18+ Cookbooks that Help Us Eat Our Way Toward More Nourished Future

Danielle Nierenberg

Danielle Nierenberg

What’s the future of the Good Food Movement? 

As I’ve written before, it’s no exaggeration to say the future of the planet depends on the future of food! Food and agriculture systems must be central to solving the climate crisis. These solutions need to be regenerative and socially just over the long term, and they must put farmers first.

We’ll talk about the future of the Good Food Movement at our upcoming Summit this weekend—just a few days before the election in the United States—at the San Diego Food + Wine Festival, in collaboration with KPBS. If you’re there, join us and amazing speakers by clicking HERE. 

I want to keep it real: It’s easy for climate and food systems discussions to stay focused on high-level policy and business actions, but we cannot forget about the food on our plates. The way we cook—even the act of cooking itself—is a huge vote of confidence in a better food system.

As citizen eaters and conscious home cooks, one way we can make a difference is by eating food that is both better for people and the planet.  

That’s why I think it’s so important right now to spotlight cookbooks that are showcasing a diversity of culinary voices, featuring delicious recipes as well as the stories, traditions, and adaptations that inspire them.

• AfriCali: Recipes from My Jikoni by Kiano Moju celebrates the intersections among Nigerian, Kenyan, and Californian cuisines.

• Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes from Singapore by Shu Han Lee invites readers to prioritize their senses in cooking Singaporean flavors ‘to taste.’

• Amrikan: 125 Recipes from the Indian American Diaspora by Khushbu Shah honors the creativity and adaptation of the Indian diaspora.

• Bayou: Feasting Through the Seasons of a Cajun Life by Melissa M. Martin captures the spirit of a year’s worth of South Louisiana celebrations.

• Chinese Enough: Homestyle Recipes for Noodles, Dumplings, Stir-Fries, and More by Kristina Cho shares unique dishes that are neither entirely Cantonese nor entirely Californian.

• Cured: Cooking with Ferments, Pickles, Preserves & More by Steve McHugh with Paula Forbes is a comprehensive guide to enhancing meals with pickles, jams, preserves, and sauces.

• Kin: Caribbean Recipes for the Modern Kitchen by Marie Mitchell explores the vibrant food cultures of the Caribbean diaspora and challenges misconceptions.

• Kismet: Bright, Fresh, Vegetable-Loving Recipes by Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson offers vegetable-forward Mediterranean recipes from the California restaurant of the same name.

• Koreaworld: A Cookbook by Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard takes readers on an insiders’ tour of Korean food around the world.

• Life's Sweetest Moments: Simple, Stunning Recipes and Their Heartwarming Stories by Dominique Ansel captures the simple and elegant recipes of the award-winning chef.

• Mayumu: Filipino American Desserts Remixed by Abi Balingit blends flavors of the Philippines with Western-style baked goods.

• My Egypt: Cooking from My Roots by Michael Mina looks back on what originally inspired him to cook: his Egyptian heritage.

• Ottolenghi Comfort: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi with Helen Goh incorporates childhood memories and travels around the world to celebrate food, friends, and connection.

• Our South: Black Food Through My Lens by Ashleigh Shanti helps readers understand how Black influence has defined food cultures in the U.S. South.

• The Bean Book: 100 Recipes for Cooking with All Kinds of Beans, from the Rancho Gordo Kitchen by Steve Sando with Julia Newberry is a comprehensive to how 50+ bean varieties can become dips, soups, salad, mains, sides, and desserts.

• The Deerholme Mushroom Cookbook: From Foraging to Feasting, Revised and Updated by Bill Jones walks us through safely foraging, growing, buying, and cooking with all things fungi.

• The Heart Healthy Plant-Based Cookbook by Hari Pulapaka and Jenneffer Pulapaka blends culinary expertise with medical knowledge.

• The League of Kitchens Cookbook: Brilliant Tips, Secret Methods & Favorite Family Recipes from Around the World by Lisa Kyung Gross and the Women of the League of Kitchens Cooking School, with Rachel Wharton highlights recipes from a cooking school that empowers immigrant women.

• When Southern Women Cook: History, Lore, and 300 Recipes with Contributions from 70 Women Writers by America's Test Kitchen celebrates Southern food and the many women who have shaped the cuisine, with a foreword by Toni Tipton-Martin (forthcoming November 2024).

• Zaytinya: Delicious Mediterranean Dishes from Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon by José Andrés highlights the chef’s creative adaptations of classic dishes from Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon.

Learn more about these wonderful—and delicious!—cookbooks by CLICKING HERE.

I love to see how Food Tankers around the world are working in their kitchens to build a better future for the global food system! Drop me a line at danielle@foodtank.com and share photos, stories, cookbooks you love, and ways you’re staying active as a citizen eater. 

And tell me how I can represent you. At major global events, Food Tank goes on-the-ground to advocate for what matters to you and the entire Good Food Movement! At the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) coming up soon in Azerbaijan, for example, I’ll have face-to-face conversations with global leaders who are shaping the future of food, so please reach out to me by email so we can talk about the issues that matter most to you! 

(Danielle Nierenberg is the President of Food Tank and can be reached at danielle@foodtank.com)