The Best Cookbooks For Your Favorite Home Chef

 

 

the best cookbooks for your favorite home chef

 

 

 

You may or may not know this by now, but I have a severe addiction. It has cost us a lot of money through the years and has sufficiently clogged up precious shelf space in our kitchen. Yes, I have a terrible addiction to Cookbooks.

I simply cannot get enough of them.

For someone who loves cooking and experimenting and playing in the kitchen, there is nothing greater than a fresh new cookbook filled with new ideas, beautiful pictures, and great recipes to work through. As a true self-taught home chef, I believe that cookbooks are invaluable to anyone who likes to play around in the kitchen, or even anyone who wants to learn to play around in the kitchen.

They’re great for the young single girl living on her own for the first time and for the busy young professional who cares about his health and doesn’t want to eat out every day. They’re as important for a home cook who’s been in the kitchen feeding a family for years as they are for a brand-new first-time mom who wants to learn how to nourish her family from the inside out.

Simply put, they’re for everyone. Therefore they’re also the perfect gift for everyone.

So, as we are knee-deep in the holiday season as we speak with precious few shopping days left, I thought I would help you out. If you’re shopping for the perfect gift for the home cook (or wannabe home cook) in your life, look no further. I’ve put together a no-fail list of my top cookbook choices so that I can take the guesswork out of your holiday shopping. You’re welcome.

The Best Cookbooks For Your Favorite Home Chef

Balanced by Laura Lea:

I’m a huge fan of Laura Lea and have been for a long time. Both this book and her blog, llbalanced.com are filled with recipes that are as beautiful as they are delicious, and because Lea is a certified holistic chef you know that what you are eating is also healthy and nutritionally balanced. Her recipes, in my opinion, are a win-win.

Recipe Highlights:

-Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (adapted on my blog HERE)

-15-Minute Taco Meat (featured in my Quick and Easy Family Recipe Round-up post)

-Energizing Oatmeal Cookies

-Tuna Salad

Perfect for: The health-conscious home cook who wants to expand their repertoire of delicious yet healthful meals.

Experience Level: Beginner to Intermediate 

Skinny Taste Meal Prep: Healthy Make-Ahead and Freezer Meals To Simplify Your Life  by Gina Homolka

There are very few cookbooks where I can honestly tell you that every single recipe I’ve tried from its pages has been a success. No, scratch that. There are NO cookbooks that I can say that about. Until today. I adore this cookbook. It’s filled with easy and accessible meals you can prep ahead or freeze ahead and they are all amazing. I love how easy they all are, requiring no extra fancy ingredients or extra runs to the grocery store. I love the idea of meal-prepping and having enough food for a week. And I love that every single thing I’ve made from this book has been a hit for everyone in this picky family. It’s a winner, for sure.

Recipe Highlights: 

-Instant Pot Egg White Steel-Cut Oats

-Freezer Chicken Black Bean Burritos (a household favorite)

-DIY Chicken Taco Kits

-Five-Spiced Glazed Pork Tenderloin + Quick Five Spice Pork Ramen (a two-for-one recipe)

Perfect For: The busy home cook with a family to feed (or not) and not a lot of time to do it in.

Experience Level: Beginner to Intermediate

 

 

DELISH by the Editors of Delish: 

This campy fun cookbook has something for everyone and is filled with creative recipes that will push you a bit outside of your comfort zone and bring campy fun back to the kitchen. Some of these recipes are so out there that you want to try them just because you can’t believe the editors had the guts to go there (I’m looking at you pickle bacon pizza and giant chipwich). And overall, this is just a flat-out fun cookbook. But the thing about it is, every single thing I’ve made from it has been good.  Like, really good. With everything from entertaining blueprint recipes for the holidays to a full chapter devoted to our favorite cheese-covered delicacy, pizza, this is a great cookbook for families with kids who need a little bit of creativity to get them to try new foods OR for the adventurous cooks who like the WOW factor when they make something wild.

Recipe Highlights:

-Crack Chicken

-Cheeseburger Cups (the inspiration for my Muffin Tin Meatball Sandwiches)

-Asian Chicken Ramen

-Bacon Pickle Pizza (don’t knock it until you try it)

Perfect For: Home cooks who get bored easily and like fun recipes.

Experience Level: Beginner

Cooking at Home with Bridget and Julia from The TV Hosts of America’s Test Kitchen:

If you don’t know about America’s Test Kitchen, well, you really should. A TV show and cookbook series from the same culinary geniuses that bring us Cook’s Illustrated (the ultimate Chef Bible magazine), America’s Test Kitchen recipes are very rarely misses. In fact, they are almost always hits. They are often a bit more labor-intensive and might require a bit more expertise than any of the other books in this list, but the payoff is that they are absolutely incredible. This big book covers just about everything from breakfast to dessert with meal plans for holidays included. There isn’t much you won’t find in here and trust me, if you dare to give one of these recipes a try, you will be so happy you did.

 

Recipe Highlights:

-Weeknight Tagliatelle with bolognese sauce (my favorite pasta EVER)

-Beignets

-Spicy Sichuan Noodles (seriously addictive)

-Eclair Cake

Perfect for: The adventurous home cook who has been at it for a while, has the skills to execute more complicated recipes, and wants to take their recipes to the next level.

Experience Level: Intermediate

Once Upon a Chef Weeknight/Weekend by Jennifer Segel:  Possibly the best cookbook for busy weeknight cooks, this book by popular blogger Segel, is as beautiful as it is functional. It’s easy to navigate with well-thought-out categories for both weeknight and weekends, and a whole chapter dedicated to meatballs, which is of course the way to my heart. Light on the chatter and stories, this book is straight-forward and filled with classic recipes and some with new twists.

 


  Recipe Highlights: 

-Baked Ziti with Sausage (a family favorite I’m currently adapting for the blog)

-Eggs in Purgatory

-Saucy Sesame-Ginger Meatballs

-Old Fashioned Cinnamon Swirl Crumb Cake

Perfect for: Busy cooks who love to feed their families (or themselves) delicious food without all the fuss.

Experience level: Beginner to intermediate

 

No matter who you’re shopping for I hope you find something on this list that sparks your creative excitement in the kitchen. Yes, even if it’s for yourself. My whole goal is to demystify the kitchen and make cooking fun again, even if you hate it. Because it’s one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself–I promise.

Peace, love, and cookbooks,

Meg

 

 

 

**This post contains affiliate links which means that if you purchase an item from a link provided on this post I will get a small commission. Don’t worry, though, I only promote products I fully believe in. And in this case, actually own.**

 

 

There's no better gift for the home cook in your life than a cookbook. These five are the best out there for people who love to cook, love to learn, and love to try new and exciting recipes. Surprise your home cook with one of these and you'll be sure to have a happy chef in your life!
Top Cookbooks for the home cook in your life
Top cookbooks for the home cook



8 thoughts on “The Best Cookbooks For Your Favorite Home Chef”

Comments are closed.