Foreign Cookbook Obsession - And Other Travel Indulgences

 
 

 

Travel itself is an indulgence, and I know I'm very lucky to be able to travel as frequently as I do. When I'm home, however, my life is tightly budgeted to keep myself in plane tickets and hotel rooms.  Forget about designer wear and handbags.  Do you know how many days in Italy or France one Louis Vutton bag or pair of Prada shoes would cost me?  Instead, most of the time I walk around looking like a candidate for "What Not To Wear," while planning my next journey. (One of my former students actually nominated me so many times for the show that they sent her a cease and desist email!)

During my travels, I do have a few indulgences I give into. Being the food lover that I am, these involve food.  I'm happy to stay in a less expensive hotel, so I can spend more on food. These indulgences include dining at a Michelin-starred restaurant, finding underground supper clubs, planning a trip around a chocolate festival, and taking cooking classes.  I also almost always make a detour to Paris especially to eat pastries buy pastry supplies.  Said trip to Paris not only includes copious amounts of pastries, but also stops to Mora, E. Dehillerin and Detou for pastry supplies and ingredients that are hard to get at home.  My real obsession indulgence, however, actually comes in the form of cookbooks. Yes, I buy at least one cookbook in every city I visit.

Cookbooks aren't the lightest of things, either. Schlepping them around isn't easy, especially when you buy as many as I do.  I mail them home as I go.  Whatever money I've saved on airfare quickly goes out the proverbial window at La Poste. But, when those books arrive at my home, I'm traveling all over again.  I rip through the packages like a child at Christmas, quickly getting to the good stuff.  On each page is a memory of something I've tasted, a place I've visited, and/or someone with whom I've shared a meal. 

 

 
Cookbooks from various regions in France

 

During my recent travels, my cookbook purchases included a Neapolitan/Amalfi Coast pastry cookbook, a chocolate pastry cookbook from Librarie Gourmande in Paris (that place is a crack house for the cookbook addict), and an old Venetian cookbook, in Venetian dialect (as if reading Italian wasn't hard enough).  Monica suggested the Venetian cookbook and promised to help me with the translation.  (Uhm, I know I'll be taking her up on that promise.) In Salento, Antonella, the owner of the trattoria Locanda Rivoli, gave me a small Salento cookbook.  As I looked through the book, instinctively I did a little happy dance to the amusement of those around me.  None of them knew of my obsession with foreign cookbooks, so my joy from the gift surprised them.  Now, the secret is out.  Yes, my name is Kathy and I'm a chocoholic and a foreign cookbook addict.....and happy to declare both!

 

 
My most recent Neapolitan pastry cookbook: "Dolci del Sole" by Salvatore de Riso

 

 
Inside my most treasured cookbook: "ph10" by Pierre Herme

  

This is the first in a series of blog carnivals, “Across the Café Table" with the Travel Belles. Once a month, Margo from The Travel Belles, will ask a travel-related question. We who participate will then share our answers “across the virtual café table,” on our own blogs, adding a link to the Travel Belles post and also link to our post at the end of Margo's post on the Travel Belles' site.  Everyone is welcome to participate.  As Margo says, "Grab a beverage and pull up a chair – there’s always plenty of room!" Why don't you head on over there now, and check out what others' travel indulgences are.

 

 

 

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How do you indulge when you travel?

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Related Posts:

The Art of Making Pasta by Hand: A Pugliese Pasta Lesson with Nonna Vata

French Pastries and 10 Top Patisseries in Paris

Market Day in Sarlat

Cheese of Puglia: Making Fresh Cheese in Salento

Dining Around Napoli with Napoli Unplugged

Scenes from CioccolaTo - Turin's Chocolate Festival

Mini Macarons and Ice Cream from LaDuree

Easter Chocolates in Paris Windows

A Night at L'Atelier Joel Robuchon

Dining at the Hidden Kitchen in Paris

 

Comments

[Krista]

What a fantastic idea, Kathy! I adore cookbooks but have not brought any back from my travels. I will have to change that now. :-)

[Paula]

Great post. All books (not just cookbooks) have that effect on me, which is why I have at least one room as a dedicated library that overflows throughout the house.

I usually try to bring back something that touches my heart somehow. I often means nothing to others and they wonder why I picked it. But forever after I will see or hear (yes - often it is music) the memento and the moment will come flooding back. My photos - unlike your beautiful ones - are very uninteresting to most people because they are just intended for me, to remind me of a moment. (Those pix from 1978 have had to serve me a lot longer than I had hoped!).

[Michele]

I think we would get along very well :)

[Jessica]

What a wonderful idea! Some of my best travel memories revolve around food and wine! Bringing a cookbook home is a lovely way to take those memories home.

[Esme]

How funny we have some of the same cookbooks. i am glad to see that others also buy cookbooks in foreign languages.

[Italian Notes]

Thanks for the inspiration for future cookbook shopping sprees. Great to see others have the same indulgences as oneself.
Mette

[Cailinash]

I agree! Food is the best indulgence. Although I have never thought to pick up a local cookbook. What a great idea!

[Suzy Guese]

I am always so bad with souvenirs and actually buying something from where I am, but this is a great idea. I love how you say you can open up these cookbooks and be transported back to a meal, a moment.

[Paula]

I already have SO many cookbooks that I am trying to quit ... this post is NOT helping ;-)

[Corinne @ Gourmantic]

I gave up on buying cookbooks a long time ago however, when I'm travelling, I always peruse bookshops and dream. But that's where it stops. As tempted as I am, I can't justify the weight in my luggage and postage is an added expense. I'd rather spend the money eating/drinking than ship a droolworthy book home.

Having said that, I'm still dreaming about the Laduree book from the last time I was in Paris!