The Books That Stirred My Pot

Cookbooks that shaped the way I cook and look at food.

• FRENCH COOKERY – Marie-Antoine Carême — Translated William Hall

  

• Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery – Auguste Escoffier

  

• On Vegetables – Jeremy Fox

  

• Bread Is Gold – Massimo Bottura

  

• Cooking by Hand – Paul Bertolli

  

• Mastering the Art of French Cooking – Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle & Simone Beck

  

• The Flavor Matrix – James Briscione with Brooke Parkhurst

  

• The Flavor Bible – Karen Page & Andrew Dornenburg

  

• Tu Casa Mi Casa – Enrique Olvera

  

• South – Sean Brock

  

• Heritage – Sean Brock

  

• The Geometry of Pasta – Jacob Kenedy & Caz Hildebrand

  

• American Sfoglino – Evan Funke with Katie Parla

  

• Toothache Magazine – Created and Edited by Nick Muncy

  

• Pasta Grannies – Vicky Bennison

  

• The French Laundry Cookbook – Thomas Keller with Michael Ruhlman

  

• The Pie Room – Calum Franklin

  

These books have a nice tight hold on what I think cooking should be and how I was able to learn a lot of things I had no access too. I love seeing food through other peoples lens of life.

Core Pillars — The Ones That Teach You How to Think About Food

• Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery — The backbone of French technique.

• FRENCH COOKERY – Marie-Antoine Carême — The OG of haute cuisine, grand and essential.

• Mastering the Art of French Cooking — The gateway drug to French home cooking for many.

• Cooking by Hand — Deep, romantic, philosophical. More than just technique.

• Bread Is Gold — Massimo Bottura with heart. Waste, value, and creativity collide.

Foundational Flavors — Technical, Cultural, and Culinary Lenses

• The Flavor Bible — A must-have for flavor pairing and creativity.

• The Flavor Index — Similar, but more reference than inspiration.

• Tu Casa Mi Casa — A vibrant, thoughtful return to the roots of Mexican home cooking—celebrating family, tradition, and the everyday dishes that define real Mexican kitchens.

• Heritage — Sean Brock channeling ancestry through Southern cooking. Powerful and personal.

• South — A lighter touch than Heritage, but still soulful and clear-eyed.

Stylistic & Niche — For Specific Moods, Moments, or Curiosities

• The French Laundry Cookbook — Beautiful, aspirational, but not often cooked from.

• The Pie Room — Focused and charming, more useful for bakers than general cooks.

• The Geometry of Pasta — Design meets food nerd. Great visuals, interesting ideas.

• The American Sfoglino — Pasta artistry. Technical and exacting.

• Pasta Grannies — Heartwarming and real, less technique, more storytelling.

• Toothache Magazine — Chef driven magazine made by chef’s for chefs. Creative, chaotic, and inspiring. He stopped writing the hard copies but still has limited numbers or prints for sale.

I hope you enjoy this list I yearn for those who are looking for inspiration. This was for you. Sharing some of my favorites off my bookshelf means a lot. There is gold here. These are not your modern day trendy cookbooks, no Instagram Chef publication. These are all certified legends in the game. I am so grateful for their existence. Thanks for reading as always.