From Our Kitchens to Yours: Tabletop's Favorite Cookbooks & Recipes
At Tabletop, we're not just passionate about promoting great food – we love cooking it too! Our team members each have a go-to cookbook that has inspired them in the kitchen. Whether it's a childhood favorite passed down through generations or a modern guide full of new twists, these cookbooks have a special place in our hearts. In this blog post, we share our favorite cookbooks, the recipes we can't live without, and the personal stories that make them so meaningful to us. We hope these stories and recipes inspire you to try something new in your own kitchen!
Everyone is Italian on Sunday, Soul, and Soul-Full Sisters
Quinn - Vice President
A lot of my life has been surrounded by cooking. My mom has hundreds of cookbooks and so does my sister. I am slowly but surely developing my own collection. It helps that my mom gives my sister and me a cookbook every year for Christmas. At this moment, some of my favorites are Everyone is Italian on Sunday by Rachael Ray, Soul by Todd Richards, and then of course, me and my sister’s food blog, Soul-Full Sisters. The common denominator of these recipe collections? Beautiful stories. Surrounded by culture, family, and love. I suggest checking any of them out!
Wedding RSVP Recipes
Lewis - Creative Director
When my husband and I sent out our wedding invitations, we included a blank card with the following prompt: As we begin this new adventure, we ask that you share a favorite recipe with us. So the collection of recipes that’s the most special to me isn’t a traditional cookbook, but rather a three-ring binder full of handwritten cards from friends and family. It’s a beautiful mix of dishes, many with stories on the back, and even a few from loved ones who are no longer with us. I really should pull it out more often because it never ceases to make me smile.
Family Recipes and Pinterest
Danielle - Digital Content Creator
When it comes to cooking, I don't really have a favorite cookbook that I turn to time and again. Instead, I have handwritten recipes passed down from my Nannie and the endless inspiration I find scrolling through Pinterest. I make it a point to try at least one or two new recipes a week. If my husband and I fall in love with a dish that we both can’t get enough of, we call it a "keeper” and that’s when it earns a spot in our own recipe notebook—a modern-day version of Nannie’s old collection.
Dessert Person
Anna - Social Media Manager
To know me is to know that there’s two things I’ll geek out on more than anything else: cookbooks & Claire Saffitz. IYKYK. If I’m invited to a social gathering, you better believe I’m not showing up without a baked good and it’s very likely it’s going to be one of her recipes.
My pride and joy is my collection of 25+ cookbooks I’ve amassed over the years, but there’s only one with fully-crinkled pages, blueberry and cocoa powder stains, and notes in the margins and that’s Dessert Person. For starters, as someone who geeks out over food styling and photography, it’s a gorgeous book with really beautiful photos. Second, it’s so user-friendly! There’s a recipe matrix that includes every recipes’ ranked difficulty and the time it takes to prepare it and there’s a bunch of helpful modifications in the book that make the recipes super accessible. The Seedy Maple Breakfast Muffins are one of my most-made recipes of all time, I’m known for whipping up a Coffee Coffee Cake or Malted “Forever” Brownies when guests are in town, and I won’t show up to a birthday celebration without her classic Confetti Cake or Carrot & Pecan Cake. I highly recommend hopping on the Claire Saffitz train if you’re not already — your friends & family will thank you! 😉
Social Media Recipe Box
Julia - Social Media Manager
I love to cook, but ironically, I don’t have many cookbooks that I refer to. Instead, I find myself turning to TikTok, Instagram or Pinterest, where I can explore the latest trends and try out recipes from my favorite influencers. Whether it’s a viral dish or a creative twist on a classic, I love the thrill of discovering new ideas and bringing them to life in my kitchen. My favorite recipe to make is the TikTok trend that is known as the "Baked Feta Pasta" but instead, I use Boursin Cheese!
Bell’s Best
Taylor - Social Media & PR Manager
Growing up, this book held a permanent spot on my grandmother’s counter. In fact, I don’t know many Mississippi ladies who don’t have their own hand-me-down copy. When I packed up and moved a few states away for college, I knew I had to bring it with me. With over 6,000 recipes collected by a Mississippi telephone company in the 80s, this book is a goldmine of southern culinary history. While some of the recipes are definitely unique, cooking others for the first time in my college apartment brought me a comfort that only comes from making your grandmother’s potato casserole. So, every now and then, I’ll crack open this hefty book and pull out a piece of childhood for dinner.
