8 Cookbooks I Bought For Inspiration

It’s no secret I love to cook and that I love collecting cookbooks for recipe inspiration! I have a great collection, nearing 100 cookbooks to flip through from baking to old-fashioned cocktails. You name it, I probably have it.

When COVID hit, Curtis and I were cooking a lot at home before the baby arrived. I wanted to add a new book and a new book became 8 over the next three months. We both love to spend time in the kitchen and also make cocktails at home for our own happy hour. To be honest, being 9 months pregnant and then being a mom to a newborn, I didn’t do much cooking the first month or two. But Curtis delved into the new cookbooks I bought and made us some delicious food and cocktails!

I wanted to share what I purchased, I always research my books before I buy, basing on cuisine, aesthetics, reviews, and if it adds something to my extensive collection. None of these were impulse buys per se, but more carefully thought about additions.

Did you buy any new recipe books during quarantine? If so, please share it below!

The 8 Cookbooks I Bought During COVID

1. The Yoga Kitchen

I picked this one up because I wanted to incorporate healthier meals for my lunches and snacks. This is loaded with so many easy recipes that don’t seem daunting to make at home.

2. Ottolenghi Simple

These are all 30-minute meals with 10 ingredients or less that are packed with Middle Eastern-inspired flavours. I’m now addicted to Za’atar and making pantry meals which are essentially these recipes.

3. Ottolenghi Plenty More

Another great book by Ottolenghi filled with vegetarian dishes that are packed with bold flavours. For anyone looking to add more vegetarian meals into their week, this is a great book to pick up.

4. Tonic

Curtis and I love to make cocktails at home plus ingredients that go into them such as tonics. This book has tonics, shrubs, recipes to boost your immune system and explains why these ingredients can be natural remedies to ailments. It was so much more than just tonic recipes!

5. Easy Tiki

Besides going to a kitschy tiki bar, I enjoy a good tiki drink! Pass the rum, please! This just was released this Spring and I had to snatch it up! There are 60 modern takes on classic tiki drinks and also a little bit of history on them.

6. The Forest Feast Mediterranean

Want more vegetarian recipes in your life? This one has quite a few that were inspired by the author’s travels around the area. We’ve been making our way through this book, wishing we were actually in the Mediterranean but hey a nice dinner at home will do for now.

7. All Day Cocktails

I like that this cocktail book is mostly non-alcoholic recipes! Sometimes you just want a refreshing mocktail and this supplies you with inspiration to make your own at home. It explores sustainability and also is based around the seasonality of the ingredients.

8. AMA | A Modern Tex-Mex Kitchen

We both really enjoy a good tex-mex meal and now we can make new dishes right at home! Curtis planned a whole dinner around a handful of recipes from this book before the baby arrived. One of my better meals of 2020 thus far!