Things I Like
I’ve created this page as a place to share things that I like. Inspirational books, great places to visit, fabulous ingredients or shops…that’s the idea.
If you would like to share any of your favourite finds with me, don’t hesitate to drop me a comment or get in touch via the Contact page.
Recently, I’ve been reading
New books September 2010
I am a huge fan of Bill Granger’s books, and this latest work is as good as ever. In this new book, he brings together a collection of his favourite, classic recipes – the kind he comes back to again and again. The recipes are true to Bill’s style, simple and elegant, letting the gorgeous ingredients shine. This is food that is easy to prepare, and even easier to enjoy, but still shows style and something special.
As for the recipes, they are first class versions of great classics, along with a few innovative twists. Featuring vibrant flavours from around the world from brunch dishes to teatime treats. Some of the recipes that I particularly like include:
Spaghetti with scallops and preserved lemon, Tomato Soup with cashew and coconut sambal, a really jammy Plum Tart, Chickpea burgers, and the Polenta Bolognese Gratin and Saffron Risotto with lobster.
The book is laid out in a clear and easy to follow style. The recipes are divided into logical sections, and with just enough introduction to get Bill’s style without being too long winded.
I can highly recommend this book – both for seasoned cooks or kitchen novices, for Bill Granger fans and those who are new to his books – it’s a winner!
The first thing that you’ll notice when you open Gordon’s new book is that it is completely different in the way it is laid out. Rather than a conventional division of recipes, this book is a collection of recipes that fit together as three course menus – starters, menus and desserts. The book is spiral bound and the pages cut into thirds so that the reader can choose a menu made up of each course as they wish. Gordon has put together his favourite menus, based on seasonality of the ingredients, and dishes that work well together. Some examples of the menus include one for Spring, French Summer,
British Summer and Italian All Year. The Italian All Year menu is a balanced combination of a fragrant Caponata to start, a hearty dish of meatballs as a main course and a Pannacotta dessert.
Altogether there are 52 menus in the book, and by mixing and matching the pages you can create a huge range or options.
This book complements Gordon’s new television series, Ramsay’s Best Restaurant and features his favourite dishes from a range on international cuisines.
Recipes that I really like include a Bruschetta of Cavalo Nero and Parma Ham, a sumptuous Beef Wellington, a simple and delicious Veal Escalope and Crab Spring Rolls. There are lots of great desserts, many of them quite light and fruit based, such as Caramelised Mango with Chines five spice.
Every recipe is photographed and the images are clear, appealing and quirky.
This is a great book for those who are adventurous cooks and who like to put dishes together to make interesting menus. It is not at all boring, but instead lots of fun and inspiration.
And a few other recent books, all from Quadrille Publishing.
