The Girl's Guide
Issue 101: The Cookbook Gift Guide
Today’s newsletter is the last of 2023 — see you in 2024! I hope you enjoy my roundup of delightful cookbooks as well as my interview with Edie Guy.
If you missed the last issue, find it here.
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The Cookbook Gift Guide
Some of my favorite gifts I’ve received are cookbooks, believe it or not. And there are so many cookbooks available that have something for everyone — adventurous bakers, painstaking gourmands, health nuts, and busy moms (choose your fighter). Once you find the perfect cookbook for your giftee, all you need is some wrapping paper, ribbon, and a cute add-on like a wooden spoon or pretty measuring cups for a precious, personalized gift.
I’m still building out my cookbook collection, so I asked you readers for your favorites to round out this gift guide. Let’s get cooking!
For the everything-from-scratch cook
“I received The Prairie Homestead Cookbook by Jill Winger for Christmas last year and it has such a wealth of tips and tricks! Anyone who loves down-home cooking is going to enjoy this cookbook, which has hearty entrees as well as a “Prairie Pantry Staples” section with recipes for making your own cream cheese, whole milk ricotta, and more. Not to mention it’s a beautiful, glossy hardcover book that’s great for display. Homesteaders and non-homesteaders alike will find it a great addition to their cookbook collection.” -Evie Solheim
For the busy baker
“Forgive me for recommending a book that no longer seems to be in print — but you can find used copies on the cheap. Mom’s Big Book of Baking by Lauren Chattman has so many great recipes that I can’t leave it out. My aunt bought this recipe book for me when I was a teenager and I have considered it my baking Bible ever since. Chattman is extremely detailed in describing her techniques, but she also tends to use ingredients that are easy to find or already in your pantry. My family begs me to make her Blueberry-Cornmeal Crumb Squares every chance I can. And hey, since the book is so inexpensive, that means you can pair it with some really nice baking tools or ingredients.” -Evie Solheim
For the girl who got a Dutch oven last Christmas
“I love everything from America’s Test Kitchen; it’s hard to go wrong with them. Over the last year or two, I’ve been cooking a lot from their book Cook it in Your Dutch Oven. I love a Dutch oven meal, particularly in the winter.” -Sarah Gustafson
For the visual visionary
“I love Maman: The Cookbook: All-Day Recipes to Warm Your Heart because it’s truly the most beautifully photographed thing. (I’m a photographer so I’m biased for this being a deciding factor!) but it’s a good blend of brunch and lunch options. I also love The Cottage Kitchen: Cozy Cooking in the English Countryside by Marte Marie Forsberg for the photography and stories in it. Very cool English cottage aesthetic.” -Rebekah Murray
For the beginner cook
“My first recommendation would be the Half Baked Harvest Super Simple Cookbook. It's a great starter cookbook and I love that I can easily doctor recipes as needed for dietary preferences or flavors. She does call for a lot of fresh herbs, but to save money and time, I use dried herbs (google the correct fresh vs. dried ratio!) with much success. It includes some of my family's now favorite recipes and includes great recipes for cooking for a crowd. This would be great for someone just starting out in the kitchen.” -Bailey Mailloux
For the expert cook
“My other recommendation is for someone who you know loves to cook — gift them a customized blank recipe book to store all of their favorites. When my husband and I got married, I ordered a beautiful leather bound blank cookbook on Etsy and have been slowly adding not only our favorite recipes to it, but our favorite recipes from our parents, grandparents, and other family members. I recommend doing a blank book because there is room to tape or glue in hand-written recipe cards. We've been able to have some amazing conversations with family about our favorite childhood recipes and where they came from while ensuring someone has the recipe written down for the next generation!” -Bailey Mailloux
For the Eastern enthusiast
“Land of Plenty, Fuchsia Dunlop’s first cookbook introducing Chinese cookery to an English-speaking audience, has been a classic since it was released in 2001 and a mainstay in my kitchen since the moment I opened it. Really remarkable cooking is great in love, and it’s Dunlop’s story of her great romance with the food of Sichuan province that animates everything here. Every dish, every ingredient, can seem strange or difficult— it’s the infectious adoration, the really deep care behind every recipe and guide, that makes this unforgettable. Learning to prepare food in entirely new manner, with new flavors and techniques and new assumptions about what goes into a dish, is one of the best things I think a cook can do to expand their appreciation and understanding of what makes every kind of flavor tick around the world. (And the twice-cooked pork recipe is better than anything I’ve ever been served in a restaurant.)” -Chris McCaffery
*Bonus cookbook* I just picked up a copy of The Christmas Movie Cookbook and got to meet the author herself! Author Julia Rutland lives in the DC area — how cool is that? Recipes include Old-Fashioned Meatloaf from A Christmas Story, Giant Chocolate Chunk Cookies from The Santa Clause, and Spiked Spiced Cider from A Bad Moms Christmas. I can’t wait to try this cookbook out!
Interview with Edie Guy
In today’s newsletter, I’m excited to introduce you to Edie Guy! You can find her on Twitter.
