Books to Make Your Mouth Water

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Sometimes I look back on the year and notice a trend in my reading choices.  Last year, memoirs filled my list of completed books. This year I found myself gravitating toward books about food.  I plan to share a detailed post later in the month, devoted to what I read in 2014, complete with thoughts on my favorites and disappointments, plus a visual peek of every book I read this year. (Updated to include the link to my year-end post here.)

Until then, here's a look at a few food highlights from the year:

Lizzy & Janeby Katherine Reay

I loved this fictional story which wove food into every chapter.  Two sisters who chose different life paths find themselves pulled back together when one of them is diagnosed with breast cancer.  The younger of the sisters is head chef at a New York City restaurant so food permeates the plot, analogies, and lessons. Like Katherine Reay's first book, there are scads of references to great works of literature and quotes from well-known classics.  Book nerds rejoice! 

Stones for Bread by Christa Parrish

I read this way back in January and it started my obsession with sour dough bread this year. The plot was excellent storytelling, but the recipes interspersed throughout the pages competed for my attention.  I obtained a sour dough starter from a friend last winter, but I make the chocolate cherry sour dough from this book at least once a month.  (I make a plain sour dough at least twice a month, too, but the recipe came from elsewhere.)

Home Cooking: A Writer in the Kitchenby Laurie Colwin

The essays in this book are short and contain an enjoyable mix of anecdotes, kitchen hints, and recipes. This one is written in a memoir style which may be what attracted me most of all.

Cooking Light Dinnertime Survival Guide: Feed Your Family. Save Your Sanity. by Sally Kuzenchak

I love cookbooks with bright colorful photos and I love recipes that are simple and use everyday ingredients.  We liked the garlic fries and the lasagna rolls, and  the sauteed apples have become a go-to side dish because they can be prepared in less than 10 minutes.

Preserving by the Pint: Quick Seasonal Canning for Small Spaces by Marisa McClellan

I tried my hand at canning for the first time this summer.  This book made the process very doable and un-scary because each recipe made onlyenough to fill 2-4 small jars.  We enjoyed sampling pear caramel, salted peach jam, and Anaheim pepper sub spread and we're giving a few jars away as gifts this Christmas.

This book is on my personal Christmas list so I can't testify to its goodness, but it looks like a winner!

Crock-Pot Slow Cooker Bible

Do you gravitate toward a certain genre of book? 
Do you have any food-type books to recommend?