Michael Procopio

Kitchen science at its very best. It's so absorbing, my own copy bears the marks of being sodden by a South American waterfall.

An excellent baking book which is partly responsible for my going to go to cooking school instead of grad school.

Apart from the beautiful and clear recipes, this book is worth it for the wonderful caramel tutorial alone.

An excellent peek into post-war Pacific Coast tastes. It's one of my two favorite retro recipe sources.

My other favorite retro recipe source. It pleases me to no end that America's Prince of Horror was such a delightfully charming gourmet.

High camp and low humor. This volume is fun, a little dirty, and thoroughly entertaining.

A gorgeous, straightforward introduction to my cultural heritage.

Exhaustive testing. And I love this book for telling me what happens to your ingredients when you treat them badly.

I had been a cupcake hater for longer than I care to remember. This book (and these authors) changed all that.

A recipe for Mr. Showmanship’s Sticky Buns is offered without a shred of irony.