Open Wide

Written by Benny Blanco, this cookbook is his ode to food, cooking and "throwing the greatest dinner party of all time". Equal parts entertaining, educational and endearing, it is NOT your grandma's cookbook and you'll want to read it from cover to cover. It's jam packed with tasty recipes with just the right amount of steps and ingredients as well as Blanco's larger-than-life personality. 

Blanco explains in the introduction that he rarely ate out growing up and it wasn't until a friend got a George Foreman grill when he was thirteen that he started becoming obsessed with food and cooking for friends. His advise for those who may be overwhelmed thinking about cooking for others, "Open this book. Open your heart. And open wide, baby."

Some of my favorites:

• I Hope We Didn't Make a Baby Breakfast Burrito

• SZA's Banana Pudding

• Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies

• Sour Cream & Onion Mashed Potatoes

• Coconut Tres Leches Cake with Rick Martinez

• Chicken Enchiladas

• Watermelon Shiso Slushie