consider these food books this spring!
Fifteen newly released and upcoming titles approved by Your Friend in food
Thank you to the 50 new subscribers who have joined since the last edition! Welcome to our big big table!
As the fashion world slowly wraps up the spring and summer previews, the food world is dawning the anticipation of spring cookbook season. We are blessed with beautiful works that chefs, recipe developers, and creatives have laboriously collaborated on, encouraging us to connect with our food or familiarize ourselves with new cuisine.
One of the best parts of being in the industry is getting access to cookbooks just shy of their release dates. I cherish every single one I receive, poring through recipes and headnotes like a kid going through storybooks, and cooking through them to grasp the concepts, techniques, and flavours exceptionally crafted to make mealtimes more enjoyable.
After scouring bookstore websites, reading lots of previews and galleys, and the casual scroll through socials, here are fifteen (!) food books that I’m excited about this spring! And rest assured, I’ll share more faves as they come out! Almost all the authors on this list are debut authors and many are from minority demographics so if you have the means, please buy their books! Their sales not only help these authors get more notoriety but they also create opportunities for more diversity in cookbooks.
Plus, I offer recommendations for the person in your life who would appreciate these reads. Always be gifting books to the homies!
Thank you to the marketing teams at Clarkson Potter and Simon Element for their support with today’s letter.
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We The Pizza: Slanging Pies and Saving Lives
Michael Carter & Muhammad Abdul-Hadi w/ David Joachim| Feb 11|Clarkson Potter
Down North Pizza is the incredible Philly-based pizza shop started by Muhammad Abdul-Hadi with the mission of providing opportunity for formerly incarcerated folks and also reducing recidivism rates in Northern Philadelphia. Along with founding Chef Michael Carter and co-writer David Joachim, this cookbook is a collection of recipes, stories, and essays on the ins and outs of a pizza shop that slinging pies and saving lives.
I especially love the headnotes in this book with stories of how topping combinations and sauces came to life. I always love learning more about where chefs draw inspiration from and you can tell Chef Carter is always looking for ideas in his everyday life. I love the story of how a bet after an NFL game birthed the Down Norf sauce, the vegan pizzas were a product of his time cooking at Philly vegan spot Vedge, and how their summer forward pizza started by restoring the Philadelphia Prison Orchard.
Each pizza on the Down North menu is named after a song by a Philly artist. There’s Jill Scott’s A Long Walk, a creamy pesto chicken and roasted peppers pie, The Roots Break You Off, a jerk lamb sausage white pizza with za’atar and roasted garlic honey drizzle, and Lil Uzi Vert’s Sauce It Up, a spicy Thai red curry chicken pie.
Also you don’t have to love pizza to appreciate this book, there are some great wings and fries recipes, a solid lemonade selection, and six remixes on the classic vanilla shake.
This book is ideal for your friend who invested in the Ooni and is a low-key pizzaolo, your pal who is passionate about community-driven initiatives, or your one musically inclined homie who can belt out the Fresh Prince theme song with no hesitation.
The Fishwife Cookbook: Delightful Tinned Fish Recipes for Every Occasion
Becca Millstein &
| February 25 | Harvest
I grew up in a household where tinned fish was king. Long before the pretty packaging and the cute displays on dainty plates at wine bars, I was slinging sardine sandwiches and mixing mackerel in tomato sauce into rice bowls. So I was delighted when I saw that tinned fish was having a moment in America and you have to give credit to Fishwife, the company who introduced coastal delights to the delights of the sea. From a business perspective, I really respect Fishwife’s perspective. They’re not doing too much, letting the product speak for itself, and they partner with some pretty impressive recipe developers to showcase how to make the most of your tinned fish.
So it makes so much sense that they would come out with a cookbook and working with exceptional recipe developer Vilda Gonzalez to bring it to life. I feel like very few CPG brands with a niche product could really nail this and I’m in awe of the diversity of recipes that Vilda brought to life along with friend of the letter and Fishwife co-founder Becca Millstein. Of course, there are toasts—Cherry Tomato Tartine With Aioli and Smoked Salmon— and pastas—Smoked Mackerel Udon— but there are also some fun ways to incorporate fish into meal time. You can use the smoked salmon in a Fisherman’s Stew with Cockles and Mussels or toss some Cantabrian Anchoives into your Lamb Bolognese. There’s also a few guides on how the best beverages for your tinned fish party or how to pack a perfect picnic!
