The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adrià is a brilliantly designed cookbook from Ferran Adrià, the head chef at El Bulli--a now-closed restaurant in Catalonia, Spain, that earned three Michelin stars. Every day for decades, Adrià put together a "family dinner" for the staff of 75 people. This lovely cookbook presents 30 of these meals, each with a starter, main dish and dessert. The write-up for each meal includes shopping lists, step-by-step cooking tips (with photographs) for each dish, and a detailed schedule to make sure every food is finished at the same time. Meals include grilled lettuce hearts, veal with red wine & mustard and chocolate mousse, or lime-marinated fish, osso bucco, piña colada. This 10th-anniversary edition of The Family Meal is perfect for fans of European-style cooking, or home chefs who want to experiment with their own family dinners. --Jessica Howard, bookseller at Bookmans, Flagstaff

Pati Jinich, star of PBS's Pati's Mexican Table, hands home cooks a range of hearty, delectable favorite recipes from kitchens across Mexico. The James Beard Award-winner has curated an eclectic yet practical mix of basics like Homemade Corn Tortillas, famous staples like Sonoran Carne Asada Tacos, and regional specialties like Oaxacan Oregano Roast Chicken. Jinich's warm, expert tone takes readers on a fascinating culinary tour of Mexico's diverse states and regions. Each dish's accompanying photograph is perfectly styled in a relaxed, homelike setting, giving it both the appearance of a showstopper and the appeal of perfect comfort food. Richly seasoned with piquant chiles, brightened by tomatoes or tomatillos, and spiced with plenty of garlic, these approachable classics are surefire winners. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads

After the success of Platters & Boards, Shelly Westerhausen Worcel expands her entertaining expertise with Tables & Spreads: A Go-To Guide for Beautiful Snacks, Intimate Gatherings, and Inviting Feasts. Using a mix of lush, full-color photographs and simple but stylish illustrations, this practical guide offers advice to any would-be host. The first half of the collection provides an overview of the basics, from the foundation (serving boards) to the essentials (glasses and flatware) and on to the decor (floral arrangement and linens). The second half gathers recipes around potential events or themes, such as "Ladies' Night Lettuce Wraps." Whether impressing new colleagues or enjoying a quiet night with family, these meals--sure to be as beautiful as they are delicious--will delight the senses. --Sara Beth West, freelance reviewer and librarian

In her gorgeous and healing cookbook Ripe Figs, British food writer and human rights campaigner Yasmin Khan asserts, "There is no better place to talk than at the dinner table." For Khan, who grew up in a home where Iranian refugees found a safe place at her parents' table, an essential part of that conversation includes the ongoing Eastern Mediterranean refugee crisis, which prompted her to write this book. Khan presents striking photographs of the dishes and people she encounters on her travels alongside nourishing, accessible recipes, such as iconic Turkish spiced tomato scramble and cheerful "sunshine salad" showcasing Cyprus's late-summer produce. Each recipe is accompanied by a story, offering an intimate glimpse at Khan's triumphs and struggles as she searches for comfort in a time of chaos. --Angela Lutz, freelance reviewer

Readers eager for a taste of France's best dining might be tempted to skip the bulk of Alexander Lobrano's new book, My Place at the Table, and reach the final section, in which the accomplished author and critic lists the 30 Parisian restaurants he's deemed most unmissable. But it would be a shame to miss the larger story, which serves less as a directory than as a platter of memories, tenderly recollected and served in this tight volume. Piggybacking off of Lobrano's previous memoirs-cum-guidebooks, including Hungry for Paris, My Place at the Table takes an amusingly introspective look at the city Ernest Hemingway deemed "a moveable feast." Any reader with a stomach will find themselves longing to retrace Lombrano's authoritative steps, indulging in every morsel he has relished along the way. --Lauren Puckett-Pope, freelance writer

Anas Atassi learned to make his family's recipes as a means of "culinary daydreaming," a way to stay connected to his birthplace and his heritage as he moved across the world. Amid political turmoil and a war that scattered Syrian people across the globe, this connection to Syrian food--a "tangible, edible way of remembering"--becomes much larger than one Syrian son and his mother's recipes, as evidenced across every page of his stunning cookbook, Sumac: Recipes and Stories from Syria. Tucked in with recipes such as Musabaha (chickpeas in yogurt with tahini sauce) and Sambusak (filo rolls with cheese filling) are stories of Atassi's family and culture, all evoking the "flavors, smells, and textures of Syrian cooking."

