A bunch of my cookbooks were under a window that leaked wind driven rain during Katrina, and the Stuffed Griffin among others had some nasty looking mold. I was so upset. I went through them all and chose to salvage just three -- The Stuffed Griffin,
The River Cafe (where Jamie Oliver worked and copied most of his recipes from...if you like the Naked Chef, order the gorgeous River Cafe books.... http://www.amazon.com/River-Cafe-Cookbook-Ruth-Rogers/dp/0091812550/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208143986&sr=8-1)
and Talk About Good!
it's basically the Cajun Bible. Given that I had to Clorox, wipe down with alcohol, leave in the sun, and iron these cookbooks, trust me when I say they are staples in a good kitchen.
My favorite cookbook right now is Susan Spicer's Crescent City Cooking
http://www.amazon.com/Crescent-City-Cooking-Unforgettable-Recipes/dp/1400043891/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208144222&sr=1-1 I can't even begin to tell you how good this book is. Susan Spicer's restaurant, Bayona, is one of my two favorites in New Orleans. Her food is rich without being heavy. It's just really fresh and flavorful. The crazy thing is, the cookbook shows that the food is pretty simple, too. It's just that she uses some great flavor combinations. She also is pretty frugal about ingredients, and tells you when olive oil will do over extra virgin olive oil, and recommends cheeses other than parmesan reggiano. It's a great cookbook. I could live off her Green Rice recipe.
).
but now I am getting that itch again to create.
It is a tad bit on the hot side but nothing a cold PBR tallboy can't fix.
I know the feeling.