Cookery Reviews

A year-round guide to growing your own vegetables and fruit, so that you can enjoy the incomparable taste of homegrown produce, with over 60 delicious recipes

Synopsis:
As the New Urban Farmer, Celia shares her gardening expertise, picked up since taking on her allotment plot in November 2005 and learnt through a combination of hard graft, trial and error, and shared tips from the other allotmenteers. This knowledge has been distilled into a year-round gardening book that is part-journal, part-gardening manual and part-recipe book with one aim: to inspire you to cultivate and enjoy your own delicious homegrown produce.
The New Urban Farmer is divided into four main sections – one for each of the seasons – and within those seasons it is further divided into individual months. For each month of the year Celia starts with a rundown of what is both good to sow and good to eat. Moving through each month, Celia highlights the key jobs for that period along with the main stars of the vegetable plot, finishing up with mouth-watering recipes that will put that month’s harvest to best use.
For keen growers without an allotment, Celia also gives advice throughout on raising crops in pots, growbags and window boxes. Urban, edgy, green and honest, this is the ultimate book for beginner gardeners.

Hot Brands Verdict
This is a great concept, combining gardening with cooking. During 2009 more and more of us became interested in gardening, and this stylish book is a perfect guide for anyone who is beginning to get green fingers. Beautifully photographed, it is divided into four sections, and under Celia’s guidance you discover what is best to plant, a list of what to do when, and how to turn what you have grown into delicious meals. From Plot to Plate, absolute genius! So if you are looking for a healthy and fulfilling spring and summer, this book is perfect. We loved it ! Highly Recommended !

Buy New Urban Farmer from Amazon.co.uk

Synopsis:
In his Channel 4 series TV chef Gordon Ramsay embarked on a culinary journey around India, discovering the breadth and depth of cooking of the country. His new cookbook is packed with the best recipes from his travels, showing you how to cook authentic dishes that are bursting with flavour.

Three-star chef Gordon Ramsay's favourite food is one that he shares with a lot of Britain - curry. But, until now, he's never been to India to see how the real thing is cooked. Accompanied by a Channel 4 film crew, Gordon takes the culinary trip of a lifetime to discover real Indian cuisine and share this collection of over 100 of his favourite Indian dishes.

As you'd expect from a Michelin-starred chef, Gordon brings his eye for perfection and ability to judge flavours perfectly to his exploration of Indian food and shows us how to cook authentic, mouth-watering dishes from all over this huge and varied country. He visits Kerala deep in the South of India to bring us spicy, coconut-based curries and travels to colourful Rajasthan to learn about the creamy, flavourful dishes of the North. Along the way Gordon experiences the hugely different flavours and spices from the different regions and absorbs local cooking styles and traditions.

Throughout his culinary journey, Gordon selects the best of the vast array of Indian spices, now readily available in British supermarkets. He shows us how to use these authentically to produce a beautifully flavoured Indian dish. Gordon Ramsay's Great Escape includes over 100 recipes in the following sections: Everyday, Entertaining, Quick Lunches and Healthy Dishes.

Once Gordon shows you how easy it is to put together authentic Indian dishes, you'll never look back.

Hot Brands Verdict
This rich and colourful book is divided into the following: Starters and Snacks including kebabs, samosas, wraps, soup and patties. Fish dishes such as Bengali prawn curry, Spiced fish wrapped in banana leaves, Baked Whole Sea Bass with Green Masala Paste and much much more. Poultry and Meat including Chilli Beef Fry, Butter Chicken, Spiced Leg of Lamb Wrapped in Spring Onions. There is a very comprehensive vegetarian section with a range of delicious curries, Saag Aloo, Stir Fried Butternut Squash with Dried Chilli. In Breads and Rice there is everything you need to know to enable you need to know to enable you to create the perfect rice and bread. In Chutneys and Accompaniments, there is a rich and spicy collection of delicious flavours. Finally in Sweets and Drinks there is a delightful collection of tempting delicacies, including, Coconut Burfi, Mango Porridge and Lightly Spiced Sesame and Cashew Nut Cookies and the beautiful Rosewater Kulfi. Beautifully photographed, Gordon Ramsay’s Great Escape is a treasure trove of Indian delights. Highly Recommended.