Atassi names two key ingredients in Syrian cooking: the titular sumac, and "nafas," the kind of soulful magic that happens when ingredients combine into something cohesive and larger than the sum of their parts. He calls it one of the greatest compliments one can pay a Syrian cook--and it's a compliment easily paid to Sumac, a beautiful and loving tribute to a food, a place and a people. --Kerry McHugh, freelance writer

Sheldon Simeon--Top Chef fan favorite--serves up 100 mouthwateringly photographed, easy-to-follow recipes that exemplify the originality of Hawaiian cuisine.

A third-generation Filipino born and raised in Hawaii, Simeon is inspired by love and appreciation for his homeland and heritage. Simeon's personal vision is paired with an intricate, fascinating history of Hawaii, where a wide range of immigrants brought their own culinary flare to influence the food of the islands.

Cook Real Hawai'i is a feast of cross-cultural tastes and cooking traditions. Simeon offers tips for mastering hibachi, frying and simmering techniques, along with recipes for delectable pupus, sushi and poke, rice, noodles, veggies and more that can be whipped up by enthusiastic foodies eager to experience the delicious flavors of the Aloha State without leaving home. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines

In Root & Nourish, wellness experts Abbey Rodriguez and Jennifer Kurdyla do more than show women how to embrace plant-based, gluten-free dishes, with more than 100 accessible recipes. They also discuss how yoga, Ayurveda, and certain herbs and spices can boost health, longevity and even beauty. The easy recipes have appeal beyond those who prefer plant-based dishes. Savory and sweet, Spiced Fig & Berry Compote gets a kick from cayenne pepper and extra sweetness from elderberry syrup; a bonus is that either fresh or frozen figs work. And no one will miss meat in the well-balanced Heartwarming Vegan Chili. With a nod toward the affordable and seasonal, recipes for breakfast, main dishes, sweets, teas and drinks are organized by digestion, mental health and female reproduction/health categories. An herbal pantry showcases basic must-haves. --Oline H. Cogdill, freelance reviewer

Cocktail fans will quench their thirst for knowledge with this mammoth, authoritative and illuminating guide, written with great wit and astounding scholarship by James Beard Award-winner David Wondrich (Imbibe!) and co-editor Noah Rothbaum (The Business of Spirits). This lavishly designed reference book gives readers the origin story, evolution and recipe for hundreds of cocktails, along with biographies of bartenders and mixologists; histories of spirits, mixology cultures, tools and terms. 

This international companion encourages readers to happily lose themselves as one fascinating entry cross-references another. Under "Harvey Wallbanger," readers will find its racy origin, recipe and a link to creator Donato "Duke" Antone, who ran a heroin ring while bartending. Readers never know where they'll end up, but it will always be entertaining and enlightening. --Kevin Howell, independent reviewer and marketing consultant

Busy husband, father and Emmy-winning celebrity chef Ryan Scott shares 81 versatile recipes straight from his home kitchen with the simplest of goals in mind: "To get people to realize that they can cook and get a meal on the table!" Each scrumptious food entry emphasizes fun, with personal anecdotes designed to instill confidence in beginner cooks and chuckles for the emerging professional. Even the notes section ending each set of meal construction offers a "you can do this" vibe. And with deliciously amusing recipe titles like Mother-in-Law-Sagna Cups and Any Day Ending in "Y" Overnight Sticky Buns, it is no wonder the upbeat author chef frequently appears on Good Morning America, The Today Show and The Rachael Ray Show. The No-Fuss Family Cookbook feels like making food with a friend. --Paul Dinh-McCrillis, freelance reviewer

Yes, the world does need another bread baking book, and here's why. In his introduction, Mark Bittman explains that he and Kerri Conan wrote Bittman Bread: No-Knead Whole Grain Baking for Every Day after making "a series of discoveries around whole grain bread baking that would make it more accessible to more home cooks than it had been in a century." Practically speaking, this means that by using the book's Bittman Bread Whole Wheat Starter recipe, even newbie bakers can make a sublime scallion pancake, flabbergastingly good baguettes, to-die-for cinnamon rolls and more. Bittman Bread's recipe steps are blessedly detailed and speckled with reassurances, although it's a good bet that a typical mollifying aside ("Don't obsess over this") will fall on a bread nerd's deaf ears. --Nell Beram, author and freelance writer

Anne Byrn brought a fresh twist to boxed cake mixes in her 1999 cookbook, The Cake Mix Doctor. With A New Take on Cake, Byrn offers many of those classic boxed-mix recipes retooled for smaller 21st-century cake mixes, plus a slew of new treats involving trendy ingredients such as tahini, Greek yogurt, matcha and more.

