A Call for 10 Essential Cookbooks, and a Giveaway

Hi, Just to let you know I've tallied all of the votes and created a list by most popular:
http://www.gustoso.com.au/blog/review/the-top-49-essential-cookbooks-as-voted-for-on-food52-com/

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver
The Classic Italian Cookbook by Marcella Hazan
Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen by LIdia Bastianich
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
All of Lee Bailey's Cookbooks
Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts by Maida Heatter
Cook with Jamie by Jamie Oliver
Bistro Cooking by Patricia Wells

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver
The Classic Italian Cookbook by Marcella Hazan
Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen by LIdia Bastianich
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
All of Lee Bailey's Cookbooks
Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts by Maida Heatter
Cook with Jamie by Jamie Oliver
Bistro Cooking by Patricia Wells

Good Things, by Jane Grigson
How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman
Quick and Easy Vietnamese, by Nancie Macdermott
The Supper Book by Marion Cunningham
The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham
The Essential New York Times Cookbook, by Amanda Hesser
Salts, Spices and Aromatics in the English Kitchen, by Elizabeth David
The Savory Way, by Deborah Madison
Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Mollie Katzen
Pastries from La Brea Bakery, Nancy Silverton

Good Things, by Jane Grigson
How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman
Quick and Easy Vietnamese, by Nancie Macdermott
The Supper Book by Marion Cunningham
The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham
The Essential New York Times Cookbook, by Amanda Hesser
Salts, Spices and Aromatics in the English Kitchen, by Elizabeth David
The Savory Way, by Deborah Madison
Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Mollie Katzen
Pastries from La Brea Bakery, Nancy Silverton

The Kitchen Diaries, Nigel Slater
The Cook's Companion, Stephanie Alexander
Bill's Open Kitchen, Bill Granger
Fresh, Marie Claire
Encyclopaedia of Food and Cooking, Margaret Fulton
Winter on the Farm, Matthew Evans
Jamie Does... ,Jamie Oliver
Jamie's Italy, Jamie Oliver
The Complete Asian Cookbook, Charmaine Solomon
Saraban, Greg Malouf
Cooking and Travelling in Southwestern France Stephanie Alexander
Food Heroes, Rick Stein
The Free Range Cook, Annabel Langbein
The Pie and Pastry Bible, Rose Levy Barenbaum
The Handmade Loaf, Dan Lepard.

The Kitchen Diaries, Nigel Slater
The Cook's Companion, Stephanie Alexander
Bill's Open Kitchen, Bill Granger
Fresh, Marie Claire
Encyclopaedia of Food and Cooking, Margaret Fulton
Winter on the Farm, Matthew Evans
Jamie Does... ,Jamie Oliver
Jamie's Italy, Jamie Oliver
The Complete Asian Cookbook, Charmaine Solomon
Saraban, Greg Malouf
Cooking and Travelling in Southwestern France Stephanie Alexander
Food Heroes, Rick Stein
The Free Range Cook, Annabel Langbein
The Pie and Pastry Bible, Rose Levy Barenbaum
The Handmade Loaf, Dan Lepard.

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
One-Pot Vegetarian Dishes - Amy Cotler
Vegetable Haven - Mollie Katzen
The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook - Hearts Books
Vegetarian Express - Nava Atlas & Lillian Kayte
Hungry Girl 200 Under 200 - Lisa Lillien
The Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook - Kim O'Donnel
The Vegetarian Family Cookbook - Nava Atlas

Baking From my Home to yours - Dorie Greenspan
Modern Spice - Monica Bhide
Street food of India - Sephi Bergerson
Martha Stewart Baking Handbook
Vegetarian Cooking for everyone - Deborah Madison
Barefoot Contessa Books - Ina Garten
Silver Spoon- Phaidon
The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen - Peter Berley
How to Be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking by Nigella Lawson
Mexican Everyday - Rick Bayless

1) Joy of Cooking - 50's era
2) Joy of Cooking - New (or new-ish) edition
3) Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook
4) Baking with Julia
5) King Arthur Flour's Baking Companion
6) Ball Blue Book of Canning
7) Lidia's Family Table
8) Authentic Mexican - Rick Bayless
9) Ratio - Ruhlman
10) Cookwise

If the two Joy of Cooking editions could count as one book I'd add The Perfect Scoop.

Fanny Farmer - Marion Cunningham
In the Sweet Kitchen - Regan Daley
United States of Pie - Adrienne Kane
Forgotten Skills of Cooking - Darina Allen
How to Be A Domestic Goddess - Nigella Lawson
The Art of Eating In - Cathy Erway
The Pleasures of Cooking for One - Judith Jones
Out of Old Nova Scotia Kitchens

In addition to receiving the original painting, it would be neat for the winner to receive a set of the 10 essential cookbooks to gift to a friend just learning how to cook.

The Essential New York Times Cookbook - Hesser
The Joy of Cooking (75th Anniversary edition)
Colorado Collage - Junior League of Denver
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. I&II - Child
The Art of Simple Food - Waters
Sunday Suppers at Lucques - Goin
Classic Indian Cooking - Sahni
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Hazen
Silver Palate Cookbook (25th Anniversary edition)
All About Braising - Stevens

1. Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
2. Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1-Julia Child
3. Larousse Gastronomique
4. On Food and Cooking, 1st Ed.-Harold McGee
5. Baking: From My Home to Yours-Dorie Greenspan
6. English Bread & Yeast Cookery-Elizabeth David
7 & 8. La Technique & La Methode-Jacques Pepin
9. La Varenne Pratique-Anne Willan
10. Santa Monica Farmers Market Cookbook-Amelia Saltsman

Roasting - Kafka
Moosewood cookbook - Katzen
Breakfast Book - Cunningham
Silver Palate Cookbook - Lukins/Russo
Cuisines of Mexico - Kennedy
The Gourmet Cookbook - Reichl (yellow one)
The Book of Jewish Food - Roden
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Madison
Cake Bible - Beranbaum
Fannie Farmer

How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Simply French - Patricia Wells and Joel Robuchon
The Way to Cook - Julia Child
Weber's Art of The Grill
The New Basics - Julie Rosso and Sheila Lukins
Jamie at Home - Jamie Oliver
The Classic Italian Cookbook - Marcella Hazan

How much fun is this? Here are my faves:

1. Joy of Cooking Rombauer
2. How to Cook Everything Mark Bittman
3. Tyler's Ultimate Tyler Florence
4. The Surreal Gourmet Entertains Bob Blumer
5. Lidia's Italian American Kitchen Lidia Bastianich
6. Barefoot Contessa Parties Ina Garten
7. Barefoot Contessa at Home Ina Garten
8. Emeril's New New Orleans Cooking
9. Down-Home Wholesome Dannella Carter
10. Delilah's Everyday Soul Delilah Winder

First I had to think... do I use 10 different ones? But I love the print (the painting even better) so thought I would give it a try.
1. The Splendid Table's How to Cook Supper (Lynn Rosetto Kasper & Sally Sweet)
2. Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express, my current "go to". I probably should get his new "Basics"!
3. Great Food Fast from Everyday Food
for reference
4. The Victory Garden Cookbook (before I had Food 52, my go to source for basic veggie info.)
5. Vintage (early 70's?) Betty Crocker cookbook for classic cookie recipes (rare occasion.)
6. The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Burroughs
7. The Cook's Bible by Christopher Kimball
Most of my old favorite cookbooks have remained untouched since I use Food 52 and recipes from Mark Bittman from NYT.

In no specific order:

The Whole Beast - Fergus Henderson
The Flavor Bible - Page & Dornenburg
Sauces - James Peterson
Herbs & Spices - Jill Norman
What to Drink with What you Eat - Page & Dornenburg
The Joy of Cooking - Rombauer & Becker
Sundays at Moosewood - The Moosewood Collective
On Food and Cooking - Harold McGee
Le Guide Culinaire - Escoffier
Larousse Gastronomique

Desserts That Have Killed Better Men Than Me, Jeremy Jackson
Lidia's Italian American Kitchen, Lidia Bastianich
A Platter of Figs,David Tanis
Chez Panisse Cookbook, Alice Waters
The Zuni Cafe, Judy Rodgers
Authentic Mexican, Rick Bayless
Moosewood Cookbook, Mollie Katzen
Local Flavors, Deborah Madison
The Splendid Table, Lynn Rosetto Kasper
The Cake Bible, Rose Levy Berenbaum

The Victory Garden Cookbook - Morash
The Way to Cook - Child
Essentials of Classic Indian Cooking - Hazan
Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking
The Breakfast Book - Cunningham
The Cook's Illustrated Complete Book of Poultry
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Madison
Around My French Table - Greenspan
Make the Bread, Buy the Butter - Reese
Delia Smith's Winter Collection

Would have been so much easier if you said my top hundred, but you didn't.

Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Russo & Sheila Lukins
The Dean & Deluca Cookbook by David Rosengarten
How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
In the Kitchen With A Good Appetite by Melissa Clark
The Thousand Recipe Chinese Cookbook by Gloria Bley Miller
Bread by Beth Hensperger
Passionate Meals by Ismail Merchant
Menus for Entertaining by James Beard
Fast and Fabulous Hors d'oeuvres by Michele Braden
The New York Times Cookbook by Craig Claiborne

I whittled it down to 12, but could easily add a few more. I could cook with Mario and the Frankies every night and be very happy.
The Babbo Cookbook--Mario Batali
The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion--Frank Falcinello and Frank Castronovo
Around My French Table--Dorie Greenspan
Jewish Cooking in America--Joan Nathan
The Provence Cookbook--Patricia Wells
The Classic Italian Cookbook--Marcella Hazan
The San Francisco Chronicle Cookbook--Michael Bauer and Fran Irwin
The New York Times Cookbook--Craig Claiborne
Cooking at Home--Julia Child and Jacques Pepin
American Cooking--James Beard
My Bread--Jim Lahey
Barefoot Contessa--all of them--Ina Garten

Difficult job, picking! So many great books. I love so many of the new ones that I didn't list as well!

The Joy of Cooking ~ Irma Rombauer, Marion Becker
The Bread Bible ~ Rose Levy Beranbaum
Tartine Bread ~ Chad Robertson
Martha Stewart Entertaining
Sunday Suppers at Luques ~ Suzanne Goin
Chez Panisse Vegetables ~ Alice Waters
Canal House Series ~ Hamilton and Hirscheimer
The Art of Simple Food ~ Alice Waters
French Provincial Cooking ~ Elizabeth David
Super Natural Cooking ~ Heidi Swanson

Not in any particular order, except #1
#1 Jerry Traunfeld's Herbfarm Cookbook
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian
Mrs. Chiang's Szechwan Cookbook
Marcella Hazan - Vols I and II Essential Italian Cooking (My covers have fallen off, so I'm no longer sure of the exact title)
Steven Raichlen's Barbecue! Bible
Patricia Wells' Bistro Cooking
Anything by Julia Child (again, no covers, can't tell you which ones)
Sarah Leah Chase's Cold-Weather Cooking
Maida Heatter's Best Dessert Book Ever
Amanda's New York Times Cookbook

Roasting By Barbara Kafka
The Herb Farm Cookbook By Jerry Traunfeld
The Flavor Bible By Page and Dornenburg
A Cooks Book of Mushroooms By Jack Czarneki
Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking By Paula Wolfert
Marcella's Italian Kitchen By Marcella Hazan
Pueblo Indian Cookbook Revised Edition Museum of N.M. Press Compiled by Phyllis Hughes
The Barbecue Bible By Steven Raichlen
Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen
The Art of Charcuterie By Jane Grigson

In no particular order but of course #1
Mastering the Art of French Cooking/Julia Child
How to Cook Everything/Mark Bittman
Ad Hoc at Home/Thomas Keller
The Art of Simple Food/Alice Waters
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone/Deborah Madison
The Essentials of Italian Cooking/Marcella Hazen
The New Best Recipe/Cooks Illustrated
Baking from My Home toYyours/Dorie Greenspan
Joy of Cooking/Rombauer/Becker
The Essential New York Times Cookbook/Amanda Hesser

1) America's test kitchen family cookbook
2) The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook
3) Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking
4) Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc at Home
5) The Bread Bible by Rose Barenbaum
6) Nigel Slater's Tender (and Ripe)
7) Phaidon's I Know How to Cook
8) Jamie Oliver's My Guide to Making you a Better Cook
9) Paidon's The Silver Spoon
10) Molly Steven's All About Roasting

Joy of Cooking
Ready for Dessert (David Lebovitz)
The Perfect Scoop (David Lebovitz)
Good to the Grain (Kim Boyce)
The Big Book of Thai Curries (Vatcharin Bhumichitr)
Thai Street Food (David Thompson)
Baked (Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito)
Bittersweet (Alice Medrich)
Around My French Table (Dorie Greenspan)

How To Cook Everything- Mark Bittman
Staff Meals- David Waltuck
The Classic Italian Cookbook/ More Classic Italian Cooking- Marcella Hazan
Its All American Food- David Rosengarten
Soaked Slathered and Seasoned/ Taming The Flame- Elizabeth Karmel
The Cake Bible/ Roses Heavenly Dakes- Rose Levy Rerenbaum
Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen- Paul Prudhomme
The Making Of A Cook- Madelein Kaman

As everyone says, only 10 is very difficult. These are the 10 I cook from consistently with good results. Others inspire: David, Colwin, Fisher, Vij, Child, Beard and often to very good effect. I am certainly keeping them on my shelves too.

1. Joy of Cooking - Rombauer (1943 edition, not the new one!)

2. How to Cook Everything - Bittman

3. Fannie Farmer Baking Book - Cunningham

4. The Gift of Southern Cooking - Lewis & Peacock

5. Mediterranean Street Food-Helou

6. Mediterranean Cooking-Wolfert

7. The Cuisines of Mexico-Kennedy

8. The Feast of Santa Fe-Dent (Not "Mexican" food, but New Mexican food)

9. Classic Indian Cooking-Sahni

10. Simca's Cuisine-Beck

The Way To Cook - Julia Child
The Best Recipes In The World - Mark Bittman
The Cake Bible - Rose Levy Berenbaum
Nigella Bites - Nigella Lawson
Forever Summer - Nigella Lawson
Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone - Deborah Madison
Salad As A Meal - Patricia Wells
The Joy of Cooking
Mastering The Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1 - Beck, Bertholle, Child
Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet - Alford/Duguid

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
A New Way to Cook
Joy of Cooking (1997)
How to Cook Everything
Cook with Jamie
Everyday Food
Authentic Mexican
Bon Appetit: Fast Easy Fresh
America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book

In no particular order:
The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham
Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child
Cooking by Hand by Paul Bertolli
Super Natural Everyday by Heidi Swanson
Into the Vietnamese Kitchen by Andrea Nguyen
Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce
The Barefoot Contessa by Ina Garten
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
Gourmet by Ruth Reichl

1. Vegetarian Cooking for everyone - Madison
2. Good to the Grain - Boyce
3. My Bread - Lahey
4. Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen - Andoh
5. Vegetables Every Day - Bishop
6. Ad Hoc at Home - Keller
7. Pressure Perfect - Sass
8. How to Cook Everything - Bittman
9. Cooking - Peterson
10. The Arab Table - Bsisu

I have collected a lot of cookbooks just for the joy of reading them but my favorites are the ones I consistently reach for when I want ideas or to inspire me. In addition to this list I enjoy online sites such as Food 52, Cook's Illustrated, Smitten Kitchen and Epicurious.

