Cookery Reviews

A Day at elBulli - An insight into the ideas, methods and creativity of Ferran Adrià-Ferran Adrià, Juli Soler, Albert Adrià

Synopsis
* An exclusive look behind the scenes of elBulli – the best restaurant in the world, created by Ferran Adrià, the best chef in the world
* With over 2 million requests for only 8,000 places every year, elBulli is famous not only for its innovative food but also for the legendary difficulty of getting a table there
* Exceptional value, this 600-page book is the first to reveal Adrià’s technical secrets and food philosophy – a must-have for anyone interested in restaurants or creative cuisine
* A unique opportunity to explore Adrià's creative methods, extraordinary techniques and outstanding dishes, with fully illustrated recipes and diagrams
* Includes over 1,000 photographs documenting the painstaking preparations for just one day of service

Aimed at all food enthusiasts as well as industry professionals, the book starts with daybreak at 6.15 am, then shows visits to the local markets to source ingredients, Ferran's arrival at the workshop, his morning creative experimentation session, the arrival of the rest of the brigade at 2.30 pm to begin the mise-en-place for the evening, the daily tasks of the front of house team, and the arrival of the first guests for dinner from 7.45 pm until the last guests' departure by 2.00 am.

With its innovative structure and striking design, A Day at elBulli provides a fascinating insight into the rare and magical experience of eating at elBulli.

http://www.phaidon.co.uk/store/food-cook/a-day-at-elbulli-9780714856742/index.cfm

Hot Brands, Cool Places Verdict
This is no ordinary book, it is an extraordinary account of a day in the life of one of the most amazing restaurants in the world. With stunning photography, and the most intimate detail, readers are given a unique insight into the world of elBulli. Ferran Adrià also shares some of the important principles behind elBulli,

‘Creativity is what keeps elBulli open. This is not only because it is central to the passion and commitment of every member of the team, but also because the creativity of the food is what makes people want to eat here.’….. ‘The aim of elBulli is to create dishes and techniques that engage guests’ sensory, emotional and intellectual faculties to the full, to surprise them and to encourage them to experience food in new and unexpected ways’

Be prepared to be fascinated, inspired and totally absorbed by this wonderful book! Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: An unabashed celebration of the joys of food and cooking, Hot Sun, Cool Shadow follows the story of award-winning food-writer Angela Murrills and the artist Peter Matthews, who travel together to the southerly French region of Languedoc. The Languedoc is famed for its landscape, legendary gastronomical pleasures and rich culture, stretching from the Rhone to the Pyrennees, it is one of Europe`s oldest provinces and one of its most fertile regions.

Hot Sun, Cool Shadow, is a vivid account of their quest for the finest wines, cuisine and characters. Along the way they discover ancient houses, take in the scenery that inspired great artists like Henry Matisse, retrace the steps of Toulouse-Lautrec, and recreate typical dishes of the region; finally settling themselves in this staunchly independent agricultural region, where life moves at a steady pace under the mellow sun.

Hot Sun, Cool Shadow includes over eighty illustrations by renowned artist Peter Matthews.

http://www.allisonandbusby.com/book/hot-sun-cool-shadow

Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict
With a title like Hot Sun, Cool Shadow this book was made for us! It is an absolutely delicious book, it is the story of Angela Murrills and Peter Matthews love affair with the Languedoc, and although published a little while ago it is a perfect book for summer reading whether you are visiting the region, or not. The illustrations are delightful, capturing the atmosphere of the region and the flavour of the recipes. We loved it! Highly Recommended!

Special Offer!
To get the book at the special price of £5.99 (£2 off rrp) call Allison & Busby on 0207 580 1080 or buy online at www.allisonandbusby.com and submit promo code HOT2 in your shopping basket to get the discount. Offer ends 15 September.
 

Synopsis: Mark Hix opened Hix Oyster & Chop House in London’s Smithfield market in 2008, which in less than two years has gained a reputation for being one of London’s great establishments amongst celebrities and foodies alike. The book of the restaurant, Hix Oyster & Chop House features over 100 mouth-watering recipes for dishes that appear on the menu throughout the year and focuses on ingredients that make Mark’s food particularly special. Recipes include enticing ideas for starters, soups, fish, meat, dessert and cocktails. Weaved throughout the book are fascinating features on Mark’s award-winning smoked salmon, interesting salad leaves and dressings, sauces to serve with meat and British cheeses.

Oysters are a speciality and the book includes an in-depth guide to our native oysters from around the British Isles with tips for opening and preparing. Meat is a big feature at the restaurant, most of it is cooked and served on the bone – within the chapter on meat, there is a comprehensive guide to flavoursome old-fashioned cuts, such as porterhouse and hanger steaks with identification

'Mark Hix is a great British cook, I've enjoyed his food at nearly all the restaurants he's worked at.' Jamie Oliver, Jamie Magazine

Mark’s style of cooking is highly approachable and easy for the reader to replicate in a home kitchen. Ingredients are mostly locally sourced, techniques are straightforward and recipes are anything but time-consuming.

