Curious about what are some of the best cookbooks of the year? The folks at Cookbooker have compiled a list of the best cookbooks of 2011 according to cookbook shops around the globe.
Books to Cooks carries all these and many more wonderful titles so if any of these books whet your holiday appetite, drop by to pick one up or give us a call if you to reserve a copy.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Make a Very Special Cookbook Even More Special this Holiday Season
Give yourself the gift of year round recipes or give a unique gift for the foodie on your list and support food based charities in your area.
Thursday, December 15th join some of Vancouver’s top chefs for an exclusive book signing of Vancouver Cooks2, with wine and canapés, from 5pm – 7pm at Vancouver’s acclaimed cook book store, Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks.
Vancouver Cooks2 is a Chefs’ Table Society of BC collaborative cookbook with recipes from top chefs and top restaurants across British Columbia. Using local ingredients from across the region, celebrity chefs, top restaurant chefs and rising stars have created a book both wonderful for giving and wonderful for keeping. With recipes tested by home cook expert Joan Cross, the recipes are sometimes exotic, sometimes down to earth and always “doable”.
Your donation to the Chefs’ Table Society, benefiting BC Food Banks, “Project Chef” and “Growing Chefs”, of $10 gets you a chance to mingle and nibble with chefs, have your book signed, see some cooking demonstrations, and for those who purchase the cookbook, your $10 is deducted from the cover price which makes purchasing the book a very reasonable gift cost - Soft cover $25 ($15 after $10 donation); Hard cover $40 ($30 after $10 donation)
Thursday, December 15th
5pm – 7pm
Chefs’ Table Society of BC at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks
1740 West 2nd Avenue (half a block east of Burrard)
Vancouver, BC 604-688-6755
www.bookstocooks.com
bookcook@intergate.bc.ca
Vancouver Cooks2
$25 soft cover ($15 after $10 donation) $40 hard cover ($30 after $10 donation)
Drop-ins welcome, reservations appreciated (so we can prepare enough food!) at info@chefstablesociety.com or by phone at Books to Cooks at 604-688-6755
Thursday, December 15th join some of Vancouver’s top chefs for an exclusive book signing of Vancouver Cooks2, with wine and canapés, from 5pm – 7pm at Vancouver’s acclaimed cook book store, Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks.
Vancouver Cooks2 is a Chefs’ Table Society of BC collaborative cookbook with recipes from top chefs and top restaurants across British Columbia. Using local ingredients from across the region, celebrity chefs, top restaurant chefs and rising stars have created a book both wonderful for giving and wonderful for keeping. With recipes tested by home cook expert Joan Cross, the recipes are sometimes exotic, sometimes down to earth and always “doable”.
Your donation to the Chefs’ Table Society, benefiting BC Food Banks, “Project Chef” and “Growing Chefs”, of $10 gets you a chance to mingle and nibble with chefs, have your book signed, see some cooking demonstrations, and for those who purchase the cookbook, your $10 is deducted from the cover price which makes purchasing the book a very reasonable gift cost - Soft cover $25 ($15 after $10 donation); Hard cover $40 ($30 after $10 donation)
Thursday, December 15th
5pm – 7pm
Chefs’ Table Society of BC at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks
1740 West 2nd Avenue (half a block east of Burrard)
Vancouver, BC 604-688-6755
www.bookstocooks.com
bookcook@intergate.bc.ca
Vancouver Cooks2
$25 soft cover ($15 after $10 donation) $40 hard cover ($30 after $10 donation)
Drop-ins welcome, reservations appreciated (so we can prepare enough food!) at info@chefstablesociety.com or by phone at Books to Cooks at 604-688-6755
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Had a Glass or Two...
Cheers!
Monday, December 5, 2011
Trifle, Tripe and Tipple with North by Northwest
The shop was turned into ‘Studio One’ last week as
we hosted a trio of interviews with Sheryl Mackay for CBC North by Northwest. First up at the microphone was Anna Olsen to talk
about her fresh release, Back to Baking. With this book Anna felt she got
back to her real passion in the kitchen and shares the joy in the process of
baking. With all new recipes, created, tested, and photographed at her home using her own dishes, it is her
most personal book yet. Anna prepared a lovely Apple Crisp Trifle that is a new
and distinctly Canadian twist on a classic holiday treat. Anna encourages home
bakers to have fun improvising with the recipes and their presentation – no
trifle bowl? A tall glass vase is a good substitute; it’s elegant looking and
allows room for a few extra layers.
