Favorite cookbook or TV cook/chef?

bargainsgirl · ‎01-13-2012

I recently started following Alison Roman (YouTube) since I got her cookbook at our library. Love her reicpes. She is very quirky but simple and down to earth. I am trying 3 of her recipes this week.

QVCkitty1 · ‎05-23-2015

My two favorite cookbooks are by Lidia Bastianish and Ina Garten .

" You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts."
Daniel Patrick Moynihan

rockygems123 · ‎06-04-2012

@bargainsgirl

Silver Palate is a great classic cookbook including Chicken Marbella.

Geoffrey Zakarian has simple delicious recipes online. Katie Lee Biegel has some good healthy recipes.

Msgdfx · ‎05-12-2010

Ina Garten is a favorite of mine also.

Spacrazy · ‎12-14-2018

Ann Hollowell "The Cooking Lady"

hopi · ‎03-09-2010

Lydia Bastianich

amyb · ‎04-05-2010

Not that I've cooked lately from any of my cookbooks, nearly enough, and I have several I love (like many of you, I suspect, I like to read them as books, though!). But, I do learn from them, am inspired, and when I put my mind to it cook from them.

Ina Garten is the most full-proof...clearcut recipes, vetted properly (they work!), delicious, simple dinners, desserts etc. She really is a gold standard. I tend to do my usual "from my head" meals, family recipes, or go online lately...but whenever I peruse any/all my cookbooks, there are so many easy, great ways to make things I look for ways to make all the time and I say, I need to cook from these more!

"I'll never live nearly long enough to cook 1% from these books (and cut out recipes, shared ones from friends, too)...even if I started now and stayed in my kitchen and cooked all day!

As for tv... did I love FoodNetwork, back in the early 2000's, when they actually had the cooking shows and not the dopey contest type shows. It was so good then. Until then...I was just not that interested in cooking, got by, but didn't "get" the mechanics or even "joy" of cooking (though I come from a family of great cooks!)...but Food Network lit the spark for me. With that, I found I actually took to cooking quite well, learned the basic tips and skills, even more than recipes..and started to enjoy and be good at it! I used to put it on when the cooking shows started and keep it on in the background through all the nighttime shows.

My favs were Rachel Ray, (still love her down to earth style, she kind of spoke my language and her style of eating/cooking was familiar, being from Italian/American family) She might be made fun of by some because she became such a (loud) personality....and is not a trained chef...but she still knows what she'd doing in the kitchen and inspired and taught me a lot...and was fun, and made it "not scary" to do things, for me. She opened the door for me.

I also loved Tyler Florence's "Ultimate"...where he took a familiar recipe and ramped it up in his own improvised, delicious way. Two favs I still have printed off I have made...his Bourbon Peach Cobbler (if you are ever selling/showing your home...make that! My home never smelled so good! DELISH!) and his amped up potato salad, a crowd pleaser.

Also for "healthy, clean, delicious eating" which is my vibe...Ellie Krieger...I still follow her on Instagram and get ideas.

This is way too long, so I'll end it there... fun topic.

amyb · ‎04-05-2010

@QVCkitty1 wrote:
My two favorite cookbooks are by Lidia Bastianish and Ina Garten .

I love Lidia and her show too! I met her at a Food Show up at our casino, Mohegan Sun, about 18 years ago, when I was up there working at my friend's booth, who had a gelato company. Lidia was friendly and took pics with us. I took one of others and was sorry I didn't get one with her myself!

Giada....not friendly at all.