AUGUST 2011 COOKBOOK OF THE MONTH NOMINATIONS.

[bayoucook]

Sorry to be late in posting this, I had a misunderstanding about this month.
Nominations are now open for August! There are many newly published books that look interesting, as well as books that have been nominated in the past. Those include:

Radically Simple
The Olive and the Caper
World Vegetarian
Vefa's Kitchen
Harvest To Heat: Cooking with America's Best Chefs, Farmers, and Artisans
Washuko: Recipes From The Japanese Home Kitchen
The Splendid Table
Jane Grigson's Vegetables

Please nominate your selections ALL IN CAPS. Deadline for nominations is July 20, Wednesday, at 5pm CDST. Here we go!

[L.Nightshade]

Nominations are closed, bayoucook has posted the voting thread here:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/796969

[L.Nightshade]

I'm throwing my second nom at WORLD VEGETARIAN.
I do hope to cook from Planet Barbecue, maybe doing an adjunct thread. Even so, I just did an EYB search and found WV offers 417 recipes for vegetable side dishes! World barbecue, plus world vegetables, sounds good.

[JaneEYB]

What a great discussion this month. I've held off nominating as I wanted to see which way the wind was blowing (like picawicca I'm feeling none of my noms have won recently). But it hasn't helped much as there are so many choices. So I'm going for one I own that I'd like to cook more from. I also want to start eating vegetarian more nights. So for me it's MADHUR JAFFREY'S WORLD VEGETARIAN.

[sarahcooks]

I'm going to second MADHUR JAFFREY'S WORLD VEGETARIAN. I'd also like to see PALETAS as a companion book (just got it - lots of things I want to make, but especially the roasted banana paletas).

[The Dairy Queen]

Before JoanN nominated FOP, I was rooting for WV, so I'm glad to see it's still in the race. I, too, am trying to eat more meat and cheeseless meals lately.

And I'm psyched about Paletas. Please let us know what you try, even if it doesn't win!

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

Wow, 17 books nominated and about 12 others discussed. Fun month! I probably won't have the winning book, so I may need someone who has it to send me chapter info or do the first of the month COTM posting. Will let you know after the run-off. -bayoucook

[The Dairy Queen]

Crazy month! That's a lot of books.

Well, the chapter info for both NST and FOP is online, so if either of those wins, you could snag that yourself.

NST is available via the "search inside this book" function on Amazon and
FOP is available at that harpercollins link I provided (somewhere upthread.)

Haven't investigated any of the other books, but it's probably always worth checking Amazon "search inside this book" for the winners.

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

thanks, will do!

[beetlebug]

Also, just because 17 books were nominated, it doesn't mean you have to list them all for the voting thread. It's up to you and whatever is easiest with this runaway thread.

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh my, definitely don't give us 17 books to choose from (I don't actually think that was your plan, but just in case it was...)! Completely agree with beetlebug.

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

If y'all will look back on my last five run-offs you'll see that I've always picked the ones with the most votes, 4 or 5 books at most. Never crossed my mind at any time to do otherwise.

[The Dairy Queen]

That's the way I thought you were doing it! Makes sense to me!

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

no, no, of course not! This is my sixth and final month and I have never done that, or have even thought of it. I always narrow it down to the top 4 or 5 or whatever, please see my last 5 run-off threads! Geez. LulusMom will be taking over for the next six months. - many thanks to her

[beetlebug]

JAFFREY'S WORLD VEGETARIAN - as a stand alone. Only because it's a pretty big book and I fear, if it's paired with something, the COTM threads will be diluted and lose momentum. Although, I wouldn't mind if it won with something else.

[Gio]

These nomination threads expose so many different ideas that I'm wondering if it would be overkill to have a discussion thread first, then the nominating thread...Then the voting thread. Would That be too time consuming? Or, rethinking that, could those cookbook purchase threads be the place to discuss potential COTMs? Just thinking as I type here.

[The Dairy Queen]

I'm not super in love with the idea of including it in the purchase threads. Those just get so unwieldy. Plus, there's a lot of participation in those threads by people who don't participate in COTM so it might annoy them.

I'll bet a discussion thread separate from the noms thread would make it easier for the coordinator to tally the nominations, but, of course, it would be an extra step in the process and just one more "window" to wedge into the monthly timeline. Still, it's an interesting idea. Curious to see what others think.

~TDQ

[dkennedy]

Boy, I stepped away from the computer for a couple of hours and I came back to a whole new ballgame. I now have three books on hold at the library, hedging my bets depending on how the voting goes - Portugal, Spanish Table, or Veggie Love.

A little disappointed more people haven't jumped on the Planet BBQ bandwagon. August is such a beautiful month for being outside I was hoping to have an excuse to continue focusing on the grill. Depending on which way the voting goes, I may sit out this month and just read along - which is fun too. I bought Planet BBQ cuz it just looks like the kind of book I crave, so I am guessing when it comes I am going to be too interested in it to turn my attention elsewhere.

My Dean and DeLuca cookbook came yesterday. It is amazing how many innovative recipes in it have made their way into other chef's cookbooks...post its 1987 publication. I have tabbed a bunch or recipes and I will be working my way through this book as well. Not to mention my new Mario books which I am loving and don't plan on closing anytime soon.

[The Dairy Queen]

I wasn't really trying to open the discussion up to a whole new possibility when I asked my question about Australian cookbook authors, but, yes, look where that took us. SO FUNNY!

If it's any consolation, there are a number of grilled recipes in FOP and NST.

~TDQ

[greedygirl]

Not everyone has a BBQ I guess, and some of us live in places with crappy weather, even in the summer. It's cool and rainy in London atm and our Weber has hardly been used.

[L.Nightshade]

Well, if not "elected to serve," Planet Barbecue would make a fun summer adjunct thread.

[Breadcrumbs]

I really like the idea of having a discussion thread. What if it was permanent vs monthly? I'm imagining something like a "COTM - Books for Future Consideration" thread. Then the conversation would be ongoing and, we could refer back to it/build on it whenever we wish and have all the discussion, reviews and feedback in one place.

These nomination threads are always a source of inspiration to me and I often learn of a new book I might want to check out or buy. The trouble is, when I get it, I can never remember what I read about it and where that post was.

If we started each post w the name of the cookbook it would make it east to search the thread and add feedback beneath the ongoing discussion about a particular book and then we could permalink to that info when it came to nomination time.

This would also ensure we don't lose sight of books that we might have concluded would be a great "winter" book or, a good book to do in a certain month.

[The Dairy Queen]

What we really need to do is get the Chow engineers (Chowgineers) to add a "list" function for cookbooks like they have for restaurants. Instead of wanna go and been there we could have "wanna get" and "have that."

Based just on the amount of discussion in this thread, I imagine a permanent thread would get pretty bulky after a few months.

~TDQ

[Gio]

Hah... not just "bulky", it would virtually expolde...

Like the list function idea.

[JoanN]

Ha! This thread already has 296 replies (and I'm sure it will have more by the time I hit the Post button) and it's only been open five days. I'm visualizing "COTM Discussion, Part 325."

[Goblin]

This has been the most fascinating thread, causing me to think much more intently about what and how I like to cook. Love all the suggestions for nominations too. Finally, as a relative newbie to Chowhound, I am impressed by the level of discourse on the CTOM threads. People are so supportive and polite about others' opinions-- not something you always encounter on the Internet. ;-)
Anyway, as my ideas have changed, I'm now wondering if one can nominate more that two books? I'd like to continued with the summer produce theme and nominate Vegetable Love, but I already nominated two earlier in the thread.

[The Dairy Queen]

Yes, you may nominate more than one book.

~TDQ

[Goblin]

OK---VEGETABLE LOVE

[Breadcrumbs]

I'll cast my second vote for: VEGETABLE LOVE

[The Dairy Queen]

Not really relevant to August COTM, but have we ever cooked from any Australian, Kiwi or Canadian cookbooks? We've got the Brits and the Americans covered, but what about authors from these other English speaking countries?

Another Chowhound passed me a copy of a Donna Hay book from her collection and her stuff is pretty intriguing, though very simple. I can't tell if she's the Rachel Ray of Australia or maybe the Nigel Slater of Australia. In any event, I'm just curious who the top AU, CN, and NZ are.

Anyway, not for August, but just throwing the question out there for possible future months.

Maybe this deserves an outside post? Not sure.

~TDQ

[greedygirl]

I have couple of Donna Hays in my collection, also a Bill Granger and a couple of the Australian Women's Weekly books. I really like an Australian cook called Ross Dobson - have a few of his including the Wholefood Kitchen which is great.

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh, of course I've heard of Bill Granger. Forgot about him. And I remember you mentioned Ross Dobson in a previous COTM thread.

~TDQ

[Gio]

In the same vein, we haven't cooked from an Alsatian book, a German, Swiss, Polish, Croatian, Russian, Scandinavian, or African either. Pick a country. Any country. That's really what I'd like to do.

[BigSal]

I'm with you on picking a country. I'd also add Korean and Thai to the list. I love delving deep into a country's cuisine. I find my experience gets a little diluted when we have a book that covers different countries at the same time.

[BigSal]

And Japanese!

[The Dairy Queen]

True, except we've at least touched on almost everywhere in Asia with Charmaine Solomon and her one country per chapter book.

We are seriously lacking in Northern and Eastern Europe, Africa, and South America. Some of those get picked up in books like SOR but not with any real scrutiny.

And don't even get me started on Greenland. ;-).

However, that's not really where I was going with my question about Australian et. al. authors. Maybe it was. I don't know. Ha! I was just surprised that while there's a lot of love for British authors among COTMers, we don't seem to have the same interest in the Aussies or Kiwis, which surprises me. Mabye that's because we've got greedygirl and Jane to keep us current (and, for awhile there, mmruth's interest in English cookery), or maybe because the Brits have had relatively more penetration into the American media or whatever. Don't know. Just thought it was interesting.

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

giggling about Greenland.

[Gio]

Does Greenland have an indigenous cuisine? Why yes it Does. Blubber, birds and fish.

http://www.greenland.com/en/about-gre...

[The Dairy Queen]

We can all learn to dry cod!

~TDQ

[JoanN]

Nor a Portuguese book, and Jean Anderson's The Food of Portugal would make a wonderful COTM.

[Gio]

Sal: Yes, those countries as well, of course. Although I did/still do like Gourmet Today and the New York Times book I prefer to focus on only one type of cuisine as well. That's why I just coudn't concentrate on Seductions of Rice properly.

