Most popular cookbook of 2012 in US: 'Barefoot Contessa Foolproof'

A cookbook promising readers foolproof recipes and menu plans by the doyenne of dinner parties best known to American TV audiences as the Barefoot Contessa was the most popular cookery book of 2012.

According to Publisher’s Weekly, Ina Garten’s "Barefoot Contessa Foolproof: Recipes You Can Trust" was the bestselling cookbook last year in the US, topping a cookbook from blogger turned TV food celebrity Ree Drummond entitled "Pioneer Woman Cooks."

In "Foolproof," Garten provides readers with a ‘game plan’ for hosting a quick and easy luncheon with meals like hot smoked salmon, lobster and potato salad, and tomato soup with grilled cheese croutons.

Dinner party menus, meanwhile, include slow-roasted filet of beef with basil parmesan mayonnaise, seared scallops and potato celery root purée and sticky toffee date cake with Bourbon glaze or salted caramel brownies to cap off the meal.

The book includes 150 pages of color photographs, and menu plans also come with notes that provide readers with a heads-up on where recipes can go wrong and tips for making recipes in advance.

Here are the top ten cookbooks of 2012 by the numbers:

1. “Barefoot Contessa Foolproof” by Ina Garten, published by Clarkson Potter, 428,105 copies
2. “The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier” by Ree Drummond, published by William Morrow,
267,909 copies
3. “In the Kitchen with David” by David Venable, published by Ballantine, 264, 953 copies
4. “Eat More of What You Love” by Marlene Koch, published by Running Press, 132,796 copies
5. “Great Food Fast” by Bob Warden, published by Quail Ridge Press, 122,665 copies
6. “The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook” by Deb Perelman, Knopf, 114,547 copies
7. “The Chew” by The Hosts and Staff of ABC’s “The Chew,” Hyperion, 109,202 copies
8. "The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl," by Ree Drummond, William
Morrow, 103,751 copies
9. “Weeknights with Giada” by Giada De Laurentiis, Clarkson Potter, 95,040 copies
10. “Hungry Girl to the Max” by Lisa Lillien, St. Martin’s Griffin, 86,656 copies