by Mary Bailey
Why do cookbooks still matter? A good cookbook fires the imagination. Nothing tells a story or explains a cook’s point of view better than a book. There’s nothing like a cookbook for armchair travelers, to be taken away to a bison ranch or to Ferran Adria’s kitchen. Only a cookbook looks better with a few smudges of butter and drifts of dried flour on the pages.
Pucker, A Cookbook for Citrus Lovers,
Gwendolyn Richards (Whitecap Books), $29.95.
“Forget truffle oil, fancy salts and expensive spices; for about 50 cents, a lemon or lime adds instant luxe.” says Gwendolyn Richards in her cookbook Pucker. How can you not love a cookbook that begins with superb recipes for classic cocktails, includes household and beauty secrets, imparts thrifty hints, and considers curd a kitchen staple, like vinaigrette. Home truths abound; “there is no substitute for fresh citrus juice.” Lively recipes for lemon and lime we expect, yet the author’s affection and respect for grapefruit as the queen of the citrus fruit basket is what really makes this book shine.
The Duchess Bake Shop Cookbook,
Giselle Courteau and Jake Pelletier (Duchess), $45.
We love our very own Duchess bakery, and now we have our very own Duchess cookbook too, filled with recipes for pie, cakes, sweets, and of course, the iconic Duchess macaron. Co-owner Garner Beggs says he is happiest with the macaron recipe; “It has taken Giselle so many years to tweak that recipe, probably over 80 variations, to arrive at one she feels is perfect.” Available at Duchess Provisions.
The Family Cookbook,
Ferran Adria (Phaedon), $35.
One of the best places in town to buy cookbooks is Knifewear. You know the kind, the oversize cheffy titles, filled with glorious full-page (and expensive) photography. The kind of book with multiple-step recipes you dream about spending a day in the kitchen making. Maybe you don’t have to.
I asked Jordan Fritz what was the Knifewear crew’s current favourite on the shelf. “Everybody’s fave book right now is Ferran Adria’s Family Meal. It’s full of easy recipes, and it’s one of the only books that gives you a layout, a time line for every recipe so everything is ready at the same time.” And, considering the book is by the god of molecular cuisine, and owner of one of the most storied restaurants in the world, E Bulli, it’s not even expensive.
The Boreal Feast: A Culinary Journey through the North,
Michele Genest (Harbour Publishing), $27.
The world is gaga for Rene Redzepi and Nordic cuisine. Yet many of these ingredients can be found right outside our door. Genest takes the reader on a journey to Norway, Finland and Sweden to discover what other northern people do with the same wild ingredients that live and grow in the Canadian boreal forest. It’s part travelogue, as the best sort of cookbooks are, with stories of cloudberry hunting on the Dempster Highway, birthday parties on the Kaskawulsh Glacier, and chanterelle harvesting in Nordland. Featuring prized northern ingredients, like morel mushrooms, birch syrup, coho salmon, spruce tips and blueberries, The Boreal Feast is a celebration of boreal food and forest.
From the Farm, the Alberta Farmers’ Market Association Cookbook,
compilation of recipes by Alberta chefs (AFMA), $22.
“We asked cooks and chefs from every corner of the province to contribute, says Sharon Johnston, 2014 AFMA board president. “There are recipes from Top Chef and Chopped Canada contestants, from chefs fresh out of culinary school to those with decades of experience; from cooking instructors to good home cooks.”
Each recipe uses seasonal ingredients from small producers, readily found at farmers markets. “People will be able to look at this book and say, ‘oh I can pick up these ingredients this week at the market.’” says Sharon Johnston.
(Full disclosure, I edited the book for AFMA. Ed.)
Buffalo Girl Cooks Bison,
Jennifer Bain (Touchwood Editions), $29.95.
Jennifer Bain is an award-winning food journalist who splits her time between Toronto and her husband’s bison ranch near Foremost. She is well-versed on the subject of bison — what bison means to the Prairies, how to raise bison, and the importance of respecting the animal enough to use every cut. Buffalo Girl Cooks Bison’s recipes use every part of the animal, offering plenty of culinary inspiration for hump to hoof cooking.
In the Dog Kitchen,
Julie Van Rosendaal (TouchWood Editions), $19.95.
Nothing says good dog like a healthy homemade snack for your pooch, and who better to whip up those snacks but you. The revised and updated version of this beloved cookbook by Calgarian Julie Van Rosendaal features 70 easy snack recipes with an entire chapter on grain-free treats, and information on how to customize each recipe to suit your dog’s specific diet. This book is the best way to make sure your pet gets only the best.
Gluten-Free gets Good!
Laura Jacques-Gilmour (Choice Publishing), $39.95.
This is a collection of personal family favourites with a difference; every recipe is gluten-, corn-, dairy- and soy-free. Food allergies led Lloydminster resident Laura Jacques-Gilmour to create this cookbook filled with a collection of family favourites, from muffins to pot roast.