Reddit mentions: The best entertainment & holiday cooking books

HAPPY CAKE DAY! =D It's exciting, isn't it? It's not rational at all, but still very exciting. I actually recently missed my second cake day, so that was a bit of a bummer, but I'm glad you're here to celebrate your first!

When you say awesome sheets, do you mean sheets as in bed sheets, or sheets as in sheet music? Or both? Or neither? I'd love you help you out either way, haha (although I'd be best at the music one)!

I'd be so excited if I won this awesome book! It's actually cookbook, but a book nonetheless! I've had my eye on this for a while- it has some really amazing recipes in it that are completely doable for me since I'm such a novice cook. ;D

And you know what, I DID ENJOY MY THURSDAY, THANK YOU! <3 I hope you enjoyed yours as well!

Thanks so much for this contest! =D

Also here's another for vegan soups, all credit goes to /r/freeEBOOKS for their hard work in finding these.


If you don't have a Kindle, you can click on "read for free" or download the Kindle for PC app at:

www.amazon.com/gp/kindle/pc/download


Also I want to give a shoutout to /u/llieaay, for whom I found these e-books for after a compelling argument and after stalking looking at their user history and that they frequent /r/vegan a lot, I figured the community would like it a lot as well.


I hope you guys enjoy these two cook books, and I apologize if posting this here violates the subreddit's rules (although I saw nothing against it. I did read the sidebar!).


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Edit: Some more vegan cookbooks I've found for y'all.


Vegan Cookbooks: 70 Of The Best Ever Scrumptious Vegan Dinner Recipes....Revealed!

Best Healthy Vegan Holidays Recipes (Quick & Easy Vegan Recipes)

Vegan: 365 Vegan Recipes (Everyday Vegan Vegan Recipes Vegan Cookbook)

Gluten-Free Vegan Slow Cooker: Quick and Easy Recipes for Busy People

The Greatest Plant Based, Low Fat Recipes In History: Delicious Plant Based, Low Fat & Healthy Recipes That Will Make You Lose The Weight Fast


Note: I haven't gotten to read or try all these out, so I hope y'all help with reviewing which is good and which is not, and sharing all your recipes!

Here are some books I have and what I think of them...

The Connoisseur's Book of the Cigar by Zino Davidoff. Fun to read, lots of interesting info and thoughts. Also looks pretty cool.

The Tobacconist Handbook is probably the best informational book out there, at least that I've seen. It doesn't really look 'manly', but it's kinda cool IMO (editor's note: I have no idea what cool is).

Cigars 2-book set. Looks good on a coffee table, nice pictures. Info is hit-or-miss for quality.

The Cigar Companion. I picked this up cheap at a used book store. Got about what I paid for. Coffee table book? Not awful, not great. Source of info? Ehhh not great. Might fit the bill for your 'cheap' category though.

The Cigar Collection: Two Centuries of Cigar Writing is a very short book filled with poems and short essays/odes to cigars. It's not informational, but there is good writing in there. I enjoy it. It looks pretty cheap and isn't the highest-quality book.

I have no idea why the secondary market looks so crazy on these books on Amazon. I didn't pay anywhere near any of those prices for these books. Used book stores have been pretty good to me in terms of finding a couple very cheap - think the bargain bins.

Want to look really baller and have something cool to boot? Check out The Cigar Legend. It's a leather-bound book where you can document the cigars you've smoked and info about your cigar journey. It's super-pimp. /u/CigarNoise got me one, and it's classing up my library.

Haha thanks! I hope it all turns out - the lasagna is so deep I'm worried about cooking time. It was in the freezer as I made it last weekend with my friend in a frenzy of big-batch cooking, and even though I took it out a couple of nights ago it's still not actually defrosted! Fingers crossed...

But I love cooking especially for a big crowd, and any excuse is good enough for me. I just recently bought this vegan cookbook that's divided by holiday, and it's so much fun! https://www.amazon.ca/Superfun-Times-Vegan-Holiday-Cookbook/dp/0316221899

It's got everything from Passover to Chinese New Year; lots of great ideas to inspire a spontaneous party :)

I would use a clearer plate, something not as earth colored. As to where I get my ideas: everywhere.

I follow food stylists on instagram, I read food blogs, I own around 200 cookbooks that I use mostly for pictures, I go to museums to look at art (important in being how colors work together, specially abstract art, as it tends to be nothing but color).

