As someone who is passionate about cookbooks, I’m always up for talking about them with other cookbook collectors. I know there are lots of cookbook collectors out there, but one who really stands out is Jenna Helwig, who writes the Cookbookery Collective newsletter, which she describes as:

…a hub for the cookbook community—authors, eaters, cooks, editors, publicists, publishers, agents, and aspiring authors alike. It’s a place to celebrate all cookbooks, new and old, blockbuster and under-the-radar. It’s a place to hear from your favorite authors and talk amongst ourselves in the comments section. It’s a place where everyone is welcome, whether you have just a handful of beloved books or a collection in the hundreds.

I couldn’t have said it better, except to add what a wonderful resource Jenna, and her newsletter, have become to the cookbook community, which features interviews with cookbook authors, including me…

…plus seasonal round-ups of the latest cookbooks to hit the shelves, previews of cookbooks that are about to be released, as well as recipes from her favorite cookbooks.

Not only does Jenna write a newsletter, she’s also the food director at Real Simple magazine, the author of five cookbooks, and runs a personal chef business. Whew!

In addition to her other activities, Jenna is now a novelist, having penned her first novel, coming out this Fall, The Foreign Correspondent’s Wife, a mystery set in Paris.

I was thrilled to get a chance to sit down for this podcast episode with Jenna to talk about our favorite subject: Cookbooks! We talked about everything, from what makes a good cookbook (and what drives her crazy in a cookbook) to how she decides which cookbooks that cross her desk she holds on to, and which ones she lets go. We also discussed what she thinks of influencer cookbooks, and talked about one of the big questions of our time - how will AI affect cookbooks, and will it (or can it) replace them.

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I hope you enjoy my chat with Jenna as much as I did…and let us know in the comments what are some of your favorite cookbooks, and why.

- David

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* Visit Jenna Helwig’s website

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