In-depth cookery book reviews.
A while ago, I was sent the beautiful book Modern Flavours of Arabia by Suzanne Husseini. Born in Kuwait to Palestinian parents, Suzanne’s family emigrated to Canada when she was just 4, and started a new life there. Suzanne’s mother continued to create the Arabic dishes of the Middle East, and although Suzanne learned many ... Read more »
It’s no secret that I love reading. I’ve been an avid reader since I was small, when I could often be found with my nose so completely buried in a book that I was oblivious to everything around me, including exasperated calls from my parents! Indeed, learning to read at a young age meant I learned ... Read more »
I already own Eggs and Sauces, the first two titles in Michel Roux’s series of reference books on classic techniques and recipes. Pastry: Savoury and Sweet is the latest in this excellent series. There are chapters for shortcrust pastries, enriched sweet pastries, puff pastry, raised pie pastry, brioche dough, croissant dough, choux pastry, pizza dough, and ... Read more »
Diana Henry is a cook and food writer with six books under her belt including Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons, Cook Simple and Food from Plenty. She also writes for the Telegraph and its magazine, Stella, presents food television programmes such as Market Kitchen and broadcasts on Radio 4. I’d read good feedback on her book ... Read more »
I can’t recall where I first read about Garlic & Sapphires but it must have been a positive review as I immediately added the book to my Amazon wishlist. Thanks to kind friends, it popped through my letterbox over Christmas and I tore through it during the first two days of the new year. The ... Read more »
It was the pull of the pig that drew me towards The Whole Hog Cookbook. Promising “chops, loin, shoulder, bacon and all that good stuff“, author Libbie Summers draws on childhood memories of her grandparents’ hog farm together with “modern sensibilities [that] lend new twists to beloved dishes“. As the front flap declares, “the best ... Read more »
When I read Allegra McEvedy’s book, Bought, Borrowed & Stolen: Recipes & Knives From A Travelling Chef, I immediately felt a kinship – a warmth that comes from the shared personality disorder of the collecting mindset! In her introduction, Allegra describes her knife buying as gathering, explaining that she hesitates to use the word ‘collect‘ ... Read more »
Given how much I adored Saraban, I was really excited about getting my hands on the latest title from Greg & Lucy Malouf, Malouf: New Middle Eastern Food. Whilst I was immediately taken by many of the recipes, one major problem with the book revealed itself very early on: The typography and page layout may ... Read more »
New cook books are great. New cookbooks I won by following the author on twitter are even better! I was delighted to win a copy of Stew! by Genevieve Taylor. I’m a huge fan of a good stew; hearty and comforting, full of warmth and good flavours and often made from inexpensive ingredients. Genevieve Taylor feels ... Read more »
Although I like Valentine Warner’s approach to food and cooking, I have mixed feelings about his telly programmes, mostly stemming from his incessant winking and innuendos (which might be charming in person but don’t translate to TV). I actually had to switch off when he referred to mini lavender meringues as “fairy tits”, though friends would ... Read more »
The Place of Onions, in old Lille. After last night’s rainstorm the intense sticky heat has broken and today is cool, breezy, fresh… I love it! A drop of… [more]
We went to Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire at The Void this morning, an amazing VR experience where we got to be Rebel Alliance members going undercover as… [more]