When asked which book she most turns to for inspiration and
ideas, Anna chose a well-worn and beloved classic, Joy of Cooking.
After morning trifle we turned to meatier fare as author JenniferMclagan joined Sheryl to share the wonders of culinary odd bits. Third in her
‘trilogy’ of books for unabashed carnivores, Odd Bits is an inventive,
informative, and humorous cookbook that celebrates those often overlooked, yet
downright tasty cuts of meats. She made believers of us all as she plated a
delicious serving of beef tongue with salsa verde.
Moving on to afternoon cocktails we next welcomed authors
Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page. This charming husband-and-wife writing team— he is a chef, she a
journalist — has produced four books in the past six years, and their latest, A
Food Lover’s Guide to Wine is sure to be another bestseller. They shared
some of their own food pairing ideas with Sheryl, along with some of their own
more memorable wine moments (Valentines Day…champagne…chocolate…). Andrew and Karen encouraged readers to have fun trying new and different wine
pairings and recommended we all keep our fridges well stocked, as they do, with
Reisling as it is a good go to wine for most cuisines, and goes particularly well with spicy
dishes. Their cookbook choice for Sheryl was also, The Joy of Cooking.
Check back to the CBC website to listen to a complete podcast of each interview in the coming weeks.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Celebrating Odd Bits with Jennifer McLagan
This week we were pleased to welcome back award-winning author, Jennifer McLagan, to celebrate her latest book, Odd Bits: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal. Jennifer is known for bravely tackling unfashionable culinary topics such as bones and fat. It is only natural that she tames the rest of the animal with this third book.
Odd Bits truly embraces the philosophy of nose to tail eating. Jennifer's rationale about using these less celebrated cuts is simple: if we are to slaughter an animal for food, it is only moral and respectful to use all of it. The more common "prime cuts" comprise of merely half the animal, so as a moral carnivore, it is important to utilize all of the animal's perfectly good protein.
On Sunday evening, guests gathered at Books to Cooks for an intimate Sunday Supper featuring a delectable menu of odd bits. As Chef Lawren Moneta served delicious morsels including poached tongue with salsa verde, Peruvian heart kebabs and braised beef cheeks, Jennifer gave guests a culinary anatomy lesson from snout to tail. In the evening's discussion, Jennifer emphasized how imperative the quality and freshness of these delicate cuts are and thus how important it is to make friends with a trusted local butcher. By the end of the evening, Jennifer's enthusiasm and humour ensured guests that these odd bits are really not all that odd. We've just lost touch with them and it's time to reacquaint ourselves.
The next evening, dinner guests gathered at Cibo Trattoria for an Odd Bits inspired menu prepared by Executive Chef Neil Taylor. A true odd bit enthusiast, Chef Taylor was delighted to treat guests to a menu featuring such delicacies as lamb's brain ravioli with brown butter and sage, crispy pig's head and trotter salad and grilled calves liver and ox heart, all prepared with an Italian flare.
Jennifer's visit to Vancouver wound down with a sumptuous gathering with members of the Vancouver Club. Chef Sean Cousins prepared a delicious menu from Odd Bits that shone a spotlight on some of the least celebrated yet most delectable cuts. As the evening began, guests whet their appetites with the lusciously crisp but creamy "Cheese and Just a Little Brain Fritters." Guests also found themselves enjoying gently braised lamb neck with quince and turnip.
One common theme for all three evenings was the chefs' choice of dessert: Jennifer's chocolate blood ice cream. At first this combination may conjure images of amorous blood letting vampires. The use of blood as a thickener for a chocolate custard, however, is no more unusual than using the protein in egg yolks to thicken and add richness.
While Jennifer was here, we learned that Odd Bits made it onto the New York Times list of Notable Cookbooks of 2011. Congratulations, Jennifer, and much thanks for taking the odd out of those bits.