Barefoot Contessa Parties
The Silver Palate
Silver Palate Goodtimes
Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics
Frank Stitt's Southern Table
The Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Beard on Bread
Pioneer Woman - Accidental Country Girl
True Grits

My list of of my 10 most essential cookbooks:

1. Zuni Cafe Cookbook - for technique
2. Sunday Suppers at Lucques - for flawless results
3. Simply French - for French meals
4. The Santa Monica Farmer's Market Cookbook - for seasonal inspiration
5. The Splendid Table (Recipes from Emilia Romagna) - for Italian
6. The Sephardi Culinary Tradition - for family recipes
7. The World of Street Food - for snackers
8. Nancy Silverton's Sandwich Book - for paninis
9. The Cheesemonger's Kitchen - for cheesy goodness
10. Mesa Mexicana - for latin flavor

My list of of my 10 most essential cookbooks:

1. Zuni Cafe Cookbook - for technique
2. Sunday Suppers at Lucques - for flawless results
3. Simply French - for French meals
4. The Santa Monica Farmer's Market Cookbook - for seasonal inspiration
5. The Splendid Table (Recipes from Emilia Romagna) - for Italian
6. The Sephardi Culinary Tradition - for family recipes
7. The World of Street Food - for snackers
8. Nancy Silverton's Sandwich Book - for paninis
9. The Cheesemonger's Kitchen - for cheesy goodness
10. Mesa Mexicana - for latin flavor

Supernatural Every Day, Swanson
Flour, Chang
Martha Stewart Baking
Learning to Cook, Cunningham
Plenty, Ottolenghi
Moosewood, Katzen
Chez Panisse, Waters
Around My French Table

Supernatural Every Day, Swanson
Flour, Chang
Martha Stewart Baking
Learning to Cook, Cunningham
Plenty, Ottolenghi
Moosewood, Katzen
Chez Panisse, Waters
Around My French Table

Supernatural Every Day, Swanson
Flour, Chang
Martha Stewart Baking
Learning to Cook, Cunningham
Plenty, Ottolenghi
Moosewood, Katzen
Chez Panisse, Waters
Around My French Table

Supernatural Every Day, Swanson
Flour, Chang
Martha Stewart Baking
Learning to Cook, Cunningham
Plenty, Ottolenghi
Moosewood, Katzen
Chez Panisse, Waters
Around My French Table

Supernatural Every Day, Swanson
Flour, Chang
Martha Stewart Baking
Learning to Cook, Cunningham
Plenty, Ottolenghi
Moosewood, Katzen
Chez Panisse, Waters
Around My French Table

My apologies for being obsessive but I forgot...
12. The Essential New Yorks Times Cook Book by Amanda Hesser
(Wonderful writing and history, and since Amanda strikes me as being a
little on the compulsive and/or passionate side, I am sure the recipes
will prove to be superior.)

Correction:
11. Sylvia's Cakes and Breads by Sylvia Hocking. (Sylvia sold baked goods out of her house
in Maine. She had to retire because of her arthritis. A sweet lady with delicious recipes, she was
an immaculate cook.)

I'm a cookbook reader and collector, and enjoy cooking as well. Below are my top 10 picks today.
Sometimes it takes me years, or decades before I actually cook from
a much loved cookbooks. Other cookbooks I have only used one or two recipes, but they are outstanding. Some I have never cooked from, but what a read.

1. Cross Creek Cookery by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
(Warning: if you have never read this book, be advised that it is shot-
through with racism, but is still a literary and culinary stand out. I have
actually bought a roast beef to make her Southern Hash, and I have seldom
eaten meat by choice since I was six.)
2. ANYTHING at all by Maida Heatter.
3. Lost Desserts by Gail Monaghan. (Fantastic reading + history + baking recipes = heaven!)
4. Season's Greetings by Marlene Sorosky. (I use this year round.)
5. Ripe for Dessert and Ready for Dessert (one is kind of a continuation of the
other, wouldn't you say?) by David Lebovitz
6. China Moon by Barbara Tropp (Genius.)
7. Silver Palate Cookbook by Russo & Lukins
8. Jim Fobel's Diet Feasts by Jim Fobel. (This food is good, and of couse you can take certain liberties with the recipes. Everything by Jim is great.
9. Flatbreads & Flavors. A Baker's Atlas. By Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. (Good anthropology and tasty recipes.
10. Szechwan Cookbook by Jung-Feng Chiang. ( I learned Chinese cooking from this
book and it is stll my favorite.
11. (I can't leave this out.). Sylvia Hocking's baking cookbook - I keep losing my copies and it is out of print. (Top notch recipes for basic U.S.baking - fabulous rum pound cake.)

Some of these are old and some of these are new, but I love them all! Here they are in no particular order:

Veganomicon
Momofuku Milk Bar - Christina Tosi
The New InterCourses - Martha Hopkins & Randall Lockridge
Ratio - Michael Ruhlman
Martha Stewart's Cookies
The Pleasure of Cooking for One - Judith Jones
Food 52 Cookbook
The New Moosewood Cookbook - Katzen
Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol I & II- Child & Beck
Mother's Best - Schroeder

A Spoonful of Ginger by Nina Simonds
Martin Yan's Chinatown Cooking
The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking by Barbara Tropp
The Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer et.al
The Gourmet Cookbook by Ruth Reichl
The Antipasto Table by Michelle Scicolone
The Mennonite Community Cookbook
Spice by Ana Sortun
Saveur Cooks Authentic Italian
James Beard's New Fish Cookery
And my new fave, The Food 52 Cookbook. Well done!

Feast - Nigella Lawson
Essentials of Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison
Grilling: Where There's Smoke, There's Flavor - Eric Treuille & Birgit Erath
The Silver Spoon
Joy of Cooking
Hot Sour Salty Sweet - Jeffrey Alford Naomi Duguid
The Dean & Deluca Cookbook - David Rosengarten
Eat This Book - Tyler Florence
The Artful Cupcake - Marcianne Miller

Joy of Cooking...Rombacher
The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking... Yamuna Devi
The Union Square Cookbook...Danny Meyer/Michael Romano
The Raw Gourmet....Nomi Shannon
In Pursuit of Flavor....Edna Lewis
Silver PalateCookbook...Julie Rosso/Shelia Lukins
The Splendid Grain...Rebecca Wood
The Elephant Walk Cookbook...De Montiero/Neustadt
China Moon....Barbara Tropp
The Field of Greens...Annie Sommerville

1. Barefoot Contessa
2. Barefoot Contessa Parties
3. The New James Beard
4. The Way to Cook, Julia Child
5. How to Cook Everything, Mark Bittman
6. El Auténtico Libro de Doña Petrona
7. The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking, Yamuna Devi
8. The Essentials of Italian Cooking, Marcella Hazan
9. Delia Smith's Complete Illustrated Cookery Course

1. the New Best Recipe - Cook's illustrated
2. the Best 30-minute Recipe - Cook's illustrated
3. the Best Make Head Recipe - Cook's illustrated
4. The Best Light Recipe - Cook's illustrated
5. Everyday Italian: 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes - Giada De Laurentiis
6. Giada's Family Dinners - Giada De Laurentiis
7. Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun - Ina Garten
8. Smart Cooking the Costco Way Delicious Recipes Using Costco Products
- by Costco
9. Growing up in a Korean Kitchen: A Cookbook
10. Chinese Cooking - Huang Su-Huei

1. the New Best Recipe - Cook's illustrated
2. the Best 30-minute Recipe - Cook's illustrated
3. the Best Make Head Recipe - Cook's illustrated
4. The Best Light Recipe - Cook's illustrated
5. Everyday Italian: 125 Simple and Delicious Recipes - Giada De Laurentiis
6. Giada's Family Dinners - Giada De Laurentiis
7. Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun - Ina Garten
8. Smart Cooking the Costco Way Delicious Recipes Using Costco Products
- by Costco
9. Growing up in a Korean Kitchen: A Cookbook
10. Chinese Cooking - Huang Su-Huei

Joy of Cooking, by Irma S. Rombauer, 1943 edition: fascinating as an historical document, too, wholly apart from the recipes. I can’t get enough of Rombauer’s wry, breezy banter.

Flavors and Flatbreads by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid (I adore anything and everything they’ve written.)

Beard on Bread, by James Beard

American Cookery, by James Beard

Fannie Farmer Cookbook, by Marion Cunningham

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, by Deborah Madison

Bistro Cooking, by Patricia Wells

The Cooking of Southwest France, by Paula Wolfert

The Gourmet Cookbook (2 volume, leather-bound set from late 1970s)

The Auberge of the Flowering Hearth, by Roy Andries de Groot: The gold standard of non-fiction writing. Actually, fiction writers would also do well to emulate this prose. The recipes for French Provincial classics, primarily from the Savoy, plus the game-plan approach to shopping for and cooking them – and let’s not forget the menus, with wine pairings for each course, from the auberge – make this one of the best food-related books of all time, bar none.

Not published, but more valuable on a day-to-day basis than all of the above, combined, is my six-volume set of notebooks with recipes collected over the years. Many are favorites transcribed from the books listed above, as well as others that I have borrowed from the library; others are my mother’s and other family members’ and friends’ recipes; quite a few are clippings from Gourmet Magazine, back in the day. In the past few years, the number of recipes in the notebooks has tripled, mostly with great recipes found on or via the internet. The vast majority of those, of course, come from FOOD52. ;o)

Gourmet (the yellow one)
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals - Maria Speck
Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Canning for A New Generation
Home Made - Yvette Van Boven
Serve Yourself - Joe Yonan

are the ones I use the most & read for the stories, too.

Plenty - Totam Ottolenghi
The New York Times cookbook - Amanda Hesser
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
French Country Cooking - Anne Willan
Essntials of Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Madison
Around my French Table - Dorie Greenspan
Zuni Cafe Cookbook - Judy Rogers
Oleana - Ana Sortun
Cafe Cookbook - Rogers and Gray
Lulu's Provencal Table

Plenty - Totam Ottolenghi
The New York Times cookbook - Amanda Hesser
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
French Country Cooking - Anne Willan
Essntials of Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Madison
Around my French Table - Dorie Greenspan
Zuni Cafe Cookbook - Judy Rogers
Oleana - Ana Sortun
Cafe Cookbook - Rogers and Gray
Lulu's Provencal Table

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

These books are packed with solid recipes, not just one or two favorites

1. All About Braising, by Molly Stevens
2.The New American Cooking by Joan Nathan
3Raising the Salad Bar, by Catherine Walthers
4. Barefoot Contessa
5. Spoonful of Ginger, or any book by Nina Simonds
6. Flour, by Joanne Chang
7 How to Cook Meat, or any grilling book by Chris Schlesinger
8. Voluptuous Vegan or Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld
9. Vineyard Harvest, by Tina Miller
10. The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg

All About Braising - Stevens
The Gift of Southern Cooking - Lewis/Peacock
Ad Hoc at Home - Keller
Lee Bros Southern Cookbook
Shuck Beans, Stack Cakes, and Honest Fried Chicken - Lundy
Plenty - Ottolenghi

1. Joy of Cooking- Rombauer/Becker
2. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking- Marcella Hazan
3. Mastering the Art of French Cooking- Julia Child
4. My Bread- Jim Lahey
5. Cooking at Home- Culinary Institute of America
6. The Provence Cookbook- Patricia Wells
7. Molto Italiano- Mario Batali
8. Saveur Cooks Authentic American- Editors of Saveur Magazine
9. Bouchon- Thomas Keller
10. Seriously Simple- Diane Rossen Worthington

How to Cook Everything - Bittman
The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook - America's Test Kitchen
Cooking for Mr. Latte - Amanda Hesser
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison

1. American Cookery - James Beard (a classic)
2. Forgotten Skills of Cooking - Darina Allen (one of my favorite references, because Darina's tone is so inviting and friendly, yet masterful).
3. The Swedish Table - Helene Henderson (Haven't tried Swedish cooking? Great place to start).
4. The Pleasures of Cooking for One - Judith Jones (This book has been inspiring for cooking for myself).
5. Barefoot Contessa Family Style - Ina Garten (I own four Garten books - this is my favorite. She got me started cooking as a male college grad. Ina's food is feast food - celebratory, always delicious).
6. Super Natural Everyday - Heidi Swanson (I love this cookbook. It has given me great direction in cooking natural foods in innovative yet simple ways).
7. More With Less - Doris Janzen Longacre (Robert Farrar Capon's The Supper of the Lamb: A Culinary Reflection has shaped my approach to cooking, with his thoughts on festal and ferial cooking. This book helps with the ferial side, consciously focusing on conservation of resources, with simplicity).
8. Keep It Simple - Marian Burros (Like MWL, a more simple approach to cooking. Burros is creative with her fast recipes that combine some really interesting flavors, and are affordable).
9. Jamie at Home - Jamie Oliver (Jamie cooking from his own garden - delicious stuff).
10. The Secrets of Jesuit Breadmaking - Rick Curry (I am not a Jesuit, but I love the thoughtfulness with which Curry approaches Bread. This is the book has helped approach bread making).

Fine art of Italian Cooking: Giuliano Bugialli
Ad Hoc at Home: Thomas Keller
Zuni Café: Judy Rodgers
Alfred Portale Simple Pleasures: Home Cooking From the Gotham
Bar and Grill
Michael Chiarello Casual Cooking: Wine Country Cooking for Family and Friends
Sunday Suppers at Lucques: Suzanne Goin
Barefoot Contessa Family Style: Ina Garten
Sharing the Vineyard Table: A Celebration of Wine and Food from Wente Vinyards:
Carolyn Wente and Kimball Jones
Around My French Table: Dori Greenspan
The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen: Paula Wolfert

My list leans more heavily towards UK and European authors although I would say that American writers are better at baking - Dorrie Greenspan is the benchmark for baking IMO. If only American baking writers would switch to the metric system and learn to weigh ingredients.

1) How to Eat - Nigella Lawson (a good go-to reference for anything and everything you'd want to eat)
2) Authentic French - Saveur
3) The Naked Chef - Jamie Oliver
4) How to Cook Volumes 1 to 3 - Delia Smith (no nonsense, no flaff, always works)
5) The Family Meal - Ferran Adria El Bulli (great at teaching mis en place & innovative way of writing/illustrating recipes visually)
6) Baking from my Home to Yours - Dorrie Greenspan Dorrie rules.
7) Around my French Table - Dorrie Greenspan Dorrie does French food fabulously
8) A New Book of Middle Eastern Food - Claudia Roden
9) The Barefood Contessa - Ina Garten
10) Ad Hoc - Thomas Keller (Very laboured steps but teaches good techniques and tips)

Better Homes and Garden
The New Book of Middle Eastern Food--Claudia Rodin
The Silver Palate--Lukins and Rosso
The Silver Palate Good Times--Lukins and Rosso
Patricia Wells Trattoria
Beard on Bread
Marcella Cucina-Marcella Hazan
Cafe Cookbook-Gray and Rodgers
Simply French-Wells
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Cookies--anything baking by Maida Heatter

This is such a cool idea! Can't wait to see the results!

Frank Stitt's Southern Table-Frank Stitt
Cookwise AND Bakewise-Shirley Corriher
Essentials of Italian Cooking-Marcella Hazan
On Food and Cooking-Harold McGee
Mediterranean Kitchen-Joyce Goldstein
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone-Deborah Madison
The Martha Stewart Cookbook-Martha Stewart
Baking with Julia-Julia Child
1000 Indian Recipes-Neelam Batra
The Cake Bible-Rose Levy Beranbaum

My list is definitely skewed towards pastry, but here goes:
1. The Last Course / Claudia Fleming - The book I'd save if my house was on fire.
2. Joy of Cooking - My mother's copy, circa 1972.
3. How To Cook Everything / Bittman - Indispensable.
4. Pure Dessert / Alice Medrich
5. Chez Panisse Desserts / Lindsay Shere
6. Local Flavors / Deborah Madison
7. Baking With Julia
8. New York Cookbook / Molly O'Neill
9. Classic Home Desserts / Richard Sax
10. Dolce Italiano / Gina DePalma

this was harder than I thought - couldn't actually get it down to 10; I'm taken by the fact that these are mostly women, and I think of them as "cooks" first rather than big name chefs. Paula Wolfert and Georgeanne Brennan partiicularly exemplify this . . .
the glass pantry - Georgeanne Brennan
chez panisse cooking - Paul Bertoli and Alice Waters
chez panisse desserts - Lindsey Shere
sunday suppers at lucques - Suzanne Goin
hot sour salty sweet - Alford & Duguid
the mediterranean kitchen - Joyce Goldstein
the new basics / silver palate series - Rosso and Lukins
Essentials of italian cooking - Marcella Hazan
how to eat - Nigella Lawson
stars desserts - Emily Luchetti
vegetarian cooking for everyone - Deborah Madison
zuni cookbook - Judy Rodgers
fields of greens - Annie Sommerville
mediterranean grains and greens - Paula Wolfert

this was harder than I thought - couldn't actually get it down to 10; I'm taken by the fact that these are mostly women, and I think of them as "cooks" first rather than big name chefs. Paula Wolfert and Georgeanne Brennan partiicularly exemplify this . . .
the glass pantry - Georgeanne Brennan
chez panisse cooking - Paul Bertoli and Alice Waters
chez panisse desserts - Lindsey Shere
sunday suppers at lucques - Suzanne Goin
hot sour salty sweet - Alford & Duguid
the mediterranean kitchen - Joyce Goldstein
the new basics / silver palate series - Rosso and Lukins
Essentials of italian cooking - Marcella Hazan
how to eat - Nigella Lawson
stars desserts - Emily Luchetti
vegetarian cooking for everyone - Deborah Madison
zuni cookbook - Judy Rodgers
fields of greens - Annie Sommerville
mediterranean grains and greens - Paula Wolfert