Joan: I Love Jean Anderson and would Love to cook from her Portuguese book. Perhaps later in the year?

[The Dairy Queen]

Why later in the year and not August? (just curious if I'm missing something here). I would love to do Jean Anderson's Portuguese cookbook (The Food of Portugal) and/or Leite's New Portuguese Table.

Both are indexed on EYB, which is always a plus:

http://www.eatyourbooks.com/library/57547/the-food-of-portugal

http://www.eatyourbooks.com/library/1...

I hate to be derailing (especially since I'm such a flakorama as of late), but since the nominations this month seem to be leaning towards Spain, why not lean a tiny bit farther to the West and do a Portuguese month? Then we could get some seafood recipes, too.

That would solve LuluMom's no Spanish right now please angst, and satisfy Gio's and JoanN's desire for a new country.

Lots of affordable copies of Jean Anderson's book available on Amazon...

~TDQ

[Gio]

I dunno. My post was just a random thought. August then...

[The Dairy Queen]

HA! Sorry, no pressure. I just had a lot of random thoughts all at once.

~TDQ

[JoanN]

Okay. I'll do the formalities. I nominate THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL by Jean Anderson.

[The Dairy Queen]

OK, I'm going to put my proverbial money where my mouth is,

THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL by Jean Anderson plus PALETAS as a companion

(NOTE TO BAYOUCOOK--BEWARE OF DOUBLE COUNTING my paletas nomination. I nominated it above, too, but I only intended for it to be a companion to the main event. I wasn't clear about that.)

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

okay

[The Dairy Queen]

I don't mean to create extra work for you. Sorry.

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

You didn't. - no problem!

[LulusMom]

Aren't you a sweetheart! Really, I don't want my voice to change the majority opinion. But yes, I could get behind THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL and PALETAS.

[The Dairy Queen]

I just like everyone to have something they feel excited about. Not always possible.

I would really like to do Spanish again, but I'd prefer to do Roden's new book.

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

I am most certainly excited about the prospect of the Portugal book. My husband travels there quite a bit (I've only been once) and loves the food - always a plus, and the author lives right here in town.

[Katie Nell]

Okay, me too, me too! Love Jean Anderson and love the idea of homemade paletas! This is the motivation I need to get off my butt! THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL and PALETAS, please!

[jen kalb]

FOOD OF PORTUGAL is a great book and I would love to see it on COTM

[Gio]

If this wins TDQ will be happy. "We can learn to dry cod." LOL

[Gio]

My second nomination is.....
THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL by Jean Anderson.

[greedygirl]

Having been to Portugal earlier this year, I'd be interested to know a bit more about Jean Anderson's book. My experience of traditional Portuguese food was that it's pretty simple on the whole. There are lots of Portuguese people in my 'hood, btw, and several Portuguese-owned delis, cafes, restaurants and even a butcher.

[The Dairy Queen]

gg, you can get a solid look at a lot of this book online here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7959...

~TDQ

[The Dairy Queen]

Here's some Food of Portugal recipes:

http://www.epicurious.com/tools/searchresults?search=food+of+portugal

EDIT: and you can browse many of the pages here. It's a lot easier to scroll using your down arrow key than it is to click to advance the pages.
http://browseinside.harpercollins.ca/...

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I just did an EYB search on this book, using Ingredients: Vegetables as a filter. My concern is that there are hardly any vegetable recipes. Most of those that come up as vegetables are ingredients in hearty sounding stews. I would really like a book that will make use of summer's overflowing produce bounty.

Anyone who has it, please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Gio]

The absentee vegetables was what I was afraid of. However, it's easy to augment one's menu with past COTMs or any other book on one's shelf. To be fair though, salads are known to be part of the Portugal cuisine as well as cabbage.

ETA: One recipe that was notated positvely at EYB is Sautéed spring greens with olive oil and garlic (Grelos).

[Breadcrumbs]

Funny LN, I was just scanning the recipes from this book on EYB and I also felt there seemed to be a large number of soup and stew like dishes. I was coming here to ask someone who owns the book to give us a sense of how "summery" it was.

[The Dairy Queen]

I did that same thing, too before casting my nomination. Great minds think alike!

You can look at the FOP's entire index in the harper collins link I provided above if that helps any. You are right, though, that it appears to be a one-pot culture, but even so it seems to me that, for me (and I know it's personal preference) that there are enough summer vegetable recipes for the kinds of vegetables I get in my CSA in summer to keep me busy with this book. In a few cases, the vegetables are in the description with the main dish, I think.

I went back and looked at the newsletter from my CSA from last August and here's what I got in my CSA for which there are recipes in both New Spanish Table and Food of Portugal:

parsley
carrots
garlic
peppers
tomatoes
cucumbers
zucchini
green beans
cilantro

here's what I got in my Csa for which only NST has recipes:
beets (we get like 3 beets in the entire month of August, hardly enough to plan around, and they keep forever. this time of year, we throw them on the grill)
basil (I'm not planning my month around basil!)
zucchini (okay, this might be a factor)

Here's what we get in my CSA in August for which there are recipes in FOP but not NSP:
melon

Here's what I get in my CSA in summer for which neither book has recipes:
corn

When I looked at the New Spanish Table on EYB there were a lot of asparagus, mushrooms, pumpkin, and artichoke recipes that don't do me any good in August.

So, for me, it's kind of a toss up between the two. As long as I can use up most of what's in my fridge, I'm good. And, for me, I didn't see a huge difference overall between the Spanish book and the Portuguese book.

I don't know if that helps, but that was my reasoning anyway.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Wow, what a helpful breakdown! Thanks, DQ.

[The Dairy Queen]

Well, that's how I looked at it, but you might want to look at the index online and make sure it works for you! We're just nominating anyway.

~TDQ

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh, I was going to make the point, I think FOP is about half the size of NST. The latter is just going to have more recipes, period.

~TDQ

[Karen_Schaffer]

Interesting list, TDQ. Cucumbers, green beans, and zucchini/summer squash are what's coming out of my garden right now, so I'm glad to see they're covered. But the other question is how many vegetable-using recipes are there? I'm currently frustrated with this month's Mario books because there are just a couple recipes for each of my biggies. This isn't a criticism of the Mario books per se, since that isn't what the focus is supposed to be. But I would love to have our August COTM be one that *does* focus on vegetables.

Well, whether or not a vegetable-oriented cookbook is chosen for COTM, I'll certainly be cooking from one!

[Gio]

<"Well, whether or not a vegetable-oriented cookbook is chosen for COTM, I'll certainly be cooking from one!">

That's my attitude at this point too, Karen. I ordered both NST & FOP (for cheapo prices, I might add) because some of the recipes definitely interested me. Plus I have absolutely no problem combining dishes of neighboring regions because most of the world's cuisines have been influenced by other nations...

[The Dairy Queen]

For FOP:

Cucumbers (2 including one gazpacho), green beans (4, including soups), and zucchini/summer squash (o).

For NST:
Cucumbers (4, all of which are gazpacho in some form including one gazpacho sorbet I might track down anyway) , green beans (12 a few of which call for pumpkin and artichoke etc.), and zucchini/summer squash (8 but I see a few of those also call for pumpkins)

~TDQ

[Karen_Schaffer]

Thanks, TDQ! Based on those figures, I'll throw a vote behind THE NEW SPANISH TABLE, though I'm still more enthusiastic about exploring Vegetable Love or World Vegetarian.

How odd to combine zucchini/summer squash with pumpkin/winter squash. Not a natural combination imho, but I'm very much a garden (and therefore season) driven cook, and those just aren't in season at the same time.

[LulusMom]

I often feel like this is a win/win situation. The worst that happens is that I'm not interested in this months book. But I still have so many tattered papers sticking out of previous month's COTMs that I feel like I'm still being a participant, in my own way. So if we ended up picking "Porky's House of Ham" or "How to Alienate your Husband and Young Daughter through Food" I would still be just fine.

[greedygirl]

They're not big on vegetables in Portugal, with the exception of salad.

[JoanN]

Not sure if you realized it, TDQ, but at that link you posted above ( http://browseinside.harpercollins.ca/... ) you can view the entire index for FOP.

[The Dairy Queen]

That's so fantastic. I wonder why they don't make that "search inside" feature available on Amazon.

~TDQ

[herby]

Not just index but the whole book! Scroll all the way down and patiently wait for it to load and then go up to different recipes. I'll have a closer look at it tonight.

[The Dairy Queen]

Not the whole book, though I thought so at first, too. Just a few pages from each chapter. The page numbers skip around once you start getting into the recipes. Still, there is certainly enough available to give you a real feel for the book so you can decide whether it is for you or not.

~TDQ

[Breadcrumbs]

I just checked EYB and The New Spanish Table has 80 fish & seafood recipes and, I recall it had a good size chapter on vegetables.

[The Dairy Queen]

A lot of those vegetable recipes aren't relevant in August. Asparagus and pumpkin and such. That narrows the field quite a bit, for me personally. I don't need an infinite number of recipes to choose from in any given book, I only need enough.

I notice FOP has a trout recipe (which is available locally where I live) --I'm pretty excited about that--whereas New Spanish Table does not.

No book is going to be 100% perfect for everyone given the diversity of the group and the various climates, etc. we live in. You just have to decide which book you prefer. In my case, I can't see doing another Spanish month without putting Roden's into the mix. That's the Spanish book of the moment.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Fish, seafood, vegetables all sound good to me. TDQ is right though, that no book is going to be perfect for everyone. We should be getting some of the vegetables listed in the Spanish Table in August: kale, chard, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini.

I would, however, prefer to do Roden for a Spanish month. On the other hand FOP is not available at my library. So I'm not coming up with any clear decision here!

[BigSal]

Sounds fun. THE FOOD OF PORTUGAL by Jean Anderson

[LulusMom]

I'd love to try the Marcus Samuelson (sp?) book on African food sometime.

[The Dairy Queen]

I think Soul of a New Cuisine would be a great way to dip our collective toe into Africa. I have that book and lots of the recipes are very appealing. Have I cooked from it? HAHAHA! No, of course not.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I'd be very much on board for an African book! I've done a lot of North African cooking, would love to learn some Sub-Saharan dishes. Took an Ethiopian cooking class not too long ago (one of my favorite cuisines) and really enjoyed it. I've got a few African books, but Samuelson has been in my wish list for a while. Let's look at that for an upcoming month, please!

[LulusMom]

Pretty please! I'm happy to hear other people are interested in this book.

