Cooking Audiobooks | Non-Fiction

GARLIC AND SAPPHIRES is Ruth Reichl's riotous account of the many disguises she employs to dine anonymously. There is her stint as Molly Hollis, a frumpy blond with manicured nails and an off-beige Armani suit that Ruth takes on when reviewing Le Cirque. The result: her famous double review of the restaurant: first she ate there as Molly; and then as she was coddled and pampered on her visit there as Ruth, New York Times food critic.What is even more remarkable about Reichl's spy games is that as she takes on these various disguises, she finds herself changed not just superficially, but in character as well. She gives a remarkable account of how one's outer appearance can very much influence one's inner character, expectations, and appetites.As she writes, "Every restaurant is a theater . . . even the modest restaurants offer the opportunity to become someone else, at least for a little while." GARLIC AND SAPPHIRES is a reflection on personal identity and role playing in the decadent, epicurean theaters of the restaurant world.

Ruth Reichl (Author), Bernadette Dunne (Narrator)

Audiobook

French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure

Stylish, convincing, wise, funny–and just in time: the ultimate non-diet book, which could radically change the way you think and live. French women don’t get fat, but they do eat bread and pastry, drink wine, and regularly enjoy three-course meals. In her delightful tale, Mireille Guiliano unlocks the simple secrets of this “French paradox”–how to enjoy food and stay slim and healthy. Hers is a charming, sensible, and powerfully life-affirming view of health and eating for our times. As a typically slender French girl, Mireille (Meer-ray) went to America as an exchange student and came back fat. That shock sent her into an adolescent tailspin, until her kindly family physician, “Dr. Miracle,” came to the rescue. Reintroducing her to classic principles of French gastronomy plus time-honored secrets of the local women, he helped her restore her shape and gave her a whole new understanding of food, drink, and life. The key? Not guilt or deprivation but learning to get the most from the things you most enjoy. Following her own version of this traditional wisdom, she has ever since relished a life of indulgence without bulge, satisfying yen without yo-yo on three meals a day. Now in simple but potent strategies and dozens of recipes you’d swear were fattening, Mireille reveals the ingredients for a lifetime of weight control–from the emergency weekend remedy of Magical Leek Soup to everyday tricks like fooling yourself into contentment and painless new physical exertions to save you from the StairMaster. Emphasizing the virtues of freshness, variety, balance, and always pleasure, Mireille shows how virtually anyone can learn to eat, drink, and move like a French woman. A natural raconteur, Mireille illustrates her philosophy through the experiences that have shaped her life–a six-year-old’s first taste of Champagne, treks in search of tiny blueberries (called myrtilles) in the woods near her grandmother’s house, a near-spiritual rendezvous with oysters at a seaside restaurant in Brittany, to name but a few. She also shows us other women discovering the wonders of “French in action,” drawing examples from dozens of friends and associates she has advised over the years to eat and drink smarter and more joyfully. Here are a culture’s most cherished and time-honored secrets recast for the twenty-first century. For anyone who has slipped out of her zone, missed the flight to South Beach, or accidentally let a carb pass her lips, here is a buoyant, positive way to stay trim. A life of wine, bread–even chocolate–without girth or guilt? Pourquoi pas? From the Hardcover edition.

Mireille Guiliano (Author), Mireille Guiliano (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Pat Conroy Cookbook: Recipes of My Life

America's favorite storyteller is back—with a memoir of good food and good company from his beloved South and beyond. This audiobook is the story of my life as it relates to the subject of food. It is my autobiography in food and meals and restaurants and countries far and near. Let me take you to a restaurant on the Left Bank of Paris that I found when I was writing The Lords of Discipline. There are meals I ate in Rome while writing The Prince of Tides that ache in my memory when I resurrect them. There is a shrimp dish I ate in an elegant English restaurant, which passed out Cuban cigars to all the gentlemen in the room after dinner, that I can taste on my palate as I write this. There is barbecue and its variations in the South, and the subject is a holy one to me. I write of truffles in the Dordogne Valley in France, cilantro in Bangkok, catfish in Alabama, scuppernong in South Carolina, Chinese food from my years in San Francisco, and white asparagus from the first meal my agent took me to in New York City. Let me tell you about the fabulous things I have eaten in my life, the story of food I have encountered along the way. Narrated by the author himself, the audiobook is filled with great stories. Stories about people, places, great meals, and a life lived large, by one of the most beloved literary figures of our time.