I could only get it down to 55 after much paring of the list I made from looking at my shelves and most of them appear often on these lists which are fabulous. So, I decided to start with all 28 volumes of The Time-Life Good Cook Techniques and Recipes. Then in no order:
1) The 19 volumes of Cook's Illustrated annuals
2) Ruth Wakefield's Toll House Recipes (my mother's 1st cookbook)
3) Fancy Pantry by Helen Witty
4) Cucina Simpatica by Johanne Killeen and George Germon
5) The Art of Cooking 2 volume boxed set by Jacques Pepin
6) All the James Beard's, but especially American Cookery
7)Hungry Monkey by my son, Matthew Amster-Burton

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
Nourishing Traditions - Fallon
Chez Panisse Vegetables - Waters

Local Flavors - Deborah Madison
Big Small Plates - Cindy Pawlcyn
Fast Food My Way - Jacques Pepin
Simply Ming One Pot Meals - Ming Tsai
Year-Round Holiday Cookbook - Marlene Sorosky
Happy in the Kitchen - Michel Richard
Barefoot Contessa at Home - Ina Garten
Mediterranean Cooking - Paula Wolfert
The Border Cookbook - Cheryl Alters Jamison & Bill Jamison
Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook - Alice Waters

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker (so well used it has split into two and is missing most of the index).
Feeding the Whole Family - Lair
Authentic Mexican - Bayless
Pie in the Sky (high altitude baking) - Purdy
The best of Vietnamese and Thai Cuisine - Pham
The Gourmet Cookbook - Reichl
Super Natural Every Day - Swanson
Culinary Artistry - Dornenburg and Page

What a thought-provoking question!
1. Joy of Cooking (Irma Rombauer)
2. How to Cook Everything Vegetarian (Mark Bittman)
3. Dinosaur BBQ (John Stage and Nancy Radke))
4. The Savory Way (Deborah Madison)
5. Super natural every day (Heidi Swanson)
6. The New James Beard (James Beard, of course)
7. Around My French Table (Dorie Greenspan)
8. The Pie and Pastry Bible (Rose Levy Beranbaum)
9. Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen (Rick Bayless)
10. The Zuni Cafe Cookbook (Judy Rogers)

The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
Mastering the ARt of French Cooking - Julia Child
Ad Hoc at Home- Thomas Keller
America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
NY Times Cookbook- Amanda Hesser
How to Cook Everything- Bittman
Lidias Family Table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
The Silver Spoon
Feast: Food to Celebrate Life by Nigella Lawson

The Gourmet Cookbook

cheers!

The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
Mastering the ARt of French Cooking - Julia Child
Ad Hoc at Home- Thomas Keller
America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
NY Times Cookbook- Amanda Hesser
How to Cook Everything- Bittman
Lidias Family Table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
The Silver Spoon
Feast: Food to Celebrate Life by Nigella Lawson

The Gourmet Cookbook

cheers!

The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
Mastering the ARt of French Cooking - Julia Child
Ad Hoc at Home- Thomas Keller
America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
NY Times Cookbook- Amanda Hesser
How to Cook Everything- Bittman
Lidias Family Table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
The Silver Spoon
Feast: Food to Celebrate Life by Nigella Lawson

The Gourmet Cookbook

cheers!

Zuni Cookbook - Judy Rogers
Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
The Herb Farm - Jerry Traunfeld
Baking - Dorie Greenspan
The Gefilte Variations - Jayne Cohn
Fields of Greens - Annie Somerville
Jewish Cooking in America - Joan Nathan
Plenty - Ottolenghi
Vegetable Harvest - Patricia Wells
Silver Palate
Cooking One on One - John Ash

Anything from Paula Wolfert
Amanda's NYT Book
Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone -Deborah Madison
How to Eat - Nigella Lawson - or one of her other books
The Improvisational Cook -Sally Schneider
MomoFuko -David Chang
The Fannie Farmer Cook Book -Marion Cunnigham
Anything by Claudia Roden

1) Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
2) The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diane Kennedy
3) Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child
4) The Zuni Cafe by Judy Rodgers
5) Roasting--A Simple Art by Barbara Kafka
6) How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
7) The Silver Palate Cookbook by Rosso and Lukins
8) Larousse Gastronomique
9) The New Spanish Table by Anya Von Bremzan
10) Baking From My Hope to Yours by Dorrie Greenspan

Simple French Food, Richard Only
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, Judy Rodgers
On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee
Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook, Alice Waters
The River Cafe Cookbook, Ruth Rogers & Rose Gray
The Greens Cookbook, Deborah Madison
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, Marcella Hazan
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child
The Italian Baker, Carol Field
Bistro Cooking, Patricia Wells

1. How To Cook Everything. -- Mark Bittman
2. Essential NY Times Cookbook --Amanda Hesser
3. Fannie Farmer
4. New American Plate -- American Institute for Cancer Research
5. Mastering the Art of French Cooking --Child, Bertholle, & Beck
6. Supernatural Every Day -- Heidi Swanson
7. Cooking One on One -- John Ash
8. Silver Spoon
9. Bread Maker's Apprentice
10. Essentials of Italian Cooking --Marcella H.

I have over 100 in total. The essentials: How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, Moosewood, Sunlight Cafe, Enchanted Broccoli Forest, Around my French Table, How to Bake, Joy of Cooking, Baking from my home to yours. Beard on Bread.

Cook's Illustrated Best Recipes
Tuscany the Beautiful, Lorenza De'Medici
Made In Spain, Jose Andres
Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten
We use the Food 52 site and Cook's Illustrated sites
Other than these we do not use cooks books anymore!

Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights - Sophie Dahl
A Year in Food - Sophie Dahl
The Essential New York Times Cookbook - Amanda Hesser
A Homemade Life - Molly Wizenburg
An Everlasting Meal - Tamar Adler
British Baking - Peyton and Byrne
Eggs - Michel Roux
Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol. 1 - Julia Child, et al

1. The Silver Palate
2 All Around the World Cookbook - Sheila Lukins
3. Quick & Easy Indian Cookery - Madhur Jaffrey - Most food stained cookbook I own
4. Mediterranean Light - Martha Rose Shulman
5. A Taste of Old Cuba - Maria Josefa Lluria de O'Higgins
6. Shrimp & Grits Cookbook - Nathalie Dupree
7. French Provincial Cooking - Elizabeth David
8. One year at Books For Cooks (98 - 03) Portobello Market, London
9. Avoca Cafe Cookbook, Chefs of Powerscourt House, County Wicklow, Ireland
10. Canal House Cooking, Volume 2 - Hamilton & Hirsheimer

A New Way To Cook - Sally Schneider
Beard on Bread - James Beard
Glorious French Food - James Peterson
Baking from My Home to Yours - Dorie Greenspan
Classic Home Desserts - Richard Sax
The Fannie Farmer Baking Book - Marion Cunningham
Sauces - James Peterson
Stars Desserts - Emily Lucchetti
Rick Bayless' Mexican Kitchen - Rick Bayless

Nantucket Open House - Sarah Leah Chase
Bistro Cooking - Patricia Wells
Moosewood Cookbook - Mollie Katzen
Michael Field's Cooking School - Michael Field
The Way to Cook - Julia Child
The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook
The Palm Restaurant Cookbook - Binns
The Flavor Bible
Maida Heatter's Best Dessert Book Ever
Martha Stewart's Hors D'Hoeuvres

1. The Silver Spoon
2. Baking With Julia
3. Real Cajun - Donald Links
4. Who’s Your Mama, Are You Catholic and Can You Make a Roux - Marcelle Bienvenu
5. Boulevard - Oakes and Mazzola
6. Martha Stewart's Cookies
7. Recipes from a French County Kitchen
8. Biscuit Bliss - James Villas
9. Enoteca - Joyce Goldstein
10. The Perfect Scoop – David Leibovitz

Some old, some new...all treasured.

Classics by Donna Hay
Little Meals by Joyce Goldstein
The Silver Palate - Rosso & Lukens
Plenty - Ottolenghi
Baking - Dorie Greenspan
Colorado Cache - Jr. League of Denver
Chicken - James McNair
Miss Dahl - Sophie Dahl
More Home Cooking - Laurie Colwin
All About Braising - Stevens

Jewish Cooking in America - Joan Nathan
Chez Panisse Vegetables - Alice Waters
Union Square Cookbook - Meyers/Romano
Marcella Cucina - Marcella Hazan
Book of Middle Eastern Food - Claudia Roden
Book of Jewish Food - Claudia Roden
Spice - Ana Sortun
In My Mother's Kitchen - Mimi Sheraton
NY Times 60 Minute Gourmet - Pierre Franey
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison

Of course this list ebbs and flows....

America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
Joy of Cooking, (1975)
Julia and Jacque Cooking At Home, Julia Child and Jacque Pepin
The Italian Country Table, Lynn Kasper Rosetto
Ratio, Michael Ruhlman
Mexican Kitchen, Rick Bayless
Beard on Bread, James Beard
Colorado Collage, Jr League of Colorado
The Splendid Table How to Eat Supper, Lynn Kasper Rosetto
Cooks Illustrated Best Recipe

AND my 3-ring binder containing all my tried and trues with handwritten notes and dates. The one thing I hope my kids will fight over to inherit.

I too am a cookbook collector..LOVE them!!! If I had to pick 10 for now they would be:

!. Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
2. Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
3. America's Test Kitchen Complete TV show cookbook
4. The Pioneer Woman's Cookbooks
5. Home Baked Comfort by Williams Sonoma
6. Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
7. Bittersweet by Alice Medrich
8. Room For Dessert by David Lebovitz -Also The Perfect Scoop
9. All the Barefoot Contessa Books
10. And of course Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

1. The Way to Cook, Julia Child
2. Le Technique, Jacques Pepin
3. Essential Pepin, Jacques Pepin
4. Cake Bible, rose Levy Bearinbaum
5. Jewish Cooking in America, Joan Nathan
6. Braising, Molly Stevens
7. Sauces, James Peterson
8. Maida Hestter's Book of Great Desserts
9. The Craft of the Cocktail, Dale Degroff
10. Ratio, Michael Rulhmann

1. The Way to Cook, Julia Child
2. Le Technique, Jacques Pepin
3. Essential Pepin, Jacques Pepin
4. Cake Bible, rose Levy Bearinbaum
5. Jewish Cooking in America, Joan Nathan
6. Braising, Molly Stevens
7. Sauces, James Peterson
8. Maida Hestter's Book of Great Desserts
9. The Craft of the Cocktail, Dale Degroff
10. Ratio, Michael Rulhmann

In no particular order.

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Childs
2. Olives and Oranges - Jenkins
3. Around My French Table - Greenspan
4. Plenty - Ottolenghi
5. The New Book of Middle Eastern Food - Roden
6. How to Cook Everything - Bittman
7. Lidia's Italy - Bastianich
8. La Cucina - Accademia Italiana della Cucina
9. Ad Hoc at Home - Keller
10. My Tuscan Kitchen - Baccheschi Berti

A Book of Mediterranean Food - Elizabeth David
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
The Handmade Loaf - Dan Lepard
The Art of Mexican Cooking - Diana Kennedy
The New Book of Middle Eastern Food - Claudia Roden
The Book of Jewish Food - Claudia Roden
Classic Indian Cooking - Julie Sahni
Chez Panise Desserts - Lindsey Shere
Tender Vol I & Vol II - Nigel Slater
Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco - Paula Wolfert

In no particular order my 10 books are California Fresh-Oakland Junior League, Supper Club Chez MarthaRose-Shulman, The Tortilla Book-Kennedy, The Pleasures of Cooking for One-Jones,The Short-Cut Cook-Pepin, More Home Cooking-Colwin, Diet for a Small Planet-Lappe, Cooking In America-Franey, From Julia Child's Kitchen-Child, The Essential Vegetarian Cookbook-Shaw.

Moosewood Cookbook – Mollie Katzen
The Art of Simple Food- Alice Waters
Apples for Jam – Tessa Kiros
Plenty – Yotam Ottolenghi
The Food Matters Cookbook – Mark Bittman
100 Great Breads – Paul Hollywood
The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
The Essentials of Asian Cooking – Williams-Sonoma
Great Food Fast – Martha Stewart
The American Boulangerie – Pascal Rigo

I am of the belief that you can never have too many cookbooks, therefore I am always adding. These are some old and some newer that I tend to return to time and time again:

-Tamasin's Kitchen Bible, Tamasin Day-Lewis
-Open House Cookbook, Sarah Leah Chase
-Bouchon, Thomas Keller
-River Cafe Italian Country, Ruth Rogers & Rose Grey
-How I Cook, Skye Gyngell
-Arabesque, Claudia Roden
-Real Food, Nigel Slater
-At Home in Provence, Patricia Wells
-Country Cooking of France, Ann Willian
-Canal House Series, Hamilton/Hirsheimer

Plenty -- Yotam Ottolenghi (perhaps my #1 favorite of all time)
Joy of Cooking, 2nd edition
Essentials of Italian Cooking -- M. Hazan
The Fannie Farmer Baking Book -- M. Cunningham
From Curries to Kabobs -- Madhur Jaffrey (really, any of her books could qualify)
The All- American Cookie Book -- Nancy Baggett
Mexican Kitchen -- Rick Bayless
Italian Slow and Savory -- Joyce Goldstein
The Dean and DeLuca Cookbook

OK, this is such fun, and as we have relocated and put most of our things in storage, I had to choose cookbooks to take with me, my favourites or must haves...

1) Stir by Barbara Lynch
2) A Platter of Figs by David Tanis
3) Asian Flavors of Jean-George by Jean-George Vongerichten
4) Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid
5) Ottolenghi: The Cookbook by Yottam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamami
6) Bistro Cooking by Patricia Wells
7) Perfect Recipes for Having People Over by Pam Anderson
8) The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen
9) Canal House Cooking (all of them...) by Hamilton & Hirsheimer
10) Great Food at Home by Mark McEwan

After looking at some of the other suggestions, I bought several cookbooks for my Kindle and iPad, so many thanks for sharing!

Joy of Cooking
The Way to Cook - Julia Child
Moosewood Cookbook - Katzen
Madhur Jaffery's World of the East Vegetarian Cookbook
I could eat pasta every night - Susan Kozoff
Real Vegetarian Thai - McDermott
Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop
Complete Vegetarian Cookbook - Rose Elliot
How to Cook Everything, Completely Revised 10th Anniversary Edition: 2,000 Simple Recipes for Great Food by Mark Bittman
Martha Stewart's website (also Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook by Martha Stewart)

Emeril's website also gets a shout out, I go there often.

What's not to love?

Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Julia Child.
The Art of Simple Food. Alice Waters.
The Paris Cookbook. Patricia Wells.
Tartine./Tartine Bread. Elizabeth Prueitt / Chad Roberts.
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. Mark Bittman
On Food and Cooking. Harold McGee.
Cooking for Mr. Latte. Amanda Hesser.
The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook. Rachel Saunders.
In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite. Melissa Clark.
Rose's Heavenly Cakes. Rose Levy Barenbaum.

I love reading all these lists! Mine are:
Sunday Suppers at Lucques
Lulu's Provençal Table
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
Zuni Cafe Cookbook.
Il libra Della Vera cucina fiorentina
The Cheeseboard Collective Works
The art of simple food
Maryland's Way
The Cake Bible
Classic Home Desserts

Ten is a little limiting since they all have a purpose, here is my top 10:

1) The Complete Robuchon - great instructions, everything turns out perfect
2) Around My French Table - French cooking for the home chef
3) Made in Spain - best Gazpacho recipe ever!
4) Italian Grill - great for grilling
5) Vegetables from an Italian Garden - it's the bible for seasonal veggies
6) Mozza Cookbook - easy and entertaining friendly
7) Vefa's Kitchen
8) The Silver Spoon
9) Recipes from an Italian Summer
10) Masterning the Art of French Cooking

In no particular order:
1. NY Times Cookbook, Claiborne
2. Silver Palate, Rosso and Lukins
3. Beard on Bread, Beard
4. How to Cook Everything, Bittman
5. Yellow Farmhouse Cookbook, Kimball
6. Cook Wise, Corriher
7. The Way to Cook, Child
8. Jewish Home Cooking, Schwartz
9. Square Meals, J and M Stern
10. Farmhouse Cookbook, Loomis

America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
The Cook's County Cookbook
Gourmet Today
Crescent City Cooking--Susan Spicer
Ball's Complete Book of Home Preserving
Vegetarian Planet--Didi Emmons
Bon Appetit: Fast Easy Fresh
How to Cook Everything-Mark Bittman
Joy of Cooking
Tupelo Honey Cafe

In no particular order:

Classic Italian Cookbook by Marcella Hazan
James Beard's American Cookery
Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking
Art of Simple Cooking by Alice Waters
Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant
The New Basics by Rosso & Lukins
Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge by Grace Young
Great Food Fast - from the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living
How to Barbecue by Stephen Raichlen
King Arthur Flour's Whole Grain Baking

1. Essentials of Italian Cooking
2. Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes A Day
3. Larousse Gastronomique
4. Joy of Cooking
5. Silver Palate Cookbook
6. Around My French Table
7. Mexican Everyday with Rick Bayless
8. Happy Days with the Naked Chef
9. The El Paso Chile Company Texas Border Cookbook
10. Nigella Bites

My list is probably a bit different.

