8 of Amazon’s Very Best Gift Cookbooks Under $31

Why gift a cookbook? Because a beautifully designed cookbook is a home décor piece as well as a cooking instruction manual. The foodies and home chefs in your life will think of you every time they flip the pages, browse the pictures, and prepare the recipes included in the cookbook you gifted.

To help you find the perfect gift cookbook, I scoured Amazon for quality option with rave reviews. The ones that made my shortlist here met these requirements:

• Affordable
• Interesting recipes
• Quality imagery
• Hard covers (a must for a gift!)
• Great reviews

1. Binging with Babish

Internet cooking show Binging with Babish features host Andrew Rea who recreates recipes from favorite television and movie scenes. The book of the same name shares 100 of those recipes, including lemon cakes from Game of Thrones and chateaubriand from The Matrix. How fun is that? It’s no wonder millions navigate to YouTube to watch Rea’s videos.

This book is the perfect gift for the friend who loves food and film equally. It’s also a trivia experience and a conversation starter for parties.

Binging with Babish has a 4.9-star rating from 12,267 reviews. One reviewer suggested using the book to inspire date nights, by selecting a recipe and then watching the associated show.

2. Half Baked Harvest Super Simple

Blogger Tieghan Gerard’s collection of 125+ comfort foods is a New York Times bestseller and has more than 12,500 reviews on Amazon with a 4.8-star rating. The hardcover book is beautifully illustrated, and the recipes are creatively flavored without being complex to prepare. That’s a winning combination for any food lover.

One Amazon reviewer said this book inspired the creation of a book and cooking club, where friends get together and try out new recipes.

3. Pinch of Nom       

From the creators of the blog pinchofnom.com, this colorful hardcover contains 100 home-style recipes, healthful recipes for weight loss. The collection spans breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert.

This hardcover cookbook has a 4.8 rating on Amazon from more than 53,000 reviews and a 4.4 rating on Goodreads. One Amazon reviewer says the recipes are tasty, “which is a change from usual diet recipes.”

4. Eat with Us

This book by Philip Lago and Mystique Mattal takes a different approach, one of mindfulness. The authoring couple shares their favorite recipes and the memories they’ve created. It is both a journey and celebration of home cooking and togetherness. The photography is top-notch as well.

Lago and Mattal’s collection has just 50 ratings on Amazon, but most of them are 5-star. One Amazon reviewer recommends the stovetop granola and Caesar chicken sandwich recipes.

5. A Return to Ireland

A Return to Ireland features more than 100 recipes honoring Irish-American culture. The focus is on fresh, whole ingredients and simple, but delicious culinary creations.

Author Judith McLoughlin taps into her experiences living in both County Armagh, Ireland and Atlanta, Georgia to bring us fusion recipes like pan roasted fillet of halibut to Irish stout chocolate cake.

One reviewer admits to purchasing several copies of this gorgeous cookbook to gift to family and friends.

6. Shaq’s Family Style

For the foodie who also loves sports, Shaq’s Family Style will surely score some points. Why not buy a cookbook from a guy whose passion for eating is common knowledge?

Your giftee can experience Shaq’s comfort food favorites, which include jalapeno-pimento cheeseburgers, baked macaroni and cheese, and loaded potato waffles. The recipes are also as straightforward to make as they are to enjoy.

One reviewer describes this book as “a slam dunk in the culinary court.”

7. Eat Delicious

Instagrammer and Food and Wine columnist Dennis the Prescott brings us this collection of 125 bold recipes. Some notable creations to try include brioche donuts, fried feta BLT, and garam masala beer mussels.

This is another book reviewers say they’ve started giving as gifts, citing the gorgeous photography and foolproof recipes.

8. Fire + Wine

Grilling recipes with wine pairings is a how-to on adding sophistication to the barbecue experience. The book includes 75 smokey recipes with perfect win pairings, from the real-life marriage of a pitmaster Sean Martin and sommelier Mary Cressler.

Your giftee’s mouth will water just thumbing through the pages of this book. Recipes include wine-braised smoked lamb shanks and smoked salmon crostini with capers, dill, and goat cheese.

Three of the four most recent reviews for this book on Amazon mention enjoying the collection so much that they gifted it to family and friends.

Do people use cookbooks anymore?

I still believe in cookbooks! Sure, you can find so many recipes free online. You can even ask ChatGPT for recipes — which, I assure you, are taken from some hard-working blogger without attribution. But gifting the internet is too expensive and practical. You’d pay way more for a few months of, say, any of the Xfinity internet plans.

Plus, a gift cookbook is not just a collection of recipes. It’s a series of experiences — something a true foodie will cherish. If you want to add on to a gift cookbook, try pairing it with a nice cookbook stand.

Last update on 2023-06-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API