Recipe books

[Arrowhead]

Following PigCat's excellent suggestion, here's a thread for peoples' favourite cookery book recommendations. Not that I have a great deal to contribute, but here's a few:

Larousse Gastronomique. The recipe book of last resort, and almost certainly the only one with an entry for "Porcupine".

Sophie Grigson. "Fish" and "The Complete Sophie Grigson Cookbook". A nice range from the quick and easy to quite sophisticated recipes, and her digressions are often highly entertaining. The fish book is essential in our kitchen.

The Be-Ro book. Just a handy reference, and the Christmas cake recipe is every bit as good as any.

Simon Hopkinson "Gammon and Spinach" Seriously good unfussy recipes.

Malachi McCormick "Irish Country Cooking". If you chance to see this, it's worth snapping up for the game recipes alone.

and finally, Prue Leith "The Cook's Handbook". Not really a recipe book, more a collection of techniques and guidelines which cover most eventualities.

Any more?

 

[wspiral]

Not so much for food, but I had a Great Uncle who was a very keen winemaker (won the odd award) and he gave me a book when I was 18, called Drink Your Own Garden by Judith Glover. In true Hugh F-W style it has the most brilliant recipes for beers and wines made from the weeds, the hedges, the flowers, herb garden and the vegetable peelings, etc etc. I used to use it back in my student days when money was tight... :lol:. One of the best homebrew recipe books I think I've seen.

 

[Blades]

My wifes mom has many recipe books as well in Russian from over 20 years ago..translating them to English isnt easy..but probably worth while

B

 

[cheese_dave]

I've already stated my love for HFW's Meat (that sounds wrong), which is a good, practical recipe book as well as containing lots of information about, well, meat, and also Gary Rhodes' New British Classics. I'd also like to add a recommendation for Rick Stein's Far Eastern Odyssey, which makes a difficult cuisine very accessible.

 

[Pig Cat]

Nice one chaps, keep them coming!

I'd like to give a mention to Nigella Lawson Express. Not a very macho choice but it is probably our most-used cookery book due to the recipes being both simple and delicious. Perfect for weekday evenings.

 

[Yellow Jim]

Made In Italy by Giorgio Locatelli - a fantastic collection of Italian recipes, ingredients and techniques and accompanying musings.

50 Great Curries of India by Camellia Panjabi and Peter Knab - without doubt the best Indian cookbook I've came across, never had a poor curry following the authentic recipes and advice in this book.

Street Food: Recreating the World's Most Authentic Tastes by Tom Kime - picked this up on a whim a few years back in Matalan of all places, a collection of simple street food recipes from across the globe, some very nice recipes in here, the type of food it's a pleasure to eat.

Plenty of others, but they'll do for starters.

 

[andyjreid]

Larousse Gastronomique. The recipe book of last resort, and almost certainly the only one with an entry for "Porcupine".

I have a version of this which comes in 4 different volumes "Meat, poultry & game", "Fish & Seafood", "Desserts, Cakes & Pastries" and "Vegetables & Salads". It is great and anything we have ever made out of it has been rich and filling and tastes fantastic. Although some of the recipes are a bit on the extravagant side.

SWMBO requested Nigella Lawson's, Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home for Christmas so we'll see how that pans out.

 

[hunnymonster]

A 1968 Edition of "The Dairy Book of Home Cooking" - no place in there for margarine and other abominations and they're never shy on the cheese side either :lol:

 

[antdad]

My Bread by Jim Lahey....actually I wouldn't bother.

Nothing in there that can't be found if you look hard enough.

 

[wspiral]

Larousse Gastronomique. The recipe book of last resort, and almost certainly the only one with an entry for "Porcupine".

I have a version of this which comes in 4 different volumes "Meat, poultry & game", "Fish & Seafood", "Desserts, Cakes & Pastries" and "Vegetables & Salads". It is great and anything we have ever made out of it has been rich and filling and tastes fantastic. Although some of the recipes are a bit on the extravagant side.

SWMBO requested Nigella Lawson's, Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home for Christmas so we'll see how that pans out.

Got this in French, great recipes, very faffy at times though!

 

[wspiral]

A 1968 Edition of "The Dairy Book of Home Cooking" - no place in there for margarine and other abominations and they're never shy on the cheese side either :lol:

I inherited this book... love it! Has loads of really easy recipes, nice homely cooking.