Knowing that we’re all spending more time at home cooking and dining around our kitchen tables, the first annual Unpretentious Holiday Wishlist celebrates home cooks and finding the joy at home centered around food. We will release a new category each day this week starting with the kitchen followed by: baking, cookbooks and pantry, beverage, and gifts for hosts and food lovers.

Gifts for the Cookbook Collectors 

This year we gained a greater appreciation of understanding where food comes from and who makes it, reading the history and stories of recipes and why it is important to know the humans behind our food. Rather than suggesting cookbooks from authors around the world, we chose cookbooks from local chefs, bloggers, and recipe developers that are worthy to be included on any cookbook collector’s shelves. These books include recipes from seasoned chefs, stories from communities that share the complexities of their food, and simple directions that make home-cooking accessible and approachable again. These books are personal –– a holiday gift collectors will appreciate. 

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Tasty Pride, by Jesse Szewczyk

A collection of 75 recipes and personal stories from prominent LGBTQ+ cooks and foodies. Szewczyk gathered queer chefs, food writers, and recipe developers to create a book celebrating queer food and the communtiies it intersects. The recipes are as diverse as the queer community and the stories are touching tales of acceptance, inclusion, and community. Included in the list of authors is Unpretentious Palate’s Justin Burke. 

Stunning Spreads, by Chrissie Nelson Rotko

Charlotte-based Off the Eaten Path blogger and photographer Chrissie Nelson Rotko’s first cookbook turns the reader’s attention to appetizers and seasonal cocktails for any gathering small or large. Stunning Spreads includes recipes like beer cheese fondue, pimento cheese deviled eggs, charcuterie and cheese boards, and cocktails like watermelon frosé. During a time where we long to entertain friends and families, Stunning Spreads will prepare the reader to be the host that makes it look easy when we can all be together again. 

Mediterranean Every Day, by Sheela Prakash

75 crowd pleasing and easy to execute Mediterranean recipes, Sheela Prakash embraces a style of cooking that celebrates flavor. The Kitchn’s senior contributing food editor and former Charlotte resident entices readers to cook every single recipe in her book with simple, honest recipes. Prakash’s approach and explanation of Mediterranean style of cooking is relaxed and wholesome, celebrating seasonality. Acknowledging how busy our lives are, Mediterranean Every Day makes cooking fun again and not a chore. 

This Will Make it Taste Good, by Vivian Howard 

Award-winning North Carolina chef, restaurateur, television star, and cookbook author Vivian Howard leaves behind chef-driven recipes and focuses on enticing and accessible home-cooking in her new book This Will Make it Taste Good. Each chapter focuses on a flavor hero, making the included recipes bright and flavorful. Howard also helps reposition the reader’s approach to cooking at home, finding joy in the time spent in the kitchen. This Will Make it Taste Good is not complicated and includes a significant amount of vegetarian and gluten-free recipes. Howard’s newest book is for the modern-day home cook. 

Bruce Moffett Cooks, by Bruce Moffett 

Bruce Moffett Cooks is a collection of recipes from Bruce Moffett’s restaurants and a brief memoir documenting his journey establishing himself in Charlotte’s young culinary scene and the role he has played in seeing it grow. The recipes are exciting — the pasta and pizza chapter alone is worth the book. Moffett’s book is a great addition to long-time residents and native Charlotteans. 

Toques in Black: A Celebration of Black Chefs, edited by Alan “Battman” Batt 

Jamie Barnes, Greg Collier, and Jamie Turner are among the local chefs in Toques in Black. The cookbook celebrates Black chefs across the country, with recipes from 101 chefs. The cookbook gives underrepresented chefs the chance to share their stories while providing readers with dishes requiring varying levels of expertise. The book’s foreward was written by celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson. 

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Gifts for Loved Ones’ Pantries 

This year it seemed we were all asking family and friends, and even strangers, if they needed food brought to their homes. Checking in on our loved ones, asking if they had everything they needed during quarantine, became our normal. We relied on local purveyors to fill our pantries and discovered great foods and ingredients in our neighborhoods, increasing our support and awareness for shopping local. The Unpretentious Palate team pulled together a list of local products and ingredients we think would be great gifts or stocking stuffers for family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers as a single item or grouped together in a gift basket.  

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Kristen’s Picks 

PerfectTN Seasoning, The Uptown Yolk
Charlotte, N.C.

Tomato Jam, Chef Alyssa’s Kitchen
Charlotte, N.C.

Capitol Hill Seasoning, Savory Spice Shop
Charlotte, N.C.

Dark & Milk Chocolate Chips, French Broad Chocolates
Asheville, N.C. (available at The Culture Shop, Charlotte, N.C.)

Roots & Branches Crackers, Roots & Branches
Swannanoa, N.C. (available at Earl’s Grocery, Charlotte N.C.)

Pearl Spice, Jimmy Pearl’s
Charlotte, N.C.

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Justin’s Picks

Wing Dust, Hot Box Next Level Kitchen
Concord, N.C.

Brisket Sauce, Sweet Lew’s BBQ
Charlotte, N.C.

Bread & Butter Pickles, Bleu Barn Pantry
Charlotte, N.C.

Wicked Whiskey: Broad Branch Barrel-Aged Raw Honey, Heritage Harvest Farms
Pfafftown, N.C.

Fresh Mozzarella and Burrata, Uno Alla Volta
Charlotte, N.C.

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Travis’ Picks 

Original Pimento Cheese, Queen Charlotte’s Pimento Cheese Royale
Charlotte, N.C.

Da Sauce, Bobbee O’s BBQ
Charlotte, N.C.

Dog Sauce, Cajun Yard Dog
Charlotte, N.C.

Poppy Handcrafted Popcorn
Asheville, N.C.

Grits, Geechie Boy Mill
Edisto Island, S.C.

Marinara Sauce, Cannizzaro Sauces
Charlotte, N.C.

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Disclosure: The links above are affiliate links, which means Unpretentious Palate earns a small commission on any sales of the items above. Since nearly everything is available on Amazon these days, this has no influence on which items we feature.

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