The best cookbook ever – Gourmet.

(Should I just make this a food blog?  Seriously.  If you judge me by what I post here you’ve got to assume that I weigh – like – 1,000 pounds.)

The Gourmet Cookbookfrom Ruth Reichl and the editors of Gourmet Magazine.

This book has got it all!  And the title and pedigree alone will make you feel like a culinary whiz.  Buy it.  I guarantee that whatever you make from it will not just fulfill the usual goals of deliciousness but go beyond that.  They’ll have that deliciousness je ne sais quoi and technical know-how and stories behind the dishes and 50+ years of experience, tasting, expertise and most importantly love of food behind it.  Enough said?

The best thing I’ve made so far from it?  Baked Eggs with Cream, Parmesan, and White Truffle.   Unbelievably rich.  Unbelievably decadent.  Unbelievably great use for that truffle paste/oil that you brought back from Italy but can’t figure out how to use.  And it’s easy.  I kid you not.

And if you fancy yourself a food fan (whether it’s eating it or making it – or both! – let’s face it, we’ve all got our strengths and weaknesses) you’ll also love Ruth Reichl’s book Tender at the Bone.  It’s not food porn, but it’s a scrumptious blend of narrative, recipes and insight into what leads some of us to food as more than mere nourishment.