Food and drink books I really enjoyed in 2006

by Bob Sassone, Posted Jan 1st 2007 @ 7:18PM

I Like You At first I was going to title this post "2006 food and drink books I really enjoyed," but that would make it seem like I read a helluva lot of cookbooks last year.

The first book I have to mention is Amy Sedaris' I Like You. If you're a fan of cookbooks but you think this is some jokey tome and you don't want to get it, think again. There are a million recipes in here, and all of them are serious (Sedaris has said she hates jokey cookbooks). And if you like Sedaris but you're not into cooking that much, that doesn't matter either, because the book isn't just recipes, there are lots of funny essays in here too. A terrific book.

Alton Brown released an updated, Version 2.0 of I'm Just Here For The Food, and while the updates weren't all that exciting (cow fridge magnets??), it's still a great book to have on your shelf.

Cooking Up A Storm, by Sam Stern. I actually came across this book accidentally, and at first I thought, a cookbook for teens? What can that possible teach me? But it's a fantastic book, with lots of great basic recipes and some original ideas in there too, all presented well and easy to read. Stern is a 15 year-old who aspires to be the next Jamie Oliver, and he's well on his way.

Anthony Bourdain's The Nasty Bits is quite entertaining. It collects many of his columns and essays over the past few years and includes a section in back where he talks about what he's learned since he wrote each one.

The Joy of Cooking. Yeah, there was some controversy about the 75th Anniversary edition, but how can you not own this book?

The Comfort Diner Cookbook and Eat, Drink, & Be Healthy aren't new books (they were released in 2005), but I read them in 2006, and they're both great. The former gives recipes for classic comfort food, and the latter is one of the very few sensible books on diet, health, and exercise books you'll find in the bookstores.

Filed Under: Trends, Stores & Shopping, Lists, Books
Tags: alton brown, amy sedaris, anthony bourdain, AnthonyBourdain, best cookbooks of 2006, BestCookbooksOf2006, comfort diner cookbook, comfort food, i'm just here for the food, sam stern, SamStern, stores-and-shopping, the joy of cooking, the nasty bits

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

1-01-2007 @8:03PM Rhea said... I have been a fan of Amy Sedaris' for a long time and bought her cookbook a few weeks ago when she came to a Boston book signing. I love reading it. I've never read a cookbook before. I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, but I am going to.
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1-02-2007 @12:57AM Joanne said... 2006 was a great year for food & wine books. What to Drink with What You Eat by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page is probably the most useful food & wine book of 2006. What to Eat by Marion Nestle is a must read. Others of import are Omnivore's Dilemna, Slow Food Revolution, and Appetite for Profit. Not so important to read but really fun cookbooks of 2006 are Tartine, Essence of Chocolate, Kaiseki, and Arabesque. In Cheese - the 2 - 2006 releases: Murray's Cheese Handbook and The Definitive Guide to Canadian Artisanal and Fine Cheeses.
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1-02-2007 @1:46AM Lorrie said... I just got Amy Sedaris' book and am really enjoying it so far too. She has a great blend of humor and useful recipes all in one.
I went to an Alton Brown seminar last summer so I got a copy of the new version 2.0 a couple of months ago. The magnets are priceless, as well as the bio in the back.
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1-02-2007 @8:10PM Greg | Wise Bread said... Thanks for reviewing Amy Sedaris' book. I think she's hilarious (and her brother David too). If the cookbook also has real (not yuk-yuk) recipes, then I'm going to have to take another look at it...

Happy new year,
Greg
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