The most entertaining cookbooks to be the host with the most

I came across this cool and edgy “bible” for the cheese obsessed as I began working on my cheese-themed snack board book.

I enjoy good cheese and know a thing or two about it, but I am no expert, and this book has been and continues to be an invaluable resource for buying, serving, and enjoying cheese.

Cheese Sex Death: A Bible for the Cheese Obsessed written by Kubick, an ex-cheesemonger, is truly an encyclopedia of cheese. The book is written in a cheeky tone playing into biblical references regarding the worship of “Cheesus.”

It is smartly laid out, explaining the history of cheese, how to buy and properly store cheese, a breakdown of types of cheese, tools to serve it, and lots of clever food and drink pairings.

This book has all you need to know about the ritual of enjoying cheese.

Since it is written in a fun and clever tone, with beautiful photographs and illustrations, it is great as a cheese reference manual, a casual enjoyment read, or a coffee table book for your guests to peruse as they enjoy one of your handcrafted cheese plates.

This book features casual yet elegant boards and spreads alongside simple and accessible recipes and the most gorgeous photos!

Broken out by morning, afternoon, evening, and anytime, with a theme for almost any occasion. The book is laid out to show even the most novice home entertainers how to easily assemble a beautiful spread for guests or how to arrange a small platter for a no-cook meal on a random evening. 

Once again, I’d like to mention the beautiful photos! I enjoy casually flipping through the book and dreaming about what to serve at my next gathering.

This no-frills cocktail handbook has been hailed the “Most-read cocktail expert around” for a good reason.

Regan engagingly romanticizes cocktail and drinking culture. He details the history of specific cocktails, includes theories of how certain drinks came about and adds quotes about drinking from notable figures.

He makes you want to try drinks you have yet to try. He also muses about the philosophy of being a bartender and what it takes to be a good bartender.

Although the author makes it a humorous and fun read, the book is much more. It is a thoughtfully laid-out handbook for creating classic cocktails. Of course, one can search for a recipe by cocktail name.

But the book includes a great glossary, and charts by the family of cocktail, making it easy to be like; it’s been a long day, and we have some leftover rye and lemons in the fridge. What can we create? Which is often how cocktails are created in my home.

This classic mixology handbook is one to keep in your library (or bar) forever.

In this in-depth yet simple entertaining cooking manual filled with beautiful illustrations, the two Frankies of Frankies Spuntino’s in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, infuse the book with their stories of family traditions and how they are kept going.

A whole chapter is devoted to Sunday Sauce, which they consider a way of life. It includes a perfectly timed flow chart that begins on Saturday that describes step by step when and what ingredient to pick up from the local specialty shops and how to bring this red sauce classic to the family table.

Also included is a section of family photos and the Frankies in the neighborhood purchasing from the local specialty shops, which is extra special to me, as I lived in that neighborhood and often how we would spend our Sundays, strolling down Court Street, casually stopping into those amazing shops for ingredients for our own Sunday dinner.

This book makes you want to have a few friends over and entertain. The ingredient lists are short, and the recipes are simple, flavorful, and easy to follow. With handy guides and tips beginning each chapter, you learn to make perfectly roasted vegetables and the crispest & fluffiest simple salads.

We’ve adopted their homemade pasta recipe as our own and impressed guests with the orecchiette with pistachios and braised lamb ragu.

While I can’t replicate the effortlessly cool and romantic experience of eating by candlelight in Frankies Spuntino’s garden on a summer evening, with this book, I can bring their simple and elevated flavors home to share with my family and friends.

Athena Calderone welcomes you into her casual, cool, and elegant world in Cook Beautiful.

Recipes are listed by season, using simple and healthy ingredients at their peak of freshness. The recipes are simple and straightforward and include gorgeous and “swoon-worthy” photos and tips explaining how to style and plate your meal for maximum impact and little effort.

The recipes in Cook Beautiful are equally impressive for an intimate dinner party, yet simple enough to serve on a Tuesday night. Many of the seasonal dishes have made it into my own dinner rotation.