Buy Gordon Ramsay's Great Escape: 100 of My Favourite Indian Recipes from Amazon.co.uk

Synopsis
Sally Bee's story of survival and recovery from three heart attacks in a week at the age of 36 is nothing short of a miracle. Sally attributes much of her remarkable survival to her delicious and achievable healthy eating plan, which she and her whole family enjoy. Now, in this beautifully illustrated cookbook, she shares her secret with you, and it might just save your life.

Sally believes in living a full life, and that includes eating delicious food with all the family. She shares not only clean, vibrant recipes, but also her versions of comforting classics we all love. Even desserts! We all know the principles of eating a healthy diet, but actually translating that knowledge into an easy and affordable meal can be a challenge in a busy world. The Secret Ingredient meets that challenge head-on with gorgeous, tasty recipes that will feed the whole family, and tempt even the most novice cook.

Sally tells her inspirational story throughout, and gives encouragement and support for changing your eating habits, and those of your children, without feeling deprived and in a way that works for life. She’s living proof.

Buy The Secret Ingredient: Delicious, Easy Recipes Which Might Just Save Your Life from Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
This is a very poignant book, both incredibly moving and inspiring. Sally’s account of how she survived by literally clinging on to the process of breathing will make you value each breath you take. During the book she takes a very practical approach to the principles of eating a healthy diet, but more than that she makes it very accessible, helping you to create meals for the whole family, which are both healthy and delicious. We loved her description of The Rainbow, ‘when planning your five a day, think of a rainbow, the more colours you can incorporate into your diet, the healthier you’ll be’

As a nation concerned about the next generation, her suggestions for encouraging children to eat healthily are both timely and important. The recipes are clearly explained and are delicious, we loved the Italian Style Courgettes, Healthiest Ever Lasagne, and the Ratatouille Chicken Tray Bake. Her dessert recipes are out of this world including the mouth watering Orange and Peach Filo Parcels, Red Berry Meringue Pie, and Tarik’s Apple Puff Squares.

This is a book that should be on everyone’s bookshelf, because it might literally save your life! Highly Recommended!

Paul A. Young shares his chocolate-making secrets for the first time. He will take you on a chocolate adventure, showing you how to blend it with other ingredients from lavender to chilli to cinnamon. With chapters including 'Sugar and Spice' and 'Herbs and Flowers', the recipes cover everything from truffles and cakes to savoury dishes. Discover how to make wild strawberry and pink peppercorn truffles, sea-salted caramel tart and the best chocolate martini. And then of course there are the classics, such as Paul's world-famous brownies and his award-winning hot chocolate with Mayan spices. Paul's enthusiasm is irresistible and his stunning recipes are a must for all chocolate lovers.

Buy Adventures with Chocolate: 80 sensational recipes Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
Wow! This is an absolutely stunning book, beautifully designed and photographed with details of chocolate making and tasting, followed by sublime recipes for creating divine chocolates. Divided into chapters, Unadulterated, Fruit and Nuts, Sugar and Spice, Herbs and Flowers, Alcohol and Alchemy, each chapter gives recipes for creating wonderful and imaginative chocolates, ranging from Paul’s Aztec-Style Hot Chocolate to Marmite Ganache!  We loved the Hand Rolled Wild Strawberry and Pink Peppercorn Truffles, the Citrus Fruit Confit and can’t wait for summer to try the Pimms Cocktail Truffles. With something for everyone from the adventurous to the conventional, this is a book to treasure! Highly Recommended!

