Cookbook Writers

I cooked several delicious things over the last week from that Jack Bishop Vegetables Every Day that you gave me (pictured here is his Zucchini, Corn, Red Pepper Saute—with cream and cilantro!), so I am going to look for other books by him. And I also noticed that one of my very favorite Italian cookbooks, an out-of-print edition of Cucina Fresca, is by the same Viana La Place that wrote your latest new one, My Italian Garden. She has a long catalog that I want to explore.

All of which prompted me to list some more of my favorite cookbook writers, and I hope you’ll add yours.

--Lou Seibert Pappas (She wrote the fabulous old International Fish Cookery, now out of print, which taught me to cook fish). She has written dozens of cookbooks ranging from creme brulee to crockpot recipes.

--Julia Child, of course, although I read her methods more than I use her recipes now. I learned so much from her.

--The Rombauer/Becker duo and the Joy of Cooking

--Paula Wolfert—I have her Couscous and Other Good Foods from Morocco. Your mouth just waters reading her!

--I like Madhur Jaffrey.

I find Marcella Hazan to be quite uppity about the superiority of everything Italian, not to mention long-winded in her recipes, so she’s not on my list.

I love Laurie Colwin’s essays about home cooking. I think I’ll go back and read them again.