My 8 *Favorite* Cookbooks for Simple (and Healthy!) Meals

As a self-proclaimed cookbook addict, here are the 8 most-used & most-loved books on my shelf!

Hey, hey, friend—

Today I am boppin’ in your inbox to talk about…. drum roll….

COOKBOOKS.

But not just any cookbooks—
We’re covering my favorite cookbooks

Today, I am recapping the 8 *specific* books that I find myself reaching for over & over (and, um, over) again.

….and this is coming from someone with TWENTY-FOUR DIFFERENT COOKBOOKS IN HER POSSESSION.

I am not proud.

But I am not ashamed either. #TheHeartWantsWhatItWants

Healthy meals really *can* be SIMPLE

As you guys know I’m really passionate about nourishing my body, eating whole foods, and comprehensively fueling myself, my body, and my mind.

Buuuut….

Not in an overly-strict, complicated, have to eat everything “perfectly” kind of way, ya know? Instead, just eating with intention and simply seeking out foods that make me feel GOOD. Vibrant. Confident. Satisfied. 

And a big part of that journey has been learning to become more comfortable in the kitchen. 

^^my “style” of cooking: simple, straight-forward, time-efficient, *and* HEALTHY.

Here’s the deal— I wasn’t always a “good cook”

While I learned a few basics growing up, I definitely was more of a processed food 90’s kid— ramen noodles, microwave dinners, toaster strudels for breakfast— you know the drill.

So, safe to say— I was NOT very comfortable in truly cooking when I first started doing it for myself. To be honest, I didn’t know HOW to roast veggies, HOW to prepare meat, HOW to cut things properly — so many things that are basics of cooking. 

The result? I felt *intimidated* by cooking, and often found myself eating the same 3 meals over and over again or buying pre-made, processed items or grabbing some quick meal on the go.

But little by little, with exposure, and TRYING new things, and allowing myself to be uncomfortable, I now feel very confident in the kitchen. 

Fast forward to now—

I am so happy to say that cooking is now a place of creativity and peace for me, and while, of course, I’m not like super excited to make dinner every single night, it truly is something I look forward to and I think that’s because I taught myself some of the basics using a few cookbooks. 

Books that make healthy eating SIMPLE:

So, all of that to say, today I’m going to break it alllllllll down by sharing some of my 8 favorite cookbooks. (That, BONUS, are primarily based around whole foods and nourishing meals!)

None of the cookbooks on this list are overly complicated or time consuming (because to be honest I have a few of those cookbooks and never use them because YA GURL IS JUST NOT going to the store to buy 47 different, exotic ingredients, ya know?!?!). 

Moreso— this list is full of cookbooks for everyday life, and they’re all delicious in their own unique ways. 

As mentioned, I have 24 different cookbooks (hi, I’m obsessed), but if I TRULY *had* to pick my favorites, you’re lookin’ at ‘em.

These 8 books have absolutely transformed how I view food and cooking. You can cook nourishing, delicious food without spending all day in the kitchen, spending your paycheck at the grocery store, or obsessing over measurements. Who knew?! 

All of these cookbooks have different pros and cons, but they’re all heavily used in the Eskuri household — I’ll break ‘em down and then you can choose maybe one or two that most call to you.

I know, I know— you’re thinking, “Kate. That is not 24 cookbooks! You are a liar!!!!!!!”. But, my friend— hear me out. I assure you that rest [less frequently used] cookbooks are safely tucked away in my pantry. They just simply didn’t deserve a countertop spot. #CutThroat

Okay, I LOVE all 8 of the books on this list, but if I *had* to pick my top 3, it would be….

• 1. The Kitchen Shelf: Okay so this is the big kahuna — my absolute FAVORITE cookbook. Hands down. The whooooole book is based around simple staple ingredients that probably already have in your cabinet right now. Adam and I both vote that this is our most-used, most-loved cookbook. It’s perfect for the “omg we have nothing in the fridge” moments because there are SO many recipes you can make with the “boring” staples in your cabinets. If nothing else, GET THIS ONE. (Pssssssst: my personal grocery shopping list freebie is designed to pair perfectly with this specific cookbook to allow you to cook every. single. recipe. This grocery list + this cookbook = hundreds of recipes ready for ya!)
  

• 2. The Simply Real Health Cookbook: Mmmm, this one is a STAPLE. Just straightforward, whole food goodness. The recipes in this cookbook are not overly complicated, real world approved, and all based around whole ingredients. It’s just simple, nourishing magic. Not to mention, these recipes are 100000% delicious annnnnd most of them are five ingredients or less. Yup. Like I said — MAGIC. Highly, highly recommend.
  

