I’m ashamed to admit it has taken me 40 years to have this great idea, but now I have, I thought I would a) share it with you and b) ask your advice.
This week I borrowed 2 cookery books from my local library. What a fantatsic idea I thought. I can have a proper read through and see if there are any actual recipes in it that I will make. Genius!
I love cooking and I love cookery books and have a fair few on my kitchen shelves. But from each book I have probably tried a dozen or so recipes, and from that dozen maybe 2 or 3 have become favourites that I cook regularly. So I figure this way I can either copy down the 2 or 3 recipes that prove a hit, or if it looks really promising buy the book myself.
So this week I have borrowed The Delia Collection: Soup and Tana Ramsay’s Family Kitchen. At first glance I would say there are maybe 4 or 5 soups I would try from Delia’s book so probably not worth buying, but the Tana Ramsey book has some definite potential.
So my question to you is, which cookery books would you recommend me to borrow from the library next week?
I couldn’t find very much I wanted to make in Tana’s book. I love Delia’s shortbread recipe. My absolute staples are Nigella’s How to Eat and Nigella Bites – they’re such simple, sensible recipes, I love the way she writes about food. I’ve recently acquired *ahem* James Martin’s ‘my kitchen’ and that looks fabulous, some divine recipes which I can’t wait to try. But I often use the net for recipes – I just leave the laptop open while I’m cooking, job done. Sometimes something will pop into my head I want to make – for example, beignets after seeing Princess and the Frog, so I just went online and found the recipe. Oh and I also ask English Mum http://englishmum.com/ !
Fay’s Family Food by Fay Ripley & anything by Mary Berry. I turn to these when I’m stuck & desperate
We own most of the Jamie Oliver cookbooks although his most recent one on the USA isn’t quite as inspiring. However, as a bible of inspiring meals, everyone should own Cook Express by Heather Whinney. I like food with a bit of a kick, so also recommend Momma Cherri’s Soul in a Bowl Cookbook and Caribbean Food Made Easy by Levi Roots, if you want to cross to the dark side, LOL.
I wasn’t that keen on Tana Ramsey’s book – I bought Fay Ripley’s Family Food too and wasn’t that impressed by that. Love, love, love Nigella though – Domestic Goddess, Express, Feast and Christmas all being well loved in this household (think pages stuck together use!) I’m a fan of Ainsley too. If I were borrowing something I’d go for the newest Jamie Oliver I think – the one about America and some of the more unusual ones. Great idea though! The reason I love the Nigella ones is that she makes them books to read and enjoy, not just cookbooks – I love reading her little intros. Most of the other cookbooks I’m exactly the same – buy them, making a couple of repeat recipes and that’s it!
I like The Dinner Lady, I’ve used quite a lot of the recipes from this book, also Jamie Oliver – Ministry of Food.
Wow – thanks for all the suggestions! Maybe should have mentioned that I am already a *big* Nigella fan and have most of her books already (and use the cakey ones often!)
Am thinking I will need to take a trolly with me next time I go to the library
Any Jamie Oliver – I cook lots from his books as both the children will eat anything out of them – particulary the Jamies Italy or Jamies Dinners – I like Womens Institute books – But I wouldn’t buy them there is only ever one or two worth making – nice piccalilli recipe, some nice soups that sort of thing…. I do like the River Cafe books – a nice few recipes in them & they always seem ridiculously easy & cheap to make – however they are Italian & for me I really only like Italian in the milder weather….
Brace yourself, this could be a long one:
Firstly I’d definitely agree with Sue about Fay Ripley’s Fay’s Family Food – I’ve made loads of stuff in it and often turn to it for inspiration.
For day to day baking I avoid Nigella – she’s more a special occasion person involving expensive stuff and cakes that need 7 eggs and half a ton of posh chocolate!! I’d recommend Rachel Allen. Her Bake book contains everything you’d ever need to bake, including some really fabulous breads.
I’d really,really recommend you look at Sophie Dahl’s book, Miss Dahl’s Voluptuous delights. It’s a great read as well as containing some brilliant recipes.
Oh, and my absolute favourite for seasonal cooking: Matt Tebbutt cooks country (and he’s hot too. Bonus!) xxx
If you can find any edition of “The Pauper’s Cookbook” by Jocasta Innes, borrow that. It will probably want to make you buy a copy. Nothing trendy (it must be 30 years since the first edition, so maybe the dishes are coming back into fashion) but loads of good basic dishes combined with “why didn’t I think of that” ideas. Practical rather than contrivedly parsimonious and packed with good home cooking. And the curried lentil soup kept both my daughters from starving in their student days.
Hi,
Anything by Nigel Slater! Nigella yes, and Jocasta Innes and Delia’s How to Cook – much maligned but with some good recipes that turn out well, (but please not “Cheat”). Simon Hopkinson and Tamasin Day Lewis (especially her earlier ones)- both have a lot to offer.
I collect cookery books and have about 5000……….. Enjoy!
Speed is the most important thing for me at the moment (no surprises there!) and I love Chinese food, so I’m working my way through Ching He Huang’s Chinese Food Made Easy. For quick and healthy kid-friendly food I like Netmum’s Feeding Kids.