But you can find inspiration even in the street. There is this great book which pretty much talks about finding inspiration in the street. You don't have to go to that length, but it shows that if you are always looking, you will likely always find.

Good luck!

I used this book for all my girls' birthday parties and they had some pretty fantastic parties! This book is SO MUCH FUN!

Penny Whistle Birthday Party Book

Water shoes from my fitness list since I need help not killing myself in a water class =D (me so graceful)

• Commando Chicken - from this book. Simple, ridiculously easy, unbelievably delicious home-cooked roasted chicken.
  
  
• Potatoes. Sliced, salted and peppered, and placed in a pan below the chicken (which is in no pan on the rack above - thus, "commando"), they get all of the delicious chicken drippings. These are the most surprisingly nommable taters ever.
  
  
• Salad with home-made vinaigrette. Add some chicken drippings to the dressing. Doesn't taste like chicken, but adds depth and richness.
  
  
• Boiled artichokes, with butter or mayo for dipping. Artichokes are so freaking yummy, fancy cooking techniques do nothing but interfere with their awesome.
  
  
• And for dessert? I just had some strawberries, so I'm thinking strawberry shortcake would be the perfect finish here. Real shortcake. Real whipped cream. Fresh strawberries.
  
  I just ate, and now I'm hungry all over again!
  
  Book.
  
  Thanks for the contest!

Here's my go-to simple baked chicken recipe (no sauce unless you count butter):

Prep time: 10 min.

Cooking time: 45 min. (or until chicken is at least 165 degrees with meat thermometer)

Ingredients (sorry it's inexact)
Whole chicken, cut up

Butter (I use unsalted, but in a pinch, olive oil works too.)

Salt, pepper to taste (I use kosher salt and you can add whichever spices to this mix to make it spicy, i.e. cayenne and paprika, or more savory, i.e. garlic and sage, etc...)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

So, use whatever raw chicken you have. Rinse, pat dry with paper towels.

In a bowl (or plastic baggy), mix up salt, pepper (& whatever spices you like) and apply to the chicken, underneath the skin.

Arrange chicken in casserole dish or metal pan.

Cut up some butter, like one pat into four pieces, and tuck a couple pieces (2-3) underneath the chicken skin. Put a couple more on top of the skin. (If using olive oil, rub that chicken down till it's shiny.)

Place in oven and cook until golden yellow, brown (usually 45 minutes for whole chicken or 4 breast or leg quarters.)

Goes great with rice (I love basmati or jasmine) and is very good as leftovers. I think this is basically Amy Sadaris' recipe from her wonderful cookbook I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence .

My favorite holiday is thanksgiving

Only really because when I was oh...16 or so? I had the best thanksgiving ever. I don't really know why, it just "felt good" to me. The general atmosphere was comforting and I remember enjoying my school break by finishing zelda windwaker. I literally played that most of the days and it was so much fun. My mom also let me make my own vegan stuffing that actually turned out quite delicious. Sweet and tart.

I like these 2 books on hosting: How to host a dinner party and What's a hostess to do

Based on my experience:

• Stick to recipes you're comfortable with so you don't worry about messing up.
  
• Try to prepare as much of the food as possible in the days before the party, if they will keep well.
  
• Have your playlists and sound system ready before the party. I've had to spend time messing with the audio during parties before, which adds to stress.
  
• Personally, I like to serve stuff like pasta and curry because they're one-pot dishes and the portions can be scaled up easily. Tomato-based sauces can be prepared beforehand. It's also easy to modify those dishes for people with dietary restrictions, by setting aside separate portions for them.

My mom was a good cook, and I helped her when growing up. I watched a lot of cooking shows on TV during the summers when I was a kid (see: Frugal Gourmet). I watch a lot of cooking shows now (though I'm pretty sad that Food Network in primetime is just reality TV now). I make many different recipes. A while back after watching Julia and Julia I was inspired to do 52 new recipes over the course of a year. When I eat out at restaurants, I like to try new things. I watch random youtube cooking videos when I get bored.

I believe Stephen King once said you can't be a good writer unless you spend a lot of time reading other people's stuff. There's probably a good analogy there with cooking/eating.

If you want a good cookbook, I recommend this one by America's Test Kitchen. It has recipes for pretty much all standard American cuisine dishes, and it gives good explanation of how/why the recipe works. Plus it's spiral bound- something that's incredibly underrated with cookbooks.

