Covering all aspects of the industry—from chefs and restaurateurs to
cookbook authors and food journalists to restaurant designers and
architects and more—the Beard Awards are the highest honor for food and
beverage professionals working in North America. The awards are
presented each spring at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. Nominees
and winners are fêted at a weekend of events in New York City that has
become the social and gastronomic highlight of the year.
Cookbook of the Year & Cooking from a Professional Point of View AwardsA revolution is underway in the art of cooking. Just as French Impressionists upended centuries of tradition, Modernist cuisine has in recent years blown through the boundaries of the culinary arts. Borrowing techniques from the laboratory, pioneering chefs at world-renowned restaurants such as elBulli, The Fat Duck, Alinea, and wd~50 have incorporated a deeper understanding of science and advances in cooking technology into their culinary art. The authors and their 20-person team at The Cooking Lab—scientists, inventors, and accomplished cooks in their own right—have achieved astounding new flavors and textures by using tools such as water baths, homogenizers, and centrifuges, and ingredients such as hydrocolloids, emulsifiers, and enzymes. Modernist Cuisine is a work destined to reinvent cooking.How do you make an omelet light and tender on the outside, but rich and creamy inside? Or French fries with a light and fluffy interior and a delicate, crisp crust that doesn't go soggy? Imagine being able to encase a mussel in a gelled sphere of its own sweet and briny juice. Or to create a silky-smooth pistachio cream made from nothing more than the nuts themselves.Modernist Cuisine offers step-by-step, illustrated instructions, as well as clear explanations of how these techniques work. Through thousands of original photographs and diagrams, the lavishly illustrated books make the science and technology of the culinary arts clear and engaging. Stunning new photographic techniques take the reader inside the food to see cooking in action all the way from microscopic meat fibers to an entire Weber grill in cross-section. You will view cooking—and eating—in a whole new light.A sampling of what you'll discover:
- Why plunging food in ice water doesn't stop the cooking process
- When boiling cooks faster than steaming
- Why raising the grill doesn't lower the heat
- Why baking is mostly a drying process
- Why deep-fried food tastes best and browns better when the oil is older
- How modern cooking techniques can achieve ideal results without the perfect timing or good luck that traditional methods demand
Many invaluable features include:
- Insights into the surprising science behind traditional food preparation methods such as grilling, smoking, and stir-frying
- The most comprehensive guide yet published on cooking sous vide, including the best options for water baths, packaging materials, and sealing equipment; cooking strategies; and troubleshooting tips
- More than 250 pages on meat and seafood and 144 pages on fruits, vegetables, and grains, including dozens of parametric recipes and step-by-step techniques
- Extensive chapters explaining how to achieve amazing results by using modern thickeners, gels, emulsions, and foams, including example recipes and many formulas
- Some 300 pages of new recipes for plated dishes suitable for service at top-tier restaurants, plus recipes adapted from master chefs including Grant Achatz, Ferran Adrià, Heston Blumenthal, David Chang, Wylie Dufresne, David Kinch, and many others
Volume 1: History and FundamentalsVolume 2: Techniques and EquipmentVolume 3: Animals and PlantsVolume 4: Ingredients and PreparationsVolume 5: Plated-Dish RecipesVolume 6: Kitchen Manual with example recipes and extensive reference tables, printed on washable paper
Cookbook Hall of Fame - Part OneWeaving together memories, recipes, and wild tales of years spent in the kitchen, Home Cooking is Laurie Colwin’s manifesto on the joys of sharing food and entertaining. From the humble hotplate of her one-room apartment to the crowded kitchens of bustling parties, Colwin regales us with tales of meals gone both magnificently well and disastrously wrong. Hilarious, personal, and full of Colwin’s hard-won expertise, Home Cooking will speak to the heart of any amateur cook, professional chef, or food lover.
