The books in the “About eating. . . .  section are mostly about enjoying food (dining, if you will, and not just eating because your body requires it), the philosophy of good food, and literature about food.  There are some recipes, but mostly these are literature about food.  Those listed in the other sections are cookbooks in the more traditional sense–though I don’t want a cookbook that is just a recitation of many recipes–I want a bit of culture with the recipe.

About eating. . . .

• David, Elizabeth. 2001. Is There a Nutmeg in the House: Essays on Practical Cooking. Edited by Jill Norman. New York, New York: Viking Penguin.
• de Groot, Roy Andries. 1986. In Search of the Perfect Meal: A Collection of the Best Food Writing of Roy Andries de Groot. Edited by Sass, Lorna J. New York, New York: St. Martin’s Press.
• —. 1973. The Auberge of the Flowering Hearth. Hopewell , New Jersey: The Ecco Press.
• Fisher, M. F. K. 1990. The Art of Eating. New York, New York: Collier Books, Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Olney, Richard. 1999. Reflections. New York, New York: Brick Tower Press.
• Sheraton, Mimi. 2015. 1,000 Foods to Eat Before You Die: A Food Lover’s Life List. Workman Publishing Company.
• Steingarten, Jeffrey. 2003. It Must’ve Been Something I Ate. New York, New York: Vintage Books/Random House.
• —. 1997. The Man Who Ate Everything: And Other Gastronimic Feats, Disputes, and Pleasurable Pursuits. New York, New York: Vintage Books/Random House, Inc.

Food history

• Wrangham, Richard, 2006. Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human. Basic Books, Hatchette Book Group, May 2006. ISBN: 0465020410 (Page Numbers Source), ASIN: B0097D71MQ

Nutrition

• Planck, Nina. Real Food: What to Eat and Why. Bloomsbury USA; 1 edition (May 10, 2016), Amazon Digital Services LLC, ASIN: B01EA5GE1Y
• Taubes, Gary. 2007. Good Calories, Bad Calories. New York: Random House LLC (Kindle edition).
• —. 2010. Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It. New York: Knopf.
• Teicholz, Nina. 2015. The Big Fat Surprise: Why better, Meat, and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Westerman, Eric C., and Stephen D Phinney. 2010. The New Atkins for a New You: The Ultimate Diet for Shedding Weight and Feeling Great. New York: Touchstone/Simon & Schuster Digital Sales.

Beans & grains

• London, Sheryl and London, Mel.  The Versatile Grain and the Elegant Bean.  New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992.  ISBN: 0-671-76106-4.

Bread & baking

• Hertzberg, Jeff and François, Zoë, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.  New York:  St. Martin’s Press/Thomas Dunne Books, 2007.  ISBN-13:  978-0-312-36291-1.
• François, Zoë and Hertzberg, Jeff, Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day.  New York:  Thomas Dunne Books, 2009.  ISBN-13: 978-0312545529.

Cooking for one (or two)

• Jones, Judith, The Pleasures of Cooking for One.  New York:  Alfred A. Knopf/Random House, Inc., 2009.  ISBN 978-0-307-27072-6.
• Yonan, Joe  Serve Yourself:  Nightly Adventures in Cooking for One. Ten Speed Press, 2011.
• Yonan, Joe  Eat Your Vegetables:  Bold Recipes for the Single Cook
• Anderson, Pam, How to Cook without a Book.  New York:  Broadway Books/random House, Inc., 2000.  ISBN: 0-7679-0279-3.
• Ruhlman, Michael, Twenty.  San Francisco: Chronicle Books LLC, 2011 eISBN: 978-1-4521-1045-5.
• Ruhlman, Michael, Ratio, Scribner, 2009
• Slater, Nigel
  • Eat: The Little Book of Fast Food
  • Tender: A Cook and His Vegetable Patch.
  •  Real Fast Food
  • The Kitchen Diaries: A Year in the Kitchen with Nigel Slater
  •  Notes from the Larder: A Kitchen Diary with Recipes
  •  Ripe: A Cook in the Orchard
  •  Eating for England

Easy and economical cooking

• Pepin, Jacques, Cuisine Economique. New York: William Morrow and Company, 1992.  ISBN: 0-688-11145-9.
• Pepin, Jacques, The Short-cut Cook. New York:  William Morrow and Company, Inc. 1990.  ISBN:  0-688-09448-1.

