9 Of The Most Expensive Cookbooks ... Ever (PHOTOS)

In wake of the news that former Microsoft CTO Nathan Myhrvold is publishing a $625 cookbook (which is included in this slideshow), we strained, sifted, and grated through the far reaches of the internet to find the nine most expensive cookbooks money can buy.

We've mixed in the rare (pun intended) with the ones you can actually purchase, assuming your wallet is fat enough and your stomach is grumbling.

Hope you're hungry enough to ignore the bill when it comes!

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Maggie's Harvest - $125

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The cookbook of Australian chef Maggie Beer can be found for less than the retail price, which is just a bit more palatable. "Maggie's Harvest" is an elegant, 700-page reference book filled with recipes as well Maggie's own personal stories. The book is arranged by seasons and features vivid photography.

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The cookbook of Australian chef Maggie Beer can be found for less than the retail price, which is just a bit more palatable. "Maggie's Harvest" is an elegant, 700-page reference book filled with recipes as well Maggie's own personal stories. The book is arranged by seasons and features vivid photography.

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Total comments: 34 | Post a Comment

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This Cookbook

Rank #2  |  Average: 4

I'd Rather Go To A Restaurant Delicious!

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Comments

[MarcEdward]

08:09 PM on 09/06/2010

Minor point - while one should never lend books (unless you don't ever want to see it again), NEVER lend a cookbook. I made the mistake of lending an Indian cookbook to my well meaning vegan niece, who must have lost it, but also pretended I'd never lent it to her after. I have no idea who the author is and there are recipes I've never, ever, ever been able to find since, as the titles were in Indian. I'd seriously snip off the end of one of my fingers to get that book back.

[MarcEdward]

06:12 PM on 09/06/2010

I bet one can get every single recipe free online.

[DavidMG]

09:36 AM on 09/06/2010

I'm proud to say that our cookbook "American Wholefoods Cuisine" has sold for as much as $100.

[anastasiabeaverhousen]

05:15 PM on 08/29/2010

Fannie Farmer is one of the best and most comprehensive sources for recipes and "how to s".

http://cgi.ebay.com/FANNIE-FARMER-COOKBOOK-LIKE-NEW-/120614074094?pt=US_Nonfiction_Book&hash=item1c1528b6ee

Just another "hyped" subject where someone decided they could charge $5k for a cookbook and some kook would buy it.

[bisbeeornotbisbee]

04:50 PM on 08/29/2010

I like to buy old standard cookbooks from libraries and amazon.com: books from the 50s-70s. Receipes go out of style, and these have all the old favorites. Then for up-to-date-recipes, my favorite online site is allrecipes.com. I have had such success with them that they're my first go-to.

[samoisdead]

05:07 AM on 08/29/2010

Great article!

[delta7777]

01:00 AM on 08/29/2010

.
in the lower price echelon of most valuable cookbooks, I highly recommend
Anne Willan's "La Varenne Pratique" (it's in english)-it is a real gem
Used copies are occasionally available at modest price (see addall.com)
.

[SETIA]

03:51 PM on 08/28/2010

Dont buy the book, buy the meal.. Can cure your hungry stomach.

[mombabytiger]

02:20 PM on 08/28/2010

I am addicted to cookbooks and have way too many. But - you can find a really good recipe for just about anything on the net. Usually with reviews and recommendations for alterations and improvements.

[TwoGayGuys]

09:26 AM on 08/28/2010

At this price, I want these recipe books to MAKE the meal as well!

[suemj]

05:06 PM on 08/29/2010

LOL! Right, for that money you should get a 4-star chef jumping out from between the pages!

[netaholic13]

04:23 AM on 08/28/2010

USD 5000 for a signed cook book? Still sounds silly for me and probaly for most of you either but hey... somebody bought it!

[samoisdead]

05:09 AM on 08/29/2010

........ especially i these times. The value definitely won't hold.

[Linda Williams]

10:06 PM on 08/27/2010

I'd rather spend those dollars on food and experiment, myself.

[pinkeyelemonade]

09:38 PM on 08/27/2010

I have somewhere between 10-12 cookbooks, plus maybe 75 index cards with recipes copied from all over, which cost me maybe $5 at the most from flea markets or other thrifty places...or ended up in my collection for free.

Yes, the prices are a tad ridiculous.

[Ergon]

07:22 PM on 08/27/2010

I have 40 great cookbooks, all found in the remainders section, because most people couldn't be bothered with classics like The Joy of Cooking: sad but true, and every year a new one comes that is all about pretension, presentation and photographs that look like the plastic ducks they use in Chinses menus :(

[Jean C]

05:54 PM on 08/27/2010

I'd much rather get my cookbooks from the local library since I couldn't afford to buy most of them and have any money left to buy the ingredients LOL

JeanC
JeanC's Cat House and Shooting Society

[MarcEdward]

08:06 PM on 09/06/2010

Cat's and shooting - what could go wrong?
LOTS - don't give guns to cats!
from
The Society for the Prevention of Armed Bears and other animals.