1. Diamonds in the Desert - Ozona tx women's league cookbook
2. Mother Janes Prescription for hunger by Jane Justin
3. Helen Corbitt's Cookbook
4. The New Texas Cuisine by Stephen Pyles
5. Baking by Dorie Greenspan
6. Sarahbeths Bakery
7. The pioneer woman cooks by Ree Drummond
8. The new mayo clinic cookbook
9. The gourmet cookbook by reichl
10. The baby and toddler cookbook by Karen ansel

Also I do live food52 and allrecipes for help too!

As everyone says, it hard to pick just ten, so here's a dozen, with the first five in their own super category:

Classic italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan (shares best cookbook in the world title!)
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman (shares best cookbook in the world title!)
Union Square Cafe Cookbook - Meyer/Romano
Chanterelle Staffmeals - Waltuck
Baking Illustrated - Cooks Illustrated
The Art of Simple Food - Waters
The Silver Palate Cookbook - Rosso/Lukins
Molto Italiano - Batali
Tribeca Grill - Pintabona
Saveur Authentic American
Martha Stewart Cookies
Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table - Mai Pham

As everyone says, it hard to pick just ten, so here's a dozen, with the first five in their own super category:

Classic italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan (shares best cookbook in the world title!)
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman (shares best cookbook in the world title!)
Union Square Cafe Cookbook - Meyer/Romano
Chanterelle Staffmeals - Waltuck
Baking Illustrated - Cooks Illustrated
The Art of Simple Food - Waters
The Silver Palate Cookbook - Rosso/Lukins
Molto Italiano - Batali
Tribeca Grill - Pintabona
Saveur Authentic American
Martha Stewart Cookies
Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table - Mai Pham

A New Turn in the South - Hugh Acheson
The Grit - Restaurant cookbook
Super Natural Everyday - Hedi Swanson
Super Natural Cooking - Hedi Swanson
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
Mastering the ARt of French Cooking - Julia Child
Under the Tuscan Sun - Frances Mayes
Food52.com

I love this idea! Can't wait to see the results . . . Below are my top 10 . . . though it was difficult to choose. I find that I love cookbooks that focus on quality of ingredients, seasonality and simple, precise technique. [listed in no particular order]:

1. The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook - Amelia Saltsman
2. On Cooking - Sarah Labensky
3. Essential Pepin - Jacques Pepin
4. Ad Hoc at Home - Thomas Keller
5. How to Roast a Lamb - Michael Psilakis
6. Joy of Cooking - Becker & Rombauer
7. A16 - Nate Appleman
8. The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
9. Ma Gastronomie - Fernand Point
10. Ruhlman's Twenty - Michael Ruhlman

Mexican Everyday - Rick Bayless
Authentic Mexican - Rick Bayless
PIe in the Sky - Susan G. Purdy
America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
The Flavor Bible - Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
The New Complete Book of Breads - Bernard Clayton
Whole Grain Baking - King Arthur Flour
Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen - Paul Prudhomme
The Best Recipes in the World - Mark Bittman
America's Best Lost Recipes - America's Test Kitchen

Naples at Table by Arthur Schwartz; Veneto by Julia Della Croce; Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean by Paula Wolfert; Dolce Vita by David Rocco; Modern Spice by Monica Bhide;
Larousse Gastronomique; Miami Spice by Stephen Raichlen; Hot Salty Spicy Sweet by Daguid; Mastering the Art of French cooking I & II, Julia Child et al; Sweet Sicily by Victoria Granof..

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone- Deborah Madison
The Art of Simple Food- Alice Waters
How to Cook Everything- Bittman
NY Times Cookbook- Amanda Hesser
All About Braising
and
All About Roasting- Molly Stevens
Best 30 Minute Recipe- Cooks Illustrated
Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Cook This Now- M. Clark
Moosewood Cookbook! Old School!

1. Nigella Feast by Nigella Lawson;
2. Real Fast Food by Nigel Slater;
3. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison;
4. The Book of Jewish Food by Claudia Roden;
5. Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater;
6. How To Eat by Nigella Lawson;
7. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan;
8. My Father's Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow;
9. The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham; and
10. Summer Cooking by Elizabeth David.

Hard to pick just ten.......

Joy Of Cooking, Rombauer - first cookbook I probably ever used
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, Deborah Madison
City Cuisine, Milliken & Feniger
Sunday Suppers at Lucques, Goin
The Border Cookbook, Cheryl & Bill Jamison
Silver Palate
The Way to Cook, Julia Child
Tartine
Hot Sour Salty Sweet, Alford & Duguid
The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen, Wolfert

Around My French Table: Dorie Greenspan
River Road Recipes (The Junior League of Baton Rouge - all volumes)
Bon Appétit Y’all: Virginia Willis
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl: Ree Drummond
Fannie Farmer Cookbook - Marion Cunningham
Who’s Your Mama, Are You Catholic and Can You Make a Roux: Marcelle Bienvenu
Cooking Up A Storm: Recipes Lost and Found from The Times-Picayune of New Orleans
The Picayune Creole Cook Book
Martha Stewart’s Cookies
The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion

Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home - Moosewood Collective
The Mediterranean Diet Cookbook - Nancy Jenkins
Barefoot Contessa Cooks at Home - Ina Garten
Panini - Melanie Barnard
Fannie Farmer
Greene on Greens - Bert Greene
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
Bake! - Nick Malgieri
The New Basics Cookbook - Rosso and Lukins
The Bread Bakers Apprentice - Peter Reinhart

I have more cookbooks than I'll ever need, and there are cookbooks I often cook from, such as In The Kitchen with Melissa Clark, or Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin, or Cucina Rustica by Viana LaPlace and Evan Kleiman. I couldn't live without Jim Lahey's My Bread, or James Villas' Southern Cooking. Lorna Sass's Cooking Under Pressure made me a life-long convert of this essential cooking vessel. Julia Child, Lynne Rosetto Kasper, Claudia Roden, Julie Sahni, Rose Levy Beranbaum, Simon Hopkinson, Jacques Pepin, Dorie Greenspan, Penelope Cassas, James Peterson, Rick Stein, Diane Worthington, Nick Malgieri, Chris Schlessinger and John Willoughby, Rick Rodgers, Julie Rosso & Sheila Lukins, Barbara Kafka, Ina Garten, Martha Stewart, Susan Loomis, Susan Wyler, and especially Lee Bailey, all occupy honored and much consulted positions on my cookbook shelves.

But these 10 cookbooks specifically have been steady companions through a huge swatch of my cooking life. Some are recent additions, which switfly made it into the most used group. Others have been there for decades. When you read and cook through the works of all of these fine writers, you enter a very special world. I don't like cookbooks (mine are kept in the adjoining dining room), but for these ten, I would make space on my kitchen counter!

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
Bistro Cooking by Patricia Wells
The Classic Italian Cookbook by Marcella Hazan
Lidias Family Table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver
The Antipasto Table by Michele Scicolone
The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
Local Flavors by Deborah Madison
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts

Your next list should include those cookbooks you love to read.

Betty Crocker's Cookbook (1969 edition)
Betty Crocker's Cook Book
The Gourmet Cookbook (2004)
ALL The Barefoot Contessa cookbooks!
Bob's Red Mill Cookbook
Veganomicon
A New Way to Cook
The Good Cook series from Time Life

Betty Crocker's Cookbook (1969 edition)
Betty Crocker's Cook Book
The Gourmet Cookbook (2004)
ALL The Barefoot Contessa cookbooks!
Bob's Red Mill Cookbook
Veganomicon
A New Way to Cook
The Good Cook series from Time Life

Betty Crocker's Cookbook (1969 edition)
Betty Crocker's Cook Book
The Gourmet Cookbook (2004)
ALL The Barefoot Contessa cookbooks!
Bob's Red Mill Cookbook
Veganomicon
A New Way to Cook
The Good Cook series from Time Life

Interesting task.... Like most of the contributors, I collect cookbooks (40+ years worth), so this was a challenge. Right now, my favorites are:

1. Joy of Cooking--Rombauer et al.
2. The Gourmet Cookbook--Reichl
3. Around My French Table--Greenspan
4. The Simple Art of Eating Well Cookbook--Price et al.
5. The Japanese Kitchen--Shimbo
6. The Food of Morocco--Wolfert
7. Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook--Hensperger & Kaufmann
8. The Vegetarian Epicure--Thomas
9. The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook--Jenkins
10. The Seductions of Rice--Alford & Duguid (actually any/all of their books.)

And, I have so incorporated the recipes from The Silver Palate Cookbook by Rosso & Lukins, that I can't tell anymore where they leave off and I start.

How to Cook Everything - Bittman
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - Bittman
The Art of Simple Food - Waters
Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant - The Moosewood Collective
The Food You Crave - Krieger
The complete Asian Cooking Companion- Liley
Food 52 Cookbook

The first three are about technique. I have 4 Moosewood cookbooks, all are good, but the Sunday one is my go to cookbook when looking for a vegetarian dish that I want to bring to a potluck. Ellie Krieger taught me the importance of technique, because her recipes are delicious if you cook them properly, but without the technique, no flavor. Her appetizer recipes are great for parties. Asian food can be intimidating, but this cookbook and Mark Bittman gave me the courage to try cooking it at home.

My list including practical and emotional choices...I have no trouble with BIG DEAL menus but for real life these are the ones that work.
The Cake Bible, rose Levy Birnbaum
the Silver Spoon
Primal Cuts, Guggiana
The Bibendum Cookbook, Conran
Nigella Christmas, Lawson
The Southern Foodways Alliance, Roahan & Edge
Balthazar Cookbook, McNally
Stir, Lynch
On Top Of Spaghetti, Kileen and Germon
A Great American Cook, Waxman

Joy of Cooking (Rombauer)
Julia & Jaques (Child & Pepin)
French Taste (Calder)
Lumiere (Feenie)
Tapas (Franco)
Flavours of Tuscany (Menghi)
Charlie Trotters (Trotter)
Book of Sushi (Omae)
Mastering the Art of French Cooking (Child)
www.google (recipe name)

(plus two to three hundred more on my shelf)
cheers, Bigpan

Bittman How to Cook Everything
Child & Pepin Julia & Jacques Cooking at Home
Lewis & Poliafito Baked
Simonds A Spoonful of Ginger
Medrich Pure Dessert
Lawson How to Eat
Colwin Home Cooking
Hesser Cooking for Mr. Latte
Reichl The Gourmet Cookbook
Cunningham The Fannie Farmer Cookbook

how to bake, by nick malgieri; how to be a domestic goddess, by nigella lawson, cook's illustrated: the best 30-minute recipes and the best make-ahead recipes; quick and easy indian cooking by madhur jaffrey

Only ten? Egads....without hurting the feelings of my other books?
I have many well worn even falling apart from use.
In no particular order:
Classic home desserts by Richard Sax ( hard to chose because all of his books are good)
Victory Garden cookbook by Marian Morash with two rubber bands ( making her light corn pudding on page 88 today)
Bistro cooking by Patricia Wells ( I own two copies, one as a back up)
Better than store bought by Colchie and Witty (fabulous rye bread)
Pirets cookbook by Piret Munger
Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham
Paris Sweets by Dorie Greenspan
Ciao Italia by Mary Ann Esposito (or any others by her)
Mozza by Nancy Silverton
My go to for most things The New Professional Chef from the Culinary Institute of America

Hot Sour Salty Sweet - Alford and Duguid
Land of Plenty - F Dunlop
Thai Food - D Thompson
Into the Vietnamese Kitchen - A Nguyen
Cradle of Flavor - J Oseland
Washoku - E Andoh
Essentials of Clasic Italian Cooking - M Hazan
Zuni Cafe Cookbook - J Rogers
Authentic Mexican - Bayless
Classical Turkish Cooking - A Algar

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

The Italian Baker - Carol Field
The Complete Asian Cookbook - Charmaine Solomon
Saved by Soup - Judith Barrett
Twelve, A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Apples for Jam - Tessa Kiros
Jaime's 30-minute Meals - Jaime Oliver
Regional Foods of Northern Italy - Marlena de Blasi
A Passion for Piedmont - Matt Kramer
The Seafood Cookbook -Pierre Franey & Bryan Miller
Delia Smiths's Christmas - Delia Smith

anything by Maida Heatter!!

1. Ruhlman's Twenty - Michael Ruhlman
2. The Babbo Cookbook - Mario Batali
3. Balthazar Cookbook - Keith McNally, Riad Nasr & Lee Hanson
4. Les Halles Cookbook - Anthony Bourdain
5. ad hoc at home - Thomas Keller
6. Ethan Stowell's New Italian Kitchen - Ethan Stowell
7. Milk - Christina Tosi
8. Dolce Italiano - Gina DePalma
9. The Herbal Kitchen - Jerry Traunfeld
10. Peace, Love and Barbecue - Mike Mills and Amy Mills Tunnicliffe

Top ten current Favs:
The Yellow Farmhouse Cookbook-Christopher Kimball
How to Cook Everything-Mark Bittman
The Gourmet Cookbook-Ruth Riechl
The Essential New York Times Cookbook-Amanda Hesser
Cook this Now/ Alone in the Kitchen with a Good Appetite-Melissa Clark
Louisiana, Real and Rustic-Emeril Lagasse
The Lee Brothers Southern Cookbook-Matt and Ted Lee
CookWise-Shirley Corriher
Chez Panisse Vegetables-Alice Waters
Eat This Book-Tyler Florence

Past Classics(my first cookbooks)
Joy of Cooking
James Beard's American Cookery
River Roads Recipes

Top ten current Favs:
The Yellow Farmhouse Cookbook-Christopher Kimball
How to Cook Everything-Mark Bittman
The Gourmet Cookbook-Ruth Riechl
The Essential New York Times Cookbook-Amanda Hesser
Cook this Now/ Alone in the Kitchen with a Good Appetite-Melissa Clark
Louisiana, Real and Rustic-Emeril Lagasse
The Lee Brothers Southern Cookbook-Matt and Ted Lee
CookWise-Shirley Corriher
Chez Panisse Vegetables-Alice Waters
Eat This Book-Tyler Florence

Past Classics(my first cookbooks)
Joy of Cooking
James Beard's American Cookery
River Roads Recipes

1 and 2 Home Cooking and More Home Cooking - Laurie Colwin. I miss her terribly; she wrote with such eclan and humor. Believe these are out of print.
3. The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper
4. Super Natural Every Day - Heidi Swanson
5. A New Way to Cook - Schneider
6. The Instant Gourmet - Melissa Clark
7. An Everlasting Meal - Tamar Adler
8. Raji Cuisine - R. Jallepalli
9. The Way to Cook - Julia Child
10. Eating Well - Burt Wolf
Go

I have to say this site is a current primary recipe source! My current & all time go-to books, in no particular order:
1) How to Cook Everything
2) Food Matters Cookbook
3) Around My French Table
4) Baking (Greenspan)
5) Microwave Gourmet
6) The Way to Cook
7) Betty Crocker Cookbook (1950 edition, complete with my grandmother's notes in the margins)
8) Fannie Farmer Cookbook
9) Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol 1
10) King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion

Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
Joy of Cooking
At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka
The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
The Modern Family Cookbook by Meta Given
Still Life with Menu Cookbook by Mollie Katzen
The Silver Spoon
Spice and Spirit: The Complete Kosher Jewish Cookbook (A Kosher living classic) by Esther Blau, Tzirrel Deitsch and Cherna Light
Second Helpings, Please by Norene Gilletz
Feast: Food to Celebrate Life by Nigella Lawson

The Boston Cooking-School Cookbook by Fannie Farmer

1) Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook -circa 1950's - my mom's first cookbook when she married & she passed it down to me when I married.
2) Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Child, Bertholle, Beck
3) Cookwise - Shirley Corriher
4) The New Basics - Lukins & Rosso
5) Baking With Julia - Julia Child
6) Bake & Freeze Desserts - Elinor Klivans
7) Real Women Eat Chiles - Jane Butel
8) The Dean & Deluca Cookbook - David Rosengarten
9) Cooking With Herbs - Emelie Tolley
10) The Cook & the Gardener - Amanda Hesser

Sunday Suppers at Luques (Suzanne Goin)
The Gourmet Cookbook
The Art of Simple Food (Alice Waters)
The New Best Recipe
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook (Judy Rodgers)
Good to the Grain (Kim Boyce)
Your Japanese Kitchen (Harumi Kurihara)
????? (Washoku no Kihon)
????????? (Zehi Oboetai Okazu)

Sunday Suppers at Luques (Suzanne Goin)
The Gourmet Cookbook
The Art of Simple Food (Alice Waters)
The New Best Recipe
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook (Judy Rodgers)
Good to the Grain (Kim Boyce)
Your Japanese Kitchen (Harumi Kurihara)
????? (Washoku no Kihon)
????????? (Zehi Oboetai Okazu)

1. Joy of Cooking- Rombauer/Becker
2. The Art of Simple Food- Alice Waters
3. The Kind Diet- Alicia Silverstone
4. Betty Crocker Cookbook- Betty Crocker
5. San Juan Classics Cookbook- Janice Veal, Dawn Ashbach
6. The Moosewood Cookbook- Mollie Katzen
7. The Silver Palate Cookbook- Julee Rosso, Sheila Lukens
8.The Complete Book of Breads- Bernard Clayton
9. Mastering the Art of French Cooking-Julia Child
10. The New York Times Cookbook-Craig Claiborne

My go to books are: The Joy of Cooking and The Bread Bakers Apprentice. I have a cookbook addiction that exceeds most women's shoe collections, but those two I run to first, the others are for inspiration.

