Essentials

“French Provincial Cooking” and “Italian Food” by Elizabeth David (Penguin Classics, 1999; first published in 1962 and 1954, respectively): For soups, I pore through David’s old Penguin paperbacks from the ’60s and ’70s for inspiration. She cooks and writes recipes in a loose, template fashion that suits my own cooking so well.

“Pasta Fresca” by Evan Kleiman and Viana La Place (William Morrow, 1988): This classic has so many simple, easy ideas that I can bounce off depending on what I’ve got on hand. I love the authors’ first collaboration, “Cucina Fresca” (1985), for the same reasons; it’s great for quick and easy vegetable salads and small plates. The goat cheese marinated in olive oil and herbs has been a standby for me for decades, and it works with mozzarella and other cheeses, too.

“Nothing Fancy” by Alison Roman (Clarkson Potter, 2019): The New York Times columnist, she of viral recipes #thestew and #thecookies, can friggin’ cook. Her recipes typically have most elements I crave: citrus, crunchycrispy bits, celery, briny things, loads of fresh herbs, cheese and a touch of heat. The best part? Resulting flavors and textures are complex, instructions are not.

“Now & Again” by Julia Turshen (Chronicle Books, 2018): In her introduction, Turshen admits this book was meant to be entirely about leftovers (called “It’s Me Again”). She decided instead to tell home cooks what to make in the first place, but her initial concept is peppered throughout: The “It’s Me Again” pages give suggestions for how to easily repurpose surplus food. Yesterday’s tortilla soup is today’s spicy pozole, and don’t sleep on the “seven things to do with” section in the back.

“Salt Fat Acid Heat” by Samin Nosrat (Simon & Schuster, 2017): I recently rediscovered Nosrat’s cooking know-how through her new podcast, Home Cooking. It made me pick up “Salt Fat Acid Heat” again. Though there are recipes in the latter half, it’s not so much a cookbook as it is a book that will teach you how to cook … pretty much anything, no recipe needed.