Whether you’re looking to host a sophisticated soirée, brew up a hearty one-pot stew, take a walk on the culinary wild side, rush through some complex-looking fare, or craft the perfect hangover cure, these five cookbooks have everything you could possibly need to succeed in your gastronomic endeavors.
The Official Downton Abbey Night and Day Book Collection, which includes The Official Downton Abbey Afternoon Tea Cookbook and The Official Downton Abbey Cocktail Cookbook, shows readers how to recreate some of the delectable food and drink featured in the hit Downton Abbey television series and film. Featuring over a hundred and forty recipes for delightful afternoon treats as well as sophisticated night-time beverages, the books have something to offer every palate, whether the preference is for sweet or savory. The afternoon tea cookbook includes recipes for pastries, buns, and biscuits; cakes, tarts, and puddings; sandwiches and savory bites; and preserves and spreads; while the cocktail cookbook covers stirred and after-dinner drinks; refreshing drinks; party drinks; pre-dinner drinks and hangover helpers; and everyday drinks. Aside from the mouth-watering recipes, both collected books include historical information and etiquette lessons for every occasion, in addition to images and quotations from Downton Abbey.
Zoe Gifford’s Tasty as F*ck: Easy Recipes for When You’re Really F*cking Hungry is dedicated to amazing food without all the bullsh*t, which means there’s no need for weird ingredients, outlandish techniques, or Instagram-ready presentation. It’s a refreshing take on filling and comforting food that can be as unhealthy as desired or as healthy as required, and it’s pitched at a level that should suit new cooks through to time-pressed cooks and on to lazy but experienced cooks. The recipes include easy-to-make yet tasty dishes such as tuna poke bowls, hangover brunch blat, deliciously f*ck-up-free baked fish, lazy-ass loaded nachos, and a big-ass buddha bowl with spicy chickpeas. The instructions are clear and conversational, and the plentiful accompanying photographs make it easy to visualize what the final product should look like.
With a focus on healthiness, freshness, and seasonality, One Pot of the Day features three hundred and sixty-five recipes (that is, one for every day of the year) that can be made or finished in just a single pot. In addition to detailed instructions and helpful illustrations, Kate McMillan provides a colorful calendar at the beginning of each chapter that explains which meals are most appropriate for the ingredients, occasions, and weather that characterize the month in question, making it possible to stay both local and seasonal when planning meals. The included recipes range from slow-cooked favorites such as stews to quick and easy dishes such as stir-fries and paellas, which means readers can also mix and match in terms of the amount of time and effort they want to commit to cooking on a given day. The wide range of dishes covered, including vegetarian options, as well as the suggestions for garnishes and side dishes, guarantee that the book has something to satisfy every craving and suit every skill level.
In Coconut & Sambal: Recipes from My Indonesian Kitchen, Lara Lee transports readers to the tropical and bountiful islands of Indonesia, where the food features complex flavors, unique ingredients, and captivating spice mixes. Through clear explanations of straightforward techniques and introductions to lesser-known ingredients (as well as warnings about spice levels!), she elucidates how Indonesian cookery can be mastered in stages, meaning that even the most complicated-looking dishes are achievable with a little practice. Among the included recipes are classic Indonesian dishes such as nasi goreng, beef rendang, sop buntut, and nasi uduk, as well as a host of different sambals, all of which offer flavors that are not commonly experienced outside of Indonesia. The wonderfully illustrated book presents a tempting culinary tour of the different Indonesian regions, highlighting popular dishes and signature ingredients and interspersing the appealing recipes with engaging tales of island life.
It’s clear from the outset that Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street: Cookish: Throw It Together is concerned with making food and cooking both fun and achievable. The recipes are limited to six ingredients (excluding salt, pepper, oil, and water), and the majority require the use of simple techniques and only one piece of cookware. Time is also a key concern, meaning that none of the recipes require hours and hours of preparation and cooking time. In fact, most of the recipes take only around thirty minutes to complete. Rather than concentrating on any particular cuisine, the book includes recipes from around the world, ranging from Indian-spiced seared and steamed green beans to ginger-hoisin roasted whole cauliflower, arugula, and avocado salad with jalapeno vinaigrette to pan-seared broccolini with pork and oyster sauce. Although the global nature of the included recipes means that some feature unusual and sometimes difficult (and relatively expensive) to acquire ingredients, Kimball offers alternatives where possible, which means that the book should suit cooks from every location and with every budget.
Recent Comments