Love being asked to do this!

How to Cook Everything (Bittman)
How to Eat (Lawson)
The Food Lovers Dictionary (not strictly a cookbook, but I can't live without it)
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (Madison)
The Flavor Bible (Page/Dornenburg)
Ratio (Ruhlman)
Good Tempered Food (Day-Lewis)
The Gourmet Cookbook (Reichl)
The Best Chicken Recipes (Cook's Illustrated)
The Gift of Southern Cooking (Lewis/Peacock)

Throwing my hat into the ring here..... in no particular order:

- The Last Course, Desserts of Gramercy Tavern - Claudia Fleming
- The Fannie Farmer Cookbook - Marion Cunningham
- Baking with Julia - Julia Child
- Vegetable Harvest - Patricia Wells (my favorite Wells cookbook!)
- Cooking up a Storm, Recipes Lost and Found from the Times-Picayune, New Orleans - various
- Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
- Fish and Shellfish - James Peterson
- My Mexico - Diana Kennedy
- Big Small Plates - Cindy Pawlcyn
- The New Spanish Table - Anya von Bremzen

Around My French Table - Dorie Greenspan
The New Best Recipe - Cook's Illustrated
Baking Illustrated - Cook's Illustrated
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
The New Vegetarian Epicure - Anna Thomas
The Silver Palate Cookbook - Lukins and Rosso
The Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook - Lukins and Rosso
The Book of Great Chocolate Desserts - Maida Heatter
The Open House Cookbook - Sarah Leah Chase
The Greens Cookbook - Deborah Madison

In the order they occurred to me:

How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Silver Palate Cookbook - Rosso and Lukins
Silver Palate Good Times - Rosso and Lukins
Joy of Cooking - Rombauer
Home Cooking - Laurie Colwin
More Home Cooking - Laurie Colwin
The New York Cookbook - Molly O'Neill
Julia Child & Company
Julia Child & More Company
Fannie Farmer Cookbook

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah
The Paris Cookbook - Patricia Wells
Simple French Food - Richard Olney
The Country Cooking of France - Anne Willian
The Enchanted Broccoli Forest - Mollie Katzen
Cooking One on One - John Ash
A Mediterranean Feast - Clifford A Wright
Saveur Cooks Authentic French- Saveur Magazine
Bouchon - Thomas Keller
The Balthazar Cookbook - Keith McNally

There are only three that I really USE, the rest of my books are either for the sheer pleasure of a good cookbook or for inspiration. These, on the other hand, all have the signs of good use: spills, marked pages, and they fall open to my most frequently used recipes.
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
The Joy of Cooking
America's Test Kitchen

There are only three that I really USE, the rest of my books are either for the sheer pleasure of a good cookbook or for inspiration. These, on the other hand, all have the signs of good use: spills, marked pages, and they fall open to my most frequently used recipes.
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
The Joy of Cooking
America's Test Kitchen

In no particular order:
Beranbaum, The Cake Bible
Beranbaum, The Pie and Pastry Bible
Field, The Italian Baker
Heatter, New Book of Great Desserts
Roberts, Gluten-Free Baking Classics
Amsterdam, Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook
Bayless, Authentic Mexican
Bugialli, Classic Techniques of Italian Cooking
Madison, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Heian, Japanese Home style Cooking

There are so many more, but I chose these because I refer to them and cook from them time and time again.

Tender and Ripe - Nigel Slater
Plenty - Yotam O.
Artisan Baking Across America - Maggie Glezer
Super Natural Every Day - Heidi Swanson
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Good to the Grain - Kim Boyce
The Giant Cooks Illustrated One
Smitten Kitchen - Deb Perlman (the cookbook will come soon and I can only imagine it will be perfect)
The Moosewood Cookbook
and I can't decide on a 10th

1) Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child ,books 1 and two
2) La Methode and La Technique, Jacques Pepin
3) French Regional Cooking, Anne Willan
4) The Classic Italian Cook Book, Marcella Hazan
5) The Classic Pasta Cookbook, Giuliano Hazan
6) Cookwise, Shirley O. Corriher
7) Miami Spice, Steven Raichlen (He nailed the region)
8) The Cake Bible, Rose Levy Beranbaum (also the Pie Bible)
9) Fonda San Miguel, Tom Gilliland and Miguel Ravago (favorite restaurant book)
10) Women of Taste, Beverly Russell
11) Cracking the Coconut, Su-Mei Yu
12) The Professional Chef, The Culinary Institute of America
13) Around my French Table, Dori Greenspan (love the way she writes as well as the recipes)

Not all of these are perhaps my most useful (in the strict sense of the word) cookbooks. Depending on the situation, I am liable to turn to many other cookbooks besides the ones mentioned here. But the cookbooks below changed the way I think about food as well as the way I cook in general.
Joy of Cooking, 2006 edition
The Bread Baker's Apprentice
Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Wild Fermentation
Essentials of Italian Cooking
A Platter of Figs
The Art of Eating
An Everlasting Meal
Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving
Super Natural Every Day

1. The New Basics - Rosso & Lukins (this is how I learned how to cook)
2. How to Cook Everything - Bittman (my go to book for how to prepare things I have never cooked before)
3. Kitchen Diaries - Nigel Slater
4. Cooking for Mr. Latte - Hesser
5. Essentials of Italian Cooking - Hazan
6. Smitten Kitchen - Perlman (not a cookbook - yet - but that blog is another go to reference for me)
7. Barefoot Contessa - Garten (I have 3 or 4 these cookbooks - again good reference)
8. America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
9. How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - Bittman
10. The Bread Baker's Apprentice - Reinhart

I don't know if I can come up with 10 . . . but these are ones I've used repeatedly, more or less in order.

The Bistro Cookbook by Patricia Wells
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
The Short-Cut Cook by Jacques Pepin
A Well Seasoned Appetite by Molly O'Neill
The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso
The New York Times 60 Minute Cookbook by Pierre Franey (a little dated)

Bittman - How to Cook Everything
Cook's Illustrated - The Best Recipe
Kagel - Cooking with Cafe Pasqual's
Child - Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Weber's Big Book of Grilling
Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
The Moosewood Cookbook
Hazen - The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
Joy of Cooking

1. Above and Beyond Parsley - Junior League of Kansas City, MO
2. Silver Palate all of them
3. The Zuni Café Cookbook – Judy Rodgers
4. Union Square Cafe Cookbook
5. Mexican Everyday - Rick Bayless
6. James McNair's Favorites
7. Greek Meze Cooking - Sarah Maxwell
8. Spices of Life - Nina Simonds
9. Patricia Wells at Home in Provence
10. The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook - Ina Garten (Spinach Pie is amazing)

In not particular order....

Glorious French Food - James Peterson
The New Orleans Cookbook - RIchard and Rima Collin
The Africa News Cookbook
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan

Essentials of Cooking - James Peterson
Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco - Paula Wolfert
The Italian Country Table - Lynne Rosetto Kasper
Bistro Cooking - Patricia Wells
Simple French Food - Richard Olney

In no particulate order:

The Slpendid Table- Lynne Rosetto Kasper

Jami at Home- Jami Oliver

Essential of Classic Itlaian Cooking-Marcella Hazan

The Babbo Cookbook-Mario Batali

Cuisines of Mexico-Diana Kennedy

Ad hoc at Home- Thomas Keller

The Greens Cookbook-Deborah Madson

The Victory Garden Cookbook-Marian Morash

French Farmhouse Cookbook-Susan Hermann Loomis

Foods of Tuscany-Giuliani Bugialli

Ad Hoc At Home by Thomas Keller
American Pie by Peter Reinhart
Perfect Vegetables by America’s Test Kitchen
Ratio by Michael Ruhlman
Ruhlman’s Twenty by Michael Ruhlman
Serious Barbecue by Adam Perry Lang
Smoke and Spice by Jamison and Jamison

How much fun to see all these wonderful cookbooks !! My go-to cookbooks have changed over time, but the ones I am using now are (in no particular order):

Around My French Table - Greenspan
The Vegetarian Epicure - Thomas
Jaques Peppin - The Art of Cooking Vol. 1 & 2 - Peppin
Fannie Farmer Cookbook - 12 ed., Cunningham
All About Braising - Stevens
The Bread Bakers Apprentice - Reinhart
Thyme and the River - Van Loan & Lee
In the Green Kitchen - Alice Waters
The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion
Baking Illustrated

I also subscribe to the Cooks Illustrated website and typically start a search there.

Betty Crocker's Cookbook -- this is where I learned to cook as a child.
How to Cook Everything -- Mark Bitman
Silver Palate (the original)
Joy of Cooking
Cake Bible -- Rose Levy Beranbaum
The Gift of Southern Cooking -- Scott Peacock and Edna Lewis
Grilling and Barbcueing -- best recipes series
My Cooks Illustrated collection -- I have every issue
Mastering the Art of French Cooking -- Julia Child
My file drawer of 25 years of recipe collecting

The B list:

The Zuni Cafe, by Judy Rogers
The Herbfarm Cookbook, by Jerry Traunfeld
Tender, by Nigel Slater
My French Table, by Joanne Harris and Fran Warde
Momofuki, by David Chang and Peter Meehan
The Cooking of Southwest France, by Paula Wolfert
The Art of Eating, by MFK Fisher
The Essential Cuisines of Mexico, by Diana Kennedy
The Joy of Cooking, by Rombauer and Becker
On Food and Cooking, by Harold McGee

1. Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombaurer
2. Vegetarian Cooking for Everybody by Deborah Madison
3. Cooking One on One by John Ash
4. The New Best Recipe by Cook’s Illustrated
5. American Masala by Suvir Saran
6. Mexican Cooking Every Day by Rick Bayliss
7. Barefoot Contessa Parties by Ina Garten
8. Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
9. From My Mexican Kitchen by Diana Kennedy
10. New favorite: Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson

Bittman, How To Cook Everything
Hazan, The Classic Italian Cookbook
Reichl, The Gourmet Cookbook
Katzen, The Moosewood Cookbook
Thomas, The Vegetarian Epicure

The Complete Book of Mexican Cooking - Elizabeth Lambert Ortiz
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bitman
Blue Ginger - Ming Tsai
Flavors of the Riviera - Coleman Andrews
The Cuisine of Mexico - Diana Kennedy
Bobby Flay Cooks American
The Way to Cook - Julia Child
Real Cajun - Donald Link
Roasting - Barbara Kafka
The Classic Italian Cookbook - Marcella Hazan

1. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone Madison
2. How to Cook Everything Bittman
3. Fanny Farmer's Cookbook
4. Mastering the Art of French Cooking Child
5. Joy of Cooking
6. NYT Cookbook Claiborne
7. The Best Recipe Cook's Illustrated
8. The Way to Cook Child
9. Fanny Farmer's Baking Book
10. How to Cook Everything Vegetarian Bittman

I have a huge collection but there are some of the books I use all the time and have been a fan of for years.

1.The Complete Robuchon by Joel Robuchon and Robin H. R. Bellinger
2.How to Be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking by Nigella Lawson
3.Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson
4.The Silver Spoon New Edition by Phaidon Press
5.Autumn from the Heart of the Home by Susan Branch
6.French Food at Home by Laura Calder
7.Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles Cookbook: Strategies, Recipes, and Techniques of Classic Bistro Cooking by Anthony Bourdain
8.Anjum's New Indian by Anjum Anand
9.Everyday Food: Great Food Fast by Martha Stewart Living Magazine
10.David Rocco's Dolce Vita by David Rocco and Francesco Lastrucci

1) The Cake Bible -- Rose Levy Beranbaum (The most worn, falling-apart, stained book on my shelf)
2) Plenty--Yotam Ottolenghi
3) The Silver Palate Cookbook
4) The Silver Palate Good Times cookbook (Yes, I came of cooking age in the 80s. Still love these two.)
5) The New York Times Cookbook (old and new).
6) Baking with Julia
7) Ad Hoc at Home
8) Mediterranean Light
9) The Breakfast Book
10) The Tassajara Bread Book (I haven't used this book in ages, but I could never get rid of it--and still in print!)

I reach for these 10 the most:
1. The Family Meal, Home Cooking with Feran Adria by Feran Adria
2. Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery and Cafe by Joanne Chang and Christie Matheson
3. The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight and Eating Great by Pam Anderson
4. The Art of the Cake by Bruce Healy and Paul Bugat
5. The French Cookie Book by Bruce Healy and Paul Bugat
6. The Way to Cook by Julia Child
7. Glorious French Food by James Peterson
8. The Bombay Palace Cookbook by Stendahl
9. Ruhlman's Twenty by Michael Ruhlman
10. Sylvia's Cakes and Breads, Famous Recipes from a Small Maine Kitchen by Sylvia Adams Hocking

I also frequently reach for Food & Wine's Annual Books, but don't have a particular favorite year

no special order:
1) The Essential Vegetarian by Diana Shaw
2) The Best Recipes by Cooks Illustrated
3) Open House Cookbook by Sarah Leah Chase
4) Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin
5) The Silver Palate Cookbook by Sheila Lucas
6)The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison
7)Book of Great American Desserts by Maida Heatter
8)Home Cooking with Charlie Trotter
9)Barefoot Contessa at Home/Parties by Ina Garten
10) Saveur Magazine, Food and Wine, Bon Appetit monthly magazines

In no particular order:

Spies, Black Ties and Mango Pies (recipes and stories from CIA employees around the world)
Joy of Cooking (70s ed.)
Mastering the Art of French Cooking vol. 1 (orig ed.)
Tartine Bread
The Classic Italian Cookbook (Marcella Hazan)
All About Braising (Molly Stevens)
How to Cook Everything (Bittman)
Ratio (Ruhlman)
New York Times Cookbook (Claiborne/Franey)
Cake Bible (Berenbaum)

Tartine
Bi Rite's Eat Good Food
Alice Waters In The Green Kitchen
River Cafe Cookbook(s)
Skye Gyngell My Favourite Ingredients
Ottolenghi Plenty
Silver Spoon Vegetables
Bittman How to Cook Everything
Gourmet Today
The Essential NYT Cookbook

I work with chefs and we have been building a large cookbook library with input from their suggestions. It has opened my eyes to an array of incredible cookbooks, many that I wouldn't previously have considered adding to my collection, but I love seeing what it is they value, who they respect and who they want to learn from... it's fascinating. As I'm not a professional chef, I also find the flavor bible to be a necessary reference book in my home kitchen,

Essential Pepin
Spice and Spirit
Holocaust Survivor Cookbook
Kosher Palate
Kosher by Design
Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous:My Search for Jewish Cooking in France
Jewish Cooking Of The Mediterranean
From My Mother's Kitchen
Lidia's Italy in America
Recipes from My Two Villages
The New Complete International Jewish Cookbook
Olive Trees and Honey
Recipes Remembered
oops...that's more than 10
needless to say I enjoy almost all cookbooks : )

Plenty
In the Kitchen With a Good Appetite
Ad Hoc At Home
Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream
The Essential New York Times Cookbook
Around My French Table
The Union Square Cafe Cookbook
Nightly Specials
Italian Easy
Simple Pleasures

In no particular order (except for Sunday Suppers!):

Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Going
Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi
Tender by Nigel Slater
Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolonghi
Everyday Mexican by Rick Bayliss
Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller
The Glorious Pasta of Italy by Marchetti
Casa Moro (actually, all of them) by Sam & Sam Clarke
Zuni Cafe Cookbook by Judy Rodgers

Sauces, by Michel Roux. Gorgeous reference manual for all your sauce related needs. Great for last minute fixes, like when you realize your Sunday roast beef is bland and needs a pick-me-up.