If you have a fish fanatic in your life, their exceptionally curated cookbook bundle would make for a great birthday gift! How cute are the sticky notes to bookmark your favorite recipes!
Spirited Women: Makers, Shakers, and Trailblazers in the World of Cocktails
Sammi Katz & Olivia McGiff | Mar 4 | Union Square and Co.
Did someone say beveragina? Sorry I had to and this was the line I immediately uttered when this book landed on my doorstep. I’m sheepish to admit this but I’ve long associated cocktail culture with either a scruffy bartender making me some intricate concoction that took many fat-washed liquors to put together or a dapper guy in a bowtie serving me a classic drink that hasn’t changed since the telephone was invented. But this narrative has changed in the last few years and I’m so impressed by the women in the world of spirits who are bringing new life and passion to the industry.
In the second project between bartender Sammi Katz and artist Olivia McGiff, the duo profile 55 women around the world who are in the business of beverages. From chemists who distill some of the most popular brands to bar owners who have opened exciting spaces for women to imbibe, this is an exceptional curation of women doing really impressive work and showing their passion through spirits. I hope that we see more books like this one. Also, there are over 45 original recipes that you can try out at home!
Get this one for your friend who is always impressing you during cocktail hour, the homie who loves a fun bar crawl, or your pal who always appreciates a really good work of art.
Ghana to the World: Recipes and Stories That Look Forward While Honoring the Past
Eric Adjepong & Korsha Wilson | March 11 | Clarkson Potter
Did you hear that? That’s the sound of Ghanaian aunties and uncles all around the world cheering on their daughters, nieces, and nephews who have presented them with a Ghanaian dish at the family gathering. After years of being playfully roasted for only knowing how to eat Ghanaian food and not cooking it, Eric Adjepong is not the hero we need but the “cousin” we deserve (idk why Ghanaians do this but anyone who is your family friend is automatically a cousin).
I grew up in a house where the only recipes that I couldn’t find in my mom’s impressive cookbook collection where the ones from our native land. I was always told that Ghanaian recipes are best learned by intuition, standing next to the stove and looking for cues on readiness and tasting till its perfect. And while I love this, I always worried that we need formidable recipes not just for us but also for those who want to know more about Ghanaian culture through food. After all, we are our ancestor’s chroniclers.
This book is one of the best expressions of authentic Ghanaian cuisine with some recipes that have an American spin like any book written by a first-generation kid would. The research, detail, and recipe development shines through and you can definitely tell that Eric spent four months in Ghana along with his co-writer Korsha Wilson.
We’ve got the classics from Kpakoshito Sauce to Joloff Rice and yes even Fufu, the famous swallow especially enjoyed by uncles everywhere. I’d never thought I’d see a fufu recipe in a cookbook published by a Western printing house! Won’t HE do it?! And of course Eric brings his chef expertise into more nouveau dishes like Pan-Seared Grouper with Fried Peanut Salsa, Shito Fried Chicken, and Egusi and Coconut Granola.
If there is a Ghanaian in your life that complains about never finding good joloff or missing home, bless them with this book! And of course, if you’re curious about the best West African cuisine, this is a no-brainer too!
Care and Feeding: A Memoir
Laurie Woolever | March 11 | Ecco
There are five eras of the food world I’d like to immerse in for a month. One of them is late 90s/ early aughts NYC and Laurie Woolver’s brilliant memoir is affirmation of that. Yes, she’s talking about managing the early innings of a food career, dealing with the realities of freelancing where Laurie is so broke that she was having sleep for dinner and dealing with an egotistical boss later known to be a sex offender. But, reader, I’m here for the real and the raw and Laurie is bringing it. I’ve had to limit how many pages I read a night because I’m whizzing through it and I don’t want it to end.
