Top Recipe Books by Austin Authors

Imagine if you could eat and drink your way around Austin from the comfort of your home with dishes prepared by your own hands. Now, you can! Thanks to these local authors, anyone can enjoy Austin’s unique food experience by way of cookbooks. 

Jack Allen’s Kitchen: Celebrating the Tastes of Texas

Photo courtesy of Kenny Braun

For Jack Allen Gilmore, owner of Jack Allen’s Kitchen, few things are greater than good ol’ Texan hospitality and delicious food made with locally sourced ingredients. 

Since 2009, Jack Allen’s Kitchen has been serving classic southern favorites with a southeastern twist. Gilmore prides himself on honoring the hard work of local farmers by cooking with their fresh produce in all of his restaurants. 

“Years ago, I remember standing at the farmers market listening to customers ask the farmers how and what they should cook with their produce,” Gilmore says. “This is where the idea for the cookbook got started.”

Organized by season, Gilmore hopes his cookbook will inspire readers to cook with in-season ingredients and fresh produce sourced from local farmers.  

The Peached Tortilla: Modern Asian Comfort Food From Tokyo to Texas

Often, the artful balance of foods found on menus everywhere can be traced back to the unique lived experiences and multiple cultures. The Peached Tortilla is no exception. 

After leaving a career in law to pursue his passion for food, Eric Silverstein started small with a food truck serving his version of Asian favorites. The Peached Tortilla has since grown into a highly successful business. 

The cookbook and memoir share Sliverstein’s lived experience through food. Recipes pay homage to the time he spent living in Japan, influences from his Chinese mother and recipes that date back to the beginning of his food truck days up to now as chef of multiple restaurants. You won’t go hungry with this one!

The Austin Cookbook: Recipes and Stories from Deep in the Heart of Texas

Photo courtesy of ABRAMS

Take a tour of Austin with author and food connoisseur, Paula Forbes. 

After moving back to Austin from New York, Forbes set out on a journey to eat and drink her way around Austin. Her goal was to get reacquainted with the city and find recipes from restaurants in the area to craft a cookbook that would honor Austin’s authentic food landscape. 

The cookbook was a labor of love as Forbes sat down with restaurant owners, chefs and Austin residents to find out what made these recipes so special. 

“I have some friends who went to UT and now all live in D.C. They told me they had a potluck consisting of dishes made from the book.” Forbes says. “It was like bringing a piece of Austin all the way across the country.”

Bread on the Table: Recipes for Making and Enjoying Europe’s Most Beloved Breads

Photo courtesy of Easy Tiger

Good things come in time. The founders of Easy Tiger Bake Shop & Beer Garden hope you take the time to sit down at the restaurant to stay a while. Come enjoy good company while surrounded by great food. 

Come break bread, literally. The award-winning bread served at Easy Tiger are made of love, crafted by hand and composed of premium ingredients. Along with traditional hearth bread, customers can enjoy craft beer, weekend brunch and a variety of menu items such as sandwiches and soups.

David Norman, author of Bread on the Table, spent a great deal of time traveling Europe and North America to study the art of bread-making traditions from cultures far and wide. The book also features recipes to incorporate homemade bread into everyday dishes. 

Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto and Franklin Steaks

Photo courtesy of Wyatt McSpadden

You never know where a hobby may lead you. Aaron and Stacy Franklin loved to throw backyard barbecues. Years later, these barbecues were the very thing that caused them to take a leap of faith to open a barbecue truck in Austin. 

Since its humble beginnings in 2009, Franklin Barbecue has received many accolades and has been praised nationwide by Jimmy Kimmel, former President Barack Obama and many people in between.

Franklin Barbecue serves everything from meat by the pound to individual sandwiches to homemade pie.  

The deliciousness keeps on giving. The Franklins have released everything you need to get your hands dirty at home so you can try to barbecue like a pro. You will find guidance in the cookbooks on barbecue and steak. You can even buy their line of specialty dry rubs, all while wearing Franklin apparel. 

Happy cooking!