Cookbook Hall of Fame - Part TwoMore Home Cooking, like its predecessor, Home Cooking, is an expression of Laurie Colwin's lifelong passion for cuisine. In this delightful mix of recipes, advice, and anecdotes, she writes about often overlooked food items such as beets, pears, black beans, and chutney. With down-to-earth charm and wit, Colwin also discusses the many pleasures and problems of cooking at home in essays such as "Desserts That Quiver," "Turkey Angst," and "Catering on One Dollar a Head." As informative as it is entertaining, More Home Cooking is a delicious treat for anyone who loves to spend time in the kitchen.
American CookingWhen Hugh Acheson (now a James Beard Award winner as a chef and author) moved from Ottowa to Georgia, who knew that he would woo his adopted home state and they would embrace him as one of their own? In 2000, following French culinary training on both coasts, Hugh opened Five and Ten in Athens, a college town known for R.E.M., and the restaurant became a spotlight for his exciting interpretation of traditional Southern fare. Five and Ten became a favorite local haunt as well as a destination—Food & Wine named Hugh a “Best New Chef” and at seventy miles away, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution named Five and Ten the best restaurant in Atlanta. Then came the five consecutive James Beard nominations.Now, after opening two more restaurants and a wine shop, Hugh is ready to share 120 recipes of his eclectic, bold, and sophisticated flavors, inspired by fresh ingredients. In A New Turn in the South, you’ll find libations, seasonal vegetables that take a prominent role, salads and soups, his prized sides, and fish and meats—all of which turn Southern food on its head every step of the way. Hugh’s recipes include: Oysters on the Half Shell with Cane Vinegar and Chopped Mint Sauce, shucked and left in their bottom shells; Chanterelles on Toast with Mushrooms that soak up the flavor of rosemary, thyme, and lemon; Braised and Crisped Pork Belly with Citrus Salad—succulent and inexpensive, but lavish; Yellow Grits with Sautéed Shiitakes, Fried Eggs, and Salsa Rossa—a stunning versatile condiment; Fried Chicken with Stewed Pickled Green Tomatoes—his daughters’ favorite dish; and Lemon Chess Pies with Blackberry Compote—his go-to classic Southern pie with seasonal accompaniment.With surprising photography full of Hugh’s personality, and pages layered with his own quirky writing and sketches, he invites you into his community and his innovative world of food—to add new favorites to your repertoire.
Baking and DessertAt last, addictive flavors, and a breakthrough method for making creamy, scoopable ice cream at home, from the proprietor of Jeni 's Splendid Ice Creams, whose artisanal scooperies in Ohio are nationally acclaimed.Now, with her debut cookbook, Jeni Britton Bauer is on a mission to help foodies create perfect ice creams, yogurts, and sorbets ones that are every bit as perfect as hers in their own kitchens. Frustrated by icy and crumbly homemade ice cream, Bauer invested in a $50 ice cream maker and proceeded to test and retest recipes until she devised a formula to make creamy, sturdy, lickable ice cream at home. Filled with irresistible color photographs, this delightful cookbook contains 100 of Jeni 's jaw-droppingly delicious signature recipes from her Goat Cheese with Roasted Cherries to her Queen City Cayenne to her Bourbon with Toasted Buttered Pecans. Fans of easy-to-prepare desserts with star quality will scoop this book up.How cool is that?
Bitters: A Spirited History of a Classic Cure-All, with Cocktails, Recipes, and Formulas (Hardcover)
BeverageGone are the days when a lonely bottle of Angostura bitters held court behind the bar. A cocktail renaissance has swept across the country, inspiring in bartenders and their thirsty patrons a new fascination with the ingredients, techniques, and traditions that make the American cocktail so special. And few ingredients have as rich a history or serve as fundamental a role in our beverage heritage as bitters. Author and bitters enthusiast Brad Thomas Parsons traces the history of the world’s most storied elixir, from its earliest “snake oil” days to its near evaporation after Prohibition to its ascension as a beloved (and at times obsessed-over) ingredient on the contemporary bar scene. Parsons writes from the front lines of the bitters boom, where he has access to the best and boldest new brands and flavors, the most innovative artisanal producers, and insider knowledge of the bitters-making process. Whether you’re a professional looking to take your game to the next level or just a DIY-type interested in homemade potables, Bitters has a dozen recipes for customized blends--ranging from Apple to Coffee-Pecan to Root Beer bitters--as well as tips on sourcing ingredients and step-by-step instructions fit for amateur and seasoned food crafters alike. Also featured are more than seventy cocktail recipes that showcase bitters’ diversity and versatility: classics like the Manhattan (if you ever get one without bitters, send it back), old-guard favorites like the Martinez, contemporary drinks from Parsons’s own repertoire like the Shady Lane, plus one-of-a-kind libations from the country’s most pioneering bartenders. Last but not least, there is a full chapter on cooking with bitters, with a dozen recipes for sweet and savory bitters-infused dishes. Part recipe book, part project guide, part barman’s manifesto, Bitters is a celebration of good cocktails made well, and of the once-forgotten but blessedly rediscovered virtues of bitters.