Ethnic

Sheraton, Mimi. 1965. The German Cookbook: A Complete Guide to Mastering Authentic German Cooking. New York, New York: Random House. (German cookery)

Food plants

• National Geographic Society, Edible: An Illustrated Guide to the World’s Food Plants. Global Book Publishing, 2008.  ISBN: 978-1-4262-0372-5.
• van Wyk, Ben-Erik, Food Plants of the World: An illustrated guide. Portland, OR, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-88192-743-6.

Gardening/Container Gardening

• McGee, Rose Marie Nichols, and Stuckey, Maggie, 2002.  The Bountiful Container. New York:  Workman Publishing Company Inc.  ISBN: 0-7611-1623-0
• Diacono, Mark, 2011. The Food Lover’s Garden: Amazing Edibles You Will Love to Grow and Eat.  Portland/London: Timber Press.  ISBN-13: 978-1-60469-229-7.

Grains & legumes

• London, Sheryl, and Mel London. 1992. The Versatile Grain and the Elegant Bean: A Celebration of the World’s Most Healthful Foods. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Speck, Maria. 2015. Simply Ancient Grains: Fresh and Flavorful Whole Grain Recipes for Living Well. Berkeley CA: Ten Speed Press/Random House LLC.

Sustainable food/eating

Vegetable cookbooks

• Morash, Marian, The Victory Garden Cookbook.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc./Borzoi, 1982.  ISBN 0-394-50897-1.
• Batcheller, Barbara, Lilies of the Kitchen.  New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1986. ISBN: 0-312-48618-9.

Food plants/sources

• National Geographic Society, Edible:  An Illustrated Guide to the World’s Food Plants.  Lane Cove, NSW, Australia:  Global Book Publishing  Ltd, 2008. ISBN: 978-4262-0372-5
• van Wyk, Ben-Erik, Food Plants of the World: An Illustrated Guide. Portland, OR: Timber Press, Inc., 2005.  ISBN-13:  978-0-88192-743-6

French cooking

• Wells, Patricia. 1991. Simply French: Patricia Wells Presents the Cuisine of Joël Robuchon. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc.

Italian cookbooks

• Hazan, Giuliano, Every Night Italian. New York:  Scribner, 2000.  ISBN: 0-684-80028-4
• Hazan, Marcella, Marcella Cucina. New York: HarperCollins, 1997.  ISBN: 0-06-017103-0
• Hazan, Marcella, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.  New York: Alfred Knop, 1994.  ISBN: 0-394-58404-X.

Slow cooker cookbooks

• America’s Test Kitchen, Slow Cooker Revolution. Boston Common Press, 2011. ISBN-10: 1933615699, ISBN-13: 978-1933615691.

Taste

• McLagen, Jennifer, Bitter: A Taste of the World’s Most Dangerous Flavor, with Recipes,  Ten Speed Press (September 16, 2014), ISBN-13: 978-1607745167

Whole-animal cookbooks (offal recipes)

• Henderson, Fergus, The Complete Nose to Tail: A kind of British Cooking, Ecco Press, 2013 ISBN: 9780062282613
• Henderson, Fergus, The Whole Beast: Nose to Tail Eating, Ecco Press, 2004,
  ISBN: 978006058536
• Henderson, Fergus, Beyond Nose to Tail: More Omnivorous Recipes for the Adventurous Cook, Bloomsbury USA, ISBN: 9781596914148
• McLagen, Jennifer   Odd Bits: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal, Ten Speed Press, Random House, 2013, ISBN-13: 978-1580083348
• McLagen, Jennifer, Cooking on the Bone: Recipes, History and Lore, Grub Street, 2008, ISBN-13: 978-190650220
• McLagen, Jennifer,  Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient, with Recipes, Ten Speed Press, 2008 ISBN-13: 978-1580089357