Better Homes and Gardens (because sometimes, you just need a pancake recipe.)

Cooks Illustrated's Baking Illustrated

On Food and Cooking (technically not a cookbook, but I would be lost without it.) If I need to know why my eggs are rubbery, my beans won't soften, or how to cook perfect fish every time, this is my starting place.

Regional French Cooking by Anne Willan. I, regretfully, don't own a copy of Mastering The Art of French Cooking yet, but having watched my friends cook from Childs, this is a vastly better weeknight cookbook. The dishes have a more rustic flair, but they're much easier to prepare, and far more readable than Escoffier (which I own, but never cook from).

Pintxos, by Gerald Hirigoyen. I LOVE this cookbook. Inspiring, fun flavor combinations.

Bread Alone, by Daniel Leader

But honestly, I do probably 90% of my cooking from recipes online. I'll usually find 2-5 that have the right general flavor profile, and then mix-and-match until I have something that matches the flavor I have in mind and the ingredients I have on hand.

Madhur Jaffrey Easy or any of her books

Simon Hopkinson Roast Chicken and Other Stories

Prawn Cocktail Years by Simon Hopkinson and Lindsey Bareham

Fish by Lindsey Bareham

River Cafe pocket book for salads and vegetables

Nigel Slater - Kitchen Diaries

Ottolenghi / Plenty

Delia Smith

Annie Bell - Gorgeous Cakes

America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
The Foods and Wines of Spain by Penelope Casas
The Joy of Cooking
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home by Jeni Britton Bauer
The Yellow Farmhouse Cookbook by Christopher Kimball
The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
The New Best Recipe
Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

And my new favorite .... Dinner A Love Story by Jenny Rosenstrach

Ruhlman's Twenty - Michael Ruhlman
Crazy Plates - Janet and Greta Podleski
Looney Spoons - Janet and Greta Podleski
Wild Women in the Kitchen
Only in California
Baking - Martha Day
2, 4, 6, 8 - Rachel Ray
Desserts 4 Today - Abagail Johnson Dodge

Joy of cooking (obviously)
How to Cook Everything- Mark Bittman
Simply Organic- Jessie Cool (NoCal cooking at it's best)
Everyday Mexican- Rick Bayless
Tender- Slater

The cookbook I use more than any other is Vegetarian Cooking for All, by Deborah Madison, and I'm not even a vegetarian. It is filled with easy and delicious recipes for things I have around. I use her cookbook The Savory Way a lot too for the same reason. I like her approach to food.
I use the following two cookbooks a lot because the recipes are delicious and I don't know how to cook theses foods without recipes. These books make for cooking adventures that are always successful.
2. Cooking of the Mediterranean by Paula Wolfert
3. Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey

Bittman, How to Cook Everything

Sunday Suppers at Lucques
Bones
River Cottage Preserves Handbook
Plenty
Nourishing Traditions
Vegetarian Cooking for Everybody
Hot Sour Salty Sweet
Chez Panisse Fruit
Wild Fermentation
The Art of Mexican Cooking (Diana Kennedy)

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Julia Child
2. The Victory Garden Cookbook - Morash
3. Sunday Suppers at Lucques - Goin
4. Zuni cookbook - Rodgers
5. Fish Without A Doubt - Moonen
6. Land of Plenty - Dunlop
7. Cafe Beaujolais - Fox
8. 60 minute Gourmet - Franey
9. Essential Pepin - Pepin
10. Private Collection - Palo Alto Junior League

Alice Waters- The Art of Simple Food
Thomas Keller- Ad Hoc at Home
The Albuquerque Tribune- Green Chile Bible
Julia Child- Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Dorie Greenspan- Baking: From My Home to Yours
Ina Garten- The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
America’s Test Kitchen- Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook
King Arthur Four- The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion
Mark Bittman- How to Cook Everything
Rose Levy Beranbaum- The Bread Bible

Marcella Hazan, Essentials of Italian Cooking
Julia Child, The Way To Cook
Bittman, How to Cook Everything
The Fannie Farmer Cookbook
Greenspan, Around my French Table
Hesser, The Essential NYT Cookbook
Sax, Classic Home Desserts
Lewis, The Gift of Southern Cooking
Rosso and Lukins, The New Basics
Andoh, Washoku

Essential? I don't know. But, these are the cookbooks I find myself using the most:
- The Splendid Table, Lynne Rossetto Kasper
- The Silver Palate, Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins
- The Glorious Pasta of Italy, Domenica Marchetti
- The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, Judy Rodgers
- Sunday Suppers at Lucques, Suzanne Goin
-The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen, Paula Wolfert
- Plenty, Yotam Ottolenghi
-The French Laundry Cookbook, Thomas Keller
- Cook's Illustrated Best Recipes
-My notebook of recipes collected through the years - that one's actually essential

How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
The New James Beard Cookbook – James Beard
The Essential Seafood Cookbook – Whitecap Books (Canadian Publisher’s “Essential Cookbook Series”)
Mare – Evan Kleiman
Bones – Jennifer McGlagan
The Food and Wines of Spain – Penelope Casas
The Zuni Café Cookbook – Judy Rodgers
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking – Marcella Hazan
The Border Cookbook – Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison
The New New York Times Cookbook – Craig Claiborne and Pierre Franey

Appetite by Nigel Slater
The Good Housekeeping Step by Step Vegetarian Cookbook
Delia Smith's Christmas
Vegan with a Vengeance
Baking by Martha Day
The Hummingbird Bakery cupcake book

The New Moosewood Cookbook - Katzen
Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Child
The Bread Maker's Apprentice - Reinhart
American Cookery - Beard
In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite - Clark
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - Bittman
Flour - Chang
The Silver Spoon

1. Betty Crocker Cookbook
2. Joy of Cooking 97 edition
3. Gourmet Today (Ruth Reichl/Gourmet Magazine)
4. The Martha Stewart Cookbook
5. Southern Sideboards from the Junior League of Jackson, MS
6. San Francico Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market Cookbook
7. The Cake Bible
8. The Summer Book by Susan Branch
9. The Barefoot Contessa
10. The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper

The Essential New York Times Cookbook
New York Times Heritage Cookbook
USA Cookbook -- Lukins
From My Mother's Kitchen -- Mimi Sheraton
The Silver Palate Cookbook
Classic Italian Cooking -- Hazan
Beard on Bread
New York Times Cookbook -- Claiborne
Chez Panisse Pasta
Chez Panisse Vegetables

The Gourmet Cookbook - Ruth Reichl
Tasty - Roy Finamore
The Barbecue Bible - Steven Raichlen
A New Way to Cook - Sally Schneider
One Big Table - Molly O'Neill
Essential Pepin - Jacques Pepin
The Way We Cook - Sheryl Julian & Julie Riven
Planet Barbecue - Steven Raichlen
The Pleasures of Cooking for One - Judith Jones
All About Braising - Molly Stevens

Baking - Dorie Greenspan
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Still Life With Menu - Mollie Katzen
Ratio - Michael Ruhlman
Barefoot in Paris - Ina Garten
The Doubleday Cookbook - Jean Anderson & Elaine Hanna (my go-to reference before Bittman - a wedding gift in 1982)

In no particular order and with apologies to all the other books I treasure!

1. Stir – Barbara Lynch
2. Molto Gusto – Mario Batali
3. Italian Grill – Mario Batali
4. Mexican Everyday – Rick Bayless
5. Off The Shelf – Donna Hay
6. Martha Stewart Cookbook, Collected Recipes for Everyday – Martha Stewart
7. La Mia Cucina Toscana – Pino Luongo
8. 1000 Italian Recipes – Michele Scicolone
9. The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook – Ina Garten
10. Vegetable Love – Barbara Kafka

In alphabetical order:
Bistro Cooking at Home by Gordon Hamersley, Broadway Books: 2003
Cusina Rustica by Viana La Place and Evan Kleinman, Morrow: 1990
The Fanny Farmer Cookbook 12th ed. edited by Marion Cunningham, Knopf: 1979
At Home in Provence by Patricia Wells, Scriber: 1996
Love Soup by Anna Thomas, W.W. Norton: 2009
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol 1 by Julia Child et al, Knopf: 1961
The New York Times Cookbook by Craig Claiburne, Harper & Row: 1961
Simple Pleasures by Alfred Portale, Morrow: 2004
Sweet Simplicity by Jacques Pepin, Bay Books: 1999
A Year in My Kitchen by Skye Gyngell, Ten Speed Press: 2006

In no particular order:
Everyday Harumi - Harumi Kurihara
Essential New York Times Cookbook - Amanda Hesser
Living and Eating - John Pawson
The New Basics Cookbook- Julia Rosso & Shelia Lutkins
New American Table - Marcus Samuelsson
Martha Stewart Cookbook - Martha Stewart
Off the Shelf- Donna Hay
Plenty - Yottam Ottelenghi
Best of Vietnamese and Thai Cooking - Pham Mai
Elephant Walk Cookbook - Longteine de Monteiro

Hot Sour Salty Sweet, Allford and Duguid
Once Upon a Tart, Audureau and Mentesana
The Minimalist Cooks Dinner, Bittman
Good to the Grain, Boyce
Cooking for Mr. Latte, Hesser
Food52 Cookbook, Hesser and Stubbs
Roast Chicken and Other Stories, Hopkinson
The Dean & Deluca Cookbook, Rosengarten
The Gourmet Cookbook, Reichl
Pastries from La Brea Bakery, Silverton

How to be a Domestic Goddess - Lawson
America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
Essential New York Times Cookbook - Hesser
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day - Hertzberg/Francois
Real Fast Food - Slater
Baking Style - Yockelson
Mediterranean Harvest - Shulman
Mastering the Art of French Cooking vol 1 - Child
How to Cook Everything - Bittman
The Art of Simple Food - Waters

Joy of Cooking, 1997 edition - Rombauer and Becker
Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Child, Bertholle and Beck
The Flavor Bible - Page and Dornenburg
Better Homes & Gardens New Junior Cookbook (it's the one I first learned to cook.. er, bake.. out of. At age 8)
The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book

Currently in the top 5:
Tagines and Couscous - Basan

I'm a baker so a few are going to be overlapping

Bread Bakers Apprentice - Reinhart
Baking From My Home To Yours - Greenspan
Roasting - Kafka
How to Cook Everything - Bittman
Ratio - Ruhlman
Cookwise - Corriher
On Food and Cooking - McGee
The Wisdom of The Chinese Kitchen - Grace Young

Delicioso! The regional Cooking of Spain - Penelope Casas
Hot and Sour Salty and Sweet – a culinary journey through SE Asia.
Japanese Cooking a Simple Art –Tsuij
Classic Indian Cooking – Julie Sahni
Land of Plenty – Fuchsia Dunlop
Eating Koran – Clelia Hae-Jin Lee
The Best of Vietnamese and Thai Cooking – Mai Pham
Unmentionable Cuisine – Calvin W. Schwabe
All About Braising - Molly Stevens
Fanny Farmer– 11th Edition (1965) – Wilma Lord Perkins

Lebanese Cuisine by Helou
Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook
Molto Italiano by Batali
The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Reinhart
Whole Grain Breads by Reinhart
In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite by Clark
The Best of Chef at Home by Smith
Bride and Groom First and Forver Cookbook by Barber and Whiteford
Fast Food by Ramsay
Scientifically Sweet by Marsigliese

This was a great question to mull over! These are the physical cookbooks I own that I consult the most, in no real order, and would take to the proverbial deserted island.
• Complete Robuchon – Joel Robuchon
• Ad Hoc at Home - Thomas Keller
• Around My French Table - Dorie Greenspan
• Essential Jacques Pepin – Jacques Pepin
• New Best Recipe by Cook's Illustrated Magazine (2004)
• Fannie Farmer Cookbook- Marion Cunningham
• Art of the Tart – Tamasin Day-Lewis
• Craft of Cooking – Tom Colicchio
• Simple to Spectacular – JG Vongerichten
• The Professional Chef - The Culinary Institute of America (7th edition)
There are a couple cookbooks I rely on that I consult online, and I left out baking books or nothing would fit in a list of 10! On the baking list would be Carole Walter for certain, and Martha Stewart.

Joy of Cooking
The Essential Moosewood
Soup Bible
Plenty
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian
Vegetables from an Italian Garden
Vegetarian 5-Ingredient Gourmet
The Bread Machine Cookbook
1000 Vegetarian Recipes
Olive Trees and Honey

This was much harder than I thought it would be!

So, so hard! But, here's what I pick today if I could only have ten books on my shelf.

Donna Hay - The Instant Cook
King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion
Rick Bayless - Authentic Mexican
Willoughby & Schlensinger - The Thrill of the Grill
Allford & Duguid - Flatbreads and Flavors
Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking
Julia Child - The Way to Cook
Ina Garten - The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
Lidia Bastianich - Lidia's Family Table
Marcella Hazan - Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

This was so tough. And I'm sure I'll remember others that I wish I'd listed. In no order of preference:

Cook This Now by Melissa Clark
Feast by Nigella Lawson
Appetite by NIgel Slater
Sunday Suppers at Lucques y Suzanne Goin
The Ottolenghi Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi
Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
All About Braising by Molly Stevens
The New York Times Essential Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian

I'm probably repeating a lot of choices here but here's some of my top books that I pulled from my library.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child
The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
The Bon Appetit Cookbook by Barbara Fairchild
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts by Maida Heatter
Martha Stewart's Cooking School by Martha Stewart
Essential Pepin by Jacques Pepin
Cook with Jamie by Jamie Oliver
Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ Book by Chris Lily
Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller
The Chinese Kitchen: Recipes, Techniques, Ingredients, History, and Memories From America’s Leading Authority on Chinese Cooking by Eileen Yin Fei Lo

Ok, that’s 11 but it’s so hard to get it down to 10!

Simple French Food by Richard Olney
Chinese Vegetarian Cooking by Kenneth HC Lo
Easy Family Recipes from a Chinese-American Childhood by Ken Hom
Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child
The Pleasures of Preserving and Pickling by Jeanne Lesem
The New York Times Cookbook by Craig Claiborne
Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters
An Invitation to Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey
The Classic Italian Cookbook bu Marcella Hazan
Riso by Gioietta Vitale
Great Food Without Fuss by Frances McCullough and Barbara Witt

The Cake Bible,Rose Levy Beranbaum, William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1988. (I wish every cookbook was written in this manner!) . The Breakfast Book, Marion Cunningham,Knopf, 1987. Great Pies and Tarts, Carole Walter,Clarkson Potter, 1998. The Way to Cook, Julia Child, Knopf, 1989 (It is dated but has great basics.) And of course Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. I and II, Julia Child, and The Classic Italian Cook Book, Marcella Hazan.

Oooo this is a fun one.

