New Listings: What's Cooking?

Beard, James and Aaron, Sam, How the 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.

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.

Child, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. II (Alfred A. Knopf, 1st ed, 1st/2nd printings before publication, 3rd printing, December, 1970). LOC 61-12313. The sequel to the classic thats catapulted Child to fame, covers seven subjects: soups; baking; meats; chickens: charcuterie; veg; and desserts. Hardcover, no dust jacket, good condition. HBB price: $75.

 Elizabeth David

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”), slipcased, 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.

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.

Photos are available for all listed books. Please contact us for more information about any that pique your interest!