As a kid who grew up on the 90s Food Network, it’s both illuminating and insightful to read about what it was really like for those who were trying to make it. This is one of the best food memoirs I’ve read and I appreciate Laurie’s cheeky humour as she navigates the drama around restaurants, private cheffing before it became an internet trend, and working for Anthony Bourdain as his assistant. You can tell she had a lot of respect for him and they had a beautiful relationship that seemed reciprocal. Also Laurie finished writing Bourdain’s post-humous guide World Travel and this book was my Bible when I solo travelled through Europe a few years so she already had a special place in my heart.
You should get this book for your friend who is still watching Parts Unknown reruns, the one who is telling about some interesting memoir they picked up at the vintage book store, or your homie fascinated by NYC culture in all its ways.
Salt Sugar MSG: Recipes and Stories from a Cantonese American Home
Calvin Eng and Phoebe Melnick | March 18 | Clarkson Potter
Normally, I’m skeptical of restaurant cookbooks because it can often be hard to replicate the true taste of a signature dish. But when I saw Calvin Eng— chef and owner of Cantonse-American spot, Bonnie’s—releasing his debut novel, I knew that he would do something different. I have a really soft spot for Bonnie’s and I’ve loved watching the restaurant grow and maintain its reputation as one of NYC’s buzziest restaurants. I hosted three dinners there with The Eden Place and I find a lot of comfort downing an MSG martini solo at the bar with a book in hand and a McRib in the other.
Anyways, let’s get back to the book. Along with his partner, writer Phoebe Melnick, Calvin pens a beautiful intro talking about navigating his Cantonese-American culture growing up in New York City and how he has come to appreciate his dual identity as expressed in his cooking. Each chapter is a medley of Cantonese dishes with elements of American culture and an opportunity to incorporate a new technique into your everyday cooking. And of course, I teared up reading the dedication to his mom, Bonnie, who he owes everything to when it comes to his knowledge of Cantonese food.
The Snacks section is serious with recipes like Fish Mix, a spin on the traditional Chex Mix with mix-ins like dried shrimp and anchovies coated in a sticky sauce laden with MSG and gochugaru. The Vegetables will encourage to make the most of your local Chinese grocer with recipes like Charred Cabbage and Shrimp Paste Butter & Crispy Ham and Cheese Lo Bak Go, a version of the grated daikon dish that is often a dim sum staple.
Of course, Calvin didn’t leave us Bonnie’s stans hanging. You’ll find a few signature dishes from the restaurant like the Tinned Dace Dip, the Ginger Congee, the Hup To Ha (shrimp and walnut dish), and a guide to those infamous fruit plates. I’m also excited to make some of the other dishes like Pomegranate Molasses Cha Siu, Crispy Chicken Thighs with Chips and Lemon, and the MSG Caramel Dip.
This book is perfect for the friend who has way too many Asian condiments in their cupboard, your pal obsessed with restaurant culture or your friend who loves a recipe project that revolves around a big hunk of protein.
Family Style: Elegant Everday Recipes Inspired by Home and Heritage
Peter Som | March 18 | Harvest Books
For decades, Peter Som was a celebrated fashion designer dressing iconic women like Michelle Obama and Beyoncé, just to name a few. In between fittings and runway shows, Peter has always had a love for entertaining and cooking for his friends.
In his debut cookbook, Peter has curated an exceptional range of recipes made for everyday cooking or impressing your dinner party guests. The vegetables section, brilliant categorized into not salads and salads, has some standouts (Parm Brocolli with Honey Chili Crisp and Aspargus and Fennel with Gribiche-y Dressing) that will make the most of your farmers market. The protein section is filled with some delicious shrimp dishes, a sheet-pan version of five spice chicken perfect for a weeknight, and an orange duck confit that is sorta fancy but won’t intimidate the average home chef. Just when I couldn’t love this book more, there is a whole chapter dedicated to rice, which is often left out of cookbooks. Peter gives us the ultimate guide for whipping up a quick fried rice and blesses us with solid recipes. The One-Pot Sticky Rice and Chicken could be perfect for a quick hang with the homies and you can impress a date with the Creamy Kimchi Risotto.
This book is perfect for your friend who does most of their grocery runs in Chinatown or the Asian supermarket, is always looking for an excuse to host, or your beginner pal who is finally getting comfortable with roasting proteins in their Dutch Oven. Check Peter out on his book tour with more upcoming stops.
