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EPL Picks: Yes, Chef! Food Memoirs

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EPLPicks

Edmonton Public Library

Staff-created list

Are you obsessed with how good food brings people together? Maybe you’re curious about the behind the scenes of the restaurant industry and what inspires some of the biggest names in the most exclusive kitchens.

By:

EPLPicks

Edmonton Public Library

18 items

18 items

My Life in France

My Life in France

by Child, Julia

Book - 2006

Before the TV cooking show and before the revolutionary cookbook that demystified French cooking, this memoir chronicles the time in Julia Child’s life wh...Show more Before the TV cooking show and before the revolutionary cookbook that demystified French cooking, this memoir chronicles the time in Julia Child’s life when she had newly arrived in France. She knew no French nor anything about the country itself. Her life changed forever as she dove into learning the culture and how to make the food that she grew to love. Her experiences sparked her lifelong passion which she shared with the world. Show less

Before the TV cooking show and before the revolutionary cookbook that demystified French cooking, this memoir chronicles the time in Julia Child’s life wh...Show more Before the TV cooking show and before the revolutionary cookbook that demystified French cooking, this memoir chronicles the time in Julia Child’s life when she had newly arrived in France. She knew no French nor anything about the country itself. Her life changed forever as she dove into learning the culture and how to make the food that she grew to love. Her experiences sparked her lifelong passion which she shared with the world. Show less

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Julie and Julia

Julie and Julia

My Year of Cooking Dangerously

by Powell, Julie

Book - 2009

To break through the monotony of her dead-end job and living in a run-down apartment in Queens, Julie Powell decides to embark on a crazy assignment: to c...Show more To break through the monotony of her dead-end job and living in a run-down apartment in Queens, Julie Powell decides to embark on a crazy assignment: to cook EVERY recipe found in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. During the year, Julie chronicles her ambitious tasks with hilarity, hysteria and perseverance. Show less

To break through the monotony of her dead-end job and living in a run-down apartment in Queens, Julie Powell decides to embark on a crazy assignment: to c...Show more To break through the monotony of her dead-end job and living in a run-down apartment in Queens, Julie Powell decides to embark on a crazy assignment: to cook EVERY recipe found in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. During the year, Julie chronicles her ambitious tasks with hilarity, hysteria and perseverance. Show less

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Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Mastering the Art of French Cooking

by Child, Julia

Book - 2005-2006

We're including the book that inspired Julie Powell's Julie and Julia just in case you are inspired to have your own year of cooking 'dangerously' - please cook safely! We're including the book that inspired Julie Powell's Julie and Julia just in case you are inspired to have your own year of cooking 'dangerously' - please cook safely! Show less

We're including the book that inspired Julie Powell's Julie and Julia just in case you are inspired to have your own year of cooking 'dangerously' - please cook safely! We're including the book that inspired Julie Powell's Julie and Julia just in case you are inspired to have your own year of cooking 'dangerously' - please cook safely! Show less

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My Berlin Kitchen

My Berlin Kitchen

A Love Story, With Recipes

by Weiss, Luisa

Book - 2012

Luisa Weiss was part of the early boom of food bloggers, cooking her way through her massive recipe collection on her blog The Wednesday Chef. She had an ...Show more Luisa Weiss was part of the early boom of food bloggers, cooking her way through her massive recipe collection on her blog The Wednesday Chef. She had an ever-longing urge to return to her childhood home in Berlin. This food memoir with recipes chronicles how she finally took the plunge and went across the ocean to find happiness - finding love where she least expected it. Show less

Luisa Weiss was part of the early boom of food bloggers, cooking her way through her massive recipe collection on her blog The Wednesday Chef. She had an ...Show more Luisa Weiss was part of the early boom of food bloggers, cooking her way through her massive recipe collection on her blog The Wednesday Chef. She had an ever-longing urge to return to her childhood home in Berlin. This food memoir with recipes chronicles how she finally took the plunge and went across the ocean to find happiness - finding love where she least expected it. Show less

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The Art of Eating

The Art of Eating

by Fisher, M. F. K.

