If you’re like Jack and me, you have a shamefully large collection of cookbooks. We love ‘em, the more, the better! But there are some cooking references that are almost more important than cookbooks—and the Food Lover’s Companion is one of those. Here are just a few reasons why we love this little blockbuster book:
Avoid Cooking Emergencies. I’ve tried to make a key lime pie at sea level for which the recipe hailed from Taos, New Mexico. I thought if I just cooked it longer, it’d work out fine. Mais non! Our Food Lover’s Companion reveals the secret in black and white in a section entitled “High Altitude Adjustments for Baking”—you have to change the balance of ingredients! And there’s a section on “Emergency Substitutions of Ingredients”. Let’s say you needed a cup of cake flour—not always easy to find. Did you know you could substitute a cup minus 2 tablespoons unsifted all-purpose flour?
Master Food Trivia. Do you know why Belgian endive is white? And is it correct to pronounce it EN-dyv, AHN-deev, or ahn-DEEV? Don’t be like me and lose $50 betting your spouse because you guessed wrong!
Sharpen Your Herb and Spice Savvy. Here’s a tip from an old Aussie sage, pun intended! Open up that herb and spice cabinet and take out one of your favorites. Give it a good whiff, and then look it up in the many-page “Herb and Spice Chart” in this great book. Find out how it’s typically used in each of these categories: appetizers, breads, soup/stews, salads, cheese and egg dishes, fish/shellfish, and poultry/game birds. To learn new ways to use our favorite herbs and spices, Jack and I had a “Herb/spice of the week” contest where we used one flavor in as many of the above categories as possible. Expand your horizons! Try this contest and you’ll up the level of your cooking prowess AND get more help in the kitchen!
If you are looking for some great online spice suppliers in the US, Gourmet Jack has a handy list HERE
Here’s to all your cooking endeavors. Gourmet Jill 