What book did you just finish? I love penny books! I was scoping out buying myself The Feminine Mystique for a penny today, but when I get the time to read again, I really want to read this book! It's been on my WL for a long while :) I collect cookbooks and I have Amy Sedaris' crafting book so I'm sure this one is hilarious too. I'd appreciate hardcover used. :D

Thank you for throwing the contest!

The Superfun Times Vegan Holiday Cookbook: Entertaining for Absolutely Every Occasion - Isa Chandra Moskowitz

The Joy of Vegan Baking, Revised and Updated Edition: More than 150 Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets - Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Vegan Mac and Cheese: More than 50 Delicious Plant-Based Recipes for the Ultimate Comfort Food - Robin Robertson

Hot for Food Vegan Comfort Classics: 101 Recipes to Feed Your Face - Lauren Toyota

Mac and cheese! 50 vegan recipes!? I'll be in my kitchen for awhile testing these recipes alone.

America's Test Kitchen cookbook is a great resource for cooking newbies and first-timers. It contains a ton of easy and delicious recipes, with a minimum of fancy ingredients or techniques, and explains why you have to do things a certain way and spells out cooking-speak in plain English (e.g., what the heck is "al dente?").

This book was a lifesaver senior year in college, when I got shut out of the housing lottery and suddenly found myself with a kitchen and no idea where the heck to start.

http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Kitchen-Cookbook-Heavy-Duty-Revised/dp/193361501X/ref=sr_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416248131&sr=1-11&keywords=americas+test+kitchen

It's super fun. A year ago or so a Redditor offered her cookbook ebook for free for a couple of days, and I picked it up. Most of the recipes are based on her infused coconut oil, which is similar to cannabutter.

I understand the excitement of chefs and small start ups bringing their edibles to market. Who doesn't smile at rice krispy treats made with fruity pebbles?

Moskowitz just put out a book on vegan holiday feasts called The Superfun Times Vegan Holiday Cookbook: Entertaining for Absolutely Every Occasion.

Might have some useful information.

It's a little over $5, but here is something I think we'd both like! :)

You? Me? You? Me?

I would suggest The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. It has tried-and-true step by step instructions for everything you need to do, from peeling peaches for pie to the most flavorful ketchup(!). Lots of photos, and the first cookbook that I've purchased where I just want to go through and make one recipe after another. It has tons of recipes, from ice cream, and main dishes like the chicken pot pies I made last night, to hors d'oeuvres. It explains what tools you may need, and why things are done the way they are. For example, it explains that the key to fluffy biscuits is not overworking the dough. Great tool for learning. Highly recommended.

This is an Amy Sedaris book called I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence and we've been doing it for a couple years at our get-togethers. Without fail, someone opens it every time to the delight of our previous party attendees. The hard part is getting all the marbles to stay in medicine cabinet long enough for you to shut the door, but it's well worth the effort.

The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook is pretty great, too.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&ei=KNFCVNy_J4TD8QHX7oDoDA&url=http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Thanksgiving-Dessert-Recipes-Delicious-ebook/dp/B00OL13EFW&ved=0CB0QFjAA&usg=AFQjCNFxOt0JW9rzR1A32eVZibwKWPdUtA&sig2=F_TrOvhqkYI52B8ITI5ynA US Amazon link for 25 Easy Thanksgiving Dessert Recipes: Delicious Thanksgiving ...

You may want to try http://foodgawker.com/ or http://www.tastespotting.com/ to get some ideas.

I really like http://www.cookingforengineers.com/ too. It's like the scientific method applied to cooking. :)

A good all purpose cookbook is America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. It's relatively cheap, and it has a little bit of everything. There is a lot of information about technique and ingredients, as well as what a well-stocked kitchen should have. Many people recommend How to Cook Everything, but I have never used it, so I can't give an informed opinion.

25 Placenta Recipes - Easy and Delicious recipes for cooking with placenta! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BN2JP78/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_g0KQBbH6VBMPR

25 Placenta Recipes - Easy and Delicious recipes for cooking with placenta! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BN2JP78/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Tm3UAbETPTDZK

Set Of Five Finger Hands Finger Puppets https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OAC9BUO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_oo3UAb3SWT8G4

Chicken nugget soap
https://www.amazon.com/Chicken-Nuggets-Novelty-Crazy-Mamas/dp/B06XVL9BSP/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1522234426&sr=8-3&keywords=Food+soap

It's in her new Superfun Times Vegan Holiday Cookbook https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BKSLGEO/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1.
Every recipe I've tried is delicious and on point!