Chop Chop: Cooking the Food of Nigeria
Ozoz Sokoh | March 18 | Artisan
In addition to rooting for everyone Black, I’m always rooting for everyone Canadian. Over the last few years, I’ve really come to appreciate Nigerian-Canadian recipe developer and cultural anthropologist Ozoz Sokoh’s educational and informative videos on Nigerian cooking and culture. I’m surprised no one has given her a TV show yet. In her debut cookbook, Chop Chop, Ozoz celebrates classic and traditional Nigerian cuisine through 100 recipes that are specifically tailored for the home cook.
Ghanaian and Nigerian cuisine have a lot of similarities but I’m excited to use this book as a guide to learning more about the nuances of Naija culinary traditions. You can try your hand at making Akara (traditional bean fritters) or Moinmoin Elewe (steamed bean pudding) and if you’re big on fish, give the Imoyo Eleja (fish escabeche with salsa) a whirl. Ozoz is about to help a lot of Nigerian children impress their parents at future functions. Who knows? Maybe the career expectations now will be doctor, engineer, lawyer, and chef.
This book is perfect for your friend who is always wanting to travel through taste or loves learning as much about a dish’s history as they do about the flavor profile.
Kwéyol/ Creole: Recipes, Stories, and Tings from a St. Lucian Chef
Nina Compton with Osayi Endolyn | Apr 1 | Clarkson Potter
Chef Nina Compton is one of those culinary legends who I’ve admired for so long but still looking for the right opportunity to try her food. Until I book those plane tickets to New Orleans, I’ll find comfort in her debut cookbook Kwéyòl. Along with James Beard award-winning writer and friend of the letter Osayi Endolyn, Chef Compton reminisces on her idyllic childhood in St. Lucia with a family who cared deeply for food and had strong opinions on tea, her time spent in an English boarding school, and on her culinary journey taking her to Jamaica, Miami, and finally settling in the Big Easy.
My mouth was watering flipping through the pages or maybe it didn’t help that I was flipping through this galley past my bedtime. Nina and Osayi divvy the chapters per location giving you a pretty comprehensive flavour profile of the places that Nina has called home. In St. Lucia, there’s Coconut Rice and Peas with Chicken & Fish Tea, Jerk Buttered Corn & Tablet Kokoye in Jamaica, in Miami, we’ve got Arepas & Mango Créme Brûlée, and bringing us home in New Orleans, Shrimp and Scialatielli Pasta in Rundown Sauce and Pheasant Gumbo. Cooking through these exceptionally crafted recipes will be an amazing masterclass in Southern and Carribean cuisine with some chef ingenue mixed in!
This book is for your friend always looking for an escape to a Caribbean island or your homie who can really hold it down in the kitchen and effortlessly put together a feast. Osayi and Nina are about to kick off their book tour with stops in Brooklyn (more details soon), Manhattan, New Orleans, and Pebble Beach Food Festival!
Third Culture Cooking: Classic Recipes for a New Generation
| April 1 | Abrams
I’m not being dramatic but I’ve never related to a cookbook as strongly as I did to friend of the newsletter
’s iconic and necessary cookbook. Like many of you, I was first introduced to Zaynab’s work on Bon Appetit and now she’s become a dear homie in the food world. Third Culture Cooking was made for the first generation kids who struggled with the tension of not feeling enough for the country they were presently in or the country of their ancestral lineage. As someone who grew up on many continents and constantly navigates her identity, books like these are a sense of comfort and I know that Zaynab will continue to usher an exciting new category in cookbooks.These recipes, drawing inspiration from Zaynab’s Khoja (an Indian tribe with longstanding migration to East Africa) ethnicity and New Jersey upbringing, are rich in flavour, simple in technique, and can come in handy as the types of recipes you riff to build kitchen confidence. Also the introductory chapter filled with an exceptional curation of formidable pantry staples, guides on implementing the recipes, and hosting tips, is one of the best I’ve read in a long time. It feels like having a friend in your back pocket who will offer honest feedback and may step in to throw a dash of spice to your stew.
