Why I Cook

One of the most well-known chefs in the United States thanks to successful New York City restaurants, and to having served as a judge on Bravo’s Top Chef since 2006, Tom Colicchio offers here a smart cookbook which is also enough of a memoir to justify its title, Why I Cook.

Colicchio’s personal story is deftly woven into seasonally-organized recipe chapters, tracing his childhood in blue-collar New Jersey, working in local kitchens, teaching himself from books by Elizabeth David and Jacques Pepin, cooking in France, and returning to a New York City where he would make his mark.

The recipes here draw inspiration from all sorts of influences: The pork chops with cherry peppers and tomatoes were a staple of Colicchio’s mother’s kitchen. The Jerusalem artichokes dish was inspired by a first encounter with the vegetable at Marc Veyrat’s l’Auberge de l’Eridan. The chanterelles and peaches with summer corn was born from visits to the Union Square Greenmarket.

The recipes are all written for home kitchens: no salamanders required or combi ovens are required. They’re not necessarily quick and easy, and the photographs display them attractively enough to enhance their appeal.

Hardcover. Color photographs throughout.