Bookshelf - "Home Plates: Players' Favorite Dishes" (1984) by the Oakland Athletics

295 pp. paperback

268 recipes from the wives of players, coaches and management

Even though I have dozens of baseball cookbooks in my collection, I manage to find something unique inside each one.

Sure, after a while you start seeing the same recipes again and again, but there's always at least one that's so unique that you know it was a family favourite.  Or there will be a personal anecdote from a player reminiscing about a dish he loves to eat.  Or a new twist on something familiar that lets you experience food in a new way.

Home Plates: Players' Favorite Dishes, is a cookbook that was compiled and produced by the wives of the 1984 Oakland Athletics.  Proceeds from sales of the book went to the National Kidney Foundation of Northern California.

As baseball cookbooks go, this one is kind of underwhelming.  It's got a lot of recipes, but most of them are uninspiring; the kinds of dishes prepared by people who are not too adventurous in the kitchen.  If you love broccoli casserole, you can try five different recipes here.

However, one section stands out.  There's an entire chapter of recipes for alcoholic punches and cocktails -- definitely not something you find in most other baseball cookbooks.

A lot of these drinks have a fern bar vibe.  Captivated by the idea of boozing it up the way grown ups did back in the 80s, I'll be cranking some Huey Lewis tapes and chilling out with the following icy drinks: 

Brandy Slush

Sangria

Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri 

Chi-Chis