Cooking/Entertaining

Bronte, Patricia, Vittles and Vice: An Extraordinary Guide to What’s Cooking on Chicago’s Near North Side, (Henry Regnery Co., 1st ed. 1st printing, 1952). A history-cum-cookbook from one of the Windy CIty’s hoppingest neighborhoods half a century back. Fine illustrations by Patrick McMahon. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. HBB price: $15.

Beard, James and Aaron, Sam, How to Eat Better for Less Money (Simon & Schuster, 1954, 2nd rev. ed, 2nd printing, 1970). ISBN 671-20482-3. A reissue, with much new and updated information, still relevant today. Beard shows how we don’t have to live off a microwave and stuff that comes in a box from the freezer. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket with some wear about the edges. HBB price: $20.

Beard, James, Theory and Practice of Good Cooking (Wings Books, 1st ed, 1977, 7th printing, c. 1990). James Beard’s conversational style makes it easy to imagine cooking above one’s standard without trauma or fire extinguisher. This reprint has no particular collecting value, but Beard is such a national treasure any edition of his books is worth having on one’s working kitchen bookshelf. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, good condition. HBB price: $20.

Beard, James, James Beard’s American Cookery (Little Brown, 1972). LOC 70-165755. A summation of seven decades of cooking knowledge, this 877-page volume is predates the modern trend for luxuriously photographed celebrity food porn. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, a little frayed about the edges. Good condition. HBB price: $20.

Brown, Alton, I'm Just Here For The Food (Stewart Tabori & Chang, 1st ed., 1st printing, 2002). ISBN 1-58479-083-0. The irrepressible Food Network host’s first cookbook, “one for people who would rather understand their food than follow a recipe.” Ohhhh….kay. Hardcover, oversized, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition, autographed. HBB price: $35.

Child, Julia; Bertholle, Louisette; Beck, Simone; Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 2 (Alfred A. Knopf, 1st ed, 1st/2nd printings before publication, 3rd printing, December, 1970). First mention of “asbestos cement” at the bottom of page 71. LOC 61-12313. The sequel to the classic that catapulted Child to fame, covers seven subjects: soups; baking; meats; chickens: charcuterie; veg; and desserts. Hardcover, no dust jacket, good condition; a small divot out at the top of the spine. Title page and logo printed in blue.  7.25” x 10.25”. HBB price: $25.

Child, Julia; Bertholle, Louisette; Beck, Simone; Mastering the Art of French Cooking (Vol.1); Child, Julia; and Beck, Simone, Mastering the Art of French Cooking (Vol. 2). Knopf, 1961, 1970; first book club edition (title page and logo for Ecole Des 3 Gourmandes is in black, not red). No dust jacket. Very good condition. Inscribed by Julia Child and her husband, Paul Child, who illustrated both books. Envelope address tag for owner on front end page of each. HBB price: $500 the set.

Child, Julia, From Julia’s Child’s Kitchen (Knopf, 1975, stated 1st. ed., 1975). ISBN 0-394-48071-6. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket with some wear and tear to edges. Book condition very good. Signed by both Julia Child and her husband/illustrator, Paul Child without her trademark inscription, “Bon Appetit!” Envelope address tag for owner on front end page. HBB price: $300.

Child, Julia, Julia Child & Company (Knopf, 1st ed, 1978). ISBN 0-394-73532-3. Paperback, 8.5” x. 11”. Julia Child is said to have commented she hated to see copies of her books without cooking stains on them. This one would make her happy; the covers indicate close proximity to the owner’s mise en place. The colorfully-illustrated text, however, is in very good shape. Inscribed by both Julia and Paul Child- without her signature “Bon Appetit!” on the title page. A number of recipes and articles are laid in. HBB price: $200.

Child, Julia, The Way to Cook (Alfred A. Knopf, 1st ed., 1st printing, 1989). ISBN 0-394-53264-3. An innovative cookbook organized around how to cook something basic (chicken, anyone? poach an egg?), with variations thereon. As entertaining as Julia can be in print. Illustrations everywhere. Hardcover; quarto, unclipped dust jacket, inscribed on the half-title page. Very good condition. 511 pp. HBB price: $195.