Book - 2004

This book contains five of M.F.K. Fisher’s most popular works: Serve It Forth (1937); Consider the Oyster (1941); How to Cook a Wolf (1942); The Gastronom...Show more This book contains five of M.F.K. Fisher’s most popular works: Serve It Forth (1937); Consider the Oyster (1941); How to Cook a Wolf (1942); The Gastronomical Me (1943); An Alphabet of Gourmets (1949). When asked why she chose to write about food and hunger, she replied 'When I write about hunger, I am really writing about love and the hunger for it, and warmth, and the love of it . . . and then the warmth and richness and fine reality of hunger satisfied.' Show less

This book contains five of M.F.K. Fisher’s most popular works: Serve It Forth (1937); Consider the Oyster (1941); How to Cook a Wolf (1942); The Gastronom...Show more This book contains five of M.F.K. Fisher’s most popular works: Serve It Forth (1937); Consider the Oyster (1941); How to Cook a Wolf (1942); The Gastronomical Me (1943); An Alphabet of Gourmets (1949). When asked why she chose to write about food and hunger, she replied 'When I write about hunger, I am really writing about love and the hunger for it, and warmth, and the love of it . . . and then the warmth and richness and fine reality of hunger satisfied.' Show less

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Chop Suey Nation

Chop Suey Nation

The Legion Cafe and Other Stories From Canada's Chinese Restaurants

by Hui, Ann

Book - 2019

In 2016, Globe and Mail reporter Ann Hui planned a cross Canada road trip to try and answer two questions: Why is there a Chinese restaurant in every smal...Show more In 2016, Globe and Mail reporter Ann Hui planned a cross Canada road trip to try and answer two questions: Why is there a Chinese restaurant in every small Canadian town? And who are the families that run them? After publishing the story, she realized that even her own family had a Chinese restaurant, The Legion Cafe, in their history before she was born. She reveals important parts of Canadian history and makes a case for the quintessentially Canadian chop suey cuisine. Show less

In 2016, Globe and Mail reporter Ann Hui planned a cross Canada road trip to try and answer two questions: Why is there a Chinese restaurant in every smal...Show more In 2016, Globe and Mail reporter Ann Hui planned a cross Canada road trip to try and answer two questions: Why is there a Chinese restaurant in every small Canadian town? And who are the families that run them? After publishing the story, she realized that even her own family had a Chinese restaurant, The Legion Cafe, in their history before she was born. She reveals important parts of Canadian history and makes a case for the quintessentially Canadian chop suey cuisine. Show less

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Blood, Bones, & Butter

Blood, Bones, & Butter

The Inadvertent Education of A Reluctant Chef

by Hamilton, Gabrielle

Book - 2011

This book chronicles unconventional journey that Gabrielle Hamilton took to becoming one of the world’s best chefs. We follow her through her experiences ...Show more This book chronicles unconventional journey that Gabrielle Hamilton took to becoming one of the world’s best chefs. We follow her through her experiences through different kitchens: the rural kitchen of her childhood where her mother prepared food over a 6-burner stove; kitchens in France, Greece and Turkey where she learned the essence of hospitality from complete strangers; mass production catering kitchens when she had to pay the rent, and finally her own kitchen at Prune with all the challenges of leading a team in a fast paced environment. Show less

This book chronicles unconventional journey that Gabrielle Hamilton took to becoming one of the world’s best chefs. We follow her through her experiences ...Show more This book chronicles unconventional journey that Gabrielle Hamilton took to becoming one of the world’s best chefs. We follow her through her experiences through different kitchens: the rural kitchen of her childhood where her mother prepared food over a 6-burner stove; kitchens in France, Greece and Turkey where she learned the essence of hospitality from complete strangers; mass production catering kitchens when she had to pay the rent, and finally her own kitchen at Prune with all the challenges of leading a team in a fast paced environment. Show less

