A Fresh Crop of New Cookbooks for Spring

Trisha’s Table, by Trisha Yearwood and Beth Yearwood Bernard
She’s a major country music star, but Trisha Yearwood also has a show on the Food Network. The recipes in this cookbook are based on Yearwood’s 80/20 philosophy: “80 percent of the time I make good choices,” she says, “20 percent of the time I let myself splurge a little.” Dishes like Billie’s Houdini Chicken Salad and dairy-free Angel Hair Pasta with Avocado Pesto sit side by side with yummy splurges like Slow Cooker Georgia Pulled-Pork Barbecue and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls. This is a cookbook that combines healthy, fresh food with occasional comfort cooking.

Good Food, Good Life: 130 Simple Recipes You’ll Love to Make and Eat, by Curtis Stone
Chef Curtis Stone puts fun first in this collection of 130 inventive recipes. Dishes like Porcini-Braised Beef with Horseradish Mascarpone, Potato and Zucchini Enchiladas with Habanero Salsa, and Cherry-Amaretto Lattice Pie are interspersed with chatty personal anecdotes and helpful kitchen tips. Stone’s idea is that good food is a crucial element of a good life, and his goal is to bring joy and pleasure back into the kitchen.

Endless Summer Cookbook, by Katie Lee
Long days at the beach, lazy meals in the backyard, picnics and summer buffets—Katie Lee brings you all of it. In this cookbook you’ll find a collection of gorgeous, mouth-watering recipes inspired by the slow days of summer. Lee blends recipes like Steak Tacos Served with Avocado and Fresh Cilantro, grilled pizza, and Peach Blueberry Cobbler (mmmmm) with beautiful photography, hints for entertainment, and suggested wine pairings (side note: I wish all cookbook authors would do this. Wine pairing suggestions are the best).

My New Roots: Inspired Plant-Based Recipes for Every Season, by Sarah Britton
Britton’s been called “the queen bee of the health blogs,” and not for nothing: her blog, My New Roots, contains a host of healthy, beautiful dishes designed for vegetarians, vegans, people who need to eat gluten-free, and people who just love eating well. My New Roots is her debut cookbook, and it’s entirely vegetarian (and mostly vegan). Along with the recipes, which are almost all new, Britton has included educational sections on expert techniques and pantry essentials. She also did all the photography herself, which is impressive considering that the dish on the cover just might sell you on the book. So pretty! So delicate! So purple!

Soul Food Love: Healthy Recipes Inspired by One Hundred Years of Cooking in a Black Family, by Alice Randall and Caroline Randall Williams
Written by bestselling novelist (and country music songwriter) Alice Randall, along with her daughter Caroline Randall Williams (also a novelist and award-winning poet), Soul Food Love overhauls four generations of recipes handed down by African-American women and produces healthy and delicious dishes that recall traditional roots. Recipes like Peanut Chicken Stew, Red Bean and Brown Rice Creole Salad, and Sinless Sweet Potato Pie sit side by side with beautifully-written essays on the authors’ family history.

Nonna’s House: Cooking and Reminiscing with the Italian Grandmothers of Enoteca Maria, by Jody Scaravella with Elisa Petrini
The dishes in Nonna’s House are drawn from Staten Island’s Enoteca Maria, a restaurant where the chefs are ten Italian grandmothers, each representing a different region in Italy. The recipes in the cookbook come directly from the grandmothers: for example, there’s Nonna Cristina’s Risotto with Strawberries, Black Pepper, and Parmesan; Nonna Teresa’s lasagna; Nonna Carmelina’s Potato Pie with Ham, Salami, and Mozzarella; and Nonna Margherita’s Stuffed Peppers with Pine Nuts and Raisins. The recipes are interspersed with mouth-watering photographs, autobiographical stories, and excellent advice.

Make It Ahead, by Ina Garten
Garten’s cookbooks have the same easy, conversational tone as her Food Network shows, and her latest, Make It Ahead, aims to help the home cook facing a stressful situation, such as weeknight dinners, those moments when unexpected guests drop by, and even Thanksgiving. Dishes like French Chicken Pot Pies, Decadent Chocolate Cake, and Make-Ahead Roast Turkey (!) become manageable—even relaxing!—when Ina shows you how to make them ahead of time.
Shop all cookbooks >