I read cookbooks like most people read novels.  As I inhale each page, I’m mentally transported to a cobblestone street in Italy or to a sidewalk café in France.  I can almost hear saucepans clanking and smell the enticing aromas wafting from the kitchen as each recipe unfolds.  When I reach the end of the book, I sigh contentedly and somewhat wistfully-wishing I could remain in my fantasy world just a few more minutes.  I gently close the book and return it to its home on my bookshelf, nestled among the other 1,500 cookbooks I’ve collected.

Yes, 1,500 cookbooks.  Not to mention the additional 3,000 loose recipes that spill out of boxes, drawers, and file cabinets.  I guess it is safe to say I’m passionate about recipe collecting and all things food.  In fact, to sleuth for recipes is almost an addiction, but what a joy this personal treasure hunt is.

Once, I planned an entire vacation to the Hamptons to visit the Barefoot Contessa specialty food store just so I could taste the coconut cupcake.  What a yummy delight.  On a different vacation in a remote part of Alaska I walked 5-1/2 miles to the only bookstore to find a specific cookbook I wanted to add to my collection.  On this walk I encountered a brown bear, torrential rain, and more rain – but to my delight they actually had the cookbook.

Every year, I enjoy a vacation with my parents.  Yes, hunting for recipes always plays a little role in what Mom and I do when Dad needs a break.  We bribe him with great snacks and TV and then we make a beeline to a used bookstore, were we buy about a dozen cookbooks, next, we head to a copy shop and photocopy recipes until (midnight) to be exact.
During the trip home, Mom and I thumb through our old-new recipes, dog-earing the pages of recipes we vow to make.

We rarely end up making the recipes, but that’s okay.  For Mom and me, the thrill of the hunt – finding that one perfect recipe to add to our collection – is what makes it all worthwhile.  Besides, Mom and I have many special moments over this bond we share of recipe collecting.  Dad, well he loves the final product – something wonderful homemade to eat.

Please assure me I’m not alone in my recipe collecting obsession?  Share a true confession about your quest to find the perfect recipe.  Happy hunting – Lori

Go to Cutting Board Chat on the community page to share.