I have the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook and the Betty Crocker cookbook.

Betty Crocker was good as I was learning how to cook, and it's nice because it's a binder so I can take specific recipes out without bringing the whole book into the kitchen. I can also print recipes from the internet (allrecipes, cooks.com, and Mr Food are among my favorites).

BH&G is fantastic - I bought it because it has the stuffing recipe that my mom used for years and years for Thanksgiving, and I was missing mom one year so I bought it so I could bring it home. Since then, I've put about seventy five little tabbies in to mark recipes I want to try. I've tried about half of them, and most of that half have been absolutely fantastic. Today I made potato soup out of that cookbook (actually, cream of potato) and I will definitely be taking that with me to the office this week for our potluck.

I do have two recommendations with cookbooks that I think anyone who uses them must do: First, keep a pen (ballpoint, so it doesn't smudge or run when it gets wet) in the kitchen and don't be afraid to write in the margins. Keep the cookbook out while you're eating and clean it up after you're done. Write in the margins what you'd change, what conversions were (for example, you get 12 oz of tomato juice in a can, but you need three cups - that's two cans - do the conversion before you shop because it's a lot easier that way), and whether or not you liked it.

Second, get post-its or tabbys (I use post-it durable index tabs) and mark any recipe that you're thinking about making, have made and liked, will need for special occasions (like Thanksgiving), or will use often (like mashed potatoes or something).

I've tried so many new recipes this year - it's been very successful and both of us are happy with the amount of leftovers we have AND the new and exciting things we've tried!

The Better Homes & Garden one is good for that.I imagine the basic Betty Crocker one is as well.

I have a fantastic Italian cookbook that I will have give you the information on when I get back to my apartment. I like it because it's really authentic and has a good mix of Northern and Southern Italian recipes - which is nice because Northern Italian food is not what I was raised on/cook typically.

I love my Southern Living cookbook. Most of the recipes are easy and delicious! And there is a "sweet and sour salad dressing" that everyone in my family goes nuts for!

I love to cook. When my husband and I redid our kitchen, I had a small bookcase built in for all my cookbooks.

My go-to cookbooks are:

- Curries Without Worries by Sudha Koul (because I love Indian food)
- Master Recipes by Stephen Schmidt (I took a cooking class from him once - the book emphasizes the idea that you can take a "master recipe" like chicken with white wine sauce, and vary it by deglazing with lemon juice instead)
- The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins

I have a bunch of recipes that my mother has written out for me. I also have a subscription to Cook's Illustrated (thanks Mom - I got my love of cooking from her), and I get the Penzey's Spices catalog. I go through each magazine and catalog and cut out the recipes that interest me. I also come across recipes on web sites like epicurious.com, and I print them out. I started out with one small binder and a few sheet protectors that I pinched from my office's supply room :o - I'm up to three large binders and I buy my own sheet protectors. The sheet protectors help me avoid the problem BraveMaroon mentioned, where the paper gets water or oil on it and the recipe becomes illegible - I just wipe off the plastic.

http://www.surlatable.com/product/id...a-001b2166c2c0

Tad Smidgen Pinch Dash measuring spoons
:D

I'm a big fan of Fannie Farmer.

This is great. I want to get this for my friend because she's always bugging me about not updating my blog enough to teach her how to cook. I might order it for a late Christmas present.

Best sources for recipes: Friends & family (especially Grandmas!!!!!!) & the internet

I'd have to say my favorite two cookbooks that I own (I own lots, people know I like to cook and give me tons) are:

Better Homes & Gardens 9X13 The Pan That Can
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This one is great because who doesn't love the convenience that is throwing a pan in the oven for a casserole? Got a great cheeseburger & fries casserole recipe out of this one that everyone loves. Lots of interesting ones I still have yet to try.

