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I have been asked to come up with a cookbook that would interest a 13 year old niece who is just getting interested in doing cooking things. What I am looking for is a general cookbook which would not assume too much knowledge or technique, but would not be perceived as stodgy and old-fashioned. Any and all suggestions are welcome!

Sydney

I haven't cooked much from it yet (even though I have a copy!), but I've heard good things about Williams-Sonoma's Family Meals -- it seems to have a lot of pretty basic, tasty recipes and cooking projects geared toward encouraging families to spend more time in the kitchen together. It's not a "kid" cookbook, but sometimes those dumb things down too much!

Though there are some really tasty looking recipes in Sur La Table's Baking Kids Love -- which I keep telling myself I shouldn't buy since I have so many other baking books already & I don't even have kids! But everytime I see it in a store, I am tempted. If I were shopping for a 13 year old and they were interested in baking, I would seriously consider this one too.

Neither one is stodgy or old-fashioned, and they also have some really enticing food photography!

Here are two suggestions.

If your niece is adventurous, try How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman.  There is a great variety of recipes.  Most are not fussy - not too many ingredients, not too many steps, no special techniques or equipment required.  The recipes often include ideas for your own versions and variations.

If your niece is curious (about cooking, about science, or in general), try The New Best Recipe from Cook's Illustrated.  Once again, plenty of variety.  With either choice your niece probably will find whatever kind of recipe she's seeking.  However this book includes discussion of why and how a recipe works.  The recipes are more detailed and while they absolutely can be trusted to work well, they often require more patience and attention to detail than with Bittman's book.

I can definitely see why you'd be leery of kid cookbooks for a 13 year old -- I almost wish they gave that Sur La Table baking book a different name -- I'm 27 and I want to buy it for myself! (as if I don't have enough baking recipes already -- I blame the food photography for sucking me in every time!) It is very narrowly focused though and doesn't have a lot of recipes anyway. You're probably better off with one of the other 3 suggestions.

How To Cook Everything is a good choice, but your niece is also old enough (or soon will be) to benefit from some of the classic standard cookbooks like Joy of Cooking, The New Settlement Cookbook, Fannie Farmer, Better Homes & Gardens, etc.  Some of the newer editions (like Better Homes) are illustrated, which may appeal to her more, but all of these are books she can take with her into adulthood!

I endorse Jamie Oliver's books: you know they are accessible when you see a young male tradie (OZ for tradesperson) walking around the greengrocers with Jamie's 15 minute meals in his trolley, open & looking for the ingredients.. he was probably 20, I asked him what he was making: a Thai curry, and he volunteered that he'd made 3 things from the book so far, and they were all good, all looked like their picture, and he was a new cook! Those reality TV kitchen programs must be making a difference! Good luck in the hunt..

Then there's always Mollie Katzen's "Get Cooking"...http://www.eatyourbooks....oking-150-simple-recipes ... which I gave to a  14 yo boy last year!

I'd like to echo what Breadcrumbs had to say.  I think Ina Garten would be an excellent choice.  Her recipes are mostly simple and straightforward, the books are easy to read, the photos are gorgeous, and best of all, the recipes produce excellent results. 

Also agreeing with Breadcrumbs about the Bittman books.  I find the 'How to Cook Everything' book simply confusing and frustrating.  There are so many variations to each recipe and you still need to refer back to the original recipe and the typeface is small, there are no photos, and the book just makes me crazy.  I never use it and in fact I'll be giving it away soon as we prepare to downsize.

This discussion is a fine example of different strokes for different folks!

Personally, I LOVE having variations suggested to me.  It stimulates my creativity.  And I have never, ever had a problem using any of Bittman's recipes.  For me, a few photos are nice, but I don't need photos to cook.  I would rather have more pages of more recipes than devote a lot of room to pictures.  If you are a beginner, a photo might help you know if you are on target, or it may be a discouraging, unattainable goal.

So the question is, what would the OP's niece most enjoy?  

- a very clear set of instructions versus a cooking lesson/source of ideas?

- a smaller set of recipes (as one would usually find in a celebrity cookbook) versus a more comprehensive compendium?

For what it's worth, I gave the Bittman book to a friend's son when he left home for college.  By all accounts he has found it very useful.

One final consideration.  Books like Bittmans, or the Joy of Cooking or Fannie Farmer or The New Best Recipe all cover the familiar everyday food that the young woman might already enjoy and want to try and cook herself.  The other books, while not difficult to cook from, do not start with the basics.  They tend to be more focused on recipes that reflect the brand of the author and are less homey/more impressive (to serve to others) than things the OP's niece enjoys every day.  If I had to choose between Fannie Farmer and Joy of Cooking I would go with Fannie Farmer, but I would choose either of those as a good book that covers all the basics.  The one thing that might convince me to choose a celebrity cookbook as a gift to a young cook is if she already knows about and likes the celebrity.  

I'd like to suggest The New Basics Cookbook by the Silver Palate ladies.  It's a really good collection of how-to's, a blend of achievable sophistication, it's unpretentios and it produces great food.  It's one of the books I parted with when I had to scale down on all books and I've always regretted letting it go.

My favourite split pea soup comes from this book.  It's also charming with the its illustrations, but many would never buy a book without photos and there aren't any here.  There are, however, wonderful step-by-step directions and great results.

I think that anything from Ina Garten is great - especially her newest editions (How Easy Is That and Foolproof).  Also, Jamie Oliver works on simplcity in all of his recipes and they deliver on flavour.

I have 250+ cook books and find myself reaching for the Commonsense Kitchen by Tom Hudgens, several times a month.  The Bittman books are also wonderful as stated by several members.  I must admitt I am a sucker for Italian cook books, find them so rich in culture and several have the most beautiful photos.  I wish her many years of happy cooking!

I like Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything - The Basics" much, much, better than I like his bigger book. This one is perfect - great step-by-step visuals and it's still 484 pages long. My teen daughter got her hands on this one and bookmarked close to two dozen recipes immediately. 

Also clear and delicious is Alice Waters' "The Art of Simple Food." All the recipes work and Waters takes the time to truly educate the cook. 

Alice Waters, the best!  I have all her books , used and learned so much.

I am late to this discussion, but agree with PinchOfSalt and want to add my own vote for Bittman as a solid, general cookbook. There are certainly prettier books with tantalizing photos, but this is the kind of updated workhorse cookbook that your niece will come back to.

Jamie Olivers ministry of food is pretty good actually - got my (non cooking) partner making things and I refer to it from time to time too! 

I use The Garden Cookbook by Sarah Raven and Appetite by Nigel Slater a lot. 

best regards, J.