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A Good Read: Colder weather is the perfect time for warm comfort foods

With autumn here, we find ourselves turning to warmer, comforting meals.
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With autumn here, we find ourselves turning to warmer, comforting meals. They fill our kitchens with irresistible aromas and flavours that offer to soothe the chill of the outside world.

These books will help add to your recipe collection for fabulous fall and winter cooking.

Lauren Grier is the food blogger behind Climbing Grier Mountain. In Modern Comfort Cooking, she has compiled more than 75 of the most popular comfort food recipes with a tasty twist using modern ingredients, flavours and techniques. Grier takes the classics and gives them an upgrade for every meal. The results can include a tuna melt seasoned with turmeric and topped with mozzarella cheese, crispy parsnip fries and a zucchini meatball sub. This cookbook is the perfect way to bring your home cooking to life while creating unforgettable meals.

For the vegan in your life, Lauren Toyota has written Hot for Food: Vegan Comfort Classics. Toyota is a Canadian-based lover of food who is vegan. Organized into chapters, this book encompasses everything from Badass Brunches to Finger Foods, The Main Event, Oodles of Noodles, Sweet Things and more. A glossy full-page picture accompanies each recipe, making the decision of what to make first nearly impossible. The butternut squash cannelloni and blackberry crumble bars are sure to please any dinner party.

Half-Baked Harvest is the debut cookbook of Tieghan Gerard. She’s known for her stunning photography and interesting flavour combinations, so this cookbook will not disappoint. The apple and brie soup paired with the lobster BLT are sure to impress your dinner guests. Classic comfort foods such as barbecued short ribs, cheese-loaded meatballs and slow-cooker butter chicken will warm you even on the coolest of autumn days. Gerard has included a whole section of meat-free recipes and be sure to experiment with the indulgent desserts that include chocolate caramel cake and tiramisu cupcakes.

Dan Whalen’s collection of recipes in The Comfort Food Mash-Up Cookbook are not to be missed. This exciting cookbook features 80 recipes that merge two classic recipes into one unforgettable dish. Discover the fascinating history of mash-ups and the blueprint that explains the tasty philosophy behind them. Devour Buffalo Chicken Pad Thai or Chili Risotto and then treat yourself to a Blueberry Pie Milkshake or White Russian Cheesecake. Comfort food never tasted so good.

Who knew that a cast-iron frying pan could produce such an array of comfort food? The Southern Skillet Cookbook by Cider Mills Press will prove that a cast-iron frying pan is one of the best cooking tools you can have. These delicious stick-to-your ribs recipes are sure to be a hit with the entire family. From Cheesy Scrambled Eggs, to Pork Chops with Cider and Apple, to Banana Pudding Pie, the Southern Skillet is the perfect pick for budding chefs and experts alike.

These and other fabulous cookbooks are waiting to be discovered at your local library.

A Good Read is a column by Tri-City librarians that is published on Wednesdays. Caroline Wandell works at Port Coquitlam’s Terry Fox Library.