Archive For October 2008
The Connoisseur’s Guide to Tea is another in the lovely Connoisseur’s series by Apple Press. The author, Jane Pettigrew, is a celebrated tea professional and currently edits the Tea International section of the Tea and Coffee Trade Journal. Jane is also a consultant to the UK Tea Club. This extraordinary woman even manages to find…
Aiden Byrne found his vocation at the age of 14. His cousin Alan Feeney was a big influence on his life and Alan had taken the catering route. Aiden’s granddad had been a chef in the Navy so it’s obviously in the blood. After two years studying catering at the then Knowsley Central Tertiary College…
We all want flavourful and healthy food but some parents are content to give bland and bottled meals to the smallest members of the family. Lisa Barnes has lots of fresh and interesting ideas for babies from 6 months to 18 months old. She is the founder of Petit Appetit, a culinary service that teaches…
This is the debut book by Sophie Wright. She must be tired of being called “the young Sophie Wright”! She is 22 years old but has years of experience. She studied at the celebrated Westminster Kingsway College in London for three years before starting her professional career, so Sophie already has five or six years…
Original copies of this book have changed hands for hundreds of pounds. It’s that combination of scarcity and popularity that encourages that monetary phenomenon. The author, Arto der Haroutunian, died in 1987 so his books are valued as a resource that will never be replaced. Arto was only 47 years old when he died. Middle…
This is a little cracker! The author, Gervase Phinn, has spent most of his working life surrounded by children, having been both a teacher and a school inspector. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Stars is a compilation of stories that reflect the unique picture of the world from a child’s point of view. It’s hilarious but manages…
This is the quintessential English cookbook. Written in the 1920’s Agnes Jekyll has captured that decade, those years, those days of calm before the storm. Dress in your best flowery, floaty frock (if you are a girl, that is), invite some friends for a Sunday afternoon summer picnic and take this book along. Pack an…
I have, over the past months, reviewed several lovely chocolate cookery books. This is, however, a little different. This is all about making your own chocolates rather than using chocolate in, say, a cake or tart. Making Fine Chocolates will take you through the process of transforming a bar of high-quality chocolate into flavour-infused chocolates,…
You won’t want to miss this one! Cooking on The Bone – Recipes, History and Lore must be one of the very best (mostly) meat cookery books. It’s a stunner and is, as far as I know, unique. Rob Fiocca is a genius of the shutter and has conjured marvellous photographs that complement the text…
This is such a lovely dolly-mixture-coloured volume that I am considering adopting a few kids just to have the excuse to throw a party for them! The photography by Thayer Allyson Gowdy is charming and remarkable when one considers the difficulty of taking a good picture of children doing anything other than sleeping! The Author,…
Another soon-to-be classic from the Edible Series by Reaktion Books. Pancake – A Global History is just one from that long list of titles that will shortly be available. There are two other volumes already in book stores, Hamburger and Pizza. The author of Pancake – A Global History is Ken Albala. You might remember…
This must be one of the most amusing but practical books around. Lara DePetrillo and Caroline Eastman-Bridges have collected and compiled a treasure chest of good advice that they are happy to pass on to novice cooks. Fresh Eggs Don’t Float has a number of recipes but it’s more a book of cooking tips laced…
I have two big “thank yous” to start this review. First to the author Elisabeth Luard and secondly to Grub Street publishers who have presented me with this amazing book which I have so wanted to review. European Peasant Cookery should be recognised as an “important” work and I am sure it will be sought…
Vatcharin Bhumichitr has penned some fabulous books and I must say that The Big Book of Thai Curries is equal in every way to those others. He is the golden boy (well, OK, man) of Thai cooking. Vatch has stuck to the winning formula of easy dishes with flavour and style. He has wisely marshalled…
Kathryn Hawkins is a well-respected food writer and author of several books, a home economist and former editor of Woman’s Own magazine. Her knowledge of her subject is evident in The Connoisseur’s Guide to Herbs and Spices. This is a charming encyclopaedia with fine photographs and delicious recipes. The Connoisseur’s Guide to Herbs and Spices…
Tana Ramsay has a book with one of the prettiest covers around, with a moiré silk-effect dust jacket. Home Made – Good Honest Food Made Easy gives a first impression of old-fashioned values and warmth. A marvellously well illustrated volume with lots of charming shots of Tana’s kids. This is, after all, a family cookbook….
It should be no surprise that I am here again with another Catherine Atkinson cookbook. Quick and Easy Low-Fat Cooking follows the same format as all the Quick and Easy series. Slim volumes but full of delicious recipes, mouth-watering photography and, most important, the information is always accurate and understandable. It’s probably true to say…
I have never come across anyone who doesn’t like bread and there are very few people who would pass up on a deliciously garnished pizza. 500 Pizzas and Flatbreads has enough ideas to keep everyone happy. It’s another volume in the Apple Press 500 series of books. They are always well written and well presented…
I can’t overestimate the importance of The Legendary Cuisine of Persia. There are so few books on the culinary history of Iran although it has had a profound effect upon the foods of so many eastern countries as well as the Mediterranean diet. Margaret Shaida, the author, was born in England but moved to Iran…
This has got to be in my top ten books reviewed this year. If you love cheese you will not only like this book, you will need it, use it and probably take it with you on weekend trips away. Great British Cheeses by Jenny Linford is a veritable encyclopaedia of our finest cheeses. Irish…