A favorite: How to Cook Everything

Since it's mid-summer and the produce is rolling in (literally, if you open my fridge you might be attacked by blueberries, squash, zucchini and some other round items) I want to share my favorite cooking resource besides my M.O.M. (one of the best cooks ever).

I rely upon How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. It's enormous and there are only pencil sketches - no food-porn photos of the recipes. But it's amazing.

I love Mark Bittman because:

1. He loves food. Like real food. Like bacon, vegetables, fruit, bread, potatoes - there's quite a list of real foods, you know. He doesn't encourage things like adding a pouch of "white sauce" from the mix section of the grocery. He advocates being sensible about what you eat and knowing what you're eating. Wholesome, modern and delightful.
2. He writes for The New York Times so I can read something new when I'm in the mood. I can also watch videos which is what I do if I don't know how to do something or if I'm cleaning out my closet and itching for food porn. (Food porn is, to me, video footage of food that makes you hungry or excited about cooking.)
3. He is all about substitutions. I am too. So is my mom. Cooking is all about making things work for you. Certainly, as a chemistry fan I can assure you, there are some rules to cooking. You cannot skip the corn in corn salad. You cannot (as I tried to do as a pre-teen) skip the oil in brownies. You must put good things into what you cook to make good food.
4. The book is a resource. There are charts and pairings and ideas galore.

Tomorrow I'm using my produce to conquer the world. I'm making zucchini bread, pesto, a summer vegetable gratin, potato leek soup, some fresh wax bean deliciousness and some other good stuff. Yay for food! (Yes, I might be a little more ambitious than necessary).