T. Susan Chang

Out of fellow-feeling for friends who eat gluten-free, food writer and noodle lover T. Susan Chang pondered a life without wheat that is not a life without noodles. When it comes to wheat-free, she says, Asian rice noodles are the crossover stars. But they're not alone.

This season's standouts praise America's culinary traditions from coast to coast — and everywhere in between. Authors of these plainspoken and charming cookbooks craft memorable recipes around just a few well-chosen flavors: meals for every day that are anything but.

If you find yourself tearing through egg yolks in the kitchen, with a surplus of whites left behind, don't just toss them out. It's the white that gives life to sweet and spicy nuts, sichuan pork and classic cookies like macaroons and financiers.

Apple cider — the alcoholic variety — was part of the foundation of America. Now its sweet descendant turns up often in school lunchboxes and at blood drives. But cider isn't just good for sipping; the apple slurry lends earthy sweetness to savory dishes in a brine, a vinaigrette and a glaze.

This year, cooks poured their hearts into these carefully crafted, kitchen how-tos. T. Susan Chang says these cookbooks are like a properly seasoned skillet — heavy-duty, battle-tested and much to be prized.

It can be hard to resist the crispy, salty temptation to "Have It Your Way," but you can ditch the fast-food fries and make your own -- in the oven. It takes a bit more time, but you won't mind when you taste your piping-hot potatoes, chicken and other favorites.

Summertime inspires dizzying feats of laziness in the kitchen. Liquid lunches, random fruit meet-ups, meals consisting of things you can throw in a blender -- anything to avoid summer's Public Enemy No. 1: the stove. These easy-to-make, easy-to-eat salads won't impose on your downtime.

Instead of obliterating the plant pests in your garden, try harvesting them. After all, they've been fattened up on your good compost and diligent watering all season. All you need is an open mind — and the appetite to go with it.

This year has yielded a bumper crop of cookbooks for the farmers market regular. Food writer T. Susan Chang has sorted through this bounty to come up with an armload of recommendations — as well as a score of great summer recipes — for the locavore in your life.

If you're the kind of person who's always believed that a book can teach you to do anything, this year's crop of cookbooks will prove you right. Cooks lacking confidence will find comfort in detailed instructions and comprehensive how-tos.