Joined: 27 Oct 2005 Posts: 105 Location: Wycheproof, Australia
Posted: Tue Dec 27, 2005 12:46 pm Post subject: books for cooks
I found 'books for cooks' in gertrude street, fitzroy, melbourne, victoria, australia a few years ago and felt like i had come home. there i bought the first ever cook book published in australia ( dedicated to the 10,000 domestic cooks in tasmania at the time- 1865). there too i bought my first elizabeth david. i was joyous because i felt that a bookshop such as this existing was evidence that australia was really moving on in the world. but a little research showed me that we had a coterie of gourmands since the 1890's. no australian should feel left out of the history of good food, fine cookery and great resources. but back to books. I have perused hundreds of cookery books, like glossy mags in the supermarkets, and I own around 60, but i only really use five- elizabeth david, stephanie alexander, nigella lawson, larouse gastronomique, and escoffier. i flutter through some beautiful italian ones and i am getting into claudia roden. i can't also forget charmaine soloman. and that pretty much makes up the world. own all these cookery books and you have the world and pretty much all that it knows.what do you think? ( please accept season's greetings) _________________ truth, like gold, is not the less so for being newly brought out of the mine.
Queenla, what a wonderful discovery! Cooking and food books are one of life's great pleasures. It is so nice that you have found these Australian treasures.
Your message interested me because I have done something very brave, something that would have been unthinkable not that long ago. Today, I have gathered a carload of books, which I will sell later this afternoon at our used book store. I'm giving up many of my cookbooks. Heresy! It has been both painful and liberating.
I'm selling books that were once favorites, but now I've moved on to other culinary interests, or I no longer use them enough to justify shelf space. I've kept treaures like Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Joy of Cookiing, and other books about sushi, Indian food, Thai food, etc. I couldn't part with The French Laundry or Baking with Julia. Those just warm my soul.
With the cookbooks and all the other books I'm selling today, I think there will be enough profit to buy something wonderful...so the first stop after selling the books will be the cooking store, probably Sur La Table.
Joined: 27 Oct 2005 Posts: 105 Location: Wycheproof, Australia
Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2005 12:53 am Post subject: msue
i know what you mean. throwing/giving away or selling once treasured items does feel liberating. it's a like feng shui principle: an open space invites new purchases! get rid of the old and the new comes in afresh. I'd like to know what you end up buying!
And the French Laundry- is that a cookery book? I have never heard of it. _________________ truth, like gold, is not the less so for being newly brought out of the mine.
Queenla, The French Laundry Cookbook, by Thomas Keller, is an incredible book named after the restaurant (The French Laundry) in Napa Valley, California, where Keller is the owner/chef. This book is much more than a compendium of recipes (although it is also a wonderful collection of recipes from the restaurant). It is a book about food and cooking and technique, and seeking the heart and soul of food. The photographs are magnificent, almost worth the price of the book alone. I can get lost in it for a long while, totally absorbed.
I didn't get to sell my books today. Apparently I'm not the only one who thought of it, so the line was nearly 2 hours long just to get to hand them your books. I"ll return tomorrow much earlier in the day. Fortunately they have a wonderful coffee and pastry shop inside the store. They'll allow you to wander through the bookstore with a mug of coffee in your hand, so it might work out to be a pretty nice day after all.
If you want a peek at that cookbook, here is an Amazon link:
Queenla ~ make a wish to visit The French Laundry...you just never know!
as for the books...not sure if I could do that at the moment...The New York Cookbook stays...that carrot cake recipe...the fun I've had reading those pages...
I'm in tune with cookbook folk...
hugs _________________ "I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us." - James Gleeson
Joined: 27 Oct 2005 Posts: 105 Location: Wycheproof, Australia
Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2005 7:24 am Post subject:
thanks msue- i looked at the link. checked out a recipe- learnt how to poach eggs the laundry way- crikey! what a palava. but it does look a smooth production and one i shall ,in time, add to my bookshelves.
Madshaw, i thought you would be promoting your aussie folk's cookery books, but perhaps you are a touring international gourmand merely amusing yourself with the plethora of tastes that old adelaide has to offer. Either way is good.
I have fond memories of a 'womad' in good old adelaide. _________________ truth, like gold, is not the less so for being newly brought out of the mine.
We were able to get to the bookstore today very early, so there was no line ahead of us to sell books. Our profit was a whopping $118. That is pretty good considering I get all that shelf space in return as well.
Somehow the profit magically converted into a new food processor. The old one bit the dust and the repairs were going to be over $100, so it seemed sensible to replace it. And I have the new one (bright red KitchenAid) in time to grate cheese for New Year's Eve fondue.
Joined: 29 Sep 2004 Posts: 2498 Location: Los Angeles, California, USA
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 1:42 am Post subject:
If anyone has a Costco nearby, they're selling Thomas Keller's two beautiful books for $30 a $20 discount over the publisher's price. _________________ God writes a lot of comedy... the trouble is, he's stuck with so many bad actors who don't know how to play funny. -- Garrison Keillor
Joined: 29 Sep 2004 Posts: 1196 Location: buried under a pile of books somewhere in Adelaide, South Australia
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 3:18 am Post subject:
I got Thomas Keller's 'Bouchon' for Christmas, as a lovely reminder of the meal we had at Bouchon Las Vegas in October. It's a beautiful book, both in presentation and content. I have made a quiche following his principles and recipe and it was great.
I have far too many cookbooks, but that doesn't stop me buying and lusting after more.
Queenla, which Womad did you go to? I've been to quite a few over the years I have lived in Adelaide. _________________ Doing what you like is freedom
Liking what you do is happiness
Joined: 30 Sep 2004 Posts: 1654 Location: Penrith (where jacarandas remind me of change), New South Wales, Australia
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 3:41 am Post subject:
Judy darling...the Christmas bells! when I was a little girl, each Christmas would see a box arrive from Uncle Harry....full full full of those bells...
and apart from THE book...how about you share the news of the other present...the March '06 thing...
"Van Gogh's Table at the Auberge Ravoux: Recipes From the Artist's Last Home and Paintings of Cafe Life" ~ my latest... _________________ "I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us." - James Gleeson
Joined: 29 Sep 2004 Posts: 1196 Location: buried under a pile of books somewhere in Adelaide, South Australia
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 5:57 am Post subject:
Glad you like the Christmas Bells, Madame, they remind me so much of Christmas in Sydney. As does Christmas Bush. The closest thing we have in Adelaide at this time of year is the Kurrajong tree, which looks great, but you can't pick it like the other Christmassy things.
I'll post about my other present in a new thread in 'Around the World on a Zucchini'
Happy New Year to all. We have 9 teenagers descending upon us in a couple of hours for a party here. We must be mad! _________________ Doing what you like is freedom
Liking what you do is happiness
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Last posts feed
Register
Log in