General CookingRare is the cookbook that redefines how we cook. And rare is the author who can do so with the ease and expertise of acclaimed writer and culinary authority Michael Ruhlman. Twenty distills Ruhlman's decades of cooking, writing, and working with the world's greatest chefs into twenty essential ideas from ingredients to processes to attitude that are guaranteed to make every cook more accomplished. Whether cooking a multi-course meal, the juiciest roast chicken, or just some really good scrambled eggs, Ruhlman reveals how a cook's success boils down to the same twenty concepts. With the illuminating expertise that has made him one of the most esteemed food journalists, Ruhlman explains the hows and whys of each concept and reinforces those discoveries through 100 recipes for everything from soups to desserts, all detailed in over 300 photographs. Cooks of all levels will revel in Ruhlman's game-changing Twenty.
Focus on HealthThe eagerly anticipated follow-up to Heidi Swanson’s James Beard–nominated Super Natural Cooking features 100 vegetarian recipes for nutritious, gratifying, weekday-friendly dishes from the popular blogger behind 101 Cookbooks.In Super Natural Cooking, Heidi taught us how to navigate a healthier, less-processed world of cooking by restocking our pantries and getting acquainted with organic, nutrient-rich whole foods. Now, in Super Natural Every Day, Heidi presents a sumptuous collection of seductively flavored dishes that are simple enough to prepare for breakfast on the fly, a hearty brown bag lunch, or a weeknight dinner with friends. Nearly 100 vegetarian recipes, including Pomegranate-Glazed Eggplant, Black Sesame Otsu, Mostly Not Potato Salad, Chickpea Saffron Stew, Salted Buttermilk Cake, and a new version of the ever-popular Pan-Fried Beans and Greens, are presented in Heidi’s signature nonpreachy style. Gorgeously photographed, this stylish cookbook reveals the beauty of uncomplicated food prepared well and reflects a realistic yet gourmet approach to a healthy and sophisticated urban lifestyle.
InternationalPaula Wolfert’s name is synonymous with revealing the riches of authentic Mediterranean cooking, especially the cuisine of Morocco. In The Food of Morocco, she brings to bear more than forty years of experience of, love of, and original research on the traditional foodways of that country. The result is the definitive book on Moroccan cuisine, from tender Berber skillet bread to spiced harira (the classic soup made with lentils and chickpeas), from chicken with tangy preserved lemon and olives to steamed sweet and savory breast of lamb stuffed with couscous and dates. The recipes are clear and inviting and infused with the author’s unparalleled knowledge of this delicious food. Essays illuminate the essential elements of Moroccan flavor and emphasize the accessibility of once hard-to-find ingredients such as saffron, argan oil, and Moroccan cumin seed.Lavishly photographed in full color, The Food of Morocco not only showcases Wolfert’s tantalizing recipes but also evokes Morocco in all its timeless splendor and mystery: its markets with their lush produce, its dazzling textiles and intricate mosaic tiles, its communal ovens and ancient souks, and of course its people, from Marrakech to Tangier. A labor of love four decades in the making, The Food of Morocco is a once-in-a-lifetime book of uncommon scope and authenticity, an essential work for every serious cook, anyone interested in Moroccan cuisine, and discerning armchair travelers alike.
