DINE (and DESIGN)

I read a lot. I cook a lot. I look at buildings. More than a lot. So I need big books with big, beautiful photographs to feel fulfilled. And my house is full of them. So full, I might need to get a storage unit soon. But I digress.

Anyway, today I offer you the food books I’m most craving this month (all three also look pretty good on display). And if you wait very patiently, I'll post the design books tomorrow.

​Guten Appetit!
​

(Clockwise from top)
Anthony Bourdain's Appetites: A Cookbook (2016)
My MIL gave this book to me for Christmas because I'm OBSESSED with Anthony Bourdain. I won't waste your time detailing my unrequited love for this man, but I will tell you to buy this book. Why? Because if you like to cook, the recipes are accessible. If you like to read, the essays are funny and irreverent. And if you have any interest in art, the cover is by Ralph Steadman (best known for his partnership with Hunter S. Thompson) and the photographs are brash and beautiful. I promise, this book will complete you.

Deep Run Roots: Stories and Recipes from My Corner of the South by Vivian Howard (2016)
My husband brought this book home for me a few months ago, and even though I've only tried a couple of recipes, I look forward to diving deeper into this almost 500+ page book. I mean, this is a brick of a book. More than a brick, maybe a concrete block. But it too has beautiful pictures, mostly of an idealized rural America and Eastern North Carolina delicacies that will make your mouth water. You might be wondering how this book differs, say, from other cookbooks from the likes of Sean Brock, Ashley Christensen, or any other young Southern(ish) chef published over the last few years. Honestly, there is overlap. But this seems to be the state of celebrity cookbooks right now, and I still find Howard's familiarity with her regional foodways compelling. Plus, this book looks good on a kitchen shelf. Enough for me.

Smoke and Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen by Edward Lee (2013)
Ok, I know. Another one of those celebrity chefs. But in my defense, I cook from this book ALL OF THE TIME, and I can seriously vouch for Lee's recipes. I cook a good deal of Asian-inspired food in my house, so I love that Lee tackles the overlapping culinary traditions and techniques from Korea and the American South. I also really appreciate that this book feels casual and doesn't try too hard (see above). Because this is just food after all. Oh yeah, and the kimchi collards will change your life.