[dkennedy]

I would love to take an Ethiopian cooking class. How was it? What did they teach you to make???

[Breadcrumbs]

Since I know there are more than a few of us here that read cookbooks like novels, I thought I'd mention an African book I picked up at a local thrift store recently. Though I haven't cooked from it yet, I've been captivated by ts stories about the cuisine, the history of dishes, how they were influenced or, how they influenced other cuisines.

The book is called "The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook" by Diane Spivey

Evidently it was 15 years in the making.

Here's a link to the publisher's site:

http://www.sunypress.edu/p-3073-the-p...

[The Dairy Queen]

I've read and cooked from that book, though not much. Neat little book.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Hope it's not too little, for $59.50!

[The Dairy Queen]

I got mine from the library! I had no idea it was a $60 book. Out of print?

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

No, price for a new hardback copy on Amazon and also quoted by publisher. Although the publisher also quotes a lower price for the paperback, don't see it on Amazon proper, but there are several well priced editions from "other sellers." Great luck for Breadcrumbs, finding it in a thrift shop!

[The Dairy Queen]

Wow. That's pretty crazy. I just looked on Amazon. It's definitely the same book. Funnily enough, I recommended it to an acquaintance about a year ago. He must think I'm made of money!

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

The class was fun and interesting. The dishes included Doro Wat (chicken stew), Misir (spicy red lentils), a potato and carrot dish, don't recall the name, and, of course, Injera. I confess, however, that I haven't made any of the dishes since the class. Making injera is a rather long process (requires a starter, fermentation, etc.), and I can't imagine the other dishes without it. Someday...

[Karen_Schaffer]

Wow, I just read through the entire post to this point. What a swirl of ideas! I'll nominate the following (more as a show of support than because I expect anything to happen):

VEGETABLE LOVE by Barbara Kafka
I've had so many gardening friends recommend this book.

WORLD VEGETATATIAN by Madhur Jaffrey
The few recipes I've tried from this I've liked, and it offers a huge variety.

Either of these would be perfect for the upcoming August glut of vegetables, imho.

Regarding Radically Simple: I had it out from the library for several weeks. I marked a bunch of recipes and made a few, While I liked what I tried, I didn't feel moved make more. Also, there were times when I was inspired by something in the book, but 'inspired' is really the operative word; I was inspired to use the ingredients I had at hand, but in the end, my dish was so different from hers that I didn't feel like I should report on it. If Radically Simple wins, I'll be happy for its backers, but color me dubious.

Regarding The Splendid Table: Last month's discussion convinced me that this would be better as a colder month book.

I haven't looked at The New Spanish Table, but I'm intrigued. If it wins, I'm sure I'll find things in it to appreciate.

[qianning]

Vegetable Love...tell me more!

[The Dairy Queen]

VL is one of those giant encyclopedic books. Recipes are organized more or less by vegetable in alphabetical order. Note that this is not a vegetarian book.

I have this book but to be honest, I use it more as a resource than actually cook from it. Often, I'll use it to look up how to store a vegetable, or something like that.

You can preview the book on Amazon to get an idea...

~TDQ

[qianning]

thanks.

[L.Nightshade]

Assuming summer will finally come to the Northwest in August, I'm drawn to outdoor cooking and international variety. I'm going to go with PLANET BARBECUE.

I do think it would be nice to pair it with a vegetable-oriented book, and World Vegetarian sounds perfect. But I have mixed feelings about a two-book month, so I'll hold off on that for now.

[twilight goddess]

2 *official* nominations (by the way, multiple copies of both in the library here and I would imagine elsewhere -- so that COTM is available to those of us who cannot afford to buy a new book) :

THE SPENDID TABLE by Lynne Rossetto Kasper

and EVERYDAY FOOD: GREAT FOOD FAST by Martha Stewart

[dkennedy]

I love Splendid Table

I haven't seconded the nomination only because we just finished two Italian-ish books and I think of Splendid Table for making rich delicious ragus, and hearty meals. I think it is better suited for October-February COTM.

[Gio]

Glad to hear you love The Splendid Table. DK. I'm waiting till later in the year too. Here's hoping.

[dkennedy]

Yes, Gio, it is such a solidly good book. I think it is the one I would take with me if I moved and could only take one. Perish the thought!

But back to this month....I just added Planet Barbecue to my EYB index and I was happily surprised to see it is on 66 shelves. If any of you have it, please speak up about what you think of it. As I mentioned earlier, the reviews on Amazon are decidedly positive and the recipes look intriguing.

Check it out for yourselves:
http://www.eatyourbooks.com/library/1...

[MelMM]

I'm going to nominate the combo of PLANET BARBECUE by Steven Raichlen, and WORLD VEGETARIAN by Madhur Jaffrey. I just think these two books will go well together. Both with a very global view, one grill/smoker based, the other veggie based, so we can take advantage of seasonal produce. Both books, excellent, from what I've tried.

[dkennedy]

I will join you in your nomination of PLANET BARBECUE (I just ordered a copy for $1.98 plus shipping) and if it is to coupled with something else for balance, I would join in the nomination of PATLETAS. Both have excellent reviews online, and I could really use more time on my BBQ.

The spanish book does not sound like my cup of tea, especially in August, but as I said earlier, I reserved a copy from my library so I will participate either way.

[The Dairy Queen]

I would love to try World Vegetarian.

What happened to all of the Radically Simple people?

~TDQ

[Gio]

Well...there's always the adjunct thread>
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/786040

[Goblin]

Hi there,
I voted for Radically Simple and then happily joined the adjunct CH thread. I really like the recipes and haven't cooked nearly enough of them but hesitated to nominate a book that already has a thread going with lots of reviews.

[LulusMom]

That is pretty much how I felt Goblin. I'm having a lot of fun cooking from Radically Simple (making something new from it on Thursday), and will continue to cook and report on that thread. But that thread seems lively enough at this point without it needing to be COTM.

[pikawicca]

Told you I'm the kiss of death.

[Gio]

No you're Not...! Who knows why somethings appeal while others don't. I'll probably join the group having Radical Fun before long..

[Jay F]

TDQ: "What happened to all of the Radically Simple people?"

I've nominated it, and it has been voted down, so many times, I've decided not to jinx the book any further.

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh, sorry. I only saw Pika's nom. It seems like the book has a lot of fans but they are just enjoying cooking from it from a separate thread. That, and pika's the kiss of death. ;-). Teasing of course.

I'd throw in a vote but I'm really careful about what I advocate lately since I haven't been a very consistent participant. I hope that will change someday soon...

~TDQ

[jen kalb]

I dont actually own World Vegetarian among my collection of Jaffrey books but I do have WORLD OF THE EAST VEGETARIAN COOKING, one of the best pure veg books around.
it would be great paired with WORLD VEGETARIAN

[LulusMom]

I was hoping Jaffrey's World Vegetarian would win last month - I hope some month soon it does.

[BigSal]

THE NEW SPANISH TABLE. So glad to hear that it appears that this book is readily available. Ole!

[dkennedy]

Well, I think we have a contender here. Just ordered a copy from the Library based on the mounting enthusiasm. WIsh we could put it off a bit until the weather cools down, but I guess I could get behind sangria, tapas and paella.

[greedygirl]

I'm not sure I need another Spanish book in my life that's not the Claudia Roden one, tbh. May have to sit this one out!

[Gio]

Have you heard about..."Rick Stein's Spain: 140 New Recipes Inspired by My Journey Off the Beaten Track" ? My all time favorite presenter in the whole world...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rick-Steins-S...

[greedygirl]

I have a couple of his fish books but haven't branched out into anything else. I do like him as well.

That reminds me - one of my favourite Spanish books which is very old school is Floyd on Spain. Have you come across Keith Floyd at all - he was absolutely hilarious (sadly died quite recently)?

[LulusMom]

I absolutely loved watching Keith Floyd, and was saddened by his death (and I heard he had just recently showed up on tv there in obviously rough shape). He really was one of a kind. Bet his books would be hard to find over here.

[Gio]

Greedy & LLM... I never even Heard of Keith Floyd. It makes me sad that I missed him... Gotta go Google.

[greedygirl]

He was very flamboyant and always cooked with a large glass of wine to hand! It killed him in the end though.

[LulusMom]

For a while there he could be seen on the Travel Channel, but I haven't noticed anything there recently.

[Gio]

How hilarious a life, but so sad in the end. He died on 14 Sept. 2009. The first page on hs web site begins, "Keith Floyd was born at an early age and educated at Wellington School in Somerset."

Somehow, he looks vaguely familiar. Perhaps I did see him somewhere along the way, but obviously have forgotten. I'm trying to find some of his books. He wrote 25 of them focusing on cuisines of the every corner in the world, it seems. The recipes on his web site give only ingredients not amounts. Reading them one can imagine just how much to use.

Here's his web site with a few recipes...

http://www.floydonline.co.uk/

Thanks GG for telling me about him.

[jen kalb]

there are so many spanish books with casas, Janet mendel, etc. guess I am not a Roden believer and I dont find spanish cooking as inherently interesting as Italian, French or middle eastern with its much smaller range of veg dishes.

If we are doing spanish, why not COLEMAN ANDREWS' CATALAN CUISINE as an alternative.

[qianning]

although i am a roden fan, i'd love to do andrews' CATALAN CUISINE as a cotm.

[Breadcrumbs]

THE NEW SPANISH TABLE BY ANYA VON BREMZEN

(I bought my copy for $1 plus S&H from Abe's and just noticed it's from the Eastman branch of the Cleveland Public Library . . . if that's your library, sorry, I guess they'll have fewer copies available to borrow!!)

[smtucker]

THE NEW SPANISH TABLE, Anya von Bremzen

My library has 17 copies, all available. So, I am in.

[The Dairy Queen]

Mine has three, which is a good number for this market.

~TDQ

[Gio]

My library network has 7 copies, 6 are available with one due next week...with 2 copies at my local.

