If you were asked to name the most influential people in the food world, David Venable might not spring immediately to mind. But he should. Venable joined QVC as a program host in 1993 and has since helped establish and build the multimedia retailer's gourmet food business. His hit show, "In the Kitchen with David," attracts an audience of 3.5 million viewers and sells up to 1,000 cookbooks a minute for the top tier tv chefs who come to visit, from Nigella Lawson to Rachael Ray and Paula Deen There are more than 350,000 copies in print of his 2012 cookbook,
In the Kitchen with David: QVC's Resident Foodie Presents Comfort Foods That Take You Home
— that book pre-sold an impressive 245,000 copies before it even launched. To put that in perspective, the industry considers a very well selling cookbook to be one that sells over 200,000 copies. A year.
Venable comes at cooking as a fan, not a pro, but his skills are real. His recipes work, and the headers are charming and informational about the inspirations behind the dish, serving ideas and frequent suggestions to add just a bit of bacon. His second book
Back Around the Table: An "In the Kitchen with David" Cookbook from QVC's Resident Foodie
expounds on the substantial and cozy cuisine that he
highlighted in his first book. Venable's joy and enthusiasm for cooking is apparent in each of the nearly 150 recipes, from standards like
Beef Potpies, breakfast quesadillas, candied sweet potatoes, grilled scallops with citrus, and
Five-Cheese, Fifteen-Minute Stovetop Mac ’n’ Cheese to creative riffs on familiar classics like his
Skinny Fried Chicken, a slushy Mint Julep, french onion soup dumplings, and a chicken cheesesteak egg roll. With this mix of accessible and inspirational, Venable creates a great platform for home cooks looking to have fun and explore in the kitchen, but also those who just want to get dinner on the table on a Tuesday.