PhotographyProvocative artist, filmmaker and photographer Jeff Scott and chef Blake Beshore bring you the re-envisioning of the modern American cookbook. Notes from a Kitchen redefines the cookbook genre in a spectacular Two-Volume, 932 page cloth-covered Signed Special Edition collection that feels more like a beautiful museum artifact and private chef's journal than a traditional cookbook.This beautifully crafted collection explores today's most exciting young chefs in their kitchens and in personal conversation. Featuring over 1,000 vibrant color photographs, uniquely edited documentary film footage, artist/chef interviews and revealing private journals, this totally new form of modern cookbook studies the unique artistry that surrounds their emotional craft.Featured Chefs Include: Sean Brock, George Mendes, Johnny Iuzzini, Emma Hearst, Zak Pelaccio, Michael Laiskonis, Jason Neroni, Matt Gaudet, Joel Harrington and Neal Fraser.Notes from a Kitchen: A Journey Inside Culinary Obsession is the first book of its kind to accurately portray the daily creative life of a world-renowned chef in a visceral cinematic format. Never before has a cookbook focused more intently on who a chef is as a person and why they place their culinary passion and obsessions before almost everything else in their lives.
Reference and ScholarshipIn the nineteenth century, restaurants served French food to upper-class Americans with aristocratic pretensions, but by the twentieth century, even the best restaurants dished up ethnic and American foods to middle-class urbanites spending a night on the town. In Turning the Tables, Andrew Haley examines the transformation of American public dining at the start of the twentieth century and argues that the birth of the modern American restaurant helped establish the middle class as the arbiter of American culture. Early twentieth-century battles over French-language menus, scientific eating, ethnic restaurants, unescorted women, tipping, and servantless restaurants pitted the middle class against the elite. United by their shared preferences for simpler meals and English-language menus, middle-class diners defied established conventions and successfully pressured restaurateurs to embrace cosmopolitan ideas of dining that reflected the preferences and desires of middle-class patrons. Drawing on culinary magazines, menus, restaurant journals, and newspaper accounts, including many that have never before been examined by historians, Haley traces material changes to restaurants at the turn of the century that demonstrate that the clash between the upper class and the middle class over American consumer culture shaped the "tang and feel" of life in the twentieth century.
Single SubjectSuccessful restaurateurs have always known that adding "roasted" to a dish guarantees immediate appeal. Molly Stevens brings her trademark thoroughness and eye for detail to the technique of roasting. She breaks down when to use high heat, moderate heat, or low heat to produce juicy, well-seared meats, caramelized drippings, and concentrated flavors. Her 150 recipes feature the full range of dishes from beef, lamb, pork, and poultry to seafood and vegetables. Showstoppers include porchetta ingeniously made with a loin of pork, a roast goose with potato-sage stuffing, and a one-hour beef rib roast-dishes we've dreamed of making, and that Molly makes possible with her precise and encouraging instructions. Other recipes such as a Sunday supper roast chicken, herb-roasted shrimp, and blasted broccoli make this an indispensable book for home cooks and chefs. All About Roasting is like having the best teacher in America in the kitchen with you.
Writing and LiteratureBefore Gabrielle Hamilton opened her acclaimed New York restaurant Prune, she spent twenty hard-living years trying to find purpose and meaning in her life. Blood, Bones & Butter follows an unconventional journey through the many kitchens Hamilton has inhabited through the years: the rural kitchen of her childhood, where her adored mother stood over the six-burner with an oily wooden spoon in hand; the kitchens of France, Greece, and Turkey, where she was often fed by complete strangers and learned the essence of hospitality; Hamilton’s own kitchen at Prune, with its many unexpected challenges; and the kitchen of her Italian mother-in-law, who serves as the link between Hamilton’s idyllic past and her own future family—the result of a prickly marriage that nonetheless yields lasting dividends. By turns epic and intimate, Gabrielle Hamilton’s story is told with uncommon honesty, grit, humor, and passion.