Odd Bits truly embraces the philosophy of nose to tail eating. Jennifer's rationale about using these less celebrated cuts is simple: if we are to slaughter an animal for food, it is only moral and respectful to use all of it. The more common "prime cuts" comprise of merely half the animal, so as a moral carnivore, it is important to utilize all of the animal's perfectly good protein.
On Sunday evening, guests gathered at Books to Cooks for an intimate Sunday Supper featuring a delectable menu of odd bits. As Chef Lawren Moneta served delicious morsels including poached tongue with salsa verde, Peruvian heart kebabs and braised beef cheeks, Jennifer gave guests a culinary anatomy lesson from snout to tail. In the evening's discussion, Jennifer emphasized how imperative the quality and freshness of these delicate cuts are and thus how important it is to make friends with a trusted local butcher. By the end of the evening, Jennifer's enthusiasm and humour ensured guests that these odd bits are really not all that odd. We've just lost touch with them and it's time to reacquaint ourselves.
The next evening, dinner guests gathered at Cibo Trattoria for an Odd Bits inspired menu prepared by Executive Chef Neil Taylor. A true odd bit enthusiast, Chef Taylor was delighted to treat guests to a menu featuring such delicacies as lamb's brain ravioli with brown butter and sage, crispy pig's head and trotter salad and grilled calves liver and ox heart, all prepared with an Italian flare.
Jennifer's visit to Vancouver wound down with a sumptuous gathering with members of the Vancouver Club. Chef Sean Cousins prepared a delicious menu from Odd Bits that shone a spotlight on some of the least celebrated yet most delectable cuts. As the evening began, guests whet their appetites with the lusciously crisp but creamy "Cheese and Just a Little Brain Fritters." Guests also found themselves enjoying gently braised lamb neck with quince and turnip.
One common theme for all three evenings was the chefs' choice of dessert: Jennifer's chocolate blood ice cream. At first this combination may conjure images of amorous blood letting vampires. The use of blood as a thickener for a chocolate custard, however, is no more unusual than using the protein in egg yolks to thicken and add richness.
While Jennifer was here, we learned that Odd Bits made it onto the New York Times list of Notable Cookbooks of 2011. Congratulations, Jennifer, and much thanks for taking the odd out of those bits.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Jolly Holiday Pop-Ups
Let Barbara-Jo's Books to Cooks be your one-stop shopping destination this holiday shopping season. We are pleased to host a bevy of pop-up markets with fantastic culinary holiday gift ideas.
On Saturday, December 3 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. David Feys of Feys & Hobbs Catered Arts visits from Victoria with his sumptuous wares including a delightful selection of innovative chutneys and relishes, luscious marmalades and jams, and famous No. 3 Crisps.
On Sunday, December 4 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., we feature a selection of goodies from Cobble Hill in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island. Jamie Sellars will feature zesty balsamic vinegar and verjus from Venturi Schulze and dreamy fair-trade chocolate and mulling spices among other goodies from Organic Fair.
On Saturday, December 10 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., round out your holiday gift giving with coffee from Caffe Umbria. Peter Lee and Michele Molinari pop by for an espresso Italiano session featuring Caffe Umbria coffee. Join us for an enlightening chat about coffee while you enjoy your favourite espresso drink and take home some of your new favourite espresso beans.
For more information about our events, visit our website and call 604-688-6755 to register.
On Saturday, December 3 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. David Feys of Feys & Hobbs Catered Arts visits from Victoria with his sumptuous wares including a delightful selection of innovative chutneys and relishes, luscious marmalades and jams, and famous No. 3 Crisps.
On Sunday, December 4 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., we feature a selection of goodies from Cobble Hill in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island. Jamie Sellars will feature zesty balsamic vinegar and verjus from Venturi Schulze and dreamy fair-trade chocolate and mulling spices among other goodies from Organic Fair.
On Saturday, December 10 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., round out your holiday gift giving with coffee from Caffe Umbria. Peter Lee and Michele Molinari pop by for an espresso Italiano session featuring Caffe Umbria coffee. Join us for an enlightening chat about coffee while you enjoy your favourite espresso drink and take home some of your new favourite espresso beans.
For more information about our events, visit our website and call 604-688-6755 to register.
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