Great Gifts for the Cook on Your List
'Smoke & Pickles'
For the most creative food lover on your list, Smoke & Pickles combines every genre you can imagine in America, and takes it about five steps further.
This American, Southern, Korean and meat-loving chef will inspire you to expand your repertoire. Collards and Kimchi, anyone?
To buy: Smoke & Pickles, $21
'Joy of Kosher'
You may be preparing for the holidays, but keeping kosher year-round is the bigger challenge. The Joy of Kosher will teach you how to feed your family in minutes, no matter if you have company for Shabbat or it's a regular Tuesday night.
Jamie Geller knows how to make things fancy, or when to leave them alone for the best impact on the table. You, too, will know how to make the seder table shine (though, let's deal with some latkes ASAP, shall we?)
To buy: Joy of Kosher, $22
'Gluten Is My Bitch'
Our very own mom.me editor, April Peveteaux, was diagnosed with celiac and freaked out. With a family cookbook in hand that included the best Southern and Cajun recipes they loved, she went about recreating gluten-free versions of her favorite comfort foods.
Along the way you'll get lessons in dining out, dealing with schools, parents and social events who don't "get" gluten-free, as well as a rollicking (if not a bit unsafe) trip through Paris.
To buy: Gluten Is My Bitch, $16
'Keepers'
What happens when two Saveur editors have to feed their families, but want to make sure everything is as delicious as it is simple? Keepers happens.
These two moms used to call out, "It's a keeper!" when they laid eyes upon a particular fantastic recipe in the newsroom. This skill for culling out the good—and ditching the bad, complicated or unnecessary—led to their home-cooking journey culminating in this gorgeous book of food for the whole family. Sharing tips, the best recipes, and sanity-saving measures, every home should have a copy of this family cookbook.
To buy: Keepers, $20
'Weelicious Lunches'
For every mom who looks at her child's lunch box and thinks, "What now?" Catherine McCord has 160 answers. And guess what? They're easy. No—they're really easy.
From carrot hummus to chicken satay bites, the recipes in Weelicious Lunches are mom approved and make every kid smile when he cracks open the box.
To buy: Weelicious Lunches, $21
'The New Midwestern Table'
Whether the cook on your list is firmly ensconced in the Midwest, or is missing her homeland, The New Midwestern Table is a must. This beautiful book is filled with tales from the middle and recipes that exemplify "comfort" food.
In addition to the traditional fare of herring and pasties, there are lessons in canning and pickling to get you through the winter.
To buy: The New Midwestern Table, $26
