When not doing a deep dive into why Canadian butter wasn’t softening Julie Van Rosendaal thinks a lot about recipes. Here are twenty of her favourite cookbooks.
“Food is an incredibly personal thing – what we eat is tightly bound to who we are, where we live, and whom we share our tables with. We eat not only to survive, but to socialize and celebrate. Perhaps most importantly, we use food to nourish and comfort ourselves and each other.
Peoples’ cookbook collections tend to reflect the way they eat – books are handed down and gifted, or picked up at Costco… pulled off the shelf when it’s time to make dinner, or stacked on bedside tables for late-night inspiration. I adore cookbooks, and have collected them since I was a kid. It’s tough to choose which books every kitchen should have, because the way we approach food varies so widely – every kitchen is different. Here are twenty books I could never cull from my own collection. Some are old and nostalgic, others new and beautiful – some I cook with often, others I see the potential in and have loved reading or learned a lot from. Listed in no particular order, they are all worth seeking out and referring to over and over, for so many reasons. Eat well!”
About Julie Van Rosendaal:
Julie Van Rosendaal is the Calgary-based author of eleven best-selling cookbooks. She has been the food columnist on the Calgary Eyeopener on CBC Radio One for over 15 years, is the contributing food editor for the Globe and Mail, and for the past twenty years has been a freelance food writer and columnist for other publications across Canada. Julie teaches, speaks and cooks at culinary schools and events across the country, and has a very engaged audience on her social media channels and blog, Dinner with Julie.