A Taste of Heritage: The New African-American Cuisine

Joe Randall and Toni Tipton-Martin

This is one of the great books that features some of the most talented black chefs in the country. Chef Randall has been a mentor of mine since my early days as a student at the Culinary Institute of America.

The Taste of Country Cooking

Edna Lewis

You can never go wrong with a book by Edna Lewis.

What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking: Also Soups, Pickles, Preserves, etc.

Mrs. Abby Fisher

One of the first African American cookbooks.

The Elements of Taste

Gray Kunz and Peter Kaminsky

The Africa Cookbook: Tastes of a Continent

Jessica B. Harris

Gullah Cuisine: By Land and by Sea

Charlotte Jenkins

I ran a test kitchen for all the recipes in this book. This was my introduction to the beautiful food of the Gullah Culture.

Jean-Louis: Cooking with the Seasons

Jean-Louis Palladin and Fred J. Maroon

Toques in Black: The Extraordinary Diversity of Black Chefs

101 Black Chefs in America and Battman

An assembling of recipes and stories from 101 Black Chefs from across the country.

The Professional Chef

Culinary Institute of America

Cooking with Patrick Clark: A Tribute to the Man and His Cuisine

Charlie Trotter

Creole Feast: 15 Master Chefs of New Orleans Reveal Their Secrets

Nathanial Burton