Jamie's Food Revolution - Jamie Oliver
Super Natural Cooking - Heidi Swanson
Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
Ad Hoc at Home - Thomas Keller
Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys - David Tanis
The Essential New York Times Cookbook - Amanda Hesser
Around My French Table - Dorie Greenspan
New York Cooks - Winkler/Krellenstein
The Union Square Cafe Cookbook - Meyer/Romano
The Sweet Life in Paris - David Lebovitz

This was such an interesting exercise. There are cookbooks I love, but I realize I wouldn't consider them essential. When I really scrutinized my shelf, I came up with this list of 10 books that I cook from, reference, and also read for pleasure regularly:

1. The New Basics Cookbook, by Sheila Lukins and Julee Rosso
2. Vegetable Love, by Barbara Kafka
3. French Food at Home, by Laura Calder
4. The New Cook, by Donna Hay
5. James McNair's Favorites, by James McNair
6. Totally Simply Food, by Jill Dupleix
7. Complete Vegetarian Cookbook, by Charmaine Solomon
8. The Art and Soul of Baking, by Cindy Mushet (Sur La Table)
9. The Dean and DeLuca Cookbook, by David Rosengarten
10. Baking Bread: Old and New Traditions, by Beth Hensperger

Not in any particular order....though I am a baker - just most often used for recipes and referenced for inspiration:

1. Leslie Mackie's Macrina Bakery and Cafe Cookbook: Favorite Breads, Pastries, Sweets and Savories - Leslie Mackie, Carol Field and Andrew Cleary
2. Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe by Joanne Chang and Christie Matheson
3. Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More: 200 Anytime Treats and Special Sweets for Morning to Midnight - Carole Walter
4. My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method by Jim Lahey and Rick Flaste
5. The Bon Appetit Cookbook by Barbara Fairchild
6. The Balthazar Cookbook by Keith McNally, Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson
7. The New Basics Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins
8. Mastering the art of French Cooking 50th Anniversary by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, Simone Beck and Sidonie Coryn
9. Home Cooking with Jean-Georges: My Favorite Simple Recipes by Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Genevieve Ko
10. Ethan Stowell's New Italian Kitchen by Ethan Stowell and Leslie Miller

Though if I could submit a Baker's Dozen, I'd add 11) The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum and both books by Vikram Vij and Meeru Dhalwala: Vij's: 12) Elegant and Inspired Indian Cuisine and 13) Vij's at Home: Relax, Honey: The Warmth and Ease of Indian Cooking

1. The Bon Appetit Cookbook, by Barbara Fairchild (orange one)
2. The Perfect Scoop, by David Lebovitz
3. The Roasted Vegetable, by Andrea Chesman
4. Luscious Chocolate Desserts, by Lori Longbotham
5. Everyday Italian, by Giada DeLaurentiis
6. Chez Panisse Desserts - Lindsey R. Shere
7. 1,000 Vegetarian Recipes, by Carol Gelles
8. How to be a Domestic Goddess, by Nigella Lawson
9. The Art of Simple Food, by Alice Waters
10. The Rodale Whole Foods Cookbook (2010 edition)

1. Food from Plenty by Diana Henry
2. How I cook by Skye Gyngell
3. Sarah Raven's Garden Cookbook by Sarah Raven
4. Sarah Raven's Food for Friends and Family by Sarah Raven
5. Cook Simple: Effortless Cooking Every Day by Diana Henry
6. The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater
7. Tender Vol I by Nigel Slater
8. Tender Vol II by Nigel Slater
9. Appetite by Nigel Slater
10. How to Eat: The Pleasures and Principles of Good Food (UK) by Nigella Lawson
Not necesserally in that order.

Best American Classics - Cooks Illustrated; Fresh Food Fast - Berley; Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Madison; The Taste of Country Cooking - Edna Lewis; Super Natural Cooking - Swanson; Great Good Food - Julie Rosso; Veganomicon - Moskowitz; Jam It, Pickle It, Cure It - Solomon; Canning for a New Generation - Krissoff; Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts - Heatter.

The Joy of Cooking- Rombauer/Becker
The Way to Cook-Child
Chez Panisse Vegetables-Waters
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone-Madison
The New James Beard-Beard
The Art of Mexican Cooking-Kennedy
The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook A James Beard Award Winner-King Arthur
Silver Palate Cookbook 25th Anniversary Edition-Rosso & Lukins
The Gourmet Cookbook: More than 1000 recipes-Reichl & Willoughby
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking -Hazen

Essentials of Italian Cooking - Hazan
Frog Commissary Cookbook - Poses
The Silver Palate
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - Bittman
The Art of Simple Food - Waters
Flour - Joanne Chang
Barefoot Contessa
Plenty - Ottolenghi
La Tartine Gourmande - Peltre
60-minute Gourmet - Franey

The Way to Cook - Julia Child
Marcella Cucina - Marcella Hazan
Classic Indian Cooking - Julie Sahni
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Greene on Greens - Burt Greene
The Joanne Kates Cookbook - Joanne Kates
Home Cooking - Laurie Colwin
The Essential New York Times Cookbook - Amanda Hesser
The Silver Palate Cookbook - Julee Rosso and Shiela Lukins

1)Joy of Cooking
2)The Student's Vegetarian Cookbook
3)The Taste of Home Cookbook
4)Barefoot Contessa
5)The Comfort Table
6)Recipes from a Vegetarian Goddess
7)One Spice, Two Spice
8)Mastering the Art of French Cooking
9)The Soul of a New Cuisine
10)The Silver Spoon

Baking from My Home to Yours - Greenspan
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals - Speck
Mollie Katzen's Sunlight Cafe - Katzen
Jamie's Food Revolution - Oliver
Bread Baker's Apprentice - Reinhart
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook - Stewart
Secrets of Baking - Yard
Moosewood Cookbook -Katzen
Sunday Suppers at Lucques - Goin
Joy of Cooking

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison
Seriously Simple - Diane Rossen Worthington
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Essential Pepin - Jacques Pepin
Naples at Table: Cooking in Campania - Arthur Schwartz
The Herbfarm Cookbook - Jerry Traunfeld
Vij's: Elegant and Inspired Indian Cuisine - Meeru Dhalwala, Vikram Vij
Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen - Paul Prudhomme
The Wine Lover's Cookbook: Great Recipes for the Perfect Glass of Wine - Sid Goldstein

1. Way to Cook, Julia Child
2. Barefoot Contessa
3. Barefoot in Paris
4. Patricia Wells at Home in Provence
5.Heart of the Artichoke David Tanis
6.Silver Palate
7. Cold Weather Cooking, Sarah Leah Chase
8. The New Thanksgiving Table, Diane Morgan
9. Chloe's Kitchen, Chloe Cascarelli
Applehood and Mother Pie, Junior League of Rochester

This was a very hard list to create. I finally eliminated all my favorite baking cookbooks and made a separate top ten list for desserts and baking. Now I know I could live with just 20 cookbooks, but it wouldn't be much fun.

Silver Palate
Fanny Farmer's Baking (no other baking book is needed, ever.)
Essential Jaques Pepin
Feast by Nigella Lawson
Appetite by Nigel Slater (changed how I read cookbooks, and therefore how I learn to cook!)
NY Times Cookbook by Craig Claiborne
Chez Panisse Vegetables by Alice Waters
The Joy of Cooking (I still find the 1974 edition my mom has the most useful, but that might just be because all the right pages are dog-earred.)
Ball Book of Canning and Preserving
My box of recipe cards, of course!

1. Joy of Cooking
2. Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
3. Canal House
4. Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home
5. The Bread Bible
6. Silver Palate Cookbook
7. Homesick Texan Cookbook
8. Vefa's Kitchen
9. Sky High
10. How to Roast a Lamb: New Greek Classic Cooking

Elizabeth David - French Provincial Cooking; Mastering the Art; Anne Willan - 50 Years of Good Eating; Simon Hopkinson - Roast Chicken and other Stories; Ottolenghi (the first book); Nigel Slater - Appetite; Nigella Lawson - How to Eat; Jane Grigson - Good Things; Claudia Roden - Middle Eastern Cooking; Diana Henry - Food From Plenty

A very British list I think so may be rather different from most.

The Gourmet Cookbook
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian
Vegetable Harvest (Wells)
All About Braising (Stevens)
Olives and Oranges (Jenkins and Fox)
The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
Baking From My Home to Yours (Greenspan)
Moosewood Low-fat Favorites
The Art and Soul of Baking (sur la table)
At Home with Madhur Jaffrey

The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison
Bistro Cooking by Patrica Wells
The Way to Cook by Julia Child
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless
World Vegetarian by Madhur Jaffrey
The Joy of Cooking
Momofuku by David Chang
My Bread by Jim Lahey
The Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver

1. The Joy of Cooking -- Irma Rombauer
2. How to Cook Everything -- Mark Bittman
3. Bistro Cooking -- Patricia Wells
4. Classic Italian Cooking -- Marcella Hazan
5. The Victory Garden Cookbook -- Marian Morash
6. The Way to Cook -- Julia Child
7. Classic Home Desserts -- Richard Sax
8. The Art of Fine Baking -- Paula Peck
9. The Silver Palate -- Sheila Lukins & Julee Rosso
10. China Express -- Nina Simonds

1. Betty Crocker Junior Cookbook
2. America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
3. Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant
4. The Barbecue Bible
5. Kids Cooking: A Very Slightly Messy Manual

1)Betty Crocker's Cookbook
2)Commander's Kitchen
3)83rd State Fair of Oklahoma - A Centennial Celebration Cookbook
4) I'm going to include the recipes that my grandma wrote down that includes stew,biscuits,cornbread and other foods that she used both at home and in the school cafeteria.

Zuni Cafe Cookbook, Judy Rodgers
Kitchen Diaries, Nigel Slater
Art of Simple Food, Alice Waters
River Cottage Cookbook, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstal
Larousse Gatronomique
Moro, the Cookbook, Sam x 2 Clark
Simple Italian Food, Mario Batali
Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook, Alice Waters
Union Square Cafe Cookbook, Michael Romano + Danny Meyer
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child et al.

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
The Flavor Bible by Karen Page & Andrew Dornenburg
The New Basics Cookbook by Rosso and Lukins
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison
The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper by Kasper and Swift
Cook This Now by Melissa Clark
A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg

How to choose? My list was finally decided upon by the number of post it notes emerging from each one!

Earth to Table - Jeff Crump & Bettina Schormann
The New Basics Cookbook - Rosso & Lukins
Twelve: A Tuscan Cookbook - Tessa Kiros
Lillian Kaplans Kitchen - Lillian Kaplan
My Favourite Ingredients - Skye Gingell
Super Natural Cooking - Heidi Swanson
The Good Houskeeeping Illustrated Cookbook (1989 edition)
Pasta - Domenica Marchetti
Seasons - Donna Hay

and the newest to my collection:
Ripe - Rule and Philipot

note: posting without looking at the other posts, because i'm 100% likely to say: oh, yeah! that one too!

these are cookbooks that, when i *know* what kind of food i want, i can turn to for inspiration or consistently great results... with the exception of the first on the list, which i turn to when i want to be surprised and amazed.

ottolenghi
gift of southern cooking -- edna lewis & scott peacock
washoku -- elizabeth andoh
my bread -- jim lahey
maida heatter's best dessert book ever
king arthur flour baker's companion
lidia's family table
the italian baker -- carol field
feast -- nigella
at home in provence -- patricia wells

Not in any order...

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking vol 1 & vol 2 by Julia Child
2. The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
3. How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
4. The New Best Recipe by Cook's Illustrated Magazine by John Burgoyne and Carl Tremblay (2004)
5. Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller
6. Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
7. Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois
8. The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook by Matt and Ted Lee
9. The Gourmet Cookbook by Ruth Reichl
10. The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution by Alice Waters

In no particular order:

Professional Cooking - Wayne Gisslen
Essential Pépin' - Jacques Pépin
The Savory Way - Deborah Madison
Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Julia Child
Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing - Ruhlman, Polcyn, Keller
Sauces - James Peterson
Larousse Gastronomique - Prosper Montagné
The Bread Bible - Rose Levy Beranbaum
MOMOFUKU -David Chang
Avec Eric - Eric Ripert

Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child with Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck
The Way to Cook by Julia Child
The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
Entertaining by Martha Stewart
Espana: Exploring the Flavors of Spain by James Campbell Caruso
Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller
Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads by Bernard Clayton
Cooking with Friends by Amy Lyles Wilson
Santa Fe School of Cooking: Flavors of the Southwest by Susan Curtis and Nicole Curtis Ammerman
The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters

Around My French Table: Greenspan
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking: Hazan
The New York Times Passover Cookbook
The Art of Simple Food: Waters
Betty Crocker's Cooky Book

Ad Hoc at Home -- Thomas Keller
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook -- Judy Rogers
Sunday Suppers at Lucques -- Suzanne Goin
Good to the Grain -- Kim Boyce
Baking: From My Home to Yours -- Dorie Greenspan
Red White & Greens -- Faith Willinger
Lidia's Family Table -- Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
Urban Italian -- Andrew Carmellini
Cook This Now -- Melissa Clark
Authentic Mexican -- Rick Bayless

Mastering the Art of French Cooking- Julia Child
The Martha Stewart Cookbook- Martha Stewart
Baking From My Home to Yours- Dorie Greenspan
Pure Dessert- Alice Medrich
Tender- Nigel Slater
Ripe- Nigel Slater
Supernatural Everyday- Heidi Swanson
Plenty- Yotam Ottolenghi
The Art of Simple Food- Alice Waters
An Everlasting Meal- Tamer Adler

The Zuni Cafe -- Judy Rodgers
Sunday Suppers at Lucques -- Suzanne Goin
The Last Course -- Claudia Fleming
Baking From My Home to Yours -- Dorie Greenspan
All About Braising -- Molly Stevens
Pure Dessert -- Alice Medrich
Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home -- Julia Child and Jacques Pepin
The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen -- Paula Wolfert
Urban Italian -- Andrew Carmellini
The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook -- Matt and Ted Lee

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol. 1 and 2
2. The Way to Cook
3. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
4. Tender
5. Chez Panise Cooking
6. The Art of Simple Food
7. The Flavor Bible
8. The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook
9. Gulf Coast Cooking
10. River Road Recipes (The Junior League of Baton Rouge - all volumes)

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Julia Child
2. The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
3. The new book of Middle Eastern food - Claudia Roden
4. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
5. World Vegetarian - Madhur Jaffrey
6. Casa Moro - Sam and Sam Clark
7. Tender - Nigel Slater
8. Bouchon - Thomas Keller
9. Baking from my home to yours - Dorie Greenspan
10. Bread Baker's Apprentice - Peter Reinhart

Tender - Nigel Slater: first stop for vegetable inspo
Tartine Bread - Chad Robertson: forget Reinhart, this is the gospel
Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home - Moosewood Collective: my lifeline as a new cook for putting together whole meals
Super Natural Every Day - Heidi Swanson: goes everywhere with me
All About Roasting - Molly Stevens: glorious, comprehensive, revelatory
The Spice Merchant's Daughter - Christina Arokiasamy: didn't know I could make food this good
Canning for a New Generation - Liana Krissoff: this one finally sated my lust for canning books
The Breakfast Book - Marion Cunningham: I heart breakfast
An Everlasting Meal - Tamar Adler: I actually whispered the skin off a bean
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman: when I can't get to the internet, gotta have a reference

Fannie Farmer Cookbook - Marion Cunningham
Food Matters Cookbook - Mark Bittman
The Way to Cook - Julia Child
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - Deborah Madison
Cook's Illustrated Cookbook - Cook's Illustrated people
Baking Illustrated - Cook's Illustrated people
How to Eat Supper - Lynne Rossetto Kasper & Sally Schneider
King Arthur Flour Baking Companion
Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini - Elizabeth Schneider
Appetite - Nigel Slater

This was so hard to do!