Isa's new cookbook has really great Thanksgiving recipes in it, including pumpkin pie. Absolutely worth it.

https://www.amazon.com/Superfun-Times-Vegan-Holiday-Cookbook/dp/0316221899

Does anyone know how this book stacks up against ATK's "blue book"?

I have their red and green books and absolutely love them. Was considering getting this one next.

Wake & Bake by Corinne Tobias. A couple of years ago, the author, a Redditor, offered the ebook free for one day, and I was fortunate enough to snap it up.

Also from Hannie P. Scott (UK links):

• 30 Easy Halloween Treats and Recipes
  
• 25 Easy Thanksgiving Dessert Recipes

Don't blame me! You ASKED for it!

But seriously, look for cookbooks that are specific to different cultural foods. Take a world culinary tour from home. It's amazing to discover the similarities and differences there are by preparing foods you wouldn't commonly prepare.

Fun Fact: Some people cook and eat the placenta. http://www.amazon.com/25-Placenta-Recipes-Delicious-placenta-ebook/dp/B00BN2JP78

The latest one from Isa Chandra Moskowitz is really good. I cooked a couple of recipes from this book for my husband's birthday, and they really hit the nail.

I'll do you one better: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BN2JP78?pc_redir=1406541762&robot_redir=1

I guess you start with a good recipe

There is a section in Isa Moskowitz's book that's just Thanksgiving. https://www.amazon.com/Superfun-Times-Vegan-Holiday-Cookbook/dp/0316221899



I can tell you what's in it later and see if you're interested in any.

There is a [Doctor Who cookbook] (http://www.amazon.com/Dining-Doctor-Unauthorized-Cookbook-ebook/dp/B00AGSTV6A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374719789&sr=8-1&keywords=doctor+who+cookbook) that might help. If you have a Kindle then you'll get it immediately and should be able to cherry pick.

Are we really sure placenta isn't involved? https://www.amazon.com/25-Placenta-Recipes-Delicious-placenta-ebook/dp/B00BN2JP78

I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, by Amy Sedaris?

I...thought you were joking. I was wrong.

According to r/treedibles this book is worth a look and supposed to be all vegan.

https://www.amazon.com/Wake-Bake-cookbook-Corinne-Tobias-ebook/dp/B00HNJD1RA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1438638952&sr=8-1&keywords=wake+and+bake+corinne

Sorry on mobile

Just leaving this here: 25 Placenta Recipes

OK

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0316221899/ref=dbs_a_w_dp_0316221899

Now all you need is a [cook book!] (http://www.amazon.com/25-Placenta-Recipes-Delicious-ebook/dp/B00BN2JP78)

TIL: There are a plethora of tasty recipes right here

It's a cookbook - you can buy it here

Some more details. Link 1 Link 2

Have I got a book for you

Here's a cookbook!

https://www.amazon.com/25-Placenta-Recipes-Delicious-placenta-ebook/dp/B00BN2JP78

buy this book you'll learn how to cook

http://www.amazon.com/Asfalto-Culinario-Laboratorio-Spanish-Edition/dp/8424117298/ref=sr_sp-btf_image_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1372403762&sr=8-5&keywords=arzak

or

http://www.amazon.com/Arzak-recetas-Spanish-Edition-ebook/dp/B009TE445K/ref=sr_sp-atf_image_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1372403762&sr=8-3&keywords=arzak

This is the book I found it in. I didn't read it online. :/

>as if he's just making a fucking stew

That's exactly what he did. What's your problem?

Placenta Recipes

Weeeelllll... Not technically. There are laws that discourage and punish the acts leading up to and surrounding it, but a lot of places don't have laws specifically targeting cannibalism.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=e6l6k76cFqM


Brings to mind all of the women who give birth then eat the placenta to replenish nutrients. There are even published cookbooks for that.
https://www.amazon.com/25-Placenta-Recipes-Delicious-placenta-ebook/dp/B00BN2JP78


Humans and what are basically double standards, am I right?

That is a bad idea. But I think these two cookbooks have it beat.

Oh you ignorant fool, there are already placenta cookbooks. See 25 Placenta Recipes or DIY Plancenta Edibles: Smoothies + Tincture + Chocolate.