What does your life look like right now?
My life looks very helter-skelter right now, but filled to the brim in many good ways. My husband Joey Guy and I (we were recently married this summer) have settled into our first home together near Old Town Alexandria. It is the loveliest house, and we are very fortunate to be near some of our closest friends, St. Mary's Basilica, where we attend Mass, and the old-fashioned charm of Old Town. We currently both work on the Hill. I'm a Communications Director for a Member of Congress and am studying for my Master's Degree. There's nothing better than coming home at the end of the day and that's been the stabilizing peace for both of us.
What's something you wish you had known before moving to the DC area?
Understanding the need to make a solid plan for carving out time to pursue my own hobbies and interests outside of work. If you don't build habits early on for what you love pursuing outside of work, it becomes very difficult to keep up with the things you love. This is something I dwell on frequently and am very challenged by in a particularly busy season.
What's your advice to a college student or recent grad who wants to work on the Hill?
My answer for this has recently changed. :) Know how to spell, use proper grammar, and write cohesive and appealing sentences. Be on time, be respectful to those in authority, and don't have an attitude of entitlement. It all comes down to a very simple concept: do your job well. It's not that hard and goes far to your supervisors/boss.
What's your philosophy of interior decorating? Do you have any particular sources of inspiration?
In no particular order of importance, this is what guides me for interior decorating:
1) The specific areas in your home should reflect a certain purpose and be designed in light of it. Each room of the house has a different role to fulfill, and you should design it with both its use and end in mind. You can do this with paint colors, furniture, practical/impractical pieces, etc. I like decorating rooms to remind me of a place or pieces of a memory. For example, our mud room (which used to be my least favorite part of the house) is now possibly one of my favorite spaces to walk into after transforming it with a dark green moss color, a solid entryway bench, gold accents including candle sconces, and our favorite wedding pictures. Now, it reminds us of a forest, both of our homes where we grew up, and some of our favorite memories.
2) We need to return to romanticizing beauty in the everyday. Light tapered candles for a weeknight dinner, string cranberries for Christmas garland even though you’ll be away for most of December, pick up fresh flowers more than you ordinarily might because they don’t last long. You’ll find yourself much happier and your home a place of refuge and pleasant rest.
3) I have made a concerted effort to avoid buying anything from China (for a few reasons). This is actually more doable and cheaper than you think. Train yourself to pick things up at a store and just automatically say “no” if it’s not made well. Saves money, makes your home unique (you may have to rely on thrift stores, buy from Etsy, or search for online European shops), and you’ll actually have quality items that last. Avoid the fast fashion of home decor.
4) Your home is a sanctuary, and you should deeply desire to be in it. It should be an environment where your soul longs for higher things.
5) Minimalism is not cozy and I avoid it at all costs. On the flip side, a home should not be chaotic.
6) My anchor in home decorating is taking a page from my mom and grandma, who both, for as long as I can remember, made little seasonal changes to their home throughout the year to usher in new chapters of life. This is lovely and something our generation rarely does beyond Christmas and Halloween. Change out your tablecloths, flowers, pillows, candles, etc. You’ll never be bored and can switch things up without a major renovation.
How would you describe your clothing style?
My style is a blend of classic, vintage, somewhat outdoorsy, and feminine. I have to say probably my favorite style icon will always be Princess Diana; I love how she was beautiful in anything from professional attire, to ball gowns, to what we now call mom jeans. I pull some inspiration from Jackie O. and the vintage movie stars and dancers I grew up on, like Grace Kelly, and love wearing wool, plaid, velvet, bows, and gold. Sometimes I feel like I’d fit pretty well in a vintage L.L. Bean ad.
The Haps
What Does Surrogacy Really Entail?
Carmel Richardson of The American Conservative went undercover and applied to be a gestational surrogate for her latest article — read it here. She also learned about the joys and horrors of being a surrogate by talking to the women who do it. As our technology advances, our ethics haven’t had time to catch up, and Richardson raises some very important questions in her piece for Compact Magazine.
Tom Cruise Is Dating a Russian Socialite?
Stories like these make me forget that Tom Cruise is over 60. The Mission Impossible star is linked to the ex-wife of a Russian oligarch, The Daily Mail reports (it’s always The Daily Mail). Elsina Khayrova, 36, is the daughter of a Russian politician — and she looks like a femme fatale Cruise would have to tangle with in one of his multimillion-dollar movies. They were spotted dancing the night away at a party in the United Kingdom.
Here are more links to what I’m reading lately:
Soft Occultism: Patricia Patnode infiltrated a coven to bring you this American Mind report on the occultism-light that’s permeated our culture.
Being a Bibliophile on a Budget: In a way,
has gifted us with a gift guide for the ultimate book lover.
Dearest Evie, reading The Girl’s Guide is like having a long awaited visit with you each month! I’m so glad I get to be included in your reader’s list! You are one of my favorite (early on in your career) “pen pals” forever!
‘Aunt’ Dianne