Martha Stewart, 100 books later, is still unapologetically herself

Stewart fills “Martha: The Cookbook," her 100th title, with American classics, as she has always done. She revisits recipes for tomato tarts, pierogi and her daughter’s chocolate chip cookies. Eggs abound, with poached, steamed and coddled variations. There is even a page with notes on “the mighty potato," accompanied by a 2008 photo of her holding a bowl of potatoes, surrounded by sacks of spuds.

“Cookbooks should reflect what the cookbook writer likes, and it should be personal," said Stewart, 83. “You have to be true to yourself."

The cookbook genre has evolved over the years as cuisines from around the world have worked their way onto Americans’ dinner tables. That has propelled the success of titles such as Kiano Moju’s “AfriCali: Recipes from My Jikoni," Eric Kim’s “Korean American: Food that Tastes Like Home," and Frankie Gaw’s “First Generation: Recipes from My Taiwanese-American Home."

There appears to be plenty of appetite for books featuring traditional American fare, Stewart’s specialty. Her new cookbook recently ranked No. 9 on Amazon’s top 100 bestseller list. “Nothing in the book is too modern or too vegan," she said. “It’s pure Martha kind of cooking."

Stewart catapulted onto the national stage more than 40 years ago, with the 1982 publication of “Entertaining," complete with 500 color photographs, 300 recipes and special-occasion menus. The book established Stewart as a tastemaker in food, home entertaining and, later, home decor.

She remains a subject of pop culture fascination decades later.

In a recent Netflix documentary, “Martha," the viewer gets glimpses of Stewart’s exacting standards for garden layouts, how her bangs hung over her forehead, as well as her biting take on former romantic partners. Reflecting on her 2004 criminal conviction for making false statements about a stock sale, an offense for which she briefly went to prison, she says in the film, “Those prosecutors should have been put in a Cuisinart and turned on high."

Although the value of her publicly traded company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, suffered, Stewart got her career back on track. She had a recent starring role at the summer 2024 Paris Olympics with her pal Snoop Dogg, maintains a blog covering topics including baking and exercise, and was on the cover of the 2023 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

Same game, new court

Stewart has always been an influencer, guiding home cooks to be ambitious and have fun with their kitchen experiment. She initially reached an audience on television and with her magazine “Martha Stewart Living."

Today, she’s connecting with viewers online. Her corporate Instagram account, @marthastewart, has five million followers. A second account, @marthastewart48, which she describes as “the fun one, the one with my pictures and my pets," has another 2.3 million followers.

Creating a hit cookbook is much harder than it used to be, because cooks can now thumb through online recipes for free. “Phones are so easy to use," Stewart said. “You don’t have to remember where that recipe is on your cookbook shelf."

Print cookbook sales posted double-digit percentage declines in 2022 and 2023, according to Circana BookScan. Among the successful cookbook titles are those related to popular TV shows or movies, and cookbooks by TikTok personalities, such as B. Dylan Hollis’s “Baking Yesteryear," said Brenna Connor, an industry analyst for the book-tracking service.

Part of Stewart’s continuing appeal is that her how-to guidance delivers consistent results.

“She’s been on that mountaintop for a while and despite some bumps in the road, she’s reinvented herself and has been great at execution," said Allen Adamson, a veteran branding and marketing expert. “She’s also kept the passion in what she does, which makes her relevant to generations well beyond her own."

Stewart’s latest book is self-referential, with an amusing twist. She serves up a recipe for Martha-tinis while encouraging “the ladylike habit of having one very good martini before dinner," and suggests those imbibing a Martha’s Note (Cointreau over ice) coat their lips in the sugary liqueur before kissing someone.

Family references abound, including a full-page family portrait from the 1950s featuring her alongside her parents and five siblings. Other photos include a 1960s shot of herself in curlers and a house dress making biscuits, and nine lively snaps from her modeling days, where she worked for such photographers as Francesco Scavullo and Richard Avedon.

“What readers want are stories," she said. “They also love looking at my pictures." Barnes & Noble has named “Martha: The Cookbook" one of the best cookbooks of the year.

Stewart’s recipe selection is steady, consistent and classic—and appreciated. “Part of me is relieved that Martha isn’t offering her version of Pad Thai," said Amanda Whitt, a sales associate at the Kitchen Arts & Letters bookstore in New York City.

Golden pens

Clarkson Potter said it is printing 200,000 copies of Stewart’s newest title—a figure that puts it among the industry’s top tier.

Bryan Moore, co-founder and chief executive of TalkShopLive, a livestream shopping platform, said the audience for print cookbooks extends across all age groups, from enthusiasts who follow grillmaster Michael Symon to fans of Dolly Parton.

When Stewart appeared on TalkShopLive in late September to promote her book, the platform sold out of signed copies during the live show and restocked twice.

“I bought two copies myself," Moore said. (A sign Stewart’s attention to detail hasn’t abated: She said she tested a dozen gold pens before settling on the right shade to sign copies with personalized bookplates.)

Stewart is already working on a new project—her autobiography, which she expects to take about two years. “I have a task in front of me," she said. That book, she added, will be “very blunt."

Write to Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg at Jeffrey.Trachtenberg@wsj.com