Pat Conroy (Author), Pat Conroy (Narrator)

Audiobook

Toast

A deliciously evocative story of childhood in 1960s suburban England from one of theUnited Kingdom's best-loved writers, Nigel SlaterToast is the truly extraordinary story of a childhood remembered through food. In each chapter, as Nigel Slater takes us on a tour of the contents of his family's pantryrice pudding, tinned ham, cream soda, mince pies, lemon drops, bourbon biscuitswe are transportedâ€¦His mother is a chops-and-peas sort of cook, exasperated by the highs and lows of a temperamental stove, a finicky little son, and the asthma that would prove fatal. His father is a honey-and-crumpets man with an unpredictable temper. When he is widowed, Nigel's father takes on a housekeeper with social aspirations and a talent in the kitchen and the following years become a heartbreaking cooking contest for his affections. As he slowly loses, Nigel finds a new outlet for his culinary gifts and we witness the birth of a lifelong passion for food. Nigel's likes and dislikes, aversions and sweet-toothed weaknesses, form a fascinating backdrop to this exceptionally moving memoir of childhood, adolescence, and sexual awakening. With a new preface and glossary for American readers, this British bestseller and national award winner is sure to delight foodies and memoir enthusiasts on this side of the pond. Possessed of the subtlety and wit of Ruth Reichl's Tender at the Bone and the disarming frankness of Anthony Bourdain's page-turning Kitchen Confidential, Toast is a treat to be savored.

Nigel Slater (Author), Nigel Slater (Narrator)

Audiobook

Puttin' on the Grits: A Guide to Southern Entertaining

Family and friends are the center of life in the South, and kitchens the center of Southern homes, so there is no better way to celebrate Southern traditions than a book on entertaining. From the heartfelt love in Grandma's dumplings to the stomping good fun at a hoedown, Southern entertaining is special. This book will help everyone to be as gracious, warm, and entertaining as Deborah Ford herself. She can't help sharing-it's the Southern way. Puttin' on the Grits covers all the details of hosting festivities large and small. From mint juleps to charm lessons, Deborah reveals the colorful secrets behind why Southern women are such consummate hosts and captures the famous combination of elegance and wit that has become the GRITS calling card. Puttin' on the Grits even includes a discussion of how to be the kind of guest who gets invited back. Whether popping a cork or cracking open a six-pack, every hostess can now be the belle of the ball.

Deborah Ford (Author), Deborah Ford (Narrator)

Audiobook

Bringing Tuscany Home: Sensuous Style From the Heart of Italy

I always imagine each of the signoras who lived in this house—where she shelled peas, rocked the grandchild, placed a vase of the pink roses. Now I would like to take one of these women back to my house in California to show her how Bramasole traveled to America and took root, how the doors there are open to the breeze from San Pablo bay and to the distant view of Mount Tamalpais, how the table has expanded and the garden has burgeoned… The “bard of Tuscany” (New York Times) now offers a lavishly illustrated book for everyone who dreams of integrating the Tuscan lifestyle—from home decoration and cooking, to eating and drinking, to gardening, socializing, and celebrating—into their own lives. When Frances Mayes fell in love with Tuscany and Bramasole, millions of readers basked in the experience through her three bestselling memoirs. Now Frances and her husband, In Tuscany coauthor Edward, share the essence of Tuscan life as they have lived it, with specific ideas and inspiration for readers stateside to bring the beauty and spirit of Tuscany into their own home decor, meals, gardens, entertaining and, most important, outlook on life. In her inimitable warm and evocative tone, Frances helps readers develop an eye for authentic Tuscan style, with advice on how to: • Choose a Tuscan color palette for the home, from earthy apricot tones to invigorating shades of antique blue. • Personalize a room with fanciful door frames, unique painted furniture, and fresco murals. • Cultivate a Tuscan garden, adding fountains, vine-covered pergolas, and terra-cotta urns among the herbs and flowers • Select the best Italian vino. (Frances describes lunches at regional vineyards and imparts tips for pairing food and wine.) • Create an atmosphere of irresistible, anytime hospitality—a casa aperta (open home). • Make primo finds at local antiques markets. (And to help truly bring Tuscany home, shipping advice and market days for several Tuscan towns are included.) • Set an imaginative Tuscan table using majolica and vintage linens. • Enjoy the abundant flavors and easy simplicity of the Tuscan kitchen, with details on everything from olive oil and vino santo to pici and gnocchi, plus special homegrown menus and recipes. • Make the most of a trip to Tuscany, visiting Frances’s favorite hill towns, restaurants, small museums, and other soothing places. With more than 100 photos by acclaimed photographer Steven Rothfeld (including several of the Mayes’s California home and its Tuscan accents), twenty-five all-new recipes, and lists of resources for travelers and shoppers, Bringing Tuscany Home is a treasure trove of practical advice and memorable images.

