Reference
  12,167 Kitchen and Cooking Secrets
Susan Sampson
From Susan Sampson, food editor and writer at the Toronto Star, comes this book chock full of hints and tips for the home cook. The range of topics covered take in everything from tools (how to oil a wood cutting board, 17 uses for an ice cube tray) pantry basics, (information and recipes), cooking techniques (how to make a roux), and food safety (what to do during a power failure). There is a section on advice to ignore, which is also very helpful, and with 12, 167 tips in total, this makes a great addition to the reference section of the cook's bookshelf. Softcover, 704 pp. $27.95.
 100 Words for Foodies
American Heritage Dictionaries
A collection of foodie words and terms, along with explanations of exactly what they mean - from ingredients such as orzo (a pasta which is shaped like a grain of rice) to dishes such as junket (a dessert made from flavoured milk and rennet). There are also word histories and recipes to accompany many entries. No pictures. Softcover, 86 pp. $7.95.
 The Deluxe Food Lover’s Companion
Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst
The popular handbook for all things culinary is now glitzed up for gift-giving with hardcover and gold-tipped pages. In addition to the usual alphabetical listings, there are 40 glossaries for specific topicseg appetizers, apples, cocktails, potatoes, chiles. There are also “fast facts” scattered throughout with tips and extra information. Of course, there are also the excellent appendices at the back with weighs and measures conversion, English/American term translation, temperature guides and more. Limited illustrations Hardcover, 794 pp. $35.99.
 Real Simple: Solutions
Real Simple Magazine
Not strictly a cookbook but chock full of helpful hints and tips for home, office, decorating, entertaining, and even stocking your pantry. There are some recipes, kitchen techniques, a table of substitutions, and ingenious alternative uses for everyday items in your home (such as the McGiver worthy pie-plate from aluminum foil and a paper clip). Lots of clever, and thrifty, tips and ideas. Softcover, $24.95.
 How to Slice an Onion
Bunny Crumpacker
This is a charming book full of helpful kitchen tips, interesting facts about food history, cooking techniques de-mystified for the beginner cook, and lots of recipes besides. Crumpacker's book makes cooking accessible and interesting, and very inviting and straightforward for the beginner. This book isn't flashy (there are no pictures save for some black and white illustrations) but it is honest and useful, and isn't that so much better? Hardcover, 303 pp. $32.99.
 Starting & Running Your Own Small Farm Business
Sarah Beth Aubrey
From developing a business plan to searching for financial assistance to product pricing, here is a blueprint for would-be farmers. As this is an American publication, the financial assistance section will not be so useful for Canadians. However the less specific advice is still worthwhile. Black and white photos. Softcover, 175 pp. $26.95.
 Japanese Kitchen Knives
Hiromitsu Nozaki
For those who have not had the pleasure in using a Japanese knife you are missing a treat. This book covers the three main traditional knives , the usuba, the deba, and yanagiba. Using everyday vegetables and rainbow trout the book illustrates usage and technique using full colour photos. Hardcover, 160 pp. $40.95.
Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants, Second edition
Bradford Angier, revision by David Foster
Although this edition was published last year it is a classic that is noteworthy when more and more people are searching out natures bounty. Full colour drawings of all the plants. Softcover, 282 pp. $31.95.
 The Forager Handbook
Miles Irving
This is a UK book but much of the information is applicable here and the discussion on the basics of foraging is invaluable. Could we see a North American version? We hope so. Hardcover, 406 pp. $65.00.
Texture Pro
Heiko Antoniewicz
This starter set for molecular gastronomy is something one can do at home. It includes 10 texturizers as well as an accompanying book, which is excellent for its simplicity and visual step by step photos. The book has 50 recipes and the Raspberry Gum with Mint Pesto is on our list to try! Introductory price of $75.00.
 The Kitchen Linens Book
EllynAnne Geisel
A cache of household linens found in her mother-in-law’s apartment moved EllynAnne Geisel to tell the story of the almost-lost world of monogrammed damask, Madeira and cutwork linens, of embroidered dresser scarves and tea towels and the women who used them. The book includes a vintage Butterick transfer pattern so you can make your own heirloom linens. Heavily illustrated. Hardcover, 142 pp. $24.50.
 The Apron Book
EllynAnne Geisel
Did your mother wear an apron? Odds are, that if she did, Geisel has written about the particular cut and style in this book. Learn everything you didn’t realize you wanted to know about aprons from EllynAnne Geisel and find numerous patterns and methods for creating your very own. Book includes a vintage transfer pattern for a Basic Bib apron.Hardcover, 139 pp. $19.95.
 Wild Food
Ray Mears
Though not a cookbook this is inspiring for cooks as it traces our hunter/gatherer/foraging history almost as a lost art. Chapters on Foraging, Hunting, Fungi and how the past relates to present is engaging and very readable. Hardcover, 352 pp. $45.95.
 Flavor Bible
Page & Dornenburg
This dynamic duo writes some of the best reference books around. Whether a professional or home cook, you need their books on your book shelf. Remember Becoming a Chef ($32.95), Culinary Artistry ($32.95) and What to Drink With What you Eat ($46.00). This latest tome brings it all together under the banner of flavour and they don't disappoint. Hardcover, 380 pp. $38.00.
Science of Good Food
Joachim & Schloss
Don't quite understand all this molecular gastronomy stuff but too afraid to ask? Check out the entry in this extremely useful reference book and all will become clear without having grade 12 sciences. 1,600 entries to keep you informed and up to speed on the why's and how's of cooking.