Byrn dives right into the whys and wherefores of her method: why a cake mix, choosing the right mix (and baking tools), then a primer on frosting and decorating. After all the how-tos, she serves up an entire bakery's worth of mouthwatering recipes (with helpful headnotes and delectable photos) to satisfy any sweet-tooth craving. Novice and experienced bakers alike will delight in these tasty, creative recipes for all occasions. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams

This stunning, elegantly bound cookbook, filled with minimalist illustrations and photos, will satisfy even the most discerning sweet tooth at festive gatherings.

Middle Eastern Sweets, the fourth book from Lebanese-born, London-based chef Salma Hage (The Middle Eastern Vegetarian Cookbook) includes 100 illustrations and more than 100 recipes. Hage's delightful and knowledgeable commentary helps make the recipes personal, with notes on culture, ingredients and beverage pairings.

Hage features a wide range of confections, blending traditional Middle Eastern delicacies with influences from other cultures. There are also several vegan and gluten-free options, and she provides ingredient substitutions where possible.

This is a book as decadent as the recipes it contains and will be sure to hold a treasured spot on any bookshelf. -- Grace Rajendran, freelance reviewer and literary events producer

In Lush Life: Food and Drinks from the Garden, readers can follow Valerie Rice's recipes to re-create her seasonal and locally sourced fare, or simply enjoy an imaginary visit to her Southern California home through the inviting photos and enthusiastic text.

Arranged by seasons, opening with spring when "the garden begins to take off," Rice includes sumptuous, easy-to-follow recipes plus planting guidelines for favorite ingredients from her Santa Barbara garden. Detailed wine pairings from her friend, sommelier Rajat Parr, and entertainment tips (including crab legs for Rice's "nearest and dearest" and her holiday "Tinsel, Tequila and Tamale" party for 100) complete this gorgeous book. Meyer lemons and fig trees may not grow in your garden, but Valerie Rice's Lush Life is yours to savor. --Cheryl Krocker McKeon, bookseller, Market Block Books

First published in 1954, The Alice B. Toklas Cook Book is a gossipy account of life in 20th-century Paris as much as it is a celebration of French cuisine. Toklas knits meal descriptions into lighthearted anecdotes from her travels with her partner, Gertrude Stein, and dinner parties they hosted (they cooked bass for Picasso, for instance). Recipes--in paragraph form rather than a list of ingredients and steps--follow naturally from the narrative. Many of the classic French dishes, like boeuf bourguignon and bouillabaisse, could be on menus today; others, like boiled crawfish and "Liberation fruit cake," reflect wartime rationing. This edition, introduced by Ruth Reichl and featuring black-and-white line drawings by Sir Francis Rose, would make a perfect gift for fans of Julia Child. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader and blogger at Bookish Beck

Gastro Obscura: A Food Adventurer's Guide by Cecily Wong and Dylan Thuras offers a marvelous literary excursion into forgotten food histories, endangered culinary traditions and obscure gastronomical experiences from around the world, complete with photographs of dishes worth tasting and places where tasty foods are offered.

Gastro Obscura is scattered with recipes for dishes as varied as Ben Franklin's milk punch and Afghani mulberry bread. It also shares the provenance and modern interpretation of menu items such as Japanese sumo wrestler soup and Kenyan fermented runner's milk, with deep probes into Indian curry dishes in Britain, Austria's beer spa and the international art of corn on the cob.

Created by the community-driven online magazine and travel platform Atlas Obscura, this vibrant volume is "a noisy, delicious, action-packed feast that spans seven continents, and over 120 countries." --Shahina Piyarali, reviewer

For creative takes on cocktails galore, plus wisdom gleaned from behind the bar, it's hard to beat the delightful recipes and commentary from irreverent long-time Crescent City drink-slinger T. Cole Newton in Cocktail Dive Bar: Real Drinks, Fake History & Questionable Advice from New Orleans's Twelve Mile Limit. 

Newton's collection brims with personality, stories and recipes, with thoughtful reflections on anti-racism and gentrification, and combatting sexual harassment in the service industry. Self-effacing humor and dive-y aesthetics make it enjoyable to peruse--and readers can drink artful cocktails while optionally coloring in illustrations from Bazil Zerinsky and Laura Sanders. 

Or get it for Newton's Baudin recipe alone: "I could live a hundred years and might never invent a better drink." The dash of Tabasco is everything. --Katie Weed, freelance writer and reviewer