Change the Recipe: Because You Can't Build a Better World Without Breaking Some Eggs

by José Andrés, Richard Wolffe

Overview

A unique collection of life lessons from renowned chef and humanitarian José Andrés 

José Andrés is a chef, an entrepreneur, an author, a television host, and a tireless humanitarian leader across the globe. A Michelin-starred chef with more than forty restaurants, José is also the founder of World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit dedicated to feeding the hungry in the wake of natural and man-made disasters. His lifetime of experience—from kitchens to conflict zones—has given him a wealth of stories and teachable moments that are funny, touching, and insightful, all animated by the belief that food can bring us closer together and the conviction that each of us can change the world for the better.

Written in José’s unmistakable voice, Change the Recipe is a collection of his most affecting and powerful life lessons: hard-won wisdom from a man who has dedicated his life to changing the world through the power of food.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063436152
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/22/2025
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	20,382
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

José Andrés is the New York Times bestselling author of Zaytinya, The World Central Kitchen Cookbook, We Fed an Island, and Vegetables Unleashed. An Emmy award–winning TV host and producer, he was honored as Outstanding Chef and Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation, was twice named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2025.

 

Richard Wolffe is a New York Times best-selling author and Emmy Award-winning TV producer. He has worked closely with José Andrés for two decades: from op-eds and speeches to books, podcasts, and TV shows. He was executive producer of the National Geographic movie We Feed People and the Discovery series José Andrés and Family in Spain. Change the Recipe is the fourth book they have written together. Wolffe was an MSNBC political analyst for a decade, and previously worked as a White House correspondent at Newsweek and the Financial Times. He wrote three books about President Barack Obama, and writes a regular column for The Guardian focusing on US politics.

Editorial Reviews

"Andrés is superbly generous...Lively...and an inspiration to do good in the kitchen and in the world." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

From the Publisher

★ 2025-02-13
The noted Spanish American chef and philanthropist offers his life story, complete with recipes.

Andrés, known both for his restaurants and his World Central Kitchen nonprofit, which brings food to war zones and disaster areas, might be forgiven for wanting to luxuriate among expensive toys: He grew up in a household where “money was not plentiful,” and at the end of the month his family ate croquetas “made from the last leftovers in the corner of the fridge.” Andrés, of abundantly large spirit, expresses both gratitude for the food and the lovely memory of how his parents taught him valuable lessons using food as a vehicle. Andrés imparts some of them, such as his father’s advice to “master the fire,” which means not just mastering yourself but also learning how to control the heat necessary to make a good dish. He has plenty of lessons to deliver, recalling how he left a soft position as an admiral’s cook during his stint in the Spanish navy so that he could cook for a ship’s crew. “You should never let slip the opportunity to tell the world what you want,” he observes. “Nothing will happen if you’re the only one who knows.” Andrés is superbly generous—his book concludes with a moving eulogy to seven of his nonprofit workers who were killed in Gaza—and a true patriot: “We’re all in this country together. We’re all on this planet together. Your success is my success. We the People.” About the only time he grows cross is when the subject of Donald Trump arises, on which he notes with quiet defiance, “You can build as many walls as you like. But there isn’t a wall high enough to stop the mother of a hungry child.” A bonus lesson: You don’t need so much water to cook pasta.

A lively memoir—and an inspiration to do good in the kitchen and in the world.

Kirkus Reviews