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Kitchen Confidential

Kitchen Confidential

Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly

by Bourdain, Anthony

Book - 2013

An expansion of a 1999 New Yorker article he wrote entitled “Don’t eat Before Reading This,” Anthony Bourdain writes a tell-all book about the real behind...Show more An expansion of a 1999 New Yorker article he wrote entitled “Don’t eat Before Reading This,” Anthony Bourdain writes a tell-all book about the real behind-the-scenes of working in professional kitchens. This book launched Bourdain as a culinary writer extraordinaire. Show less

An expansion of a 1999 New Yorker article he wrote entitled “Don’t eat Before Reading This,” Anthony Bourdain writes a tell-all book about the real behind...Show more An expansion of a 1999 New Yorker article he wrote entitled “Don’t eat Before Reading This,” Anthony Bourdain writes a tell-all book about the real behind-the-scenes of working in professional kitchens. This book launched Bourdain as a culinary writer extraordinaire. Show less

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The Gourmands' Way

The Gourmands' Way

Six Americans in Paris and the Birth of A New Gastronomy : Julia Child, M.F.K. Fisher, Alexis Lichine, A.J. Liebling, Richard Olney, Alice B. Toklas

by Spring, Justin

Book - 2017

A group biography of six American food writers who lived and worked in Paris during the 30-year boom period in the city of lights after the Second World W...Show more A group biography of six American food writers who lived and worked in Paris during the 30-year boom period in the city of lights after the Second World War. The group is comprised of the war correspondent A. J. Liebling; Alice B. Toklas, Gertrude Stein’s life partner, who reinvented herself at seventy as a cookbook author; M.F.K. Fisher, a sensualist and fabulist storyteller; Julia Child, a television celebrity and cookbook author; Alexis Lichine, an ambitious wine merchant; and Richard Olney, a reclusive artist who reluctantly evolved into a brilliant writer on French food and wine. This group biography also tells the story of an era when America adored all things French. Show less

A group biography of six American food writers who lived and worked in Paris during the 30-year boom period in the city of lights after the Second World W...Show more A group biography of six American food writers who lived and worked in Paris during the 30-year boom period in the city of lights after the Second World War. The group is comprised of the war correspondent A. J. Liebling; Alice B. Toklas, Gertrude Stein’s life partner, who reinvented herself at seventy as a cookbook author; M.F.K. Fisher, a sensualist and fabulist storyteller; Julia Child, a television celebrity and cookbook author; Alexis Lichine, an ambitious wine merchant; and Richard Olney, a reclusive artist who reluctantly evolved into a brilliant writer on French food and wine. This group biography also tells the story of an era when America adored all things French. Show less

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Heat

Heat

An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany

by Buford, Bill

Downloadable Audiobook - 2007

Considering himself to be a confident cook, author Bill Buford decides to put his skills to the test by undergoing an apprenticeship at Mario Batali’s 3 S...Show more Considering himself to be a confident cook, author Bill Buford decides to put his skills to the test by undergoing an apprenticeship at Mario Batali’s 3 Star New York restaurant Babbo. This memoir chronicles his progress from starting as “kitchen slave” to apprenticing with Italian master chefs on his rise through the ranks. Show less

Considering himself to be a confident cook, author Bill Buford decides to put his skills to the test by undergoing an apprenticeship at Mario Batali’s 3 S...Show more Considering himself to be a confident cook, author Bill Buford decides to put his skills to the test by undergoing an apprenticeship at Mario Batali’s 3 Star New York restaurant Babbo. This memoir chronicles his progress from starting as “kitchen slave” to apprenticing with Italian master chefs on his rise through the ranks. Show less

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Crying in H Mart

Crying in H Mart

A Memoir

by Zauner, Michelle

Book - 2021

Stepping outside of memoirs focusing on the restaurant industry, this book focuses on rock star Michelle Zauner’s powerful connection with Korean food. Th...Show more Stepping outside of memoirs focusing on the restaurant industry, this book focuses on rock star Michelle Zauner’s powerful connection with Korean food. Through food, the book reflects on Michelle's culture as a mixed-race Asian-American and recovering from the grief of losing her Korean mother. Show less