Edward Mayes, Frances Mayes (Author), Frances Mayes (Narrator)

Audiobook

Hallelujah! The Welcome Table

Throughout Maya Angelou's life, from her childhood in Stamps, Arkansas, to her world travels as a bestselling writer, good food has played a central role. Preparing and enjoying homemade meals provides a sense of purpose and calm, accomplishment and connection. Now in Hallelujah! The Welcome Table, Angelou shares memories pithy and poignant-and the recipes that helped to make them both indelible and irreplaceable. Angelou tells us about the time she was expelled from school for being afraid to speak-and her mother baked a delicious maple cake to brighten her spirits. She gives us her recipe for short ribs along with a story about a job she had as a cook at a Creole restaurant (never mind that she didn't know how to cook and had no idea what Creole food might entail). There was the time in London when she attended a wretched dinner party full of wretched people; but all wasn't lost-she did experience her initial taste of a savory onion tart. She recounts her very first night in her new home in Sonoma, California, when she invited M. F. K. Fisher over for cassoulet, and the evening Deca Mitford roasted a chicken when she was beyond tipsy-and created Chicken Drunkard Style. And then there was the hearty brunch Angelou made for a homesick Southerner, a meal that earned her both a job offer and a prophetic compliment: "If you can write half as good as you can cook, you are going to be famous." Maya Angelou is renowned in her wide and generous circle of friends as a marvelous chef. Her kitchen is a social center. From fried meat pies, chicken livers, and beef Wellington to caramel cake, bread pudding, and chocolate éclairs, the one hundred-plus recipes included here are all tried and true, and come from Angelou's heart and her home. Hallelujah! The Welcome Table is a stunning collaboration between the two things Angelou loves best: writing and cooking.

Maya Angelou (Author), Maya Angelou (Narrator)

Audiobook

Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America

A hilarious taste of the triumphs and tragedies faced by America's small candy companies, from the funny and engaging perspective of a self-confessed candy freak. Steve Almond doesn't just love candy—he unabashedly worships every aspect of confectionary culture, from the creation of an exceptional malt ball through the tragic demise of a badly conceived candy bar, from the emotion-laden memories stirred by a bite of chocolate to his near-drooling anticipation of spotting a new package on the candy shelves. Almond, who claims to have between three and seven pounds of candy in his house at all times, set out to uncover the inexplicable disappearance of the Bit-O-Choc, the Caravelle bar, and other delights. As he documents his visits to candy factories across America, he reveals the true nature of the industry, with hilarious asides examining the role candy plays in our lives, and often confessing his own near-obsessive cravings. Almond's wry writing style is undeniably addictive and impossible to put down until every last bit has been devoured; listeners should be warned to keep a ready supply of sweets on hand.

Steve Almond (Author), Oliver Wyman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Cosmopolitan: A Bartender's Life

Cosmopolitan is a memoir of the bartending life structured as a day in the life of Passerby, the bar owned and run by Toby Cecchini. It is, as well, a rich study of human nature-of the outlandish behavior of the human animal under the influence of alcohol, of lust, and of the sheer desire to bust loose and party. As the typical day progresses, Cecchini muses over a life spent in the service industry and the fascinating particulars of his chosen profession. He is by turns witty, acute, mordant, and lyrical in dealing with the realities of his profession, shedding plenty of light on the hidden corners of what people do when they go out at night.