Buy Hix Oyster & Chop House from Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
This is a very stylish book, beautifully produced, and inside there is a fascinating commentary from Mark about the setting up of his restaurants, the history of the produce, and his own particular take on the various recipes. The collection of 100 delicious recipes made it hard to choose our favourites, but we particularly liked the mouth-watering Roasted Shellfish Platter, the impressive Roasted ‘Wilderness Crayfish’ flamed with Cider Brandy and the beautiful Strawberry and Sparkling Wine Jelly.

This book is like a Hix Masterclass, as he shares his passions for seasonality, fresh local produce and deliciously cooked wholesome food. We loved it! Highly Recommended!

Author: The CSIRO

Synopsis: We all want our children to lead happy, healthy lives. We know they need to eat well and be active in order to avoid the lifestyle diseases we hear so much about these days, such as obesity and diabetes. Parents want to do what's right, but many are unsure of how to get started. In response to this growing need for information, the CSIRO presents a step-by-step healthy eating and activity plan for families, based on extensive research. Find out:

* what are healthy foods for kids
* how to encourage kids to be active
* how to motivate your kids to make changes that will last
* how to organise yourself as a parent to make healthy living a reality.

Packed with easy-to-follow advice and more than 100 delicious recipes for stress-free family cooking, The CSIRO Wellbeing Plan for Kids is your complete guide to helping your children on the road to a lifetime of good health.

Buy The CSIRO Wellbeing Plan for Kids from Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
What we liked most about this book is that it is full of sensible advice, about raising happy, healthy children which we believe is what every parent wants to do. We also like the fact that the authors highlight at the start of the book ‘we are mindful that every child is unique, see the book as a starting point that can be used in a number of ways depending on what you and your family need’ Although a large section of the book is devoted to nutrition, with delicious recipes of food that both adults and children will enjoy, it also has other helpful advice about wellbeing. With half-term and the summer holidays rapidly approaching this is a very valuable book for any parent. Highly recommended!

Synopsis: Sophie Dahl, one of the most glorious women on the planet, shares delicious secrets from her slinky kitchen, funny stories and favourite recipes in a beautifully illustrated hardback. With delectable recipes for each season, this luscious abundant take on food will delight women everywhere.

In this beautifully colour illustrated cookbook, Sophie shares 100 of her favourite recipes that show that healthy can be delicious and indulgent.

Sophie lived out the latter part of her adolescence under the public spotlight as the first anti-waif model. Flirting with every food fad from Atkins to raw food, she experienced both misadventures and victories in her quest to have a healthy relationship with food. Now she reveals the recipes that allowed her to eat what she wants while being sylphy as a sapling.

Sophie cooks with gusto and passion and here she takes us on a delicious journey through a wonderful collection of her favourite recipes for every meal and every season - from her Grandmother Gee-Gee's ginger parkin, to her dad's amazing chicken curry to what she serves her boyfriend for breakfast. Try out her mama's baked acorn squash and the delicious student-days favourite 'Paris Mash', plus childhood-fun puddings like Carnation milk jelly or decadent desserts like Chocolate chestnut souffle. Sophie reveals compassionate common sense about food, and serves up a lashing of healthy recipes that celebrate the joy of eating so you'll never want to diet again.

Original, funny, intimate, and quirky with a bit of whimsy, this glorious book is full of wonderful anecdotes and delicious recipes, scattered with Sophie's own lovely Matisse-like line drawings that slope off the page.

Buy Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights from Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
If you missed this book when it was first published, but like us you have been inspired by Sophie’s delicious television series, do buy it now! It is an absolute joy. Her delightful take on life comes through in her very personal commentary and drawings which run throughout the book. The food is exactly as she describes it, ‘indulgent but balanced food that celebrates the simple joy of eating’' More than anything the book oozes with her enjoyment and passion in cooking. Focusing on the seasons and with evocative photography and descriptions Sophie takes us through her favourite recipes for Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer as well as a most delectable collection of puddings. With recipes for every mood, we didn’t just love this book, we adored it! Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: In this much-needed new book, which has already sought high appraisal by winning the Andre Simon Food Book Award, Darina reconnects you with the cooking skills that missed a generation or two. The book is divided into chapters such as 'Dairy', 'Hens and Eggs', 'Bread and Preserving' and forgotten processes such as smoking mackerel, curing bacon and making yogurt and butter which are explained in the simplest terms. The delicious recipes show you how to use your homemade produce to its best, and include ideas for using forgotten cut of meat, baking bread and cakes and even eating food from the wild. The Vegetables and Herbs chapter is stuffed with growing tips to satisfy even those with the smallest garden plot or window box, and there are plenty of suggestions for using gluts of vegetables. You'll even discover how to keep a few chickens in the garden. With over 700 recipes, this is the definitive modern guide to traditional cookery skills.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Skills-Cooking-time-honoured-recipes

Hot Brands Verdict

In this fabulously comprehensive book you will find everything that you could ever want to know about the traditions of cooking.