I love the structure of the cookbook with recipes categorized into themes like Cozy (Udon Carbonara), Lazy (Spiced Short Ribs and Potatoes), Bored (Mall Cinnamon Rolls), Curious (Shenaz’s Chicken Haleem), and Practical (Thai-Style Crispy Salmon and Rice). The photography is so stunning you’d think you were actually flipping through a magazine. Plus the chapter dedicated to sips and sweets will make the most impressive guest at a future potluck.
Wanting to honour the women who were instrumental to her upbringing and exposed her to the world of food, Zaynab created distinct pages with a vintage feel and named those recipes after the matriarchs who blessed her with their culinary expertise. For third-culture kids who often come from traditions where recipes are not considered, this is a beautiful expression of how we are our ancestor’s culinary chroniclers.
Zaynab just announced her book tour a few days ago, and I love the mix of community-driven events and fun conversations! Every third culture kid should have this book in their canon!
By Heart: Recipes to Hold Near and Dear
Hailee Catalano | Apr 15 | DK
If there are no fans of Hailee left on Earth, that can only mean I’ve gone to be with my Maker. While I was late to the game in discovering her warm and hearty cooking videos, she had made me embrace cooking in a whole different way. We met a few years ago on a press trip and now I’m so lucky to call her a dear friend. During a courageous attempt to make steak frites in an effort to impress a Valentine, Hailee was my guardian angel answering my questions and offering words of encouragement as I’m sweating over a steak. And that same energy can be felt through her debut cookbook, By Heart!
Throughout the book, Hailee offers a comforting approach with a seriousness that doesn’t feel intimidating or braggy. It’s almost like she wants you to commit these recipes and add your own spin to them. The photos are dreamy and authentic and especially love the cameos with Chuck, her amazing partner, and their sweet pup, Gus. We get a touch of Hailee’s Midwestern roots with recipes like Chicago-Style Fennel Giardiniera, a homage to her Jersey life with Antipasto Salad with Pecorino-Pepperoncini Dressing, and her Silician-American heritage shines bright with a chapter dedicated to her nonna Tina with classics like Sunday Gravy, Tina’s Chicken Bake, and a Cannoli Crunch Ice Cream Cake.
Also showing us a little bit of her culinary school training, there’s a whole section dedicated to pastas, a masterclass in making homemade pizza, and a crash course in all things sourdough. If Hailee is instructing, maybe it’s time to make a starter!
This book is perfect for your friend who doesn’t believe in recipes but is always looking for inspiration or the one looking to bring new some energy into weeknight cooking. Also, Hailee is heading out on tour in a few weeks and yours truly will be in conversation with my dear friend in food in San Francisco. Come hang with us at Omnivore Books on May 5th!
Mostly French: Recipes from a Kitchen in Provence
Makenna Held | Apr 22 | Simon Element
Owning a home in the lavender-filled Provence countryside is one dream but to own the home formerly inhabited by the legendary Julia Child? How does it feel to be God’s favourite? In 2015, Makenna Held purchased La Pitchoune, the infamous Provençal pad where Julia developed her recipes with her collaborator Simone Beck and hosted pals like James Beard and M.F.K Fisher. She beautifully tells the story of reading through The New York Times listing, how she lost out on the bid, winning it back, and turning the space into a sanctuary and a home for gourmands by opening the Courageous Cooking School. Even though Makenna is no linger omelettes in one of the culinary world’s most important spaces, the spirit of Julia and the comfort of cooking lives on.
The recipes are typical of what you’d find in any classic French book and are organized into warmer weather and cooler weather spreads. There’s your aiolis, beurre blancs, poulet rôti, and potatoes dauphinoise but there are some unique interpretations like Plum and Thyme Bellinis, Ratoutille Galette, Butternut Squash Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust, and Roasted Mushrooms with Escargot-Style Butter.
This book is perfect for anyone who prides them in season-forward, family-style home cooking, the beginner cook who wants to feel a little more accomplished, or the one who isn’t participating in Eurosummer but wants some of those vibes stateside. You can tell them we have Provence at home!
I Regret Almost Everything
Keith McNally | May 6 | Simon & Schuster
I think Keith McNally is one of the funniest people on Instagram! For a man who has built a successful career running some of the city’s most hospitable institutions like The Odeon and Balthazar, his online presence doesn’t match the comfort and care you find in his restaurants. He’s a little too honest and ready to comment on any pop culture like your uncle at Thanksgiving dinner. As a restaurant operations nerd, I love reading the daily reports dispatched by his managers. So when he announced that he was gonna write a memoir, I was sat.