David, Elizabeth, Classics: Mediterranean Food; French Summer Cooking; Summer Cooking (Biscuit Books, 1st ed., 1st 1st printing, 1998). Unjustly overlooked in the pantheon of international cooking writers, Elizabeth David (1913-1992) almost singlehandedly lifted British cooking from its dismal, insular ways from the late 1940s through the ‘80s (her book on bread is, alone, a masterpiece). This volume collects three of David’s early classics, written to counteract the gloom she felt after living in North Africa during the war. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. HBB price: $40.

Faas, Patrick, Around the Roman Table: Food and Feasting in Ancient Rome (Palgrave Macmillan, 1st ed., 1st printing, 2003). ISBN 0-312-23958-0. Fascinating account of how the Romans raised, prepared and ate their food. With 150 recovered recipes you can use to recreate the dinner table of Cicero. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. 371 pp. HBB price: $50.

Gray, Rose and Rogers, Ruth, River Cafe Pocket Books: Salads & Vegetables; Pasta & Ravioli; Fish & Shellfish; Puddings, Cakes and Ice Creams (Ebury Books, 1st. ed., 1st printing, 2006). ISBN 00919437X. Fine set of four paperbacks (9’ x 5”), in a clear case, by the owners of London’s famed River Cafe in Hammersmith. Autographed by both authors Rogers and Gray (1939-2010) are famous for their interpretations of Italian cuisine and a generation of famous chefs they trained, including Jamie Oliver. Very good condition. HBB price: 39.95.

Paget, Russie H., The Clemson House Cookbook (Jacobs Brothers, 1st ed. 1955). Built in 1950 as a hotel and conference center, Clemson House’s cuisine inspired this 474 pp cookbook. Part I is of Heirloom Recipes from the South Carolina Upstate region; Part II is made up of Contemporary Recipes- Native and Foreign. Illustrations include a hungry tiger at the dinner table, leaning over his plate, knife and fork in paws; at the end, he’s leaning back, tum bulging, looking quite sated. A delightful regional work. Hardcover, no dustjacket, some staining and wear but overall in good condition. Rare. HBB price: $69.95.

Rinella, Stephen, The Scavenger’s Guide to Haute Cuisine, (Miramax Books, 1st ed., 1st printing, 2005). ISBN 1401135237-5. A bracing account of one man’s attempt to assemble all the ingredients required to produce the 45-course feast laid out in Escoffier’s 1903 book, Le Guide Culinaire). Praised as “part memoir, part cookbook, and a love song to hunting, fishing and the American wild. Hardcover, octavo, 319 pp. Fine condition. Rare. HBB price: $100.

Sanders, Zoe D., Entertaining at The College of Charleston (The College of Charleston Foundation, 1st ed., 1998). ISBN 0-9638620-1-4. A former president’s wife records, “through pictures, text, menus and recipes her gracious and elegant style of entertaining,” in pursuit of her goal that the College “live up to Charleston’s fine and rich culinary heritage of entertaining.” Lavishly illustrated. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition, autographed. HBB price $35.

Sedaris, Amy, I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence (Warner Books, 1st ed., 1st printing, 2006). ISBN 13: 978-0-446-57884-4. Helpful tips and recipes. Want to train nosy guests not to be? Fill your medicine cabinet with marbles. Hardcover, oversized, unclipped dust jacket, autographed. HBB price: $25.

Traunfeld, Jerry, The Herbfarm Cookbook (Scribner, 1st ed., 7th printing, 2000). ISBN 0-684-83976-8. A reservation for one of Traunfeld’s nine-course meals at The Herbfarm, east of Seattle, is a foodie’s bucket-lister. Trainfeld’s innovative use of herbs in everything he cooks is creative and its effects of dazzling. Hardcover, unclipped dust jacket, very good condition. Autographed opposite the title page. HBB price: $39.95.