I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes to cook creatively. Its also going to come in handy for brewing, meadmaking, and cocktails. http://www.amazon.com/The-Flavor-Bible-Creativity-Imaginative/dp/0316118400
I’m the type of cook that rarely uses recipes. I keep a well stocked pantry, buy what looks fresh or pick/ forage in season then create something from there. The Flavor Bible isn’t a cookbook, its mostly a huge list of ingredients in alphebetical order, including beer, wine, and spirits, that for each ingredient shows other ingredients that go well with it. The authors spent years surveying respected chefs and use bold typ and caps to show pairings that are suggested the most often. I got it last week for my birthday and for the kind of cooking I do its a godsend. When I can’t think of what to do with something I look it up and have a long list of what works well for flavors with that ingredinet and it really gets my creativity going. I used it yesterday to come up with an amazing Valentine’s meal, including a cocktail. I can’t wait to use it to develope beer and mead recipes.
I got it recently myself for the same reasons. Most of the time I’m throwing stuff together in my kitchen “Iron Chef” style, and this looks like it’s going to be a fantastic reference.
I have it too. Don’t really use it actively for cooking, but I browse in it regularly just for fun, and let the ideas sink down to my culinary subconsciousnessdom.
Yea, I do that with cookbooks in general. Pour a beer or glass of scotch and browse through a great cookbook on the couch in the evening= relaxation.
EDIT: and late night snacking…