Buzz
Beyond culinary legends like Julia Child, Anthony Bourdain, and Alton Brown, there’s an entire world of cookbooks that stretch the limits of imagination and culinary oddities. Here, we dive into a selection of unconventional cookbooks that are as captivating as they are unique.
1. Giggle Water
This self-published gem from 1928 taught readers how to create cheerful, Prohibition-era drinks, including “Eleven Famous Cocktails of The Most Exclusive Club in New York.” Recipes like The Bronx, The Astor, The Bacardi, The Clover, and The Dry Martini made their way into the book, which recently fetched £1,200 on AbeBooks.
2. Cookin’ with Coolio
This might be more of a performance piece than a traditional cookbook. Coolio invites readers to whip up his Crazy Pollo Salad, which “easily serves 4 crazy motherf****ers,” and offers his spin on classic dishes from around the globe, including Ghettalian (ghetto Italian). Critics praise it not only for its quirky recipes but also for its humor.
3. Odd Bits
For much of history, and still in many places today, throwing away perfectly good animal parts because they aren't considered prime cuts would be unheard of. Odd Bits revitalizes ancient and frugal eating with recipes for cooking ears, feet, hearts, lungs, gizzards, kidneys, brains, testicles, intestines, and more.
4. Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes
Roald Dahl’s world isn’t all lickable Snozzberries and edible flower teacups. Revolting Recipes, written by Dahl’s wife Felicity, presents both unappetizing dishes like Mr. Twit's Beard Food (a mix of mashed potatoes, eggs, mushrooms, and cocktail weenies) and more enticing options, such as Eatable Marshmallow Pillows. Ideal for particularly odd children.
5. Fifty Shades of Chicken
“I want you to see this. Then you’ll know everything. It’s a cookbook,” he says, flipping through recipes, each accompanied by color photos. “I want to prepare you, very much.” Expect pulling, jerking, stuffing, trussing—50 different ways to prepare chicken. Available on Kindle for the discreet chef.
6. Forme of Cury
Step into the culinary past with the recipes of Richard II’s personal chef, found in this 600-year-old cookbook. Or, try your best to decipher them, written in Middle English: “Nym kedys and chekenys and hew hem in morsellys and seth hem in almand mylk or in kyne mylke grynd gyngyner galingale and cast therto and boyle it and serve it forthe.” Once you crack the code, you’re in for a hearty pottage.
7. Special Effects Cookbook
First published in 1992, this family-friendly cookbook promises “Easy to create recipes for food that Smokes, Erupts, Moves, Sings, Glows, Talks, Cracks, Pops, and Swims!” It’s a fun way to sneak in a bit of science while you bake with your kids.
8. The Gay Cookbook
Written in 1965 by Lou Rand Hogan (the creator of the first gay detective, The Gay Detective, also from 1965), this book boldly celebrates what was then a dangerous identity. With sharp wit, Hogan embraces the playful single entendre (“Chapter Seven. What to do with a Tough Piece of Meat.”) and takes on the social negativity of the era with a fearless, ironic embrace: “So we’ll offer here a sort of nonsensical cookbook for the androgynous (don’t bother to look it up, Maude. It means 'limp-wristed').” It’s a refreshing snapshot of the 1960s.
9. TV Suppers
It’s refreshing to see what many families consider their guilty pleasure given the refined touch of 1960s sophistication. Eating on the floor while watching game shows doesn’t make you any less of a person.
10. The Post-Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook
Bates is fully aware that “The Great Change” (aka the apocalypse) is coming, but instead of gloom and doom, he’s optimistic. It’s seen as an opportunity to rebuild a better society from the collapse of our current oil-dependent, chemically-laden world. Along with recipes for homegrown meals, he includes tips on food storage, waste management, and how to start civilization over from scratch.
11. The Pyromaniac’s Cookbook
You’ll be amazed at how much better food and drinks can taste when they’re set on fire.
12. The “Why I’m Such a Fat Bastard” Recipe Book
A cookbook for those who believe in the timeless saying that Truth is Beauty. Buster, fed up with Kindle diet books, created his own Kindle masterpiece, teaching how to make indulgent British desserts. It’s packed with butter, cream, sugar, and a touch of colorful language for good measure.
13. Official Star Trek Cooking Manual
While updated versions of Star Trek cookbooks exist, along with countless unofficial knockoffs, this one was the original and official. Published in 1978 when the franchise was still a cult favorite, it’s for true, academy-trained Trekkers only. Inside, you’ll find recipes like Mr. Scott’s Scot’s Broth, Dr. McCoy’s Cornbread, and Romulan stew. (Bonus: Compiled by a woman named “Piccard”—that has to mean something.)
14. The Lucretia Borgia Cookbook
A more modern cookbook featuring the favorite dishes of deceased celebrities is currently in print. But TLBC came first, published in 1971. Its premise is based on the idea that “the same good taste that allows one to create fraudulent masterpieces is also useful when blending white sauce. As both history and psychology students, we should have anticipated the discovery made during our research into ancient foods: the most notorious figures ate more intriguing—and often better—meals than their peers.”
15. Cooking Apicius
The Apicius cookbook is even older than the Forme of Cury, dating back to around the 4th century. It’s a compilation of recipes designed for the affluent Romans of the time. Grainger translates the dishes and adapts them for modern cooks, striving to preserve the essence of ancient flavors. You might encounter some rotting fish paste along the way, but if it was good enough for Caesar, it should be good enough for you.
