My husband and I love to make pizza at home. We’ve been doing it for years, since we were dating.

At one point when we were dating we wanted to try whole wheat pizza dough but couldn’t find any premade to try. Enter The Best Pizza Is Made At Home. Of course, I made it once or twice (actually, the husband-then boyfriend- never even tried it) and then grew tired of it. The book was resigned to the bookcase to gather dust.

Years passed. We got married. We had a baby. I quit my job to stay home for awhile with Will (aforementioned baby) and freelance. Of course, money was tight. Really, really tight. Then I started cooking more (it saves so much money). And then I began digging through my library, trying whatever I could so that we could have a variety of homemade goodness.

That’s when The Best Pizza Is Made At Home reentered my attention. It costs only a few dollars to make pizza at home as opposed to $10 or more for a good pie around here . . . The result was a number of great pies, some of which were dished about here (yes, bad pun).

The Parmesan crust is among my very favorites. The deep dish is flaky and good. And of course the plain crust is great too. I am still looking forward to using a number of the other recipes – like the herb dough.

The point? If you love pizza and love to cook and want to cook pizza, then get this book because it is filled with a wealth of wonderful variations on pizza dough.

Once upon a time, I was a vegetarian. In fact, I was a vegetarian for a number of years (7 or 8, if memory serves me). I bought and poured over dozens of vegetarian cookbooks during that time, looking for innovative recipes that didn’t call for tofu. I am not particularly fond of tofu.

The Vegetarian Pasta Cookbook was one of the best ones I happened on. I L-O-V-E pasta. This book has a variety of hearty, filling recipes that pack a punch of nutrients. And everything has photos, so you can salivate while deciding which one to make. The recipes are divided by major ingredients such as legumes and mushrooms and there are many of each.

Unfortunately, the book falls into the out of print category so you’ll have to buy it second had (but it’s well worth the money if you are a pasta-loving veg-head).

Everyone who cooks has a book that they consider their go-to, their trusted tome, their bible of cooking . . . for me, that is Betty Crocker’s Cookbook (note: the link goes to the latest edition, not the one I have since it’s several years old).

My copy of this cookbook is dog-eared from usage and some of the pages stick together . . . okay, there is a whole section of the index that is completely and permanently bound together. Regardless, it has helped me learn how to cook a variety of dishes from a delicious low-fat alfredo to confections. The how-to guides throughout teach about different cuts of meat, identifying herbs and vegetables and how to cook them all. Want to see some recipes I’ve made from this book? Check out my vanilla frosting and my chocolate ganache. You can see the pictures here and here.

What’s your trusted tome?

On a sidenote, if you are looking for a gift for a mom in your life, check out Motherhood is Not for Wimps: No Answers, Just Stories. I’ve been reading this woman’s blog for a year now and she is hilarious. I totally recommend buying the book.

I got a little nostalgic yesterday while driving home from Christmas shopping with my son and ended up driving by the house I lived in for much of my life. I also passed by, on the way, some of the many places I used to go to with my family and schools I attended. It’s funny. I haven’t lived there in 10 years, but my old house – despite the cars I didn’t recognize – still felt like home. And the whole area was like it had stood still in time. Someday I would love to live there again . . . to truly go home.

This whole reminiscing session brought me back to thinking of one of my favorite cookbooks: COOKING WITH FRIENDS. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I love this gimmicky book very much.

Meshed in with the dialogue excerpts and photos, there are some great recipes. I bought this when I was in high school (after I had moved away from the home that I mentioned earlier, though my grandfather still lived there) and vividly remember making Rachael’s Peanut Butter Cookies with my best friend in the middle of the night once . . . I still love those cookies (check back later this week, as I will be making a batch and sharing the recipe then).

But what I remember the most is all the laughs I’ve shared over the years while cooking or eating some of the dishes in the book. For instance, while my female friends and I love . Geller’s Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes, I made it for a male friend of mine once and still hear about “that awful sundried tomato pasta.” No matter how many other wonderful things I have made that he’s eaten, it’s that pasta that still gets talked about.

So while the show may have come and gone, the cookbook continues to delight like reruns late at night . . .

Check out what I wrote about it in a review earlier this year.

I love books. All kinds of books. Teen angst dramas, crime thrillers, classics, travel books, parenting books . . . but especially, especially cookbooks. And while I typically don’t cook often from cookbooks, I love to read them for tips, trends and ideas.

The photo above is my cookbook library . . . there actually are more, but those are the ones that A) fit into my bookcase and B) aren’t hidden in kitchen or bathroom or dining room closets. Or on top of the bookcase for that matter.

Over the next few weeks, I am going to be highlighting some of my favorite cookbooks of all time. Follow along . . . you might just see something you’d like to read too.

What’s your favorite out of print cookbook?

Mine is somewhat whimsical, or maybe just corny – Cooking With Friends. Yes, as in the Friends TV show.I know. How could I, a self respecting lover of food love such a gimmick-y thing? But the truth is that behind the gimmick are a number of excellent recipes for a wide variety of foods. I’ve had it for close to 10 years and still love it.

If you read the New York Times Book Review on Sundays then you have probably already read about what some noteworthy foodies mark as their favorites. If not, you can read about it in an article I recently wrote for Paper Palate. (NOTE: Paper Palate is now defunct.)

But I want to know, what’s your favorite?

One of the first things I made in college was a sundried tomato pasta from the Cooking with Friends cookbook. I liked it so much that I made it again and again throughout college. Later on I discovered another sundried tomato recipe that included pesto in it, and that was another favorite of mine.

I’ve been craving that pasta recently, but decided it was time to break out from the same old recipe I’ve used again and again. This time I tossed in a little prosciutto, cut back on the olive oil, and did it without the book altogether.

The results? Better than ever. This took one of my favorite dishes to the next level. It’s a little spicy, a touch sweet and has just enough saltiness. Yum.

5 sundried tomatoes, cut into strips
5-7 leaves basil, torn into small pieces
2 slices thick cut prosciutto, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup cooked pasta

Combine tomatoes, basil, prosciutto, garlic , red pepper flakes, and olive oil in a dish and let sit 5-10 minutes (you could use this time to cook the pasta).

Mix cooked pasta with the tomato mixture and serve. Top with parmesan, if desired.