Haven’t finished your holiday shopping?  I’m in the same boat.  So I’m thinking of books….a selection of 2011’s more interesting cookbooks might just check all the boxes remaining on Santa’s spreadsheet.

• The Rancho Gordo Heirloom Bean Grower’s Guide:  gardening and cooking, all in one.  I bought Rancho Gordo’s Rio Zape beans on a recent trip to San Francisco.  The beans, an heirloom Hopi variety, were  a taste revelation:  complex, chocolatey, delicious despite simple seasonings and no meat.  I’m looking forward to expanding my backyard bean plantings beyond pinkeye purplehulls next year.
• The Italian Baker, Revisited:  Carol Field’s 1985 book inspired countless American bakers to create ciabatta, crostate, and other regional Italian specialties.  I bought a used copy, but you don’t have to.  The book was re-issued this year, with a few tweaks and updates (like listing measurements in weights as well as volume).
• Hunt Gather Cook:  blogger Hank Shaw cookbook covers waterfowl, foraged greens, and all other manner of collected, not cultivated, foods.
• Plate to Pixel:  Digital Food Photography & Styling:  great gift for a food blogger, aspiring food stylist, or person who compulsively photographs his/her food.

Meanwhile, I’ll be fighting holiday traffic all across the metro area.  NEXT year, I swear, I’ll start earlier…..