Cooking: 2014's gourmet go-tos

This is a great year for fabulous cookbooks from fabulous chefs, and they’re hitting the market just in time for the holidays.

Nothing could be fina than a new book from Ina (Garten, that is). This time, our beloved Barefoot Contessa shares her secrets for making entertaining less stressful and more fun. Every recipe in Make It Ahead is designed to be made and served right away, plus (and this is a very big plus) each one also has all the info you need to make it ahead. This goes for everything from Cranberry Martinis, Parmesan Kale Chips, Slow-Roasted Spiced Pork and Winter Slaw to Lemon Ginger Molasses Cake, with a dollop of made-ahead whipped cream. Ina’s recipes, as expected, are foolproof, delicious and seasoned with her magic brand of kitchen confidence.

And the glory of Dorie (Greenspan, that is) shines on in her new Baking Chez Moi, a superb, surprising collection of elegantly simple recipes gathered from her French friends. These are the recipes the French bake at home—generous, satisfying and determinedly different from the complicated, time-consuming confections produced by professional pâtissiers. Each delight is introduced with a charmingly detailed header, followed by Greenspan’s always impeccable instructions and advice on serving and storing. In these gorgeously illustrated pages, you’ll find 175 recipes for cakes, tarts, galettes, cookies and a super selection of fruit, creams, frozen desserts and candies. The baking world is hunky-Dorie again!

If you’re a follower of Jamie Oliver, you know that, like good wine, he has improved with age. Only 100 recipes made it into Jamie Oliver’s Comfort Food, and he has given these chosen few more space, more photos and more loving attention. Oliver’s choices are a spot-on international medley bound to please, from Chicken Tikka Masala to Mini Fish and Perfect Chips, fantastic Feijoada to Crispy Duck Lasagna, Lobster Mac ’n’ Cheese to Polish Pierogi, Sticky Chinese Ribs to Sticky Toffee Pudding. Take comfort and give comfort with these all-time favorites.

TOP PICK IN COOKBOOKS
Sean Brock grew up in the coalfields of southwest Virginia and began his lifelong love affair with food in his grandmother’s kitchen, garden and preserved-food-filled basement. That love affair blossomed into a passion for Southern cooking, three award-winning restaurants and Heritage, his beautifully designed celebration of Lowcountry cooking, its spirit and soul, roots and traditions and future—a future that Sean, a staunch supporter of heirloom ingredients (animal, vegetable and Bourbon), may well have a hand in. No matter how handsome a cookbook is, only the recipes can make it a winner—and this one crosses the culinary finish line first! Some are easy, like Chicken Simply Roasted in a Skillet; some are deliciously complex, like Rabbit Andouille with Braised Peppers and Lady Pea Gravy; some are surprising, like Crispy Pig’s Ear Lettuce Wraps; but all are inspiring, enticing and beyond good.

This article was originally published in the November 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.