Feed Your Mind: Cookbook Edition

I have an embarassingly large cookbook collection.  I enjoy reading cookbooks (seriously) and have been collecting cookbooks as a souvenir from places that I’ve traveled.  One of the surprising things is that many of the cookbooks that I like, I will try surprisingly few recipes from.  However, I’ve found a few cookbooks that are quite useful as references, especially in trying to learn more about preparing healthy, reasonable-cost meals:

More with Less Cookbook I have found this book quite useful in learning how to cook with less waste and to make creative uses of leftovers or creative recipes with common ingredients.  Although the book is a bit dated and uses things like margarine, more than any other book, More with Less has shifted my thinking on how to cook more frugally (and with modifications quite healthfully).

New Basics Cookbook This book has so many basic ideas and instructions for basic ingredients.  Although the book has ingredients that might not seem thrifty, the best money saver is that every recipe I’ve tried from this book has turned out really well, with no leftovers or waste to speak of.  Try the tuna and egg salad or the lasagna recipe.

Madhur Jaffrey’s World of the East Vegetarian Cooking Although I am not vegetarian, I really like this book for having so many recipes with standard ingredients taken from global cuisines that celebrate the use of delicious vegetables, fruits, legumes and grains.  If you’re trying to have more meatless meals, this is a great resource.

Big Green Cookbook This new book is subtitled “Hundreds of Planet-Pleasing Recipes and Tips for a Luscious, Low-Carbon Lifestyle.” The book not only has recipes that address a more ecologically sustainable way of living, it also has handy cooking, utensils and shopping tips.

see more hints at Works for Me Wednesday