THE NEW SPANISH TABLE

[herby]

The New Spanish Table

Checked out my library - it has four copies and only one is out - too bad I most likely won't be cooking in August but who knows; anything could happen. Here is the Library Journal review:

The widely traveled von Bremzen is also the author of Please to the Table: The Russian Cookbook and The New Pacific Table, among other titles. A frequent visitor to Spain since the early 1980s, she has watched the culinary revolution that has recently made some of that country's chefs into international names. Her latest book provides a fascinating look at this new cuisine, with recipes (adapted for the home kitchen) from Ferran Adri and other celebrated chefs, but fortunately she does not dismiss the favorite regional dishes that are hallmarks of traditional Spanish cooking (she admits that her recipe selection leans to her two favorite regions, Catalonia and the Basque country). So classics like Patatas Bravas and Garlic Soup are here, next to recipes for such inventions as Cherry and Beet Gazpacho, "Deconstructed" Tomato Bread, and Scallops with Candied Lemon. There are sidebars on ingredients, history, and other culinary topics, along with stories about the chefs, home cooks, and artisans she encountered, and there are color photographs of the food and the cities and countryside throughout. An essential purchase.

[qianning]

Just curious, has anyone cooked from "The New Spanish Table" ? (I have "Please to the Table" and use it occasionally, totally different cuisine, but wonder how they compare in tone, success rate, & etc)

[Gio]

Type the title in all caps. herby, if you want your nomination counted...

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh my: Sardines with balsamic vinegar ice cream.

These two sound pretty good actually: Roasted squash soup with saffron ice cream, Spicy gazpachho sorbet with balsamic drizzle..

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Anyone want to go down Mexico way? With Rick Bayless, Diana Kennedy, Zarela Martinez, or Roberto Santibanez maybe? I like Kennedy, Martinez, and Bayless, don't know Santibanez yet.
C'mon, have a margarita and think about it!

[pikawicca]

Have the Santibanez book, but haven't cooked from it yet. There are a number of ingredients that I simply can't get, even online.

[JoanN]

Both Bayless and Kennedy have been selections in the past.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/691346

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/691346

[L.Nightshade]

Don't you ever repeat an author, just using a different book?

[Gio]

I'm not answering for Joan but I, personally, look foreward to exploring new and varied cookbook authors and cuisines. That's the charm and what causes excitment month to month. I'll step aside and let JN answer your question...

[L.Nightshade]

I can see that. I just looked up the old Bayless thread. Five years old and I recognize a few of the names. Some of you have been at this a while, and still going strong!

[Katie Nell]

I do too, but I think we've done a nice balance over the years. I know we've already done Rick Bayless, but would love to be forced to cook some more from Mexican Everyday. One of the soups in there was so simple, yet unbelievably tasty, it was genius!

Realizing I don't have a leg to stand on here, since my participation has been non-existant lately, but has anyone considered My New Orleans, by John Besh again? There was some discussion of it back in June. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7841... Seems like it would be a great August cookbook!

[The Dairy Queen]

I too would love to be forced to cook more from Mexican Everyday. I've had some good luck with that book. Which soup did you like?

Someday I'd love to cook from that Besh book!

~TDQ

[Katie Nell]

It was the Creamy Corn Soup with Chicken (or Ham) and Poblano Chile. I used chicken, but I thought it could have easily been vegetarian. I could see adding zucchini or more whole corn or mushrooms to it as well. I thought it was great as is, but also left room for lots of interpretation. And easy, to boot!

[The Dairy Queen]

Yes we do. Batali, Ottolenghi, Greenspan and Roden all fall into that category. Also Wolfert and Alford & Duguid.

When we repeat an author (new book) do that I always want to revisit the old book, too. This is what I suggested with Hopksinson when Lulu's Mom proposed his latest The Vegetarian Option.

In general, though, and especially if we aren't going to have the option to "revisit" formally as a group, I'd personally rather try a new author. Maybe you'll fall in love with someone new!

~TDQ

[Gio]

Don't forget Ottolenghi...

But to reply to L. Nightshade. In the beginning I did a lot of lurking trying to get a feel for the reporting and what others were doing. Also, some months I just didn;t cook the book at all but just used books on my shelf. This after many years of cooking from memory or off-the-cuff. But COTM was a wonderful departure.

[LulusMom]

I think we're all on the edge of our seats for Fuschia Dunlop's next book!

[The Dairy Queen]

She'd better not let us down!

~TDQ

[bayoucook]

Didn't find it previewed on Amazon. What is the title/subject? Looking forward to it.

[The Dairy Queen]

It's on Amazon UK as "Every Grain of Rice." Pub date of Feb 6, 2012. Apparently it's not regionally focused like her other 2.

~TDQ

[Gio]

It's also for pre-order at Amazon dot com...Which I did several months ago.

http://www.amazon.com/Every-Grain-Ric...

[dkennedy]

Just looked up Every Grain of Rice but first found a 1998 cookbook by the same title. Looks like it has excellent reviews. Do any of you have that one on your shelves? I am tempted to buy it but it has a steep price tag, even used.

[The Dairy Queen]

HAHAA! Apparently I did, too. I just went and looked and I'm already signed up to be notified (I didn't see a pre-order option.)

~TDQ

[Gio]

Apropos of FD... Fuschia Dunlop picks her 5 favorite Chinese cookbooks:

http://thebrowser.com/interviews/fusc...

[The Dairy Queen]

I've never heard of any of those books,except, I think, the last one.

CALLING BUTTERTART AND OTHER CHINESE BOOK-APHILES! Do I need these?

~TDQ

[buttertart]

They're pretty heavy-duty - I posted about them, let me look up the post and link...

[buttertart]

On the Fuchsia D list - (very interesting, classic works on the topic, my favorite cookery author and new kitty namesake) - http://thebrowser.com/interviews/fusc... - would caution that these are serious works and not exactly spritely light summer reading. The Yan-Kit So would be a good starting point (although I like "Chinese Gastronomy" by Hsiang Ju-lin better, really).
As far as "The Gourmet" goes, I just read it and must say that it's less about Suzhou (one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in China, of supreme political and economic importance throughout Chinese history until being overshadowed by Shanghai starting in the late 19th century) and about local food/gastronomy than about mid 20th century Chinese politics and its effects on indviduals, when it comes down to it. Interesting but if you read it expecting tales of lotus root stuffed with glutinous rice and stewed in sugar syrup, river shrimp, and other lovely Suzhou delicacies you will be disappointed.
Allow me to introduce Ms. Fuchsia D.

[qianning]

Ditto the preference for Hsiang Ju-lin, "Chinese Gastronomy" is a book worth having if you're really into Chinese food/cooking.

[LulusMom]

Love Ms. Fuschia! She actually *looks* fuchsia in that photo.

[Breadcrumbs]

I agree LM, I thought the very same thing! A very elegant lady!

[buttertart]

:) Just a cellphone shot. She's dark blue-gray, really. And just LOOKS like a lady.

[greedygirl]

Gorgeous! Is she a posh cat or a moggy?

[buttertart]

100% moggy, was an unwed mother brought to a (no-kill) shelter last October. Kittens were adopted and she was left. Quite the girl, seems to think I speak cat.

[Breadcrumbs]

I wonder if she has some Siamese in her bt? They are super-talkative! We'll have to change your name to the cat-whisperer!!

You could start a cooking for cats thread and let us know what her menu preferences are!!! ; - )

[buttertart]

There is a "Cooking for our four-legged friends" thread up already (inaplasticcup started it about a week ago). Pet stuff is usually frowned on here, unfortunately...
Siamese maybe, definitely the Oriental type, is not a big eater but snuck some Chinese chicken salad the other night when my back was turned! Hot bean paste and all. Proving I picked the right name. ;-)

[JoanN]

Too lazy to look it up right now, but I believe that for Bayless there was an adjunct thread on which many contributors posted reviews of recipes from other Bayless books.

Very interesting question whether or not we ever revisit an author. Everybody chime in if I'm wrong, but so far I think Patricia Wells is the only one who has had two books that were selections for two different months. That could change. Many of us are eagerly awaiting the next Dunlop and I'm looking forward to seeing the next Virginia Willis.

[The Dairy Queen]

See my post above. There have been many repeat authors Joan! A surprising number, actually. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7959...

~TDQ

[The Dairy Queen]

Hilariously (to me) Wells is one repeat author I forgot to mention. I think I blocked the memory of the terrible Vegetable Harvest from my memory...

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

Ugh, Vegetable harvest really was a bomb, wasn't it?

[JoanN]

Hanging head in shame and logging off. Time to leave the what-used-to-be info to younger, more flexible, memories.

[The Dairy Queen]

Batali and Roden are the only two I remembered off the bat. I had to look the others up!

~TDQ

[Gio]

So instead of doing what I'm supposed to be doing I researched The New Spanish Table by Anya von Bremzen and it looks very promising. She's the author of Please to the Table...which might be in my future as well. Someone who knows about the Spanish book please tell me about it...

As for Turkish cuisine there's a restaurant in Boston called The Sultan's Kitchen which gets pretty good reviews. The chef there has written an eponymous book based, I think, on the restaurant's dishes.

http://www.amazon.com/Sultans-Kitchen-Cookbook-Ozcan-Ozan/dp/962593944X/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311020834&sr=1-2

The restaurant:

http://www.sultans-kitchen.com/

[Goblin]

The New Spanish Table is sounding pretty good! Has someone nominated it?

[Gio]

It's not been nominated but Breadcrumbs mentioned it as a possibility and SMT was thinking of either a Spanish book or a Turkish one...

Here's Amazon's Spanish Table page:

http://www.amazon.com/New-Spanish-Tab...

[LulusMom]

Totally selfishly, I cannot even think about a Spanish cookbook. As a non-pork eater who just spent 5+ weeks there, I don't even want to think about tortilla espana, seafood paella, etc. Again, just total selfishness on my part. I am always happy to defer to the group.

[smtucker]

Oh, yes, the pork thing. Is there anything that grows in the garden that the Spanish won't add pork to? What might amuse you more? I am wildly flexible on this to be honest.

[LulusMom]

It was funny how much pork there was. They'd insist something was vegetarian, and then BINGO - covered in pork. And the asparagus! I finally asked at one place if it was possible to not have it come out quite so cooked and the man looked taken aback and then proudly said "but it comes from a can." And this was in a very nice restaurant.
Seriously, I'm absolutely ok with it winning, although I probably wouldnt' end up cooking from it, simply because I ate so darned much Spanish food this summer. But thank you so much SMT.

[jen kalb]

they take their canned specialty foods very seriously in Spain. You are right tho about problems for vegetarians and non-pork eaters there.

[smtucker]

I have only been to Spain once. It was a 2 week orchestra tour with these miraculous days off in the most amazing places. One of my closest friends on the trip eats Kosher, and is a vegetarian which makes the kosher thing pretty simple. It was almost impossible! I became her taster since the word vegetarian in Spanish must translate to "there isn't much meat."

