made creating a list of the five best a happy
challenge. After all, whittling is half the fun of this exercise. I present, in
alphabetical order, my picks for the five best cookbooks of 2017.
Bäco: Vivid recipes
from the heart of Los Angeles by Josef Centeno and Betty Hallock.
Chronicle Books.
On Vegetables by Jeremy Fox.
Phaidon.
Slow Food Editore – Osteria translated by
Natalie Danford. Rizzoli.
State Bird
Provisions: A Cookbook by Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski with JJ Goode. Ten
Speed Press.
Two Kitchens: Family recipes
from Sicily and Rome
by Rachel Roddy. Headline Home.
Why
these books?
Flip
to any recipe in Bäco and find
something exciting to make. Centeno’s cooking reflects Los Angeles’s cosmopolitan
olio: The flavors of the Far East mingle with those of the Middle East and
Spain, Portugal and France. Without talent, melding these cuisines risks making
a mess. But Centeno has the skill to marry different food cultures to create New
California dishes. If you like Travis Lett’s Gjelina, you’ll love Centeno’s Bäco.
Jeremy
Fox’s On Vegetables gets my vote for
best cookbook of 2017. Fox’s collection of recipes will help you to prepare sophisticated
yet seductively simple food. Fox’s honest account of his journey to overcome self-doubt
and destructive behavior makes On
Vegetables worth reading apart from the world-class recipes.
In
2011 I traveled to Bologna and lugged back a very weighty tome entitled Le ricette di Osterie d’Italia by Slow
Food Editore. Nancy Danford has translated this massive Italian compendium into
English. Yes, this new version leaves out many recipes contained in the original
edition, but Rizzoli still deserves kudos for making this English-language Osteria available. (Note: Even trimmed,
the new version contains 1000 recipes!) Want to make Crostini con gambi di carciofi from Osteria di Montecodruzzo in
Emilia-Romagna? Well now you can even if you can’t read Italian.
State Bird Provisions opens with its recipe
for Buttermilk Fried Quail. What follows is a collection of recipes divided
into four sections: Savory Larder; Savory Recipes; Dessert Larder; and Sweet
Recipes. Boasting big, bold flavors, State Bird does its thing in its own way: Kosho made with Meyer lemon instead of
yuzu, and dashi spiked with rosemary, ginger and citrus. Like aiolis? Good! You’re
in luck: The book includes 11 different recipes. State Bird Provisions sits proudly alongside my well-worn copy of Bar Tartine: Techniques & Recipes.
Rachel
Roddy follows up her award-winning 2015 cookbook, Five Quarters, with Two
Kitchens: Family recipes from Sicily and Rome. Like her first work, Roddy
fills Two Kitchens with recipes that
you will cook again and again and again. Favorites include: A dead simple yet
delicious dish of potatoes and greens; a recipe for meatballs dusted with
breadcrumbs, fried and then braised in white wine that bubbles down into a
bright sauce; and a comforting braise of chicken with potatoes, anchovies and
rosemary. In addition to having a knack of cherry-picking the best recipes from
friends, family and others, Roddy writes extremely well. I cannot wait to see
what she turns out next.
A
lot of books vied for a place on my Best Of list: Bread is Gold by Massimo Bottura; Six Seasons by Joshua McFadden; Kaukasis
by Olia Hercules; Tartine All Day by
Elisabeth Prueitt; and Breakfast, Lunch,
Dinner…Life by Missy Robbins. I really looked forward to Bianco by Chris Bianco, but found it disappointing.
Probably my unrealistic expectations. But check it out: Bianco might speak to you.
