This is my new Bible. (Mark Bittman’s other books are part of the canon, too, but this is by far the best.) Finally, a cookbook that is comprehensive, well-written, and full of opinions. I want someone to tell me if canned tomatoes are acceptable in this dish and whether most restaurants serve that dish with too much raw garlic. Mark Bittman is not afraid to speak his mind.

I can’t say this book has changed my life for the better – I now try a new recipe every other night, sometimes with disastrous results – but it has made it far more interesting.

This is not only a good cookbook…it’s a good read.

I asked for an all purpose cookbook for Christmas last year, hoping that my mom would get me The Joy of Cooking. This cookbook kicks the Joy of Cooking’s booty. It has many variations suggested for most of the recipes. I have yet to try a recipe out of it that didn’t work or taste good. If you can only have one cookbook, this is the one.

I used to have quite a few cookbooks, but I gave almost all of them to the library. This one here really does have everything in it.