and

Betty Crocker Cookbook: Heart Health Edition

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This is amazing. Breakdowns of different types of every kind of food you can imagine (all sorts of peppers, all sorts of cheeses & how they melt, etc) as well as heart healthy recipes (of course) and tips on how to cook just about anything. The covers have yields & equivalents (excellent coming from a person who spent a semester learning to convert yields)
It has a front section all about getting active, BMI and other health things too. Why colorful foods are healthy, ways to add veggies to your diet, etc
Ch1 is all about getting started, explaining all the different types of knives, and utensils, how to cube, how to julienne, how to seed peppers, anything you can think of. Great classic recipes too with a heart healthy vibe.
Basically, get this cookbook

Ok KSU. I really think we are twins. My grandma was raised in Kentucky and is the same way. She will however, try to give me an estimate of about how much something is when I ask. But it's funny because she'll just say "oh that looks right" to something measured in her hand and she could stick it in a measuring cup and it would be damn near perfect amount.

My all-time favorite, which makes great use of herbs and uses them to put twists on simple dishes, such as champagne-lavendar sorbet, is The Herbfarm Cookbook, by James Beard winner Jerry Traunfeld: http://www.amazon.com/Herbfarm-Cookb...2227467&sr=1-1

I use this one a lot for party foods and appetizers - Dishing with Kathy Casey: http://www.amazon.com/Dishing-Kathy-...2227742&sr=1-4

From one of my favorite restaurants in Seattle, the Icon Grill's Aroused Americana: http://www.amazon.com/Aroused-Americ...2227855&sr=1-1

If you're looking for good, classic "standard" recipes, the Williams Sonoma cookbooks are good (I have the ones on Meats and Desserts), and one cookbook I use a lot is "The Best Recipe" by Cook's Illustrated - basically a collection of popular recipes they've cooked a gazillion ways to come up with the one that offered the "best" results. The roast beef recipe in that cookbook has NEVER let me down.

I also have several Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa), Jamie Oliver and Tom Douglass books. Yeah, I pretty much collect cookbooks.

Lol I can't even like. My favorite was the Disney cookbook. Everything was super simple with kid-friendly instructions. Right there on my level, lol. That's how I learned to make French toast.

Another vote for the BH&G cookbook. I have the one I got when I got married, the newer Pink plaid one, and inherited my mom's copy. The BH&G Grilling book is also excellent, especially if you're learning how to grill.

I also am a big fan of anything by Alton Brown, any of the Southern Living books, Taste of Home, the Junior League Centennial Cookbook, and Pioneer Woman Cooks (her website is awesome too!)

My dream is to either clear out a kitchen cabinet for cookbooks or maybe have cookbook shelves installed one day. I love to read and collect cookbooks.

I'm convinced we have the same grandmother ;) I can't learn any of her recipies unless I'm there helping her make it to make a mental note of all the measurements. She's always saying, 'a handfull, just a tad, a litte bit, a pinch, or a good bit' and is never specific either. But somehow, granny's food will always turn out better then mine :o Gotta love Gran.

I'm a firm believer that any cookbook, Junior League or otherwise, that has a woman's name at the end of each receipt is going to be the best you'll ever get. Only an idiot signs her name to a bad receipt! One of my favorites is one I picked up at a church bazaar while on vacation: Just Three. Every receipt is comprised of three ingredients, plus any common spices.

If you can get someone older to give you a cookbook, you have made a true friend! Let the cookbook open at will, or notice where the stains are - those are the better receipts.

Obviously, I collect cookbooks. The Better Homes & Gardens Pink Plaid Edition gets another vote from me, as does the 1970's Betty Crocker - perfect for the beginning cook. PS: the Betty Crocker has a whole section on tea sandwiches!

I tend to get my recipes online, and have had good luck with allrecipes.com and The Food Network's website...however, I've had terrible luck with cooks.com. I've only had two or three recipes from there turn out well. Some of their recipes don't even make sense - I made a bread using directions from there, and while I knew 3 Tbsp of salt sounded like waaaaaay too much, I did it anyway. It probably should have read 3 tsp....which brings me to my next point: 3 tsp = 1 Tbsp, and I've noticed that recipes that don't know their conversions and say 3 tsp instead of 1 Tbsp generally don't turn out well.