Softcover, 624 pp, $37.95.
Things Cooks Love
Marie Simmons
Veteran cookbook author Marie Simmons teams up with the great purveyor of culinary equipment to create a book that highlights cook’s tools. From sauté pans to more obscure pieces such as the chitarra, the guitar-like wire-strung frame used to make rustic pastas, each entry offers tips for use, how to care for it, and possible alternatives. Of course there are recipes for each. Colour photos. Softcover, 342 pp. $39.00.
 Williams-Sonoma Tools & Techniques
Foreword by Thomas Keller
It all boils down to what to buy and how to use it.The first section of this heavily illustrated book offers a guide to the best equipment as perceived by Williams-Sonoma. The second section shows how to deploy all that fine equipment to best advantage. Colour photos. Hardcover, 350 pp, $34.95.
 1001 Foods To Die For
Corby Kummer
This book does it all - it is a reference for all of your favourite international culinary creations, including facsinating details about the history of the dish, tips on buying the ingredients and tips on the very best preparations. Oh, and the glossy photos are beautiful and inspiring too. Whether you need to know how to prepare Crab Cakes, Gumbo, Tabbouleh, or Tom Yum soup, this book has it. Hardcover, 960 pp. $45.00.
 The Basics: The Foundations of Modern Cooking
Filip Verheyden
This is a perfect little book for teaching you how to master core techniques,
such as cooking techniques (roasting, grilling, how to confit) cutting
techniques (how to brunoise and julienne) how to make various stocks, soups
and sauces, how to bake bread, pastries, even how to make potato foam (?!)...
you name it, it's in here. Each technique is accompanied by a beautiful
photo and the book itself has elegant gilded pages. Hardcover, 320 pp.
$31.95.
 The New Food Lover’s Companion
Fourth Edition bySharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst
Once again, the Companion starts with abalone and ends with zwieback. There
are approximately 700 new entries covering ethnic and exotic ingredients
and techniques. Among the useful features are the conversion charts covering
British terminology, pan sizes, and microwave. A must for both beginners
and seasoned cooks. Sharon Tyler Herbst who began writing the Food
Lover’s Companion in 1988 died in early 2007. Softcover,
829 pp. $16.99.
 The
Best Kitchen Quick Tips
Editors of Cook’s Illustrated
From almond paste on the first page to zucchini on the final page, these
534 tips, illustrated by line drawings, will improve your performance in
the kitchen. Softcover, 402 pp, $27.95.
 What's a Cook to Do?
James Peterson
A consummate culinary teacher, James Peterson has the answers to almost
500 questions from how to shuck oysters to how to tell if egg whites are
sufficiently aerated. What sets this chunky little book apart from other
how-to books is its colour step-by-step photos. James Peterson is also
the author of Sauces and Splendid Soup,
each $53.99 Hardcover, 422 pp. $18.95.
 The Food Encyclopedia
Jacques Rolland & Carol Sherman
From biographies of authors & inventors to kitchen utensils to fruits & vegetables
as well as foreign language cooking terms, this is a useful reference book
for the shelf. Not too dry and serious that you wont find it fun to dip into
and read. Hardcover, 701 pp $49.95.
 The Oxford Companion to Food
Second Edition
Alan Davidson, Tom Paine editor
The late Alan Davidson worked 20 years on the original magnum opus (1999).
This updated second edition has over 72 new entries written by writers Harold
McGee and Rachel Laudan. A serious book on food and food history. Hardcover,
907 pp. $75.00.
 The
Cook's Companion
Whether your taste is for fois gras or fry ups, this tasty compilation of the
wise, the weird and the faintly absurd will soon have you asking for more. This
cute little book is an essential ingredient in any kitchen and is boiling over
with foodie facts, fiction, science, history and trivia. 160 pp. $19.95.
How to Break an Egg
Editors, Contributors, and Readers of Fine Cooking
Fine Cooking has gathered 1,453 kitchen tips, food fixes, emergency
substitutions and handy techniques from a wide range of collected
wisdom. There is enough information in these pages even for the sceptic
who feels
they know all the tricks. A great reference manual. Also included
are 42 techniques, illustrated step by step in full colour. Hardcover,
394 pp, $26.95.
 On Food & Cooking: The Science & Lore of the Kitchen
Revised
Harold McGee
A fascinating book that explains how and why cooking works, with historical and
literary anecdotes and mind-boggling photos of food taken through an electron
microscope. A true classic for foodies and armchair scientists alike. Hardcover,
684
pages.
$58.00.
Culinary Artistry
Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page
A classic since its publication in 1996. The authors interviewed 30 top American
chefs - Gray Kunz, Rich Bayless, the Jean-Louis Palladin, and Alice Waters among
them - to discover the sources of their inspiration. For us mere mortals the
food matches section is invaluable. Softcover, 426 pp, $43.95.
 The Kitchen Hand
Anthony Telford
Published in Australia, this pocket compendium, while not as comprehensive
as The New Food Lover's Companion ($21.00),
offers a more personal interpretation of various food terms and procedures.
Softcover, $16.95.
 Alton Brown's Gear For
Your Kitchen
Alton Brown
The popular host of Good Eats and James Beard Foundation award-winning
author brings us his latest offering – a well-constructed guide to essential
kitchen gear. Instead of listing the expensive, cutting edge tools most favour,
Brown provides with a selection of tools he actually uses, with explanations
of why and how he uses them (often in a very MacGyver-like fashion). Hardcover,
255pp., $43.95.
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Répertoire
de La Cuisine 
Resource Guide for Food Writers