1. Local Flavors, Madison
2. Super Natural Cooking, Swanson
3. The Betty Crocker Cookbook
4. The Joy of Cooking, Rombauer/Becker
5. Bouchon, Keller
6. Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, Francois/Hertzberg
7. The Flavor Bible, Page/Dornenburg
8. Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, Madison
9. The Best Recipe, Cooks Illustrated
10. 'wichcraft, Colicchio

My 10 essential cookbooks are:
The Gourmet Cookbook, Ruth Reichl
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, vol. 1 & 2, by Julia Child
The Ultimate Soup Bible, ed. by Anne Sheasby
Texas on the Plate, by Thompson and Anderson
Tuscany: the Beautiful Cookbook, by Lorenza De' Medici
The Silver Spoon,
Praktisches Kochbuch, by Davidis-Holle
The Flavor Thesaurus, by Niki Segnit

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking- Julia Child
2. The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion- King Arthur Flour
3. Baking, From My Home to Your's- Dorie Greenspan
4. The Flavor Bible- Karen Page & Andrew Dornenburg
5. In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite- Melissa Clark
6. How to Eat- Nigella Lawson
7. Barefoot Contessa- Ina Garten
8. Ratio- Michael Ruhlman
9. Ball Complete Book of Home Canning (use whatever is the newest edition!)- Judy Kingri
10. The Classics of Italian Cooking- Marcella Hazan

1) The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten and Martha Stewart
2) Paula Deen Celebrates!: Best Dishes and Best Wishes for the Best Times of Your Life by Paula Deen and Martha Nesbit
3) The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier by Ree Drummond
4) Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking by Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young and Maxime Bilet
5) The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefs by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
6) Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois
7) Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition - 2006 by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker
8) How to Cook Everything, Completely Revised 10th Anniversary Edition: 2,000 Simple Recipes for Great Food by Mark Bittman
9) The Professional Chef by The Culinary Institute of America
10) Jamie Oliver's Meals in Minutes: A Revolutionary Approach to Cooking Good Food Fast by Jamie Oliver

My top shelf includes:
How to Cook Everything -- Bittman
Martha Stewart's Hors d'oeuvres Handbook
On Food and Cooking -- Mcgee
The Way To Cook -- Julia Child
How to Cook Meat -- Schleshinger and Willoughby
Indian Cooking -- Madhur Jaffrey
Marcella Hazan Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
The Flavor Bible
Recipes from the Heart and Home -- Nigella Lawson
How To Cook -- Delia Smith

All Around the World Cookbook by Sheila Lukins
Pierre Franey's Cooking In America
The Greens Cookbook by Deborah Madison
Marcella's Italian Kitchen
Chez Panisse Pasta, Pizza, & Calzone
Real Beer and Good Eats by Bruce Aidells and Denis Kelly
Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen
Creole Gumbo and All That Jazz by Howard Mitcham
The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen by Paula Wolfert
Cooking from the Heart, Share Our Strength & Michael J. Rosen

To the many great books and cooks listed here, I would add:
Beard on Bread by James Beard
Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts

Some of my favorites:

How to Cook Everything – Mark Bittman
Mastering the Art of French Cooking – Julia Child
Barefoot Contessa cookbooks – I use and love all of them – Ina Garten
Joy of Cooking

1. The Homemade Pantry: 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making, by Jennifer May
2. The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey, Janna Gur
3. Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights: Recipes for Every Season, Mood, and Appetite, by Sophie Dahl
4. The Essential New York Times Cookbook, Amanda Hesser
5. Alain Ducasse Nature: Simple, Healthy, and Good, by Alain Ducasse
6. Plenty: Vibrant Recipes from London's Ottolenghi, by Yotam Ottolenghi
7. The Homemade Pantry: 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making, by Jennifer May
8. Bite By Bite: 100 Stylish Little Plates You Can Make for Any Party, by Peter Callahan
9. Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition, Irma S. Rombauer
10. Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe, Joanne Chang

Yikes, this is tough. In no particular order . . .(1) Plenty, Ottolenghi, (2) Arabesque, Roden, (3) Heart of the Artichoke, Tanis, (4) For Cod and Country, Seaver, (5) Sunday Suppers at Lucques, Goin, (6) The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen, Berley, (7) Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet, Alford / Duguid, (8) The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper, Kasper / Swift, (9) Ad Hoc at Home, Keller, and (10) New York Times Cookbook, Heser

Child - Mastering the Art of french Cooking, Vol 1 and 1
Leader - Bread Alone
Adler - An Everlasting Meal
Hesser - The Essential NYT Cookbook
Britton Bauer - Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream
Rosso and Lukins - The New Basics Cookbook
Stewart - The Martha Stewart Cookbook
Chang - momofuku
Greenspan - Around My French Table
Santibanez - Truly Mexican

in no particular order:

1. the modern art of chinese cooking (barbara tropp)
2. the new book of middle eastern food (claudia roden)
3. mastering the art of french cooking (julia child)
4. everyday harumi
5. world vegetarian (madhur jaffrey)
6. the mennonite community cookbook
7. spice (ana sortun)
8. martin yan's chinatown cooking
9. canning for a new generation (krissoff)
10. memories of a cuban kitchen

The Bread Bible - Rose Levy Beranbaum
Plenty - Yotam Ottolenghi
A Platter of Figs - David Tanis
How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman
Mastering the Art of French Cooking - Julia Child
Moosewood Cookbook - Molly Katzen
The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters

1. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan
2. An Everlasting Meal - Tamar Adler
3. The Art of Simple Food - Alice Waters
4. Vegetables Every Day - Jack Bishop
5. The Greens Cookbook - Deborah Madison
6. Mediterrenean Grains & Greens - Paula Wolfert
7. The Flavor Bible - Page & Dornenburg
8. Heart of the Artichoke - David Tanis
9. Sunday Suppers at Lucques - Suzanne Goin
10. How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman

1. How to Cook Everything--Mark Bittman
2. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking--Marcella Hazan
3. Baking: From my Home to Yours--Dorie Greenspan
4. Flatbreads and Flavors--Jeffrey Alford/Naomi Duguid
5. Breads of New England--Judy Gorman (how do I survive Saturday mornings without this?)
6. From Tapas to Meze--Joanne Weir
7. Gourmet Today--Ruth Reichl
8. Everyday Family Dinners--Sara Moulton
9. Mexico One Plate at a Time--Rick Bayless
10. Essential New York Times Cookbook--Amanda Hesser

This list turns out to be nostalgic - there are many newer books I love, but these have stood the test of time (and the test of me learning to cook bit by bit)

1. Marcella Hazan: The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
2. Madhur Jaffrey: World Vegetarian
3. Alice Waters: Chez Panisse Vegetables
4. Mark Bittman: How to Cook Everything
5. Judy Rogers: Zuni Cafe Cookbook
6. Julia Child: Mastering the Art of French Cooking I, II
7. Irma Rombauer: The Joy of Cooking
8. Dorie Greenspan: Baking: From My Home to Yours
9. Tsuji: Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art
10. Luskins: The Silver Palate

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
Jacques Pepin's Complete Techniques
The New Best Recipes from the editors of Cook's Illustrated
Baking: from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
The Complete Robuchon
Mastering the Arts of French Cooking, all 2 volumes by Julia Child
Artisan Breads Everyday by Peter Reinhart
Ready for Desserts by David Lebovitz
The Taste of Country Cooking by Edna Lewis
The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser

Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home ny Juli Child and Jacques Pepin
Nigella Kitchen by Nigella Lawson
Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison
How to Cook Without a Book by Pam Anderson
In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite by Melissa Clark
Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless
Indian Home Cooking by Suvir Saran

Great project! The A list:

Simple French Food, Richard Olney
French Provincial Cooking, Elizabeth David
Essentials of Italian Cooking, Marcella Hazan
The Italian Baker, Carol Field
Beard on Bread, James Beard
The Bread Baker's Apprentice, Peter Reinhart
The Greens Cookbook, Deborah Madison
La Téchnique, Jacques Pépin
The Splendid Table, Lynne Rosetto Kasper
Baking Around the World, Naomi Duguid & Jeffrey Alford

A necessarily idiosyncratic list, as there's something personal in the cookbooks we respond to or even deem essential; nevertheless, here's my top 10:

The Zuni Café Cookbook – Judy Rodgers
Fish without a Doubt – Rick Moonen
The Breakfast Book – Marion Cunningham
Good to the Grain – Kim Boyce
Tender – Nigel Slater
The Food of Spain – Claudia Roden
The Perfect Scoop – David Leibovitz
Cooking with Italian Grandmothers – Jessica Theroux
Cooking in the Moment – Andrea Reusing
Italian Two Easy - Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers

Chez Panisse Cooking -- Bertolli/Waters
Pure Dessert -- Medrich
Book of Middle Eastern Food -- Roden
Moro -- Sam & Sam Clark
The Los Angeles Times California Heritage Cookbook
A Taste of Country Cooking -- Edna Lewis
How to Cook a Wolf -- MFK Fischer
Tartine Bread -- Robertson
Chez Panisse Fruit / Veg -- Waters et al.
Box of index cards, gifted from my grandmother, with older family receipts, and notes from my stages.

in no particular order -
- The New Best Recipe - Cook's Illustrated (instrumental in helping me learn how to cook)
- Ratio - Michael Ruhlman and Gluten Free Girl and the Chef - Shauna Ahern -- together these books taught me how to weigh ingredients and successfully bake gluten free
- Barefoot Contessa
- Cook this Now - Melissa Clark
- How to Cook Everything - Mark Bittman - spine is broken on my copy
- Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge - Grace Young - taught me how to use my wok (finally)
- Ad Hoc at Home - Keller - maybe more aspirational, but it inspires me
- Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
-Super Natural Every Day - Heidi Swanson

Okay, I'm a guy cook, cooking for kids and hardworking wife, and I rely on clear, reliable, simple cookbooks for almost everything (at least til Food52). I have shelves of stuff, but these are the most frequent go-to workhorses:
Bitman, How to Cook Everything
Waters, The Art of Simple Food
Hazan, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking (used Hazan since 70s!)
Wells, Trattoria
Batali, Molto Italiano
Hesser, Essential Times Cookbook (new addition to go-to lineup)
Bhumichitr, Thai in Minutes
Link, Real Cajun (new addition)
Bayless, Mexican Kitchen (not so fast 'n' easy, but well-used)
Up-and-comers: David Tanis, Essential Pepin

The New New York Times Cookbook-Clairborne/Franey
Classic Italian Cooking-Hazan
More Classic Italian Cooking-Hazan
The Way to Cook-Julia Child
Classic Pasta-Hazan (son)
New York Times Cookbook
Entertaining-Martha Stewart
The Silver Palate-Luskins
Boy Meets Grill-Bobby Flay

The New New York Times Cookbook-Clairborne/Franey
Classic Italian Cooking-Hazan
More Classic Italian Cooking-Hazan
The Way to Cook-Julia Child
Classic Pasta-Hazan (son)
New York Times Cookbook
Entertaining-Martha Stewart
The Silver Palate-Luskins
Boy Meets Grill-Bobby Flay

Although I have hundreds of cookbooks in cases and on shelves all over my home, the following 10 are those that live on a shelf in my kitchen, that are dog-eared and stained from so much use.

From Julia Child's Kitchen - Julia Child
Culinary Artistry - Dornenburg and Page
Menus for Pasta - Anna Teresa Callen
In the Hands of a Chef - Jody Adams
Sunday Suppers at Lucques - Suzanne Goin
Bistro Cooking - Patricia Wells
Lauren Groveman's Kitchen - Lauren Groveman
Breads from Betsy's Kitchen - Betsy Oppenneer
Fresh Choices - David Joachim & Rochelle Davis
and mine - Feastivals Cooks at Home (by June Jacobs).

My top ten:

The Joy of Cooking
How to Cook Everything (Mark Bittman)
Baking Illustrated
Baking (Dorie Greenspan)
Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
Bon Appetit Y'all (Virginia Willis)
James Beard's American Cokery
Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World (Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero)

Roasting - Kafka
The Splendid Table - Lynn Rosetto Kasper
Joy of Cooking - 1974
Joy of Cooking - 1997
How to Cook Everything - Bittman
Book of Middle Eastern Food - Roden
Book of Jewish Food - Roden
Barefoot Contessa
Barefoot Contessa - Back to Basics
Silver Palate Cookbook

The Moosewood Cookbook - Katzen
Cook's Illustrated: The New Best Recipe - helpful to know why techniques don't work
Ratio - Ruhlman - great when you want to try and create your own recipe
The Flavor Bible - Page and Dornenburg - not really a cook book but Indispensible in the kitchen!
Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook - Day - new but quickly becoming my go to for baking
The Food Matters Cookbook - Bittman
The Perfect Scoop - Lebovitz
Around My French Table - Greenspan
Big Sur Bakery Cookbook
Veganomicon - Moskowitz and Romero

Silver Palate - all of them
Joy of Cooking
Barefoot Contessa
Martha Stewart Entertaining
New York Times Cookbook
Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Best of Gourmet Magazine 1990-98?
The Cake Doctor by Anne Byrn
The Union Square Cookbook
The James Beard Celebration edited by Barbara Kafka

Silver Palate - all of them
Joy of Cooking
Barefoot Contessa
Martha Stewart Entertaining
New York Times Cookbook
Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Best of Gourmet Magazine 1990-98?
The Cake Doctor by Anne Byrn
The Union Square Cookbook
The James Beard Celebration edited by Barbara Kafka

Bayou Cuisine - St Stephen's Episcopal Church Indianola, MS
Joy of Cooking
Moosewood Cookbook
NY Times Cookbook - Craig Claiborne
Real Cajun - Donald Link
Screen Doors & Sweet Tea - Martha Foose
Flavors of Tuscany - Nancy Harmon Jenkins
Indian Home Cooking - Suvir Saran
Soups and Breads - Crescent Dragonwagon
Southern Foodways Cookbook

Cooks Illustrated Best Recipes
5 spices, 50 Dishes by Ruta Kahate
Chez Panisse Vegetables
The Joy of Cooking
Jean Georges Cooking at Home With a Four Star Chef

Marcella Cucina by Marcella Hazan
Simple Chinese Cooking by Kylie Kwong
Stir Frying to the Sky's Edge, Grace Young
Ancient Grains for Modern Meals by Maria Speck
Olives and Oranges by Sara Jenkins
Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan
Barefoot Contessa - At Home and Back to Basics
Laurie Colwin's Home Cooking and More Home Cooking
Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson
Silver Palate

I. French Provincial Cooking - Elizabeth David
2.Casa Moro - Sam & Sam Clark
3. Real Cooking - Nigel Slater
4. The Provence Cookbook - Patricia Wells
5. Ripailles - Stephane Reynaud
6. The Art of Eating - MFK Fisher
7. Poor Cook - Caroline Conran
8. Good Things - Jane Grigson
9. Roast Chicken and other Stories - Simon Hopkinson
10. The Classic Food of Northern Italy - Anna del Conte

The Barefoot Contessa
Barefoot Contessa Parties
Barefoot Contessa Family Style
Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison
Joy of Cooking
The Gourmet Cookbook
Martha Stewart Pies and Tarts
Artisan Breads everyday by Peter Reinhart
The Perfect Scoop
Cooks Illustrated Best Recipes

The Art of Simple Food-Alice Waters
Ottolenghi- Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi
The Classics of Italian Cooking-Marcella Hazan
The Book of Jewish Food-Claudia Roden
The Naked Chef-Jaimie Oliver
Good to the Grain-Kim Boyce
Cooking for Mr. Latte-Amanda Hesser

Plenty - Ottolenghi
Joy of Cooking
Vixens in the Kitchen - family cookbook
New Moosewood Cookbook - Mollie Katzen
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian Cookbook

Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
How to Eat - Lawson
Chez Panisse Vegetables - Waters
Plenty - Ottolenghi
Mad Hungry -Scala Quinn
Canal House 1, 2, 3 - Hamilton and Hirscheimer
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home - Britton Bauer
All About Braising - Stevens

The books I use most often are: Plenty, Cook This Now!, Momofuku, Canal House Series, The Splendid Table's How to Eat Weekends, Martha Stewart's Cookies, Authentic Mexican, Barefoot Contessa Parties, Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home, and the New Best Recipe (I know some don't love this book, but it taught me a lot about cooking, and is still a good resource when I'm learning a new technique).

1.The NIAW Cookbook, from the North Indian Association of Women
2.Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison
3. Casa Moro by Sam and Sam Clarke
4.Sunday Suppers at Luques by Suzanne Goin
5. Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi
6.Forever Summer by Nigella Lawson
7.The Calcutta Kitchen by Udit Sarkhel and Simon Parkes
8.The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser
9.Citrus and Spice by Sybil Kapoor
10.Fields of Greens by Annie Somerville

Easy One. Here goes: Jean Georges Cooking at Home With a Four Star Chef by Jean Georges Vongerichten and Mark Bittman; Le Bernardin- Four Star Simplicity by Maguy Le Coze and Eric Ripert; Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges by Jean Georges Vongerichten; Morimoto The New Art of Japanese cooking by Masaharu Morimoto; Blue Ginger east meets west cooking by Ming Tsai and Arthur Boehm; Avec Eric by Eric Ripert; My New Orleans The Cookbook by John Besh; The Culinary Institute of America Book of Soups; Nobu the Cookbook by Nobuyuki Matsushisa; and Flavor Exposed byAngelo Sosa.

Joy of Cooking, 1997 edition; Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol !&!!; How To Cook Everything Vegetarian; Essentials of Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan; Baking From My Home to Yours. These are the books from which I have learned so much! I have bookshelves overflowing with cookbooks, though. I read them for fun. It's going to be fun to see what books make it to the Top 10!

Joy of Cooking - Rombauer/Becker
Moosewood Cookbook - Katzen
Jewish Cooking in America - Nathan