Enjoy the best of Italian food whilst still losing weight! "The i Diet" combines simple, fresh, good-quality ingredients for an easy way to shed pounds. The Mediterranean diet is renowned for its health benefits (less saturated fats, less processed food, more 'good' fats and omega oils, more antioxidants), resulting in less heart disease and cancer for those that follow it. And you can enjoy truly delicious dishes - this is no starve-yourself diet but a healthy living approach to eating with exceptional recipes that can be prepared for breakfast, lunch or dinner. With a dietician’s advice on what to eat and what not to eat and daily and weekly menu plans so you can easily follow the diet, this is an attractive, stress-free approach to losing weight.

"Gino is a cooking genius. This is how to enjoy dieting in style!" George Hamilton

Hot Brands Verdict
This is a great cookery book with an added bonus of it can help you to eat more healthily. There is an introduction from Dietitian Juliette Kellow, and details on the i Diet (the I stands for Italian) and calorie plans, each recipe also has a calorie breakdown. Gino has assembled a stunning collection of delicious recipes for breakfast, lunch, main meals and desserts. Inspired to try we followed his recipe for Spicy Beef & Wild Mushroom Stew, which was absolutely delicious and really easy to prepare, Other favourites of ours are his Seafood Salad with Capers and Lemon, Light Omelette with Chives and Potatoes, the mouth watering Roasted Fresh Fruits with Grand Marnier and the Gino’s Breakfast Bars.This book oozes with wonderful healthy flavours and would be a delightful addition to any cookery book collection. Highly Recommended!

Buy The Italian Diet from Amazon.co.uk

Synopsis

* The bible of traditional French home cooking, I Know How to Cook is to France what The Silver Spoon is to Italy
* A best-seller since its first publication in 1932, with millions of copies sold in France, it is now available in English for the first time
* Reveals all the secrets of good, simple French cooking, the foundations of modern cuisine
* Contains more than 1,400 authentic, simple and easy-to-follow recipes, fully updated for modern kitchens by experts in classic French cooking
* French bistro food has grown hugely in popularity, and I Know How to Cook demonstrates how easy and accessible classic dishes like boeuf bourguignon and tarte tatin can be.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Know-How-Cook-Ginette-Mathiot

Hot Brands verdict
What we love about this book is that it is like holding a very special piece of culinary history. In the introduction French food writer Clotilde Dusoulier, who has adapted this very first English edition in consultation with a team of international cookery experts, describes the process that they undertook to preserve the book’s authenticity.

This is what is so attractive about this book, is it is based on good wholesome French home cooking, traditionally it was seen as the book that every household should have. Divided into 15 chapters simply described as Sauces, Milk,Eggs and Cheese, or Fish, or Cakes and Pastries, it has over 1,400 absolutely delicious recipes for every imaginable French dish. There is also a selection of recipes photographed including mouth-watering desserts, all our favourites are there, Almond macaroons and Almond Tuiles, Tarte tatin,Lemon tart, Palmiers and much, much, more.

It also has a very useful introduction covering cooking methods, essential utensils, flavourings, wine and a glossary of terms.

Towards the end of the book there is a section containing menus from some of the world’s best chefs celebrating French bistro-style food. It concludes with more kitchen advice from Ginette.

I Know How to Cook is an utterly charming essential guide to French home cooking, stylish, elegant and understated and as such, should be on every kitchen bookshelf. Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: For food that's delightful, delectable, simple to make and even better to taste - think Delicious.

With a recipe for every day of the year from the food lovers' favourite magazine, Delicious, you'll never run out of ideas for meals that are easy to cook and perfect for every scenario, from family meals to informal entertaining.