Stepping outside of memoirs focusing on the restaurant industry, this book focuses on rock star Michelle Zauner’s powerful connection with Korean food. Th...Show more Stepping outside of memoirs focusing on the restaurant industry, this book focuses on rock star Michelle Zauner’s powerful connection with Korean food. Through food, the book reflects on Michelle's culture as a mixed-race Asian-American and recovering from the grief of losing her Korean mother. Show less

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Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

A Year of Food Life

by Kingsolver, Barbara

Book - 2007

First published in 2007, Barbara Kingsolver chronicles her family’s struggles and triumphs as they transition to life on an Appalachian farm and towards a...Show more First published in 2007, Barbara Kingsolver chronicles her family’s struggles and triumphs as they transition to life on an Appalachian farm and towards a localvore diet. Though it is now considered a major food movement with restaurants touting locally sourced menus, at the time trying to maintain a locally sourced diet was so new, there wasn’t yet a term for it. Show less

First published in 2007, Barbara Kingsolver chronicles her family’s struggles and triumphs as they transition to life on an Appalachian farm and towards a...Show more First published in 2007, Barbara Kingsolver chronicles her family’s struggles and triumphs as they transition to life on an Appalachian farm and towards a localvore diet. Though it is now considered a major food movement with restaurants touting locally sourced menus, at the time trying to maintain a locally sourced diet was so new, there wasn’t yet a term for it. Show less

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Toast

Toast

Streaming Video - 2010

Based on Nigel Slater’s food memoir of the same name, Toast paints a portrait of his life story through the food that was prepared for him for those that ...Show more Based on Nigel Slater’s food memoir of the same name, Toast paints a portrait of his life story through the food that was prepared for him for those that loved him (or didn’t). The movie depicts some of the most evocative food memories such as the one and only time his family tried Spaghetti Bolognese. Show less

Based on Nigel Slater’s food memoir of the same name, Toast paints a portrait of his life story through the food that was prepared for him for those that ...Show more Based on Nigel Slater’s food memoir of the same name, Toast paints a portrait of his life story through the food that was prepared for him for those that loved him (or didn’t). The movie depicts some of the most evocative food memories such as the one and only time his family tried Spaghetti Bolognese. Show less

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Eat A Peach

Eat A Peach

A Memoir

by Chang, David

Book - 2020

After failing to find a job after graduating, David convinced his father to lend him the money to open a noodle restaurant in Manhattan’s East Village: Mo...Show more After failing to find a job after graduating, David convinced his father to lend him the money to open a noodle restaurant in Manhattan’s East Village: Momofuku in 2004. The restaurant’s unpretentious air and great tasting stapes earned rave reviews and by 2018 he was the owner and chef of a restaurant empire with over 15 locations. Soon David was the star of a Netflix show and podcast, and was named one of the most influential people of the 21st century. This memoir also touches on Chang’s struggles with suicidal thoughts, depression and anxiety in a deeply honest and humble story of passion and tenacity. Show less

After failing to find a job after graduating, David convinced his father to lend him the money to open a noodle restaurant in Manhattan’s East Village: Mo...Show more After failing to find a job after graduating, David convinced his father to lend him the money to open a noodle restaurant in Manhattan’s East Village: Momofuku in 2004. The restaurant’s unpretentious air and great tasting stapes earned rave reviews and by 2018 he was the owner and chef of a restaurant empire with over 15 locations. Soon David was the star of a Netflix show and podcast, and was named one of the most influential people of the 21st century. This memoir also touches on Chang’s struggles with suicidal thoughts, depression and anxiety in a deeply honest and humble story of passion and tenacity. Show less

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Notes From A Young Black Chef