Eventually she gave up and bought cheese and crackers at small markets. I believe she lost 6 pounds that trip.

[Breadcrumbs]

Interestingly there are only 5 recipes in the "Pork" section of The New Spanish Table" The poultry, fish, seafood, beef and other meat dishes are far more prevalent. Perhaps Anya's not a fan of pork!!

We've only been to Spain once and stayed in the Costa del Sol. So spectacular. The beach picnics w assorted breads and cheese and the wine plunked in the wet sand to stay cool . . . those are the best memories!

[LulusMom]

I've heard that the prevalence of pork in Spain started during the Inquisition. It was an easy way to prove you weren't Jewish if you ate lots of pork products. Kind of makes sense.

[jen kalb]

pork is also an easier meat to raise in adverse environments than beef.

[LulusMom]

What totally shocked me was that, for all the pork they eat, I never saw a pig. Plenty of cows (oh lord, so many cows) and lots of chickens, etc. but never a pig.

Edit: of course, I was only in the north. Pig farming may well all be done in the south.

[BigSal]

I spent a semester in Spain in college and at the time, I was a vegetarian of sorts (I did eat eggs, milk and cheese products and fish and seafood). I ate a ton of seafood like langostinos, shrimp,eels, clams, mussels, octopus and ate varieties of fish that I never had in the US . I'd love to go back now and try all of the things I avoided the first time.

[LulusMom]

I ate a heck of a lot of octopus. Didn't run across any eels, or really much seafood in general (odd since I was near the coast part of the time) but that may just be because I spent a lot of time in small towns with very few restaurants.

[L.Nightshade]

Can someone who has used the New Spanish Table answer a question? A brief glance at recipes in EYB looks like there are a lot of cool weather sounding dishes: stews, roasts, etc. Are there a lot of summery dishes also? It's a warm country, so I would hope so, but it doesn't appear that way on first look.

[Breadcrumbs]

Sounds like we had a similar afternoon Gio! It was one of those very rare days that I actually got home early and, after changing into my gardening duds I drifted from the land of good intentions and ended up looking through cookbooks!

As I mentioned up thread, I haven't cooked from The New Spanish Table. It was recommended by a Hound and it was one of those books I took an immediate liking to. It has a lot of information about Spain, the origin of dishes, side bars with really interesting stories of the author's travels and experiences and, delicious sounding recipes - some of which are photographed.

As I looked through all the books I'd mentioned above, it was this one I kept coming back to so I did a bit of internet digging and found an interview w the author that further piqued my interest in the author and this book. One thing that really struck me was that she tested every one of the recipes, "many times over" she said. Her passion for the cuisine and, her book was infectious.

Here's the link to the interview:

http://www.portlandfoodanddrink.com/2...

Theres such variety in the book. The tapas, paella and empanada sections are so enticing. The sangrias were calling my name!! I was a bit concerned that the recipe ingredient lists seemed long however, on closer inspection I realized that was because they also included extra info like suggested alternatives or perhaps a note to the cook - "choose ones that are not too tapered" regarding the zucchini she called for.

I compared this book to "Made in Spain" by Jose Andres whose restaurants I love, and The Spanish Table had greater variety and appeal. I felt the recipes were more accessible with ingredients I'd likely have on hand or, would be able to purchase without travelling all over town.

I'm definitely heading to the restaurant supply store on Friday to get myself a paella pan!!

[smtucker]

Very funny! Your link brings us to the dessert page! Enjoying some granitas these days?

[Breadcrumbs]

LOL, I actually just took the link off smtucker.

Not sure what's going on w EYB - even though I had the full 12 pages of recipes, for some reason the website was truncating the list. I went through the process again and had the same issue so I'll send a note off to Jane.

[greedygirl]

Gio - you might be interested in Seasonal Spanish Food by Jose Pizarro. I haven't cooked from it yet but a lot of the recipes look great.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seasonal-Span...

The Moro books by Sam and Sam Clarke are also very good and include some Moorish influences.

[Gio]

Many thanks for the recs, GG. Will investigate.

[BigSal]

I have both of those books and agree that the recipes in Pizarro's book look great. I'd love to cook from either of these.

[smtucker]

This is full summer here in New England. I turn on the stove top as little as possible, and cook as many foods outside as I can. But, since I am in New England there is no "outdoor" kitchen. Such a kitchen could be used for maybe 3 months of the year. Total waste of energy, space and money.

When I do turn on the stove, I cook a lot at once; things that can be served cold and eaten for several days. The grill, and grillmeister [he doesn't let me touch his Charbroil], get a heavy workout between now and the middle of September.

I would be happy with any book that comes from a climate that encourages this type of cooking. Spanish, Turkish, or Greek food all appeal. But, we have just done Turkish, Gio doesn't care for Greek [and what is a COTM without Gio?], so I would love to investigate any Spanish books.

I own "Made in Spain" and "Tapas: A Taste of Spain" but do find the recipes a bit fussy and some of the ingredients pricey. However, I would dive into either these or another suggestions.

I do want to voice concern at the monthly suggestions that we drop COTM for another format. I like this format. It is imperfect and yet brilliant. We fumble, fuss, turn things on their head, and somehow end up picking books that excite enough people to create a community. COTM has been a wonderful way to explore books that I never would have found without the input of all these really enthusiastic people. ::stepping off soapbox now::

[L.Nightshade]

I hope you don't think I was advocating dropping the COTM format, no way. I was just thinking "out loud" about how we could incorporate some regional cook books that would be interesting to hear about, but won't work for everyone (especially those farmers' market books that focus on local produce).

[smtucker]

Not directed in any one direction, but this is the fourth month in a row that someone has suggested a new format. And I decided it was time for me to advocate for keeping this one. :-)

[L.Nightshade]

Are you opposed to the idea of an adjunct thread, as suggested in above posts?

[smtucker]

Of course not. :-)

[LulusMom]

I'm with you. I want COTM to continue as is. No problem at all with other things being started, but this is such a wonderful way to cook and learn about new foods, cooking methods, etc.

[LulusMom]

How about Simon Hopkinson's "VEGETARIAN OPTION"? Lots of nice produce available right now.

Also would love to cook from THE OLIVE AND THE CAPER, although doing Greek right after a month of Italian might be a bit much. I'm really enjoying Radically Simple, but we've got that thread going and rocking, and it doesn't seem to need to be COTM. And that Sardinian cookbook is one I'd *love* to cook from, but right after Italian month seems, again, to be pushing it.

[pikawicca]

Have you cooked from "Vegetarian Option?" I've been rather disappointed with the recipes I've tried.

[The Dairy Queen]

Plus, be slightly forewarned, it's not entirely vegetarian, but mostly so.

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

No, I haven't had a chance to cook from it, but I sat with it last weekend and was very excited, and I loved Roast Chicken so much that I want to try some of these recipes as well. I'd be happy to settle for Second Helpings or whatever the next one after Roast Chicken was called.

[BigSal]

Sweet Myrtle and Bitter Honey...I'd love to cook from this too!

[dkennedy]

Hi All,

Been out of the loop, on a road trip taking my daughter to camp so I haven't been able to weigh in on the choices thus far mentioned. Re John Ashes From Earth to Table, I hate this book, one of the very few I have given away. Nightshade, I hope you find it more inspiring than I did. What is that saying, one man's trash is another man's treasure? Or in this case, woman's.

I recently started a thread exploring recipes out of The Dean and DeLuca Cookbook, but so far it has had very few responses. I thought it might make a worthy COTM contender, because over 200 of us have it on our EYB shelves. Thoughts?

I am still very interested in continuing with a summer theme. I am really enjoying cooking out of the grilling book, and I would love to try another one next month, such as The Latin Grill, but I am guessing there will be very few takers back to back. If we go with Paletas, they would pair very nicely together.

In terms of summer or seasonal cookbooks that are not grilling books, I still think The Santa Monica Farmer's Market Cookbook is a great option. It is no longer new and so most will be able to acquire a copy used at a reasonable price. IMHO, everyone needs a copy of this book on their shelves, I am surprised most people don't have a copy. Those are my thoughts so far......

[L.Nightshade]

I just looked up the Santa Monica farmers' market book, my search also brought up so many other interesting looking farmers' market books. I'm also curious about the SF Ferry Plaza farmers' market book, and Deborah Madison's, among others. (Off topic, the search also brought up the Farmers' Market Mysteries, a fiction series.)

[The Dairy Queen]

Love love love the SF Ferry Plaza farmers' market book, except it has a lot of produce we don't grow locally. Still, great book and I have it.

dk, I have the D&D Cookbook and have never cooked from it. I picked it up cheap. It seems a little dated to me, but I'm sure there's some good stuff in there.

Tell us more about the Latin Grill. Never heard of it.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I had the geographical concern with the Santa Monica book. Up here near the Canadian border, we don't get the same produce as southern California. Our climate is a bit more similar to the SF farmers' market area. Also why I was attracted to Madison's "Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Market," as it sounded a bit more cross-continent, as did "Fresh from the Farmer's Market."
I would like a book that has a lot of recipes that will work with CSA's and farmers' market's current bounties.
Although, after hearing on another board about squash blossom quesadillas, I kind of wanted to find some fresh, south of the border entrant.

[dkennedy]

LNightshade, I was wondering where you live. Yes, I agree, some of the produce will not be obtainable, but most will. Local Flavors also appeals to me. Really, any farmer's market cookbook would be appealing to me, even if I have to fork out some dough.

[L.Nightshade]

I'm in Bellingham WA, just a few miles from the border with British Columbia. It is still cool and rainy here, and we seem to be getting late winter, early spring produce.

[dkennedy]

So far I have resisted buying the SF Ferry Plaza farmer's market cookbook, but if it is chosen I will definitely acquire it. I love, love, love all things Ferry Building, so I am sure the cookbook will be no exception.

As for Amelia Saltsman's cookbook, here are a sampling of her summer recipes to tempt you:

Blackberrry and Balsamic Grilled Game Hens
Black Cod with Green Tomatoes
Cantaloupe Soup with Moscato and Mint
Chanterelle Popcorn
GM's Apricot Preserves ( a personal favorite)
Grilled Fig and Market Ham Salad
Marinate Grill-Roasted Lipstick Peppers
Seared Peach Open Faced Rustic Tart
Seared White Nectarines with Burnt Honey
Tangelo Bars
Meyer Lemon Sundae with Cara Caras and Tangelos

[L.Nightshade]

What a temptress you are! Sounds pretty darn good.