Toby Cecchini (Author), Toby Cecchini (Narrator)

Audiobook

A Guide to Wine

An entertaining and informative introduction to wine Julian Curry, actor and wine buff, has devised this unique audiobook guide to wine which takes the listener to the heart of wine-making and wine drinking in a clear but light-hearted manner. However rich and complex the subject of wine may be, he insists it is also hugely rewarding and great fun... Curry's informative and entertaining programme begins with a description of work in vineyard and cellar. It outlines the many choices faced by grape-grower and wine-maker, resulting in the variety of different styles of wine produced. It continues with wine's journey from winery to gullet, with advice on cellaring, buying, serving, food-matching and tasting. It then moves on to thumbnail sketches of the grape varieties most commonly used, their natural habitats and related styles of wine. And it concludes with a lengthy section devoted to all of the major wine regions, in Old World and New. A Guide to Wine also includes a booklet with maps of the main wine regions, a brief guide to the main styles of wine and a useful basic wine vocabulary in half-a-dozen languages.

Julian Curry (Author), Julian Curry (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Sweet Potato Queens' Big-Ass Cookbook (and Financial Planner)

They’re wild, beloved, and all-around fabulous, but with the Sweet Potato Queens, there’re just never enough good times—or enough good eats. Well, now all fabulous women everywhere can have their own mountains of royal fun and food, because bestselling author and Boss Queen Jill Conner Browne is revealing her big-ass top secret recipes—and the events that inspired them—in The Sweet Potato Queens’ Big-Ass Cookbook (and Financial Planner). And, of course, she’s dishing up plenty of hilarious stories, including: • Queenly adventures in mothering • The tiniest bit of plastic surgery • The all-true story of the Cutest Boy in the World And, oh yes, as promised: • Sound financial planning. Tip number one: Hope that Daddy lives forever.

Jill Conner Browne (Author), Jill Conner Browne (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Healthy Kitchen: Recipes for a Better Body, Life, and Spirit

Two of America's most popular authorities on healthy eating and cooking join forces in this inspiring, easy-to-use cookbook. This is not a diet book. It is a lively guide to healthy cooking, day-by-day, packed with essential information and, above all, filled with enticing food.Andrew Weil, M.D. author of the best-selling Eating Well for Optimum Health brings to this perfect collaboration a comprehensive philosophy of nutrition grounded in science. Rosie Daley acclaimed for her best-seller, In the Kitchen with Rosie brings to it her innovative and highly flavorful spa cuisine.The recipes are eclectic, drawing from the healthy and delicious cooking of the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and Asia, among other cuisines. For starters, you might try Grilled Satay or a Miso Pâté; for soup, often a meal in itself, a hearty Mixed-Bean Minestrone Stew or a Roasted Winter Squash and Apple Soup with Cilantro Walnut Pesto; a special entrée could be the Savory Roasted Cornish Hens with Roasted Garlic or Baked Spicy Tofu with Bean Thread Noodles, Corn, and Mango; for a simple supper, Turkey Burgers or Portobello Burgers; and for the occasional indulgence, a dessert of Almond Fruit Tart or Peach and Blueberry Cobbler.Andy and Rosie do not always agree. When Rosie calls for chicken, Andy offers a tofu alternative; she likes the flavor of coconut milk, whereas he prefers ground nut milk; when she makes a pastry with butter, he suggests using Spectrum Spread. There are no hard-and-fast rules.Lifelong health begins in the kitchen, so this is a lifestyle book as well as a cookbook. In it you will learn from Dr. Weil:• how to make use of nutritional information in everyday cooking• what is organic . . . and how to buy organic foods• the importance of reading labels and what to look for• sensible advice about eggs, milk, cheese, salt, spicy foods, wine, coffee • the facts about sugar and artificial sweeteners. . . and from Rosie:• how to get kids involved from skinning almonds to layering lasagna• ways to have fun in the kitchen creating scallion firecrackers and radish rosettes• low-fat and nondairy alternatives for those with special concerns• smart menu planning letting the seasons be your guide. . . and lots more.This revolutionary book will change forever the way you cook for yourself and your family.With 58 photographs in full color.From the Hardcover edition.

Andrew Weil, M.D., M.D. Andrew Weil, Rosie Daley (Author), Andrew Weil, M.D., M.D. Andrew Weil, Rosie Daley (Narrator)

Audiobook

Cooking Audiobooks in Non-Fiction