7 Cookbooks To Gift The Chef In Your Life

I have to say I’m not that great at executing recipes, but I love collecting them because they are so aesthetically pleasing to look at. Most cookbooks are photographed and designed so beautifully that I usually just buy them to look at the photos. Talk about judging a book by its cover…

However, for a lot of other people, they buy the cookbooks because they love the content (i.e. recipes) inside them. My boyfriend is one of those people, who has kindly shared some of the cookbooks that are on his own wishlist. Each of these seven cookbooks has been chosen for different purposes and different tastes, no pun intended.

1. Matty Matheson: A Cookbook By Matty Matheson

For the comfort food lovin’ chef: According to J (aka the boyfriend), this book is an exceptional one for anyone who loves to cook comfort food. I mean, I love consuming comfort food, so I trust his judgment, and Matty Matheson, the star of Viceland’s It’s Suppertime and Dead Set on Life shares mouthwatering comfort-food recipes just waiting to be made.

Matty digs into his own past to reveal the recipes that have been the flavors of his youth so that this cookbook is part-cookbook part-personal essay. Each of his stories is heartwarming, as his comfort food recipes are sure to warm the heart, satisfy the stomach and inspire the soul. 

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2. Binging with Babish By Andrew Rea

For the TV-enthusiast chef: This book is available for pre-order currently, set to be released mid-October. Rea’s cookbook is perfect for the chef who loves television because each of the recipes featured in this cookbook is recreated from beloved tv shows and movies. With a foreword by Jon Favreau (meaning it’s sure to be good!), this book breaks the fourth wall, so to speak, bringing fictional food to one’s real-life dinner table. 

Some of the recipes included in this book are the babka from Seinfeld, the beef bourguignon from Julie & Julia, and even Bubba’s shrimp from the beloved Forrest Gump. Life really imitates art here with this creative cookbook of pop culture classics. 

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3. Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking By Samin Nosrat

For the chef wanting to get back to the basics: There is never any harm going back to basics. In fact, culinary voices like Samin Nosrat teaches this to her students. Embedded in her philosophy of cooking are four elements – Salt, Fat, Acid, and Heat – and it is by mastering these elements that one makes delicious meals.

All four elements help affect two main points to cooking and, ultimately, our tastebuds: flavour and texture. While salt and fat enhance flavour, acid balances such flavour, and heat helps determine the texture that fat ultimately helps to cultivate. When cooking seems too overwhelming to undertake, pick up Samin Nosrat’s book and get back to the basics. They will never fail you. 

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4. The Prairie Table: Suppers, Potlucks & Socials: Crowd-Pleasing Recipes to Bring People Together By Karlynn Johnston

For the chef who loves to host: Karlynn Johnston, who is the blogger behind The Kitchen Magpie, serious satisfies some comfort food cravings and pleases a hungry crowd with this cookbook. Johnston paints a picture of making and having meals as a place for gathering, for bringing people together around a kitchen island, a picnic bench, or a long table. You can’t go wrong with this colourful cookbook of serious comfort-food favourites for the whole gang to enjoy. 

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5. The Kitchen Is For Dancing By Karlene Karst

For the chef who loves to dance in the kitchen: A cookbook that is as perfect as its name, Karlene Karst nails what it means to make and eat healthy dishes — and enjoy doing so! In her early twenties, Karlene was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called mixed connective tissue disease that left her feeling fatigued and altogether awful. This led her to learn how to heal with food and, mainly, healthy food that would help combat the side effects of the autoimmune disease.

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What ultimately emerged was this cookbook of nutritious and easy recipes that one can whip up in the kitchen — dancing or no dancing (but, let’s be real, dancing is all the more fun!). Karlene shares how to stock a pantry, as well as step-by-step instructions for meal-planning successfully, a feat usually in and of itself. Karlene Karst ultimately wants you to have fun and feel healthy, two prerequisites to and results of dancing! 😉 

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6. Let Me Feed You: Everyday Recipes Offering the Comfort of Home By Rosie Daykin

For the chef who communicates through cooking: If you’re the kind of person who expresses themselves and communicates to others through your cooking (i.e. a favourite dish for someone you love, a feast to bring your family together, etc.), this cookbook is for you. Rosie’s recipes are bursting with flavour and are the purveyors of meaning, making them even sweeter than most words can convey. 

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7. Damn Delicious Meal Prep By Chungah Rhee

For the meal preppers: I’m not a great meal prepper, but, boy, do I strive to be one in the near future. Now that I have a more consistent schedule, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to finally work on my meal prepping skills and Chungah Rhee’s cookbook, Damn Delicious Meal Prep is the perfect way to do so.

With busy lives, it’s easy to make it seem like grabbing food that is convenient is the only viable option. However, this is not the case, and once meal prepping becomes a part of your life, it’ll probably change it for the better. What’s even better about this cookbook is that its recipes are easy to prepare, low-calorie and meant to give you a boost of energy. What could be better than that? 

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Which cookbooks would you want to give the chef in your life? Have you tried any of those listed above? Share below!

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