When Lara Hamilton opened Book Larder in 2011, she gave Seattle its first culinary bookstore. The Larder, in the city’s Fremont neighborhood, also has a kitchen and demo space, and hosts author talks as well as cooking and cocktail classes. For a holiday ‘What’s Cooking At,’ we asked Hamilton to gather up her picks for every foodie in your life this season.
L'Appart: The Delights and Disasters of Making My Paris Home
For the Bookish Gourmand
It’s easy for Americans to romanticize living in Paris, but David presents the challenges as well as the triumphs as he buys and remodels an apartment in his adopted city. The recipes that accompany the stories are great as well.
David Tanis Market Cooking: Recipes and Revelations, Ingredient by Ingredient,
For the Veggies
While not vegetarian, vegetable lovers will find plenty to enjoy in David’s latest book. His recipes are always spot on, and his emphasis on using just a few fresh ingredients when cooking is appealing to both experienced and novice cooks.
Kaukasis: A Culinary Journey through Georgia, Azerbaijan & Beyond
For the Adventurous Cooks
This book covers the Georgian region in beautiful detail, and Olia really brings the sometimes sour, always interesting flavors of the area to life. It’s also a great example of how fermentation, so trendy in the U.S. now, is an essential part of cooking around the world.
Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes
For the Budding Chef
As the former food editor at Bon Appetit, Alison knows great flavor doesn’t have to be complicated. She writes excellent descriptive recipes, and the opening section of the book that includes her building blocks will help cooks at all levels make their everyday meals more delicious.
Sweet: Desserts from London's Ottolenghi
For the Baker
The flavors in this book are truly inspiring, and bakers who have enough chocolate chip cookie recipes and want to try something new will find much to love here.
Honorable Mentions:
Two fabulous imports: Nigel Slater’s The Christmas Chronicles (HarperCollins UK, Oct. 19) for lovers of winter; and beautiful writing; and Anna Jones’ A Modern Cook’s Year (HarperCollins UK, Oct. 5), for a seasonal, vegetarian guide.
