This year has been an interesting one, and if there’s one thing we have likely all done more of, it’s cook for ourselves. If you’ve exhausted your current cookbook collection, rejoice! There is a healthy selection of new cookbooks on the market. Here are just a handful that you’ll want to check out and explore during the holiday season. Whether you’re looking to up your baking game, lean into an elevated comfort food classic or take your tastebuds on a trip around the world, here are the cookbooks you’ll want to put on your wishlist.
6 New Cookbooks You’ll Want This Holiday Season
The Good Book of Southern Baking: A Revival of Biscuits, Cakes and Cornbread
From blueberry pie to Moon Pies, this new release by James Beard Award-winning pastry chef Kelly Fields (a Charleston native who calls New Orleans home) is equal parts soothing nostalgia and Southern pride. From biscuits to bars and every cobbler and crisp in between, if it can be baked, it’s in The Good Book of Southern Baking. With beautiful photos and useful tips throughout, Kelly draws on her more than two decades of experience to bring forth a tasty array of recipes that will bring some delicious dishes to your kitchen.
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Modern Comfort Food: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
When she wasn’t busy whipping up gigantic cosmopolitans during quarantine, it seems the Barefoot Contessa was also whipping up a new cookbook. Modern Comfort Food: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook came out just last month, and by all accounts, it’s the perfect collection for pandemic times. Favorite recipes from Ina Garten’s youth are given an adult-size makeover. Look for dishes like the Cheddar & Chutney Grilled Cheese, Truffled Mac & Cheese and a lobster BLT to tempt your tastebuds. But there’s also a selection of desserts, cocktails and something for every meal of the day. Whether you’re seeking solace from the cold weather or the challenging times we’re currently in, you’ll find comfort in every page of this newest selection in the Barefoot Contessa collection.
Tried & True: A Celebration of Food & Friendship
From the moment you crack open this new release, you’ll feel like you stepped back in time to a simpler era where friends gathered around uncomplicated but incredibly delicious food. Lee Oakley of Nashville-based Oakley’s Southern Delights and Jeannette Goddard, a former Nashville caterer, collaborated on Tried & True: A Celebration of Food & Friendship, inspired by their long friendship and shared passion for these classic and comforting recipes. Peruse the collection of options like pimento cheese tartlets, blue cheese and bacon potato salad, chicken tetrazzini and herbed corn pudding. Dips, spreads, dressings, and desserts round out the contents of this keepsake cookbook. You’ll likely fondly recall similar flavors from your past, which brings the entire concept full circle as you reflect on special moments with loved ones over beloved tried and true recipes.
Dessert Person
Author and former Bon Appetit food editor Claire Saffitz makes a bold declaration in Dessert Person, claiming that “we are all dessert people.” And while that may not be completely accurate, as there plenty of savory fans among us, the sentiment is that armed with the right recipes, we may turn into dessert people. She does slide a few savory options into this new release, like the crispy mushroom galette, but by and large, it’s filled with recipes to delight the sweets-lovers in the world. Pore over the beautiful photos of everything from the apple and grape crumble pie to the strawberry cornmeal layer cake. Touted as ideal for the experienced baker and beginner alike, this one is where you’ll find your holiday dessert recipe that will be met with rave reviews.
Chaat
Food Network star, Nashville restaurateur and James Beard Award-winning chef Maneet Chauhan’s new release, Chaat, offers a global escape for your tastebuds and your mind. Peruse the vibrant pages that showcase just as vibrant recipes from various parts of India, each of which she visited by way of her “epic cross-country railway journey.” From fragrant flatbreads to layered chicken biryani rice casserole, each recipe — along with Maneet’s first-hand storytelling — offers a peek into the distinct flavors of this beautiful country. If you can’t travel to experience these foods first-hand (and right now, who can?!), this book offers the next best thing.
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True Comfort
In her new release, True Comfort, Kristin Cavallari proves that, in addition to her countless other talents and pursuits, she’s also got serious kitchen chops. Designed to bring all the feels that only a solid comfort food dish can, True Comfort also brings a healthy twist by recreating classics without the gluten or refined sugar. From the Apple Pecan Dutch Baby to the Nashville Hot Chicken Salad Cups, readers can enjoy a bounty of tasty meal ideas for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert. And yes, there are a few beverage recipes included as well. Kristin also offers useful suggestions for what to have on-hand at all times to ensure you’re prepared whenever a comfort food craving hits.
Enjoy your cooking and baking adventures this holiday season!
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