Cookbook recommendations from Chef Lucia Watson

If it weren't for a steady diet of tea, coffee, soups, salads, sandwiches (and cookies!) from Lucia's To Go, just around the corner from our store, we here at Magers & Quinn would have a difficult time doing much of anything. We asked Lucia Watson herself to recommend a handful of her favorite cookbooks. Here's what she had to say.
M&Q:How long have you been in business? And why?
LW:: "26 years!!! For 26 years, Lucia's has been creating weekly menus, selecting delicious wines and greeting our wonderful customers! Our Restaurant, Wine Bar, and Lucia's To Go are inspired by high quality local foods, exceptional cooking, and genuine hospitality. The seasonal, nourishing, and cultural properties of cooking continue to be our passion.

1. Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi "My newest love is a book called Plenty by London-based chef Yotam Ottolenghi. It's just vegetables. So inspiring and so beautiful!"
2. Simple French Food by Richard Olney "To me, this is the authentic hands on book that describes how to cook the way the French do. I just love this book. I go back to it over and over..."
3. Savoring the Seasons of the Northern Heartland by Lucia Watson and Beth Dooley "Can I say my own book? It is true that it is the one I turn to always for the basics of how I like to cook: seasonal foods, roasted chicken, soups, etc."

"Other books I love and refer to frequently are Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller, The River Cafe Books by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers and all of Deborah Madison's books ."M&Q is full of good cookbooks. Come by today to find the right one for you.