Decorating & Design
December 2, 2023
The Best Cookbooks For The Foodies In Your Life
Whether you know an expert chef or a beginner cook, we’ve rounded up our favorite 2023 cookbooks to gift this holiday season. From Ina Garten’s Go-To Dinners to Alison Roman’s Sweet Enough, these must-have cookbooks offer something for everyone, including easy weeknight supper recipes, satisfying veggie dishes, sweet treats and beyond. Scroll down for 9 great cookbooks to gift the foodies in your life.
Go-To Dinners by Ina Garten
It might surprise you to learn that Ina Garten, author of 12 bestselling cookbooks, TV chef on Food Network since 2002, James Beard Award–winner and Daytime Emmy– winner, sometimes finds cooking stressful. Appropriately, her latest cookbook, Go-To Dinners, is all about making dinner less difficult.
Smitten Kitchen Keepers by Deb Perelman
It’s been 17 years since the launch of her popular food blog, Smitten Kitchen, and her two bestselling cookbooks are now essential reading for home cooks. And yet, Deb Perelman is still on her quest for the best version of the dish she knows we want to eat. She calls it “the one.” You know, the ultimate recipe for a favorite dish that’s as simple as it can be, never fails, and tastes sublime. Her new book, Smitten Kitchen Keepers, follows The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook and Smitten Kitchen Every Day and, to the delight of her legions of readers, follows the same no-nonsense approach as her blog.
Sweet Enough by Alison Roman
Alison Roman knows what she likes: she prefers savory over sweet, doesn’t love chocolate or cookies (despite her most famous dessert recipe being a chocolate chip shortbread), and she’s a fan of creating dishes that are rustic, not polished. The superstar author’s personal tastes and strong opinions are all over her fab new book, Sweet Enough, which is filled with recipes that put a fresh twist on traditional desserts — think savory toppings for her Perfect Pancakes, Perfect Waffles recipe, and plenty of sour cream in her chocolate pound cake.
Farmhouse Vegetables by Michael Smith
Consider updating your classic holiday menu with new dishes that deliver robust flavors using farm-fresh ingredients. Arriving just in time to inspire you is Michael Smith’s latest book, Farmhouse Vegetables. He shares everything he’s learned about growing, then cooking vegetables from The Inn at Bay Fortune farm in P.E.I., and packs the pages with delicious veggie recipes and hearty, rich mains for meat lovers, too.
Where We Ate by Gabby Peyton
Turning the pages of Gabby Peyton’s book, Where We Ate: A Field Guide to Canada’s Restaurants, Past and Present, you’ll find popular Canadian fast-food spots like White Spot in Vancouver, famous for its Triple O Burger, and Mary Brown’s in Newfoundland and Labrador, renowned for its fried chicken. But you’ll also find classic high-end establishments like Montreal’s Auberge Saint-Gabriel, which opened in 1754 and the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, as well as recipes from these stories restos.
Cook It Wild by Chris Nuttall-Smith
A Perfect Fire-grilled Ribeye Steak served with baked potatoes and creamed spinach is a menu item you’d expect to find at a steakhouse, not a campsite. But this is exactly the kind of meal Chris Nuttall-Smith likes to cook when he’s outdoors, whether it’s on a kayaking trip through B.C.’s Haida Gwaii archipelago or hiking up the mountains in Alberta’s Jasper National Park. The Toronto food writer’s first book, Cook It Wild, is packed with dishes designed for cooking outside, at the cottage, in your backyard or at the condo.
Chocolate All Day by Steven Hodge
Steven Hodge wants you to know that chocolate is more than just a guilty pleasure — it’s a holiday essential. The owner-head baker of Temper Chocolate & Pastry in West Vancouver, B.C. and host of Great Chocolate Showdown on Food Network Canada has written his much anticipated first book Chocolate All Day.
The Book of Sichuan Chili Crisp by Jing Gao
In the intro to Jing Gao’s cookbook The Book of Sichuan Chili Crisp, she describes the condiment she grew up eating in Chengdu, the capital of China’s Sichuan province, as a sweet, fiery, crunchy, spicy and flavorful oil. Made from a mixture of spices such as star anise and ginger, as well as ground roasted Sichuan pepper and preserved black beans for texture and bold flavor, chili crisp is a staple of the region’s cuisine. Today, you can add chili crisp to everything from pizza to dumplings, but you have to try it with Jing’s addictive Dan Dan Noodles or melt-in-your-mouth Red-braised Pork Belly.
My Thali by Joe Thottungal
On your next trip to Ottawa, book a table at the newly reopened Coconut Lagoon and, chances are, you might see some famous faces, like former Ottawa mayor Jim Watson or PM Justin Trudeau. Or stop in to the newer Thali for some casual fare served in small portions and enjoy the buzz. Thali means “plate” in English, referring to the circular platter with a beautiful array of dishes. The man behind these two Ottawa hot spots is Joe Thottungal, restaurateur, chef, philanthropic force and cookbook author of My Thali: A Simple Indian Kitchen.
All products featured on House & Home are independently selected by our editors, however when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices are shown in Canadian dollars and are accurate on the date of publication.