I have a confession to make:
I love cookbooks.
Okay, perhaps it would be more accurate to say I am obsessed with cookbooks. When I go to a bookstore, my first stop is the cookbook section - especially to search for any bargain or marked-down books. I always look for vintage or collectible cookbooks in used bookstores. Whenever I see a new chef who intrigues me on TV, I run to Amazon to see if he or she has any cookbooks I can buy. Every once in a while I even scan eBay for cookbook lots and collections.
It's a little bit out of control, I know. I think at last count I had somewhere over 250 cookbook titles in my collection, plus shelves upon shelves of old magazines like Bon Appetitand Gourmet. I know I'll never ever cook every recipe in every book; I even have a hard time, sometimes, remembering when I've found a recipe I really like and want to make it again!
But I just can't help myself. There are just so many things about cookbooks I love, that I have to talk about them here. And yes, while I do often find myself turning to the internet for recipes and cooking inspiration, the internet will never replace my cookbook library!
Let me tell you just a few reasons why...
I'm always looking to acquire new cookbooks based on cuisines I'm not familiar with. You can learn a lot about a country or region's history, cultural traditions, holidays and even climate by studying themed cookbooks. You just don't get that same experience with a single recipe pulled off a general food blog or a recipe website.
Looking through my grandmother's cookbooks, I always have to smile when I see her personal notes written in to the margins of recipes - how she modified ingredients, whether we liked a dish or not, what to serve it with, etc. I even enjoy seeing the grease-stained pages of favorite, repeatedly-prepared recipes - it's how I helped find the particular versions of dishes I wanted to make for myself that I remembered as a child.
Another thing I love about cookbooks - at least some of them - is the gorgeous photography. I will often just spend some relaxing time paging through my cookbooks, feeling inspired by the beautiful plates of food.
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Comments
I tend to buy used cookbooks as well (either in thrift shops or online via Amazon). It definitely has helped me save money while feeding my addiction!
I don't buy new cookbooks. Instead, I look for older ones at yard sales and thrift shops. I especially like the ones that give you some household hints, too. Older cookbooks give you a sense of history and culture. I like to "read" my cookbooks.
Sounds good :)
Generally I'll try to follow a recipe closely the first time I make it, unless I have confidence that a certain change will not be a big deal or might even make it better. After so many years of cooking I have a pretty good sense of my tastes and what works well for me and how I like to cook.
Then there are nights when I go through a bunch of recipes, can't find one that is exactly what I feel like making, so I'll use elements of several different recipes to come up with my own dish. (And if it works, then I'll usually write up what I did in my food blog so I won't forget it!)
You have a great point there about Amazon. I'll try to order online if it makes sense to do so. I can order from Amazon UK and I don't have to pay customs taxes.
When you first make a dish from a cookbook recipe, do you follow it to the letter, or are you tempted to reinvent it right away?:) I often make my own recipe first, and then realize why the cookbook was written ;-)
Mira: I often find myself not exactly following recipes as written in cookbooks. I use the recipes as a starting point, and may change things such as the vegetables used depending on what's on hand, or adding more spices if I think it needs it. (That said there are other recipes I follow to the letter because they are perfect as is and demand sticking to the basics!)
I find Amazon to be great for difficult-to-find ingredients. For instance when I first got into Indian cooking, Amazon was the only way I could easily locate certain spices and seeds I needed. The shipping can make it more expensive but I try to buy in bulk or from Amazon Prime when possible.
I have many cookbooks but somehow I always find myself inventing my own recipes based on nothing (old memories, actually, of certain recipes). I like playing with spices and making my own version of blander Romanian dishes. I want to cook various ethnic dishes more but I can't find ingredients and get very frustrated. We do have special sections of ethnic foods at the supermarket and there are natural foods stores but I still can't find stuff. And when I do, it's very expensive, which is the other big problem.
I have one cookbook. I have lost the others while moving throughout the years. Being alone, I don't have a need for them anymore since I cook simple dishes, not baking anymore. They are nice gifts though if you know someone who loves to cook and bake different things.