Food for thought: Give cooking books for the holidays

It seems books for foodies are everywhere nowadays—and I’m not just talking cookbooks! From the wonderfully written and journalistic Heat to the off-kilter comedy of Amy Sedaris to collections of recipe favorites, here’s a short list of books that are sure to be holiday hits with the food lovers in your life. (Warning: You may need to order a title or two for yourself!)

• Tasting Club: Gathering Together to Share and Savor Your Favorite Tastes, by Dina Cheney: Help your friends jump into next year’s party trend with this guide to throwing a fabulous tasting party. This guide spells out everything one needs to know to throw a sophisticated gourmet tasting soiree, and the gift will be a not-too-subtle hint to add your name to the invitation list.
• The Bon Appétit Cookbook, by Barbara Fairchild: For the first time, the editors at America’s favorite cooking magazine have culled through the thousands of recipes published through the years and compiled an encyclopedic look at editor and reader favorites. And they provide easy-to-follow instructions!
• The Organic Cook’s Bible: How to Select and Cook the Best Ingredients on the Market, by Jeff Cox: Interest in organic and sustainably farmed food is on the rise, and this thorough overview can help make sense of all those yummy options. Cox presents information ranging from history and seasonality to varietals and preparation methods; it all adds up to an invaluable and engaging reference.
• I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, by Amy Sedaris: Okay, I fear for the partygoer who attends an event that is actually based on some of Amy Sedaris’s wacky advice. But for those who are fans of this Sedaris sibling’s raucous comedy, I Like You is a holiday gift to die laughing for.
• Heat: An Amateur’s Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany, by Bill Buford: Buford, the former fiction editor at The New Yorker magazine, has written a compelling profile of popular chef and restaurateur Mario Batali that’s chock full of insight and Italian cooking tips for foodies. If the gourmet in your life hasn’t read Heat yet, this is a surefire winner. (I enjoyed this book in audio, by the way. It’s read by the author, and his nuanced reading enhances the already sparkling prose.)