We Love a Good Cook: ThriftBooks Staff Picks Their Favorite Cookbooks

At ThriftBooks, along with its sunshine, the summer brings us so much to talk about—there's summer reads, graduation, movies, music festivals—but of particular excitement is summer cooking! Here at ThriftBooks we have bibliophiles in spades, and we have some home chefs too! Posing the question "What is your favorite cookbook?" to our staff turned up some fantastic selections.

From beginners to grilling experts, check out our staff's favorite cookbooks. Who knows more about books than ThriftBooks?

Quick & Easy

Spending hours over a pile of coals isn't for everyone, but pretty much everyone can appreciate a good meal. These selections are perfect for those looking for simple cookbooks.

Amanda T. Picks: Crock Pot Dump Meals
Why she picked it: I can't cook to save my life. There. I said it. Sure, I can "cook" a hot pocket like no other but when it comes to real cooking? Yikes. While it's not really crockpot season here in the Midwest where I am, it's about my only tool to making a "real" meal. I love this book because it's so simple to follow and all recipes are 5 ingredients or less. The less ingredients I have to prepare, the safer my family is at mealtime. Plus, there's desserts in there too! Our house highly recommends the Triple Chocolate Fantasy recipe. (Thank me later!)

Amanda C. Chose: The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook from America's Test Kitchen
Why she picked it: I always hated cooking and stuck to the frozen aisle as soon as I grew up enough to feed myself, but with this book cooking became possible. It turns out I didn't hate cooking as much as I hated way too many leftovers and trying to meal plan for a single person. My favorite aspect of this cookbook is the ingredient appendix, which allows me to find recipes for what I have on hand. This book is honestly the only reason I ever cook dinner at home.

Allison Recommends: Good Housekeeping Budget Dinners
Why she picked it: This book is fantastic for any cook on a budget. There's even a section that gives a recipe for a primary dish with different recipes to make it into something new so you're not eating the exact same thing multiple nights in a week. It stretches your food out and keeps dinner from feeling stagnant.

Karen Picks: Barefoot Contessa Foolproof: Recipes You Can Trust
Why she picked it: This is a solid resource when I want something unique to bring to a party, change up my weeknight dinner, or just to bring new ideas to my everyday cooking. I like to cook but I don't like recipes that are too involved or take hours to make and that's why Ina is perfect for me. I've found that I can always count on her recipes to be delicious and easy to make. A true winning recipe from this book? Jalapeno cheddar crackers!

Eclectic Kitchens

From authentic Texan, to bread, to a unique vintage choice, the picks in this section show how much the simple term "cookbook" really encompasses.

William Picks: A Bowl of Red by Frank X. Tolbert
Why he picked it: Not only does this book include the recipe for Tolbert's famous chili, but also other regional cuisine and humorous anecdotes about Texas cooking. Everything from barbeque to pecan pie can be found within its pages, and the recipes are communicated in an entertaining and engaging style.

Nick Recommends: Flour Water Salt Yeast
Why he picked it: If you want to nerd out about bread, this is the weird and specific book for you. The description claims to publish scores of recipes but by my count the tome's 272 pages include scarcely more than a baker's dozen. This book will teach you how to take the 4 ingredients that make up its title, combined in assorted ratios and rested for various durations, to yield the same basic loaf of bread with a surprising mix of subtle differences in flavor.

Catie Chose: Favorite Brand Name Mexican
Why she picked it: As a teenager, I spent copious amounts of time loitering around the local bookshop. On one such visit, shortly after my father and step-mom decided to end their relationship, a copy of Favorite Brand Name Mexican caught my eye. It came home with me. By 17 I had lived in two homes with two different moms, neither of whom tolerated other people in the kitchen while they were cooking. With my father's kitchen repertoire consisting of Stouffers or chicken covered in Italian dressing, I knew teaching myself was the best chance I had at not eating microwaved meals for the rest of my life. With my eternal love of Mexican food and the easy-to-follow recipes provided in its pages, this book seemed like a great place to start. I picked a stir-fry recipe that had an appetizing full-color accompanying photo and gave it my best shot. Turns out my best shot wasn't too bad. With that completed meal from my first cookbook, I gained a new level of independence, a boost to my self-esteem, and full bellies for my dad and me.

Danielle Selected: Vintage Cookbooks and Advertising Leaflets
Why she picked it: There's been quite an uprise in home crafting, rediscovered personal hobbies, and dabbling with long forgotten recipes during the pandemic. Dylan B. Hollis has been my personal favorite to watch resurrect long forgotten recipes like the ones seen in my cookbook recommendation and he inspired me to try it myself. It's fun to follow an old nostalgic recipe, but even more fun to put a modern spin on them.

Cassie Suggests: Thug Kitchen: The Official Cookbook
Why she picked it: My mom is vegan and turned me on to a lot of delicious vegan recipes. This book is very fun!

It's Grillin' Time

The sun, the grill, the heat, the smoke, and the flame are all celebrated in these picks from our resident BBQ experts!

Ricky Recommends: Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-smoking Manifesto
Why he picked it: Franklin is the king of BBQ. I have been following him for years and he is the man who made the fast brisket a thing. I've even been to Austin to visit his spot, but the line was so long, I had to decide to cook his recipes instead.

Dave Picks: The Barbeque! Bible: More Than 500 Great Grilling Recipes From Around The World
Why he picked it: I love the variety of recipes the book offers from all over the world and the J. Peterman-like stories that accompany them. The recipes are geared more toward grilling than smoking and include side dishes and accompaniments. I highly recommend this book for both the beginner and experienced griller.

Dave also Picks: Paul Kirk's Championship Barbecue: BBQ Your Way to Greatness with 575 Lip-Smackin' Recipes from the Baron of Barbecue
Why he picked it: Having previously taken pitmaster classes with Paul Kirk, I've found all his books full of valuable information. This book is a treasure trove of recipes and information about BBQ useful to both the home barbeque and for someone into competition BBQ. This is THE COMPREHENSIVE resource for marinades, rubs, mops, and sauces.

Whether you've been inspired to turn on the oven, stove, or grill, our staff guarantees the recipes in these books will satisfy. Looking for more? No problem, we have thousands of new and used cookbooks to help you get your summer snack on.

Check out our Summer of Spicy—Cookbooks page for even more recommendations sorted by skill level, across 20 different types of regional cuisine.

Read more by Amanda Cleveland