Whenever Emeril Lagasse needs something to entertain or inspire him — BAM! He picks up a cookbook. “My office in New York is overflowing with all kinds of cookbooks, and in New Orleans we have a huge culinary library. So yeah, I guess I’m a little bit obsessed,” says the spice-loving celebrity chef. Many of his friends have written those books, including the great Julia Child. Lagasse once taught her how to peel crawfish — a moment captured in a photo he proudly keeps in his office.
Lagasse is being honored Saturday at the James Beard Foundation’s Chefs & Champagne fund-raiser in the Hamptons, where Daniel Boulud, Marc Forgione and other top toques have designed dishes in his honor. Here are four books he says should be in every cook’s library.
— Barbara Hoffman
Mastering the Art of French Cooking
by Julia Child
A classic. Julia takes you through the entire meal, teaching techniques and basic training and even how to buy ingredients and proteins. It’s such a great resource for a beginner chef or for an expert chef looking to brush up on the basics.
The Food Lover’s Companion
Barron’s Cooking Guide, 3rd Edition
by Sharon Tyler Herbst
Many of the folks that work with me have a copy of this book. It’s a must-have guide to food and cooking. You can’t cook or learn about food without one of these.
Molto Italiano
327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home
by Mario Batali
Mario is the man when it comes to Italian. He knows his way around Italy better than anyone, and his restaurants are true institutions. From antipasto to pasta, it’s simple and delicious cooking straight from Italy.
Cooking Up a Storm
Recipes Lost and Found From The Times-Picayune of New Orleans
This is an amazing collection of those cherished recipes clipped from the local New Orleans paper that were passed along throughout the years. Some were lost during the storm, but they’ve been beautifully compiled in this great book.