I know there is more unity when we all cook from one book, but it would be kind of fun for everyone to cook from a farmers' market book that suited their own area and growing season (there seem to be so many interesting ones). Then we could compare notes and dishes from our respective locations. Not realistic for a COTM, I know, but could be fun.

[dkennedy]

Everything in the SMFMC is great. Amelia has a blog, I'll try to find the link and post it. Is that allowed? She is always posting great advice about this and that, I really like her.

[dkennedy]

My all time favorite recipe out of this book is the Beans, Greens and Pork Stew. I didn't list this in my tempts above because it is more of a winter dish, but it is to die for. I use wild boar stew meat, and it calls for dried tomatoes (smoked or sun dried if you can't find smoked) dinosaur kale, italian sausage, and dried beans and chipotles. Unbelievably delicious.

[dkennedy]

I love the idea of us all cooking out of our respective Farmer's Market cookbooks, maybe on a separate thread. Meanwhile, I am going to bite the bullet and nominate:

THE SANTA MONICA FARMER'S MARKET COOKBOOK by Amelia Saltsman

[The Dairy Queen]

Links are allowed, definitely. Go for it!

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Regarding another grilling book (I'd support that, we haven't had that much opportunity to grill as it's been a rainy month), what about Planet Barbecue? You can pretty much choose what country you feel like eating in, and find a grilling recipe to go along. Haven't cooked from it yet, so can't vouch, but it sure looks intriguing.

[MelMM]

I've been cooking from Planet Barbecue lately and it's been great. I was considering nominating it (still am). It might do well to be paired with a vegetable book. It has some vegetable recipes, but it is pretty meat-heavy.

[L.Nightshade]

Was thinking the exact same thing. Definitely want some summer vegetables in the menu, but there is some (understandable) resistance to having two books as COTM.

[bayoucook]

Maybe we should do a seasonal cooking thread every season! Use what ever recipes we want, with references and our versions of the recipes with reviews. So we could start with something like Summer 2011 Seasonal Cooking: What's Fresh at Your House?

[pikawicca]

I like this idea!

[herby]

Great idea B-cook!

[L.Nightshade]

I kind of like this idea also. There are so many great looking farmers' market cookbooks that are specific to a geographical area, and don't work for other areas. So they can't really work as a COTM, but they could be incorporated into a seasonal cooking thread.

[L.Nightshade]

Actually, if not every season, maybe every summer. I would guess there are fewer variances between different locales in the middle of winter.

[Gio]

This is an interesting idea and I can see it working like the Holiday Baking threads and, wasn't there an Ice Cream or frozen dessert thread at one time?

Would a Summer (year) cooking thread run from June through August? Would this take the place of the regular COTM for those three months?

[bayoucook]

I'd think it would be a stand-alone thread, still have out COTM.

[JoanN]

I think this would be a fine adjunct for COTM, as were the winter baking threads. But I'd hate to see it as a replacement.

Would we then have to call it COTEBSM (Cookbook of the Everything-but-Summer Month)?

[Gio]

Good. An adjunct thread sounds the way to go. I'm all for that. Then those who don't care to cook from the elected COTM will have choices.

[LulusMom]

Totally agree.

[L.Nightshade]

I'd hate to see it take the place of monthly COTM. I'd like to see either an adjunct thread that ran through the summer months, or a one month COTM where everyone chose a cookbook that was specific to foods in their area (Santa Monica Farmers' Market, Southern Farmers' Market, Pennsylvania Central Market, Hawaii Farmers' Market, Northwest Essentials, etc, etc.)

[The Dairy Queen]

Could we pair Vegetarian Option with revisiting Roast Chicken and Other Stories? There were lots of great recipes for vegetables in that book, too.

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

I Love revisiting old favorites. And as I said above, Second Helpings could be brought into the mix too.

[The Dairy Queen]

Hmmmm...tough one. Do we do

Veg. Option+ Revisit RC&OS

or

Veg Option + Second Helpings?

or

?

Three seems like too many. Is it?

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

Worked in Jamie Oliver month, but I definitely defer to everyone's wishes. I normally do think more than 2 is pushing it.

[dkennedy]

I have to say I am not very motivated by the revisits. I think it is because the thread is so long when we begin, it is daunting to get through reading all the responses and then find where a particular review should go. Plus, it is all re-reading for me. As it is , if I pick up a book that is a prior COTM and cook out of it, I would write a review on the old thread.

[Gio]

I agree with you DK. Once is really enough for a COTM. The reporting threads remain in the archives thanks to the CHTeam, and that's where i report new recipes that I cook from past books. Also, I'm definitely in favor of one book per month. Although we're doing 2 this month and I'm attempting to cook along, I'd rather just concentrate on one book. There's so much one can learn from a really well written and well presented cookbook. Especially one that focuses on a single cuisine or regional style.

[The Dairy Queen]

Maybe we should add a "revisit" thread to the master thread for a new whenever we revisit a cookbook? That would keep the thread from being too unweildy and make it fresh and new. And then ask the mods to edit a link to the "revisit" thread into the master thread of the old COTM? That would keep everything together?

Like Gio, I do prefer focusing on just one book, but it seems to make sense to revisit old favorites when doing a book by the same author. Furthermore, looking at the COTM archives, we do combo more often than not. So, as a group, we actually seem to prefer combos.

But, also looking at the COTM archives, I see we've already done a revisit on Roast Chicken & Other Stories.

~TDQ

[JoanN]

Although a "revisit" thread might link the threads, it wouldn't keep all the reviews for a single recipe in a single place--something I find tremendously helpful. It's one of the main reasons I'm so unhappy when there are duplicate (or even more) threads for a single cookbook.

Although I'm one of the main offenders, I've made a personal vow never again to start a thread for a book that might conceivably become a COTM selection. Even when COTM has a link to the original thread, there's just no way of knowing while you're reading a report whether or not that recipe has been reviewed previously. The COTM archive has become a real treasure, one I feel becomes diluted if it's arduous to search on various threads for reviews of the recipe you might be considering.

[The Dairy Queen]

Agreed about the comments on the recipes getting scattered... It is definitely an imperfect solution.

~TDQ

[Gio]

The Bon Appetit Y'All thread was started because I just wasn't interested in Breakfast, Lunch, Tea by Rose Carrarini but I Was worried it would dilute the process. I don't think it did to any extent. Willis has a book being published at the end of Sept., "Basic to Brilliant, Y'All: 150 Refined Southern Recipes and Ways to Dress Them Up for Company." If it's as good as her first book I might consider another thread...

[JoanN]

It's not that it necessarily dilutes the process. I don't think it did with Fish Without a Doubt, either. But I do think having a previous thread for Around My French Table lessened participation when the book was eventually selected.

What I find problematic is having to search one or more threads--the non-COTM ones sometimes being difficult to find even if you do remember they exist--to make sure I've seen all the reports written in order to take advantage of the wisdom therein.

[Gio]

Sometimes it easiest to find those non-COTM threads by going through your posts on your profile page. I have a bookmark folder with those non threads...

[JoanN]

That's a good idea. I'm afraid I'm not very good about organizing my bookmarks. Perhaps this will give me the impetus I need.

[LulusMom]

great idea. thanks.

[The Dairy Queen]

I think those "pre-COTM" threads are what helps some (perhaps more obscure) books gather the momentum they need to become COTM. It happened for Flexitarian Table, for instance, and for Hopkinson and I expect it will happen for Radically Simple, too.

I think we should just ask the COTM organizer, whoever it may be, to add the "pre-thread" to their master COTM thread as a reference.

~TDQ

[JoanN]

I certainly agree that that was what happened. And there's no question that all of those threads were started by someone truly passionate about the book and wanting to share their very positive experiences with it.

But if you go back to my original post on this above, all I was saying was that I don't think "revisit" threads should be separate from the original. It's probably just the editor in me who is used to writing on a manuscript: "You previously discussed this in Chapter 2; please consolidate."

[The Dairy Queen]

I hear you. How many threads do you have to check to find a report on a chicken dish in any given cookbook?

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

I had a semi-tough time looking up the Jamie Oliver adjunct thread a week or two ago. Had to go back page after page on my list (profile page). So ... put it in my favorites. Of course the same sort of thing could happen there.

[The Dairy Queen]

I think the adjunct threads are for people who are participating, but not really. At least you have a lot of recipe reports for that one author in one place, scattered and disorganized though they may be.

~TDQ

[LulusMom]

Oh goodness, did we already do a Hopkinson revisit?? Where is my brain going? sorry about that. Waiter, quick, another martini.

[dkennedy]

I know we have two more days to go until nominations close, but I have to say, nominations this month sure seem to be less than normal.

[LulusMom]

It may be that many are on vacation. I think the summer months tend to be a bit slower on the boards in general, but that might just be my imagination.

[L.Nightshade]

And I don't see any clear front runners yet!

[The Dairy Queen]

True. Lots of discussion but very few nominations. I did my part by nominating Paletas!

Step up and nominate COTM'ers!

(P.S. I'm still wondering how much overlap there is between Paletas and My Sweet Mexico. Since the latter is a bit older, it might be more readily available and a better value overall since it is broader in scope. I wish MSM were indexed on EYB so I could figure out how much overlap. I think I'll make an outside post and see if anyone who owns MSM can tell me..)

~TDQ

[Tom P]

TENDER by Nigel Slater...amazing book.

[L.Nightshade]

This book looks beautiful. I wish I had it now for my refrigerator full of vegetables.
There has been some objection lately to books so recently published. This book is quite expensive and there isn't much available in terms of used copies. I'd probably jump on this bandwagon except for those considerations.

[Tom P]

You are right, Nightshade. I wanted to throw it in so that it would get on the list for future consideration. It is blowing me away right now, I've cook a number of simple, sublime dishes from it. If you ever are able to get it, trust me, it is worth it. And yes, so beautiful.

[greedygirl]

I have it and haven't used it nearly enough so I'll second the recommendation for TENDER - the first volume, which has been out for well over a year in the UK.

[L.Nightshade]

Does anyone own/have experience with John Ash's From the Earth to the Table?
I've only just acquired it, haven't cooked from it yet, but ingredients and recipes look fresh and interesting. Here is the Amazon link with a few reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Table-Joh...

[pikawicca]

No, but I've cooked many dishes from his wonderful earlier book, "Cooking One on One." Lots of great (some a little unusual) recipes here. This book got me using my juicer to make delicious and simple vegetable-based sauces.