Keith walks us through his life, from coming up as an actor in gritty London to moving to New York City and opening some of the city’s category-defining restaurants. I’m curious to see how vulnerable and intimate Keith gets and also how he has processed his divorce, how he thinks about raising his children, and what life has been like after a devastating stroke.
I put in a request for a McGalley, as the streets are calling it, and will be devouring it the second it lands in my hands like I would with a Balthazar burger after a long day.
Get this for your friend who loves logging off and going to Balthazar for a solo dinner or the one who loves a compelling read or the homie who loves dark British humour (see what I did there) and a touch of witty banter. Also, Keith’s publisher is giving one lucky winner a dinner for four at Balthazar if they pre-order so maybe this is a good opportunity for your bookclub.
Galette: Sweet and Savory Recipes as Easy as Pie
| Jun 10 | Artisan 
I don’t think enough of us talk about the importance of galettes. They’re one of the most versatile bakes, enjoyed sweet or savory, and I feel like you can’t really mess one up because the more rustic it looks, the better. Well thank the heavens that friend of the newsletter,
, is here to lead the chat with her debut cookbook, Galette!I thought I had tried all the possible galette combinations but Rebecca blessed us with a bevy of inspiration. Before we get into the recipes, Rebecca presents us with a colorful table on the best time to make each galette along with product substitutions and times to enjoy produce at its peak. And of course we get a masterclass for making crust that will also be formidable for crushing a homemade pie. The flavour combinations are brilliant and a true testament to Rebecca’s expertise as a strong recipe developer and creative.
Part of me wants to see if I can go a whole day just eating galettes. For starters, I could totally have the Preserved Lemon Curd one for a springy breakfast, the Scallion and Asparagus with Miso with a bright salad for lunch, and wrap the day up with the Rotisserie Chicken, Chevré and Potato selection. If I was really feeling dessert, the Sour Cherry and Campari would be mine dolloped with some store-bought vanilla ice cream.
Get this book for your friend who claims to be scared of making pie, the one who can’t seem to get enough of pie, and for the ami(e) who is always looking for opportunities to host a French-themed dinner.
In for Dinner: 101 Delicious, Affordable Recipes to Share
| May 1 (UK) | Aug 19 (US) | Penguin Random House (Clarkson Potter) 
Ok while this is technically a summer release for those of us stateside, we are honoring this pick based on its UK pub date in May! If you’re lucky and have a friend across the pond, have them send you a copy in exchange for some niche American snacks.
I’m a huge fan of
’s Instagram videos where she shares the hearty and comforting meals that she makes for her six flatmates when it’s her turn for group dinner. Each person in Rosie’s home pitches $30 into a weekly grocery budget and they take turns cooking each night. In a world where we’re all optimizing for the fastest and most efficient ways to fuel ourselves during the week and mostly in our own company, it’s refreshing seeing the love and care that Rosie puts into each more.Rosie’s debut cookbook is a collection of these dinners, offering tips and insights on how you can still make flavourful meals that are low-waste and affordable. Most of the recipes are written for eight and are vegetarian-leaning with a fish dish or two in there. You can make a big pot of the Roasted Cumin, Carrot, and Coconut Soup for a soup Sunday or the Hot Harissa Shakshuka for a brunch hang! I’m excited to see the granola recipe which will make for a fun weekend morning ritual.
As of last week, Rosie and her flatmates were evicted out of their original space but luckily she was able to find a space with four of her roomies! Here’s hoping that they make good meals that can comfort them during such a turbulent transition.
This book is perfect for the friend who always mans the stove on group trips, your budget-conscious pal who is looking for more creative batch cooking options, and that family friend who is making dinner for a big crew each night.
Let me know which ones catch your eye or if there are any I’ve missed! And if you like shopping IRL, please support local and indie bookstores! Here are some of my favourite places to buy cookbooks in London, Brooklyn, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and D.C.
Eat well and be well!
Your friend in food, Abena
This is an amazing lineup. Thank you. I had some on my list, but missed so many of these. A great list.
Wow!!! What a round up!