For those who don’t know me… I am a cookbook freak! Seriously, I am obsessed with cookbooks and ALL kinds! I actually have a bookshelf dedicated to ONLY cookbooks… I call it my COOKBOOK BOOKSHELF (trying saying that 5 times fast.. yeah). This bookshelf is another thing that I love so much. It was the first piece of furniture that my dad made! It also holds a box (bottom right corner) that is FULL of recipes that my mom collected as a young wife! Under in the cabinets below I store my table clothes. I have an old antique table cloth that my mom was given as a newly-wed wife. So much love here!!
Here is a picture of my Cookbook Bookshelf…
Anyway back to cookbooks… I have been known to literally POUR over cookbooks for hours. They are full of color, full of flavor, of culture, spices, smells, sights… AHHHH! Love it!
I wanted to put together some of my simple favorites. These are the cookbooks that hold a sweet spot in my heart!! So below is a break down of my top five simple favorites. All of the links to the cookbooks are my affiliate links so I appreciate your support if you decide to buy.
My Top 5 Favorite Cookbooks-
1. Trim Healthy Mama by Pearl Barrett & Serene Allison. This is not just a diet book but is a book FULL of great recipes to go along with the diet/lifestyle advice! The recipes are fairly simple, nothing crazy and since the book was written by mom’s of many most of these recipes will work for big families. I cannot recommend this book enough especially as a lifestyle change! It teaches you a new way of eating to help you get healthy, lose weight, maintain it and keep it off for life. Food Freedom!
2. Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book
– This was my first cookbook as a married woman. The perfect cookbook for a newly wife who will be cooking for her husband and soon family. These are basic simple recipes that don’t take a Su Chef to create. I would recommend one of these cookbooks for every newlywed wife! Above is what mine looks like now! Put to very good use!
3. The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook by Elana Amsterdam
– This book is great for replacing the gluten flour recipes with almond flour and coconut flours. But I do replace most of her sweeteners with my own favorite sweetener. A great gluten-free option for those not doing the wheat.
4. The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl
– LOVE The Pioneer Woman so much! All her recipes are amazing. Even with my Trim Healthy Lifestyle I usually can tweak some of her recipes to fit my way of eating. Plus, I love the fact that she is a homeschooling housewife turned cook and food blogger.
5. Welcome Home, Daddy!
& What’s for Dinner, Mom?
by Lorrie Flem- (You can buy them both at Lori’s store along with many other good books she has available: HERE) I had to pick both these books as my #5 because they kind of go together. The Welcome Home, Daddy book is one of my absolute favorites. A great book about teaching your kids value, especially in the kitchen, and welcoming daddy home! What’s For Dinner, Mom? has wonderful “big family” recipes that are easy. Now these recipe are not really THM friendly but you can tweak them to fit. She also has her recommendations for in-the-kitchen-tools, tips, etc.
I hope you had fun checking out my little gems! NEXT TIME I will show you some of my favorite big name culinary treasures!! BLESSINGS!! <3
Love your collection and storage. I have collected cookbooks for years, have both of my grandmothers collections as well as my parents. Some are packed safely away while some are stored on a bookshelf in easy reach 🙂 My Betty Crocker cookbook looks like your Better Homes and Garden one, with stains and spills throughout the pages.
Oh that sounds lovely!! Thank you so much for sharing that with me!! 🙂
Oh, how I love the Pioneer Woman! I have the same cookbook you do, and I have been following her cooking show and blog for a few years! Like you, I have found quite a few of her recipes that could be tweaked to be THM-friendly.
– Katie Forsyth
themodestheart.blogspot.com
I have 3/5 of those books and I agree they are on top of my pile. My Betty Crocker book is also missing pages! Now if I could just figure out something to eat…
I loved reading your pregnancy story and weight loss success with THM. I also love the recipes! I have seen references to blog but just got the chance to check it out! Thank you!
I love your list of cook books. I to am a Pioneer Woman fan and I can’t wait to tweak some of her recipes. I have just found your blog and i am thrilled. My husband and I have been do THM for three weeks and I love reading a blog filled with recipes I can try.
Hi, A friend just wrote and told me that you had two of my books listed as your favorites. I am honored and, kind of excited. Thanks. You mentioned that the books are not on Amazon. My friend suggested I tell you that we just sell them out of our book cottage and we have a lot of books available for a flat shipping rate of $5 – no matter how much you order.
Again, many thanks!
Love,
Lorrie
Thank you so much for letting me know! I have been a big fan of yours since I was a newer homeschooling mom! Those two books really inspired me at a time when I needed it most! Thank you so much! I will add your info to my post too! 🙂
I would love to hear how you sub THM sweeteners for the agave syrup that is usually used in the Elana’s almond flour cookbook. We have a favorite cake recipe from there that I would love to make THM friendly! I just didn’t know how to sub for the agave. We love her carrot cake recipe.
I usually just add the amount of sweetener I like in a baked goods (usually it’s about 1/2 cup of THM Gentle Sweet for breads or a batch of cookies) and then add a couple tablespoons of liquid like almond milk or heavy whip. That usually helps with the wet ingredient.
Do you have a cookbook yourself? I would love one!
Not yet, but one day!! 🙂
Do you have a cookbook of all your recipes? That would be awesome!
I have been trying to work on one for years… haha! Need to get busy!
I made your Italian Cream Cake recipe last night but was wondering if there is a misprint for the sweet blend measurements in the icing (4 tsp)? It wasn’t sweet enough at all so I pulled your Coconut Cake recipe which I had made and LOVED to compare the sweet blend ratio and saw that it was much more. I added more to the mix and the cake turned out amazing! Will definitely make it again but adding more sweetener to the icing.
I believe with the Italian Cream Cake I am using the Super Sweet Blend sweetener which is MUCH sweeter than the Gentle Sweet Sweetener from the Coconut Cake. I only use Gentle Sweet now but when I made the Italian Cream Cake THM had not come out with the Gentle Sweet yet. I definitely will revise it to accommodate the Gentle Sweet sweetener. So yes… way more Gentle Sweet! 🙂