[L.Nightshade]

Oooh, didn't even know about that one. Just put it on hold at the library. Thanks!

[twilight goddess]

I am going to nomintate The [original] Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen (perhaps in conjunction with one of her newer cookbooks) in September... lots of harvest-friendly flavors and dishes: soups, stuffed vegetables, casseroles, homemade sauces.

Why am I mentioning it now? Just to plant the seed ;-) ♥ ♥ ♥ Moosewood is one of my all-time favorite cookbooks. Hippy fresh deliciousness, vegetarian. Keep it in mind....

[Breadcrumbs]

I’m not nominating yet, just throwing some ideas out there. Once again, I’m looking for a book that would allow me to make use of seasonally available produce. I like having the flexibility to cook indoors and out so if a book features some grilling recipes, all the better. We eat less in the summer so a book w light meals or, small plates would be good. Finally, with so many other things competing for our time in the summer months, quick recipes are always welcome. Here’s what I’ve come up w so far:

Produce/Seasonal:

Tender by Nigel Slater

Vegetable Love by Barbara Kafka

Tender – This book gets mentioned frequently in nomination threads. It seems if there’s a time to do it, August or September would be the months where the majority of the produced featured in the book would be available most readily to COTM participants. I hadn’t heard of Slater until I joined Chowhound last fall so I’m interested in trying this book to get a better understanding of why he has such wide appeal.

Vegetable Love – This book seems to have it all. Obviously, tons of veggie dishes but also a variety of ethnic dishes as well. This book would be suitable for planning vegetarian meals and also has a pasta, seafood, poultry and meat dishes. I have tons of stickies in this one!!

Ethnic:

The New Spanish Table by Anya von Bremzen

The Olive and the Caper by Susanna Hoffman

Both these books appeal for the same reasons. Both have a heavy emphasis on vegetables, both have a wonderful variety of small plate dishes, both have wonderful grilled options and, both have received almost universal praise for their reading and cooking value. Chock full of information and, delicious recipes that work, reviewers have been very positive about both books.

Quick Meals:

Great Food Fast by Martha Stewart

I happen to be a big fan of Martha and I’ve had this book on my shelf for a while now. Whenever I pull it off the shelf (thanks to EYB it has been getting some use) I’m always impressed with the dishes and think I should cook from it more often. The book is organized by season and has lots of veggie recipes. The dishes are quick but not pedestrian and there are grilling options. This also seems to be a book that is widely owned by EYB members so I’m imagining most of us would have it on our shelves.

I'm keen to hear what everyone else has been thinking about. So many books, so little time!!

[sarahcooks]

I was thinking Paletas by Fany Gerson would make an interesting companion to whatever book is chosen for August.

[The Dairy Queen]

Oh fun!

PALETAS by Gerson, por favor!

Would love to do Great Food Fast. It's my speed right now. Ha. Can't go wrong with Slater or Kafka. And I am still curious about Rozanne Gold's book.

~TDQ

[pikawicca]

I continue to cook from and be impressed by Gold's book.

[Caitlin McGrath]

It really was a pretty close vote last month. I think Radically Simple will have its day, especially with the momentum of the thread about it.

[L.Nightshade]

I also continue to have great outcomes from this book. It has a lot of variety, a lot of fresh ingredients, and many dishes are just plain easy to prepare on a hot or busy summer's day. I feel a bit less pressure to have it be a COTM now that the RS thread has picked up steam, but it would be great to be sharing experiences and notes with even more people.

[NYchowcook]

What is the reference to "this" book?? (oh how I wish folks would repeat the book/recipe/other reference) in responses. I'm confused since "this" book is apparently not RS, which I'm assuming is Radically Simple??

[pikawicca]

"Radically Simple."

[The Dairy Queen]

pika, you're so close. Just say it in all caps!

~TDQ

[pikawicca]

Okay. RADICALLY SIMPLE! Love this book. Am making the penne cooked in wine and draped with prosciutto for dinner tonight, the coriander chicken with couscous and chickpeas tomorrow, and the pork shoulder braised in Scitch on Tuesday. (I've made the latter two before, and we thoroughly enjoyed both dishes.)

[The Dairy Queen]

Brava! That penne sounds good and...simple. Can't wait to read about it. What is Scitch? (Or is that a typo and you mean Scotch?)

I've been too flaky or I'd second your nomination, but I'm sure it will gather more noms...

~TDQ

[pikawicca]

"Skitch" is what you type when you've had too much Scotch:)

[pikawicca]

The penne was great. This is one of those extremely simple dishes that is totally dependent on the quality of the ingredients. I used a good wine, real Parm, and first-rate prosciutto; these combined to make a winner!

[blue room]

NYchowcook, L.Nightshade was responding to pikawicca, who posted about "Gold's book". That's Rozanne Gold's book "Radically Simple". There is a current thread for people cooking from "Radically Simple" -- but it is NOT a Cookbook of the Month thread. L.Nightshade I think is saying it would be nice to have 2 threads for this book, but not pressing.

But yes, "this book" and "RS" are the same book in the L.Nightshade's post you're asking about.

[L.Nightshade]

Thanks to pikawicca and to blue moon for doing my clarification work for me!

[blue room]

I'm just a room, not a whole moon. ;-)

[L.Nightshade]

Oh, so sorry! I do know that. You know why I might have "blue moon" on the brain.

[Jay F]

Paletas looks cool enough to be the *only* cookbook of the month, not just a companion.

http://www.amazon.com/Paletas-Authent...

[Allegra_K]

Have you looked at her other book, "My Sweet Mexico"? It's also got a wide array of frozen treats, along with many cookies, cakes, flans, etc. I think it was nominated for a James Beard award this year. I haven't cooked out of it yet, but it looks very enticing.

[The Dairy Queen]

You have an interesting point. I just looked on EYB and Paletas has been indexed, which is a fantastic thing. THere are 50 recipes in Paletas, per EYB. Unfortunately, MSM has not been indexed on EYB. It's a book I am very interested in, though. I wonder how many paletas recipes appear in MSM?

~TDQ

[The Dairy Queen]

Per silverlakegirl, "My Sweet Mexico" has 4 recipes specifically listed as paletas and 5 listed as ice cream. "Paletas" has recipes for other things in addition to ice pops, over a dozen aguas frescas, and several raspado recipes.

Her personal choice would be to chose "MSM". http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7964...

As for me, I'm not feeling strongly one way or the other, so I guess I'll stick with my paletas nom for now.

~TDQ

[sarahcooks]

I think I'm going to have to buy Paletas whether or not it's chosen - I love the idea or making aguas frescas like I had in Mexico, and if I wait to get it I may as well wait until next summer!

[The Dairy Queen]

Well, it's only got one nomination (mine) thus far, so it's not currently a contender...but I still want to get it too!

~TDQ

[twilight goddess]

I am certainly a fan of Martha's Everyday Food magazine, AND I think it would be fun to cook less fussy dishes for COTM. I discovered sauteed grape tomatoes from her magazine one winter and have made it ever since as as a fresh easy side. I think I made her cranberry upside down cake that same winter. Lots of keepers. Accessible to cooks of all levels, including beginners, and appealing to cooks on a budget -- LIKE that :-)

What is EYB?

[Breadcrumbs]

Hi tg, sorry about the acronym . . . .EYB = Eat Your Books, a terrific website where you can keep track of and search your very own cookbook collection and, get way more use out of your books.

Here's a link if you're interested in checking it out:

http://www.eatyourbooks.com

[BigSal]

I'd welcome another Spanish COTM as I was not participating when Penelope Casas's books were chosen. I do have The New Spanish Table, but have not cooked from it yet. I also have Jose Andres's books and although I've only tried a few recipes, all have been outstanding. Wondering if anyone else is intersted in a Spanish month and which books (open to other ideas too) are the most readily available in your local libraries?

[Gio]

I have Andres's Tapas but have never cooked from it. I'd be willing to give it a go, Surprisingly though, I'm veering ever closer to Radically Simple...

[Breadcrumbs]

I have Andres Made in Spain but haven't cooked from it either. Gio do you have The New Spanish Table?

[Gio]

Don't have The New Spanish Table. Do have the Casas book.La Cocina de Mama tho and cooked from it when it was the COTM way back when..June .2008.

[The Dairy Queen]

I really loved CdM.

~TDQ

[Allegra_K]

I would love to do a Spanish month! Summer sounds like the perfect season to feast on multiple tapas dishes whilst out on the deck on a warm breezy evening, sangria in hand.....

[The Dairy Queen]

Would love to do another Spanish month, as I think Casas month was spread a little too thin and got the short-shrift a little. I was sort of waiting for Roden's new book, but I know many people have asked that we not nominate new books. Then again, Paletas and Radically Simple are both new, so, maybe not a hard and fast rule. Maybe an Andres (whichever his most acclaimed is, perhaps?) and the Roden Spanish month?

And, yes, this would be the perfect season for it, though fall or winter would be great, too. I think we did Casas in fall, so late summer would be a nice change.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I would like to do Roden's Food of Spain at some point. I got it recently and haven't cooked from it yet. But as it has only been out about a month, that reduces the chances for people finding it used, or in libraries.
Radically Simple has at least been around for a bit, it's available used and in my library, anyway.

[The Dairy Queen]

Radically Simple has been out less than a year, so still pretty darn new for those who have an aversion to new books. Nevertheless, my library has 5 of RS and only 2 of the Roden, if that's any indicator of comparative availability (which it may or may not be!) Amazon has 13 used of the Gold and 7 of the Roden. So, neither is widely available on the used market yet.

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

Wow, I'm amazed they have any used Roden, as it's only been out a month! Who reads and rejects a cookbook that quickly?

[qianning]

Book availability is so quirky isn't it? I had thought Roden's book too new to be availble in my library system, but looking into it there are already two copies in my local network, where as in the entire state of nh there's only one copy of radically simple...

Anyway, I'd love to do a Spanish month, whether Roden or Andres.

[The Dairy Queen]

Advance copies?

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I somehow missed all of your suggestions, Breadcrumbs, got caught up in the discussion downthread.

I'd love to do Tender if enough people have it or can get it. New and pricey can be deterrents. Vegetable Love sounds great too, without those issues mentioned above.

I'd also like to do Olive and Caper, or something Spanish. I'd rather hold out for Roden's Food of Spain, given a choice, but my library has the New Spanish Table, so I'd be in on that one. I wonder if it's not too close on the heels of another Mediterranean country for some, though.

Sorry, won't go with MS, just can't support her, too mean to some of my friends.

