11 books for the foodie this holiday season

If you know someone who loves to cook, here are a few bookish gift ideas for them!

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

Recipe for a Perfect Wife follows Alice Hale, a newlywed who reluctantly leaves behind a career to live with her husband in a big, empty house in the suburbs. While there, Alice stumbles onto old cookbooks left behind from the previous owner: 1950s housewife Nellie Murdoch. That discovery leads to the uncovering of longstanding secrets, lies and truths about the traditional husband-wife dynamic.

• How vintage cookbooks inspired Karma Brown to write a novel about marriage

Karma Brown is a novelist from Ontario. Her other books include Come Away with Me, The Choice We Make, In This Moment and The Life Lucy Knew.

Momofuku's David Chang talks about fame and food

10 years ago

Duration 6:18

David Chang was once an aspiring cook who agreed to work the phones in order to get a job in a restaurant. He's now a world-famous chef who has brought his empire to Canada.

Eat a Peach by DavidChang, with Gabe Ulla

In his memoir Eat a Peach, David Chang reflects on his life from growing up the youngest son in a deeply religious Korean American family to opening his first Momofuku Noodle Bar in 2004. Eat a Peach chronicles Chang's winding path to success while wrestling with his lifelong feelings of otherness and inadequacy. It explores the mental illness that almost killed him and offers a penetrating look at restaurant life.

• Momofuku's David Chang talks about fame and food

Chang is an Americanrestaurateur, author and TV personality. He is also the author of the cookbooks Momofuku and Momofuku Milk Bar.

The Next Chapter7:41Jeremy Charles on Wildness

Chef Jeremy Charles, of the renowned St. Johns restaurant Raymonds, on celebrating local fare in his cookbook Wildness: An Ode to Newfoundland and Labrador.

Wildness byJeremy Charles

In Wildness, chef Jeremy Charles takes readers on a journey to Canada's rugged east coast where wildness has a profound influence on the tasting menu at Charles's acclaimed restaurant, Raymonds, nestled in the historic port at St. John's. The book features more than 160 recipes that spotlight local fare like cod, shellfish, moose, game, wild ediblesand more. Charles has written a story to accompany each recipe, along with essays about the people and landscape.

• Jeremy Charles goes wild in showcasing the charm of Newfoundland cuisine

Charlesis a chef from Newfoundland and Labrador.Wildnessis his first cookbook.

The Next Chapter6:29Shane M. Chartrand on Tawaw: Progressive Indigenous Cuisine

Award-winning Cree chef Shane M. Chartrand on his cookbook, Tawaw: Progressive Indigenous Cuisine. (Interviewed onstage at Calgary's Wordfest.)

taww byShane M. Chartrand,with Jennifer Cockrall-King

Shane M. Chartrand was born to Cree parents and raised by a Mtis father and Mi'kmaw-Irish mother. He has spent his career exploring the diverse cuisine and stories of Indigenous peoples across Canada, culminating in this collection of over 75 recipes. He includes dishes like the award-winning War Paint alongside stories of his culinary and personal journey in taww.

• Why chef Shane M. Chartrand's approach to cooking is rooted in his Indigenous identity

Chartrand is theexecutive chef at SC Restaurant in Enoch, Alta.tawwis his first cookbook.

The Sunday Magazine10:53How food can be its own language with author Francesca Ekwuyasi

We kick off an ongoing focus on what food can reveal about life, culture and society with Francesca Ekwuyasi, the Nigerian-Canadian novelist behind the Giller Prize longlisted novel Butter Honey Pig Bread. She speaks with Chattopadhyay about the role food plays in complex family dynamics and how cooking can be a way of expressing care, regret, desire for forgiveness, and more.For more, visit: www.cbc.ca/1.5737303

Butter Honey Pig Bread byFrancesca Ekwuyasi

Butter Honey Pig Breadis a novel about twin sisters, Kehinde and Taiye, and their mother, Kambirinachi. Kambirinachi believes she was a spirit who was supposed to die as a small child. By staying alive, she is cursing her family a fear that appears to come true when Kehinde experiences something that tears the family apart, and divides the twins for years. But when the three women connect years later, they must confront their past and find forgiveness.

• How food becomes the 'punctuation between all the talking' in Francesca Ekwuyasi's debut novel

Francesca Ekwuyasiis a writer, filmmaker and visual artist. Her writing has appeared in the Malahat Review, Guts and Brittle Paper, and she was longlisted for the 2019 Journey Prize.Butter Honey Pig Breadis her first book.

