Jke > wrote:

> I rotate my cookbooks for bedtime reading. I don't find I have any
> favorites. I do find that I cook most from what I have
> read recently OR from books that I can find my way through
> easily. Because I know them well, or because their typography
> is particularly good. Bad typography can be a reason for never
> getting to know a book well, as can bad translations.

Agree on most points. I read my best/favorite cookbooks
in bed, and they are James Beard, JOC, Fannie Farmer,
Helen Brown, Elizabeth David, Marcella Hazan, and Julia Child,
and Mollie Katzen. Seldom does a full-on recipe infiltrate
to the kitchen. More likely, a notion or concept will
contaminate my thoughts, and a dish be prepared as result.

Another curiosity is recipes found within non-cook books.
A random novel will include a recipe. My favorite example
was that in "like water from chocolate" is a recipe for
"christmas rolls", which are buns stuffed with chorizo and
avocado then baked. One needs no proportions or method
to prepare this dish right, just the ingrediants. Mexican
buns as for tortas will work, as will smaller sweet buns.

S.