[twilight goddess]

Only 1 copy of Tender in the entire state.wide library system here, with three holds on that one copy, which is currently checked out to someone. So I, for one, would not be able to participate in August if we go with Tender, and that would sadden me, because I want to cook along with the team.

[Allegra_K]

I finally checked out Tender from the library, mainly due to its popularity in all of the recent nomination threads. What a visually stunning book! It is a pleasure both to look at and to read, and judging by the recipes, it appears that it will entice the palate as well. This being the first year I am actually an active gardener, the book is all the more becoming to me. His writing style is so charming and full of love for his vegetables that I almost become misty-eyed reading his lyrical prose about aubergines and the like.
I am so very, very thrilled to have found this book, so thank you, chowhounds, for guiding me to discover it!

[buttertart]

Love Slater to bits. Sexy food writing. You should read Kitchen Diaries too.

[jmckee]

I think Vegetable Love would be a great one. Especially in the US during the height of Vegetable Glut.

[L.Nightshade]

Picked up Tender from the library last night, although I must say I haven't had a lot of time to look at it. Mr. Nightshade immediately took it and sat at the table in the back yard. From the kitchen window I kept hearing ooohs, ahs, and wows. Periodically he'd come in and read me a paragraph. "This is our kind of guy!" he said. It's really an impressive book. I hope we can consider it for a COTM when it is more widely available.

[The Dairy Queen]

Plus, we need to do SOME Nigel Slater book one of these months...

~TDQ

[L.Nightshade]

I've never read/cooked from Slater, but wow, I'm ready to go! Just name the month.
My thanks to Breadcrumbs and the others who brought him to my attention.

[Breadcrumbs]

You're quite welcome LN, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I'd love to cook from it as well. September perhaps . . . .

[herby]

I've had his Real Cooking for a while - like to read though it now and then but it never inspired me to make anything from it. Not a single recipe!

[greedygirl]

Totally! He's probably Britain's most popular home cook. He had a TV series recently - not sure if it's made it Stateside yet. Very understated and homely, with great shots of his lovely garden.

[The Dairy Queen]

I'm so amazed how COTM nominees fade in and out. We were so on the verge of a Nigel Slater book last fall and now he appears to have fallen off the radar. So funny. I hope we get that TV series here!

~TDQ

[buttertart]

IF BBC America could elbow aside some of their sempiternal Star Trek reruns and Dr. No, maybe they'd be able to show some UK cookery shows. Seems to me only Ramsay's Best Restaurant's been shown? Very disappointing.

[Breadcrumbs]

Are these available on dvd I wonder? We don't get this on BBC Canada either. I wish there was a "cooking shows on demand" network. Imagine the possibilities!

[buttertart]

Oh yeah!

[LulusMom]

Against my better senses I started watching Come Dine with Me when it was on BBCAM, and ended up liking it a lot. And the one with the French chef ... oh, it is killing me that I can't remember - he picks a couple to run a restaurant - that one is very good, I think. Wait - Raymond Blanc maybe?? It cracked me up because they subtitled him speaking English, and I found him totally understandable, but some of the contestants (to this non-Brit) were incomprehensible, and of course since it was a British show, they were not subtitled. I felt very out of it. Still, loved the show. My bad, not theirs.

[buttertart]

I must check their schedule (pron. "shhedule").

[greedygirl]

The Restaurant, I think it was. I love Raymond Blanc and his French accent which is so strong despite having lived in Britain for decades! He has a book out which looks interesting - it's technique-driven and is called Kitchen Secrets, based on a BBC series of the same name.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kitchen-Secre...

[LulusMom]

That's it! Thank you GG. Yes, Raymond Blanc was a real charmer on that show. And the show kept me watching each week. Sometimes you wonder how people ever got it into their heads that they'd be capable of running a restaurant.

[Caitlin McGrath]

Based on these posts (and Mr. Nightshade's reported ooohs, ahs, and wows!), I've put my name on the hold list at my library for their one copy of Tender. Four folks ahead of me, and I'm feeling I should hope it comes my way while the summer/early fall veg are still around...

[Goblin]

Can people nominate more than one cookbook?

[pikawicca]

Yes.

[Goblin]

OK, in the interest of identifying some interesting nominations, I nominate the following (both of which I have):

SUPER NATURAL EVERY DAY: WELL-LOVED RECIPES FROM MY NATURAL FOODS KITCHEN, by Heidi Swanson. Swanson also has an award-winning blog, "101 Cookbooks," which champions whole, natural foods, minimally-processed--vegetarian (not vegan.)
See the review on Amazon.com (average review: 5 star.)

Or how about:
ONE BIG TABLE: A PORTRAIT OF AMERICAN COOKING, by Mollie O'neil. Subtitiled: "600 Recipes from the Nation's Best Home Cooks, Farmers, Fishermen, Pit-Masters, and Chefs." Average rating on Amazon.com: 4 1/2 stars.

[pikawicca]

Two excellent suggestions. I particularly like SNCED.

[The Dairy Queen]

Pica, I completely overlooked this comment of yours. Can you tell me more about snced (lowercase so it doesn't get counted as a nomination)? Which recipes you've tried, etc? I've been a bit out of the loop, so apologies if you've posted about this elsewhere.

Are there recipes in the book that aren't on her site? I have SNC and seldom cook from it. The photos are lovely, but they (weirdly) don't inspire me to cook. But I really WANT to cook from and like her books.

Goblin, I would REALLY love to do One Big Table. I've only tried two things from it, I think. Have you cooked much from it? if so, I would love to know what you've liked so far...

~TDQ

[Goblin]

TDQ, I'm embarrassed to say I have only cooked two things from it--"Ella's Better Than Onion Soup Mix Dip" (p. 52) and "Elisabetta Lecce Baiamonte's Devlish Eggs (p. 29)--both of which I liked. Both were very flavorful. I nominated One Big Table because I wanted to be "forced" to cook more! I nominated Super Natural Every Day for the same reason.

[dkennedy]

I also bought One Big Table and have yet to cook out of it. Lots of recipes tabbed, but wasn't inspired to pick it up again to cook out of it.

[Jay F]

Molly O'Neill's books are always an interesting read. I love, love, love The New York Cookbook. But I don't think I've ever made anything from one of them. It's me, though, not her. It slows me down to follow a recipe, so it's a rare cookbook I actually cook from. But I still love to read them, and hers are among the most interesting.

[JoanN]

I do follow recipes, and enjoy doing so, but the only recipe I ever made from The New York Cookbook was June Bobb's Garlic Pork. My note on the recipe says, "Grill on skewers instead."

And I think that's part of the problem with the book. Appealing as the stories may be, there's just something that seems slightly off in the recipes. At least, in the reading of them. On occasion, when something from the book pops up in an EYB search and I look it up to check out the detail, I find there's always another recipe from another book I'd prefer to try.

[The Dairy Queen]

I think what might be slightly "off" about the recipes is that it is a collection of recipes from home cooks. These aren't necessarily "best of" recipes, but just the recipes from the people O'Neal could get people to give her or thought had an interesting story or whatever. But my guess is the recipes are the way they are because that's how they've always been for that family, maybe due to incredient or cost limitations or whatever, and would be fine-tuned over the years if they were in the hands of a professional. Sure, you could change the recipe, but then it would be "Grandma's." I think it's the limitation of her particular format.

On the other hand, I've seen some recipes in her book I don't have in any of my other books. So, it seems like a good idea to add a recipe for X to my collection without having to buy an entire cookbook of that regional or ethnic cuisine.

~TDQ

[Goblin]

I know what you mean. For me, it's at least as much a "culinary travelogue" as it is a recipe book. I sort of treat it like a coffee-table book--in fact that's where it currently lives-- picking it up and just opening it at random to read because the stories inside are so interesting!

[jen kalb]

I cooked three recipes out of the book. One was a very simple SE Asian greens recipe that worked. One was a complex West Indian stew that was pretty good. the third was an asian mushroom dish that we wound up throwing out. Lots of the recipes look interesting and its a good read but I would not want to buy this book. qua cookbook.

[pikawicca]

I like snced so much more than snc (which I've disposed of). Don't know if all of the recipes are on her website or not. A few of my favorites are Kale Salad (really different and tasty -- I'm always looking for ways to work this healthy green into my diet). White Beans and Cabbage -- super for weekday lunches. Rye Soda Bread -- an interesting riff on the traditional recipe (and I love the taste of rye). Farro Soup -- one of my favorite grains (it's in the kale salad, as well) spicy, Indian flavors. Wild Rice Casserole (I use half brown rice) -- I make this a day or two ahead when I know I'll be feeding vegetarians. Stuffed Medjul Dates (simply stuffed with almond paste -- brilliant idea). Chanterelle Tacos -- these mushrooms are in season here and I've been using lots of them in this recipe for lunches.

[The Dairy Queen]

Those all sound very good! Sound promising, thank you!

~TDQ

[pikawicca]

When I nominate a book, it seems to be the kiss of death, so I will hold back and hope that someone puts forward a book I can support.

[Jay F]

You and me both, pikawicca. I'm not voting at all this time.

[BigSal]

pikawicca,

I always look forward to the nominations. You (and others) have introduced me to books that I was unfamiliar with like Radically Simple and The New German Cookbook. And although they were not selected as the COTM, I was glad to learn of them. So selfishly, I hope that you (and others) do not abstain from nominating books. The nomination thread is almost as good as the actual COTM thread

[The Dairy Queen]

pika, I think it can take awhile for a book to get traction. Don't get discouraged. Keep nominating and eventually your book will gain momentum! Maybe you're just on the cutting edge of cookbooks and it takes us awhile to catch up to you...

~TDQ

[herby]

Thank you, b-cook, for starting the thread. I am spending August with my daughters and their children; not sure that I will have a luxury to cook what I feel like and will abstain from nominating/voting.

I took Washuko out of the library and loved it; didn't make anything out of it but thought that if I want to try my hand at Japanese cooking, this book would be it.

Have not cooked from The Olive and the Caper but would love to.

The Spendid Table waits for me in NYC along with Ms. Gold's book.

[Gio]

Thanks Bayou. Let the fun begin...!

[Breadcrumbs]

Thanks bayoucook! Here we go again! It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the months pass.

Here's a link to the historical COTM thread in case folks want to see which books have been covered over the years:

http://www.chow.com/cookbook_of_the_m...

[smtucker]

Thanks bayou!

[Jane917]

THE SPLENDID TABLE. It is the only one I already have!