Many cookbooks are built around recipes, but this is so much more. You almost need to read it cover to cover to appreciate it fully. You also need to read the publishers comment at the front about some of the remedies and advice, but evoking childhood memories this book is packed full with delicious recipes and stunning photography. This isn’t so much a cookbook as a collector’s item. Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: A tie-in to a 6 x 30 minute BBC2 series, Alys's Back garden Fruit and Veg. Gardeners’ World presenter Alys Fowler takes up the challenge to prepare at least one meal a day using only home-grown produce.

However, rather than taking up an allotment, Alys will be serving up feasts with ingredients grown in her small suburban backgarden. And there'll be no sign of traditional, regimented rows in raised beds, compromising the beauty of her cherished outside space. Alys has a wonderful new approach to growing fruit and veg: she’ll transform her garden into an area where tomatoes sit happily next to roses, carrots are woven between the lavenders and potatoes share space with the hedge. The hearty dishes she serves up will show that nobody will be going hungry on her avant-garde grow-your-own regime, and she’ll meet experts who will teach her how to preserve, pickle and store her wares, too.

Young, chic and urban, Alys is at the forefront of this revolutionary new style of gardening. She is marrying the delights of growing your own, and the sheer joy a beautiful flower garden, all in a small space, and is on a mission to demonstrate how anybody can do it. Good for the pocket, good for the environment and hugely rewarding, Alys’s modish edible landscaping will inspire a new generation of urbanites to get digging.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Edible-Garden-How-Have-Your/dp/1846079748

Hot Brands Verdict
What we love about this book is the sheer joy of gardening as expressed by Alys. Anything is possible in her gardening world, whether you are a novice, or experienced gardener you cannot fail to be inspired by the way that she encourages you to jump in and experience gardening in all its glory. Anything is possible, tomatoes next to roses, carrots woven between lavenders and potatoes grown in pots on the patio. When you have grown it, she also shows you how eat it with delicious recipes. Beautifully photographed, your escape to the country can be closer than you think. We loved it, and the television series currently running too. Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: Jamie does…is Jamie's personal celebration of amazing food from six very different countries. Cheap, short-haul flights and long weekend getaways have become increasingly popular and within a few short hours of the UK there are new and exciting worlds of food waiting to be discovered as Jamie finds out.

Each chapter focusses on a different city or region - Marrakesh, Athens, Venice, Andalucia, Stockholm and the Midi Pyrenees region of France. Classic recipes sit alongside new dishes that Jamie learns along the way. Alongside each recipe there is a beautiful photograph of the finished dish, as well as incredible reportage shots of Jamie's experiences in each country.

Jamie says: 'The food I’ve embraced on each trip is a mixture of what you could call the clichéd star dishes - the many tagines of Morocco, the flamboyant paellas of Spain, the comforting risottos from Italy and the zingy fresh flavours of a classic Greek salad - and the recipes that I’ve been inspired to make after walking through the markets and soaking up the vibes of each place. What you'll find in this book is fun, optimistic, escapist food you can actually cook and enjoy in your own home.'

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jamie-Does-Oliver/dp/0718156145

Hot Brands Verdict
We always get excited when there is a rumour of a new Jamie Oliver book and Jamie does….really exceeded our expectations.

Jamie is without doubt one of our most accessible chefs, and his conversational style coupled with the wonderfully intimate and atmospheric photography from his long time photographic partner David Loftus, is an absolute delight.

Making his way around Europe, creating delicious meals, meeting local people, followed by the recipes means that this not just a cook book, it is a wonderful escapist treat, and we loved it. Highly Recommended !

A six-part accompanying TV series started on Channel 4 on Wednesday 14 April at 9pm. don’t miss it!

Read the book,watch the series, kick-back, relax, pure bliss!

Synopsis: Katie Caldesi travelled the rice fields of Italy's northern provinces and the lemon groves of the south, the richly diverse urban and rural terrains and patchwork regions. She collated recipes, techniques and ingredients to create this unique compendium of Italian food. "The Italian Cookery Course" will guide you through the vast collection of famous recipes and lesser-known regional dishes, with clear instruction on how to replicate them at home. The book is broken down into straightforward chapters including 'Meat', 'Fish', 'Dolci' and 'Cheese'. Each chapter contains 'masterclasses' on technique, revealing the practical secrets of Italian cooking and giving the reader new confidence in the kitchen. All this is interwoven with fascinating narration about the culinary influences that have come together to create this wonderful cuisine.

http://www.kylecathie.co.uk/

Hot Brands Verdict
This is an absolute gem of a book, full of techniques, Masterclasses, ingredients and traditional recipes. The photographs inside are delightful, images of food, people, and places that capture the spirit of Italy. With delightful titles, like Thunder and Lightening Soup, and Duck with Orange Sauce which is set against a stunning sunset, you won’t just cook with this book you will take a gastronomic tour through Italy. If you can’t get away to Italy this will take you there in spirit. We loved it! Highly Recommended!