• 3. How To Cook Without A Book: This is one I loooooooove. You know those people who can cook by putting a dash here and a sprinkle there and not measuring or following a recipe? This is the book for you if you kind of want to get to that place where you can cook with intuition, freedom, and without rigidly following a recipe. This book is all about teaching you cooking basics — of course there are recipes in there but really it’s about learning foundational aspects of cooking. It’s very thick since it goes into so much detail, but it’s also BEAUTIFUL. I love having it out on the counter. This is a super unique take on a cookbook since it teaches you how NOT to use a cookbook, but I really love it, and it has strengthened my understanding of many cooking “basics”. (Another similar style of book, is “What To Cook and How to Cook It”. Both are great options!)

And then here are the 5 others that I absolutely LOOOOOVE:

• 4. The Forest Feast: This cookbook is full of simple, beautiful recipes that are all based around whole foods. This book is written for vegetarians, and while I’m not personally a vegetarian I find these recipes AMAZING for veggie-forward and unique hosting, simple side dishes, and whole food inspo! This may be one of the prettiest cookbooks ever — sometimes I just flip through it for fun, ha!
  

• 5. Cook Once Eat All Week: Game. Changing. This is meal prepping made simple. Whenever I’m working with health coaching clients who want to eat healthy and they’re open to meal prepping, this is hands down the book I recommend the most. Cook Once Eat All Week is exactly that — you cook once and you’re covered for the week. It gives you the exact shopping list you need and exactly how to prepare everything so that one grocery run will result in four different meals. So even though you’re meal prepping, you’re not eating the same exact thing every day. It’s all laid out for you: exactly what to buy, exactly how to cook it, exactly how to combine it, and it’s all based on naturally gluten free, whole food, healthy recipes. It is SO well-done and really simplifies meal prepping.
  

• 6. Family Freezer Meals: If you like to make crockpot meals, this is for you. It is SOLELY dedicted to make-ahead meals, and walks you through step. by. step. on how to make easy (and delicious!) freezer meals. I did this in postpartum just to have some meals prepared for when Miles arrived and we were short on time and energy, and it was soooooooo nice. And you can make this fun! My mom and I both have this book so we’ll each go through and each pick four recipes and get double of all ingredients so we can share! So I’ll make two bags of chicken thai curry and my mom will make two bags of this tomato soup thing, and then I get one and she gets one. We’ll just have a day together where we are responsible for bringing the ingredients for our recipes and we share so we leave with 8 unique freezer meals, which is so great. Such a fun book to play with!
  

• 7. Bare Minimum Dinners: Okay, this is a newer one to me, but I’m loving it! The title says it all— it's simple dinner ideas that aren’t overly complicated. All the recipes are very straightforward, not overly fancy but still unique. I like that they’re not just super basic and boring. They’re unique dinners that are still quite easy to make. So like I said this is a new one, but it’s one we are loving.
  

• 8. 5-Ingredient Cooking For Two: Yet another one where the title says it all. This cookbook rocks! Simple, straight forward meals designed for pairs. My favorite part of this specific cookbook is *knowing* that each recipe will have minimal ingredients— perfect for quick ‘n’ easy meals (annnd saving money at the grocery store!).

Reminder: it takes PRACTICE to feel comfortable in the kitchen

If you’re anything like the past version of me, you may feel simply LACKING on fundamental cooking skills. You may feel intimidated by cooking, grocery shopping, picking a recipe, prepping the meal…

And there’s is NO shame there. (I mean, how many of us grew up on processed food and TV dinners, right?!)

BUT, we don’t have to accept that as “just the way it is”.

Because we do have the option to take responsibility for our own cooking journey , and buying 1-2 strategic cookbooks that fit your life and your cooking goals can be such a beautiful way to get comfortable in the kitchen and gain those kitchen skills (…while nourishing yourself in the process, *wink)

So, my friend, I hope the books above helped inspire you today— these 8 books are all straightforward, every-day-life-approved, and rooted in nourishing ingredients. AKA, the healthy-eating-made-simple trifecta!

Alright, that’s a wrap— have a FOOD day!!!!!!!

(Get it… like “good” day?…. ha…… ha?)

Okay, that was so dumb. I just felt some brain cells die. Need to end this email immediately.

See ya!

Speaking of books…

This week, we had our first EVER virtual book club for the paid subscribers of my substack, and holy. cow.

It was *genuinely* amazing— so uplifting. so thought-provoking. so FUN.

We had 30+ women read the book, gather via zoom, and truly CONNECT with one another. It was so special (just read a few of the DMs below…).

If you want in on the next virtual book club, ensure you are a paid subscriber here, and I will send out the details on the next gathering soon!