Notes From A Young Black Chef

A Memoir

by Onwuachi, Kwame

Book - 2019

Winner of the 2019 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year, Kwame Onwuachi had opened and closed one of the most talked about restaurants in th...Show more Winner of the 2019 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year, Kwame Onwuachi had opened and closed one of the most talked about restaurants in the US. He also launched a catering company funded by selling candy on the subway, all by the age of 27 years old. This memoir details his experiences in rural Nigeria, his return to the Bronx and how food he was able to break out of a dangerous downward spiral. Show less

Winner of the 2019 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year, Kwame Onwuachi had opened and closed one of the most talked about restaurants in th...Show more Winner of the 2019 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef of the Year, Kwame Onwuachi had opened and closed one of the most talked about restaurants in the US. He also launched a catering company funded by selling candy on the subway, all by the age of 27 years old. This memoir details his experiences in rural Nigeria, his return to the Bronx and how food he was able to break out of a dangerous downward spiral. Show less

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Save Me the Plums

Save Me the Plums

My Gourmet Memoir

by Reichl, Ruth

Book - 2019

When offered the top position at America’s oldest epicurean magazine, her first instinct was to decline. She was a writer and never planned to be anyone’s...Show more When offered the top position at America’s oldest epicurean magazine, her first instinct was to decline. She was a writer and never planned to be anyone’s boss. How could a former Berkley hippie make it work in the corporate world of publishing and not lose her soul? This book documents the moment when farm-to-table changed how we eat forever. It’s the moment before the internet completely changed the magazine world. Show less

When offered the top position at America’s oldest epicurean magazine, her first instinct was to decline. She was a writer and never planned to be anyone’s...Show more When offered the top position at America’s oldest epicurean magazine, her first instinct was to decline. She was a writer and never planned to be anyone’s boss. How could a former Berkley hippie make it work in the corporate world of publishing and not lose her soul? This book documents the moment when farm-to-table changed how we eat forever. It’s the moment before the internet completely changed the magazine world. Show less

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Wine Girl

Wine Girl

The Trials and Triumphs of America's Youngest Sommelier

by James, Victoria

Downloadable Audiobook - 2020

At the age of 21, Victoria James became the youngest sommelier in the country at a Michelin-starred restaurant. She had to balance the challenges of gropi...Show more At the age of 21, Victoria James became the youngest sommelier in the country at a Michelin-starred restaurant. She had to balance the challenges of groping patrons and bosses that abused their role with selling bottles worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. This memoir recounts her experiences of hitting bottom at a new restaurant and her restorative trips to vineyards to connect with the wine that she loved. Show less

At the age of 21, Victoria James became the youngest sommelier in the country at a Michelin-starred restaurant. She had to balance the challenges of gropi...Show more At the age of 21, Victoria James became the youngest sommelier in the country at a Michelin-starred restaurant. She had to balance the challenges of groping patrons and bosses that abused their role with selling bottles worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. This memoir recounts her experiences of hitting bottom at a new restaurant and her restorative trips to vineyards to connect with the wine that she loved. Show less

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An Onion in My Pocket

An Onion in My Pocket

My Life With Vegetables

by Madison, Deborah

Book - 2020

Though not a vegetarian herself, Deborah Madison has profoundly changed the way generations of Americans this about cooking with vegetables and helped tra...Show more Though not a vegetarian herself, Deborah Madison has profoundly changed the way generations of Americans this about cooking with vegetables and helped transform “vegetarian” into a mainstream way of eating. Before becoming a household name, Madison spent almost 20 years as a Buddhist priest, coming of age during the counterculture movement in San Francisco. Show less

Though not a vegetarian herself, Deborah Madison has profoundly changed the way generations of Americans this about cooking with vegetables and helped tra...Show more Though not a vegetarian herself, Deborah Madison has profoundly changed the way generations of Americans this about cooking with vegetables and helped transform “vegetarian” into a mainstream way of eating. Before becoming a household name, Madison spent almost 20 years as a Buddhist priest, coming of age during the counterculture movement in San Francisco. Show less

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