The Sunday Edition24:59Why hospital food is so bad and how we can make it better

Is there a more unappetizing phrase than hospital food? For Toronto chef and food activist Joshna Maharaj, good food is much more than a luxury. It is a fundamental right, and essential to the dignity and well-being of the people in institutions like hospitals, long-term care homes and prisons. Her new book, Take Back The Tray: Revolutionizing Food in Hospitals, Schools, and Other Institutions, makes the case for from-scratch cooking and locally-sourced ingredients.

Oh She Glows for Dinner by Angela Liddon

In Oh She Glows for Dinner, Angela Liddon shares meal prep plans, helpful make-ahead tips and her favourite seasonal and holiday menus. She includes foolproof recipes to help streamline your busy week including storage and reheating instructions to remove time-consuming guesswork. Liddon is best-known for her flavourful, creative and whole foods approach to plant-based cooking.

Liddon is a blogger and chef from Ontario.Oh She Glows for Dinner is her third cookbook. Her other cookbooks are Oh She Glows and Oh She Glows Everyday.

Take Back the Tray by Joshna Maharaj

In Take Back the Tray, Joshna Maharaj argues that institutional kitchens can produce good, nutritious and sustainable meals. Maharaj, who has worked in hospitals and schools, has dished out homemade food to maternity ward mothers and students alike. Take Back the Tray aims to revolutionize the way we see and use food as a community.

• Chef Joshna Maharaj believes institutional food could be tasty and nourishing

Maharaj is a chef, food expert andactivist who has appeared on CBC andTVO.Take Back the Trayis her first book.

The Next Chapter10:34Mena Massoud on Evolving Vegan

Aladdin star Mena Massoud shares how he developed an animal-free diet for himself in his debut cookbook Evolving Vegan.

Evolving Vegan by Mena Massoud

Aladdin star Mena Massoud chronicles his experiences and discoveries from his recent road trip across North America in Evolving Vegan. The book features 80 international recipes, including dishes like tofu pad thai, fresh chickpea salad and raw sweet potato lasagna, as well as tips for lifelong vegans and people transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle.

• Mena Massoud takes readers on a food-based journey in Evolving Vegan

Massoud is an Canadian Egyptian actor, best known for playing Aladdin in the Disney live-action remake of the classic story. He also starred in the filmRun This Town.

The Next Chapter11:55Claire Tansey on Dinner, Uncomplicated

Claire Tansey develops recipes to combat cooking fatigue in Dinner, Uncomplicated.

Ottolenghi Flavour byYotam Ottolenghi&Ixta Belfrage

Yotam Ottolenghi and co-writer Ixta Belfrage break down the three factors that create flavour and offer innovative vegetable dishes that deliver new ingredient combinations. The book is broken down into three sections, which reveals how to tap into the potential of ordinary vegetables to create extraordinary food. Ottolenghi Flavour includes simple recipes for weeknight dinners, low-effort high-impact dishes and standout meals for cooks with more time.

• Is it time for a fusion cuisine comeback? Yotam Ottolenghi and Ixta Belfrage think so

Ottolenghi is an Israeli restaurateur and bestselling cookbook author living in London. His other books include Plenty,OttolenghiSimple and EssentialOttolenghi.

Belfrageis a chef and Ottolenghi's close collaborator. She lives in London.Ottolenghi Flavour is her first cookbook.

Falastin by Sami Tamimi& Tara Wigley

Palestinian chef Sami Tamimi and co-author Tara Wigley explore the history of Palestine through its food and culture. From the recipes of refugee-camp cooks to the home kitchens of Gaza and the mill of a master tahini maker, they reveal the traditions of an ancient cuisine that has morphed over time, while capturing the stories of the country's people. Falastin retraces the lineage and evolution of Palestine's dynamic cuisine.

Tamimiis a Palestinian restaurateur, chef and author living in London. His other cookbooks includeOttolenghiandJerusalem.

Wigley is a writer and recipe developer. She also co-authored the cookbook OttolenghiSimple and has supported the creation of several other cookbooks.

Dinner, Uncomplicated by Claire Tansey

Dinner, Uncomplicated isa cookbook that offers easy and simple ways to create great food when you're strapped for time. It features 90 easy-to-follow recipes that can be made in 45 minutes or less and are easy to freeze, store and transport: perfect for busy family life.

• Claire Tansey offers tips on how we can be more efficient home cooks, even in a pandemic

Claire Tanseyis a chef, writer, teacher and former food director at Chatelaine magazine. She isalso the author of the cookbookUncomplicated: Taking the Stress Out of Home Cooking.