The internet is a beautiful thing for home cooks. A quick Google search will help you figure out what to make for dinner, show you a video of a technique you’re trying to master, or suggest alternate ingredients when you run out of one that you need. It’s fantastic and convenient, and it has opened up a world of recipes and advice to people who may have been intimidated by cooking before.

But at the heart of it all, I’m a paper kind of girl. And a book nerd. I worked in publishing for years and I firmly believe that print isn’t dying. That’s why I’m starting this Cookbook Love series — to highlight some of the cookbooks in my collection that I love and think are worth adding to your shelves.

So much work goes into making a cookbook. Recipes are developed and tested again and again. Editors toil over the language — do readers know what “sauté” means, or do we need to spell it out? Food is cooked and painstakingly styled and photographed. Someone has to lay out the entire book — text, photos, recipes — and make it all fit and look pretty. It’s a true labor of love before that beautiful book hits your hands.

I’m starting this series with one of my recent favorite cookbooks: Florentine by Emiko Davies.

Italy is a really special place for me and my husband — we got married there last year and have spent a lot of time traveling (and eating!) around the country. Florence has a particular place in my heart since it’s the city that made me fall in love with Italy. Despite its heavily touristed landmarks, there is a charm to wandering the narrow roads that wind around the city and, perhaps more importantly, a sincerity to Florentine people and their food.

Tuscan food is homey, hearty and simple, and Emiko’s beautiful tribute to the food of this region captures that perfectly. On a recent cold evening, we loved her recipe for a hearty Ribollita, a vegetable and bean soup thickened with stale bread. I also loved seeing a version of Panino con Lampredotto e Salsa Verde — this is a classic Florentine street food sandwich made with slow cooked tripe and bright, flavorful salsa verde. It can be an acquired taste if you’re not used to offal, but Emiko’s recipe gives me confidence that I may be able to recreate this one day for my lampredotto-loving husband.

On the bakery side, Emiko does not disappoint! I was thrilled to find some fresh zucchini flowers at my local farmer’s market over the summer, and I used them to make Schiacciatine, little oily discs of focaccia bread topped with veggies, from the book. In addition to being gorgeous, they were also incredibly delicious!

Finally, we treated ourselves to Emiko’s recipe for Bomboloncini one Sunday morning. Once you get over the intimidation of frying, there’s nothing keeping you from these puffy little donuts that go perfectly with your morning coffee.

On top of superb recipes, Florentine is a visually stunning book to look through and to display on your bookshelf — the photographs of the food and of scenes of the city of Florence always manage to transport me back to one of my favorite places, and the beautiful cover mimics the traditional marbled paper found in little shops all over the city. Whether you’re already in love with Florence or if it’s on your dream destination list, Florentine is an excellent addition to your bookshelf and your kitchen!