Discover how to create simple soups, salads and starters, trouble-free main courses, and puddings that are a piece of cake. There are also delicious tips, techniques, and advice on quality ingredients and wines, providing you with the complete home cooking manual.

http://www.amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
Here at Hot Brands at the end of the day we are often starving and desperate for something that is easy to make, but tastes great. Here is the answer. The delicious.cookbook really does live up to its name, it is a wonderful collection of fabulous food. With clear step-by-step instructions the recipes include Light Bites, Everyday Eating, Occasion Cooking, Desserts, Cakes and Bakes, and a useful Reference Section. In a handy size book, whether you are at home or working, this is a perfect solution to those hunger pangs. With over 365 recipes it was hard to choose our favourites, but from the Easy Sausage Casserole to the No-bake Sticky Toffee Apple Tart, there are many, many scrumptious choices! Highly Recommended!

Discover over 150 tried-and-tested soup recipes organised by ingredient. From pasta and noodles to meat and winter vegetables, turn surplus food in your fridge into mouth-watering meals.

Handy tips on preparation and cooking times, freezing advice, nutrition information and 'cheap eat' symbols will help you choose the best soup to whip up. Step-by-step instructions make cooking simple, guiding you through all the essential techniques from how to puree to making stock.

In a portable compact format, perfect for taking with you to the farmer's market.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Soup-Book-Sophie-Grigson

Hot Brands Verdict
As the nation tries to stay warm, many of us are turning to soup, and this book contains a wonderful selection from the Soil Association with recipes contributed from its supporters.

As well as the wonderful soup recipes there is also a very useful Techniques section including Making Stock, Preparing Vegetables, Herbs, Spices, Pulses, Puréeing, Thickening, Enriching, Rescuing, Garnishing, and Store Cupboard Essentials.

We loved the Recipe Choosers, a very helpful at a glance guide to the recipes, categorised into Vegetarian, Chilled, Hearty, Healthy, Spicy, Main Meals and Quick.

It’s hard to choose from over 150 delicious recipes, but some of our favourites are Maple-roasted Carrot and Ginger soup, the Minted Pea and Ham, Thai Chicken Soup, and if you love bread, there are delicious recipes for a variety of breads too. Warming, wholesome comforting, a fabulous collection.
Highly Recommended!

Synopsis: With his unique style, energy and enthusiasm, Gordon shows readers how to prepare an extensive array of easy dishes from America to Thailand and from China to Italy. WORLD KITCHEN took its inspiration from the last series of The F Word, on Channel 4 last November.

Gordon has selected 100 simple recipes from 10 countries around the world, so there is now no longer any excuse to dial your local take-away. He rejects the idea that world cuisine should be complicated to prepare and instead demonstrates simple cooking methods that will guarantee delicious results.

Gordon delves into Middle Eastern, American, Thai, Chinese, Indian, Spanish, French, Italian, Greek and of course, British cuisine and explains the key techniques underpinning them, including how to make curry paste which can be used in a Fragrant green curry with beef and how to make home-made pasta for a Spinach, ricotta and pinenut ravioli. Novice and more experienced cooks alike will be able to create recipes such as Chicken in spicy coconut broth and Lamb tagine with herb couscous.

Accompanied by stunning photography by Chris Terry, WORLD KITCHEN offers an innovative selection of recipes tailored for every day cooking and entertaining, and demonstrates just how easy accessible the most memorable of the world’s flavours can be to the home cook.

Buy Gordon Ramsay's World Kitchen from Amazon.co.uk

Hot Brands Verdict
This is a really stunning collection of recipes, beautifully photographed by Chris Terry, we really liked the approach that Gordon has taken, introducing each country and the key techniques before sharing a sample of delicious dishes. There are so many to choose from that you could have your own culinary world tour without leaving your kitchen! In particular we loved the Barbecued Short Ribs with Coleslaw, Five Spice Roast Duck with Plum Sauce, as well as an absolutely mouth-watering collection of desserts, Marsala Roasted Figs with Zabaglione, Strawberry Shortbread Stacks, Crema Catalana (like Crème Brulee but different !) and the fabulous Caramelised Peaches with Vin Santo and much, much more! Highly Recommended!