What's Cookin' Good Lookin'?

I have amassed a rather hefty collection of cookbooks for someone who really only started having a use for them two months ago. Let's face it, there aren't tons of cookbooks targeted towards the same audience as this blog is, so I thought it would be useful to show you which ones I've been turning to for inspiration and guidance.
1. College Cooking by Megan and Jill Carle was the first cookbook I could ever claim as my own. I like this one because it was written by two college students (obviously for college students) so they really stick to the tastes and budget that I'm looking for. There are some classics like baked ziti, mac n' cheese and chicken and rice, but they also cater to the more adventurous like crab cakes and Thai chicken. Their instructions are easy to follow (but not condicentingly so) and the accompanying photos are lovely. There are also a few party menus interspersed between each chapter. Also, there are little bits of trivia and tricks to turning their recipes into vegetarian options littered throughout. If you like this book but feel it's a bit too meat-heavy for your tastes, these ladies are coming out with Vegetarian College Cooking soon which had some very tasty looking recipes.
2. I was very excited to finally have an excuse to get I Like You by Amy Sedaris . This book did not disappoint. I had always assumed it was more for the sake of humor than actual recipes and advice, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it was heavily packed with both! I kid you not, I actually sat down and read this from cover to cover and had to stop every now and then to remind myself that, yes, I am indeed reading a cookbook. While certainly entertaining, it is a bit difficult to actually put to use since the recipes are arranged so haphazardly (tell me, Amy, what do you cook for a lumberjack lunch?). With that said, this book is an absolute must in your kitchen library.3. Memorable Recipes to Share With Family and Friends doesn't, I admit, look terribly exciting at first glance, but once you pay a bit of attention you'll see that there are some very tempting recipes throughout. There is also a wealth of entertaining advice (although not as amusing as Mr. Sedaris teaches us). The recipes in this book are a bit more adult (read: more sophisticated and intricate) than, say, the ones found in College Cooking, but they all seem perfectly doable (read: relatively inexpensive and easy). If they aren't enough to get your mouth watering, the gorgeous photographs certainly will. Warning: a bit of math will be involved, assuming you won't be serving over 6 people with each meal.

4. Honestly, I got The New Basics Cookbook because it was on one of those $1 book carts outside of The Strand, but it really is very good for- surprise! - the basics. It's organized in a way that makes more sense than all the other books on this list: the vegetables are listed with the vegetables, chicken with the chicken, desserts with the desserts etc. Is The New Basics terribly thrilling? No. But is it full of useful and tasty recipes? Definitely.
5. I don't keep kosher, but according to Hip Kosher: 175 Easy-to-Prepare Recipes For Today's Kosher Cooks it's the next big culinary trend. After looking at the recipes in this book I, admittedly, picked up with trepidation, I believe it. They look absolutely delicious, the soups especially. It's trying to be chi chi, but definitely the kind of chi chi that can be recreated in your own kitchen.
6. I got Nadia G's Bitchin' Kitchen Cookbook for my birthday in January and then it promptly disappeared. This dearly departed friend was full of sass and wit and, oh yeah, occasionally a good recipe thrown in. From what I remember, not many of the recipes jumped out as something I could see myself cooking on an average night but I could always see myself eating if it just so happened to be served to me. Everything's very Italian, even most of the instructions (don't worry, there's an Italian slang glossary in the back). Like Amy's book, you may not be turning to Bitchin' Kitchen on the regular, but it's an excellent book to have in your toolbox.