Cooking the Books

[absley]

Thanks again for the butter chicken recipe, Pov, it was great. I didn't add the butter at the end as I was cooking for a lactose-free friend, but I loved the complexity of the flavours. I also did the saag paneer again and it was still good; plus an old much-loved Rick Stein dal.

I think I need to get Made in India. I was given the Madhur Jaffrey quick book and I really don't rate it, so it can be a straight swap.

[Princess Morripov]

Ah I'm glad it went down well!

[wendy james]

The new Leon book (Fast Vegan) arrives today and I can’t get at it until next Saturday.

[Hobbes]

Oh Wendy, that's annoying!

Did anyone else get any nice cook books for Christmas?

I had Jamie's Italy, which I've only had a quick look through so far, but has some nice sounding recipes, and Nadiya's family favourites, which looks like just my type of cooking, simple family stuff but with a twist.

It has a sprout slaw recipe in it which I will be trying later!

[Kenickie]

That Leon book sounds good though. As does Jamie's new one.

I got Ottolenghi simple.

[Ella77]

I dithered over this for a while, but I've ordered the new Nigel Slater one- Greenfeast Spring & Summer. I am a bit conflicted about him and vegetarian food because he likes to wang on a lot about how he's "practically vegetarian" but most of his recipes involve dead pig or whathaveyou, so it's total bollocks. Anyway, I'll see what it's like.

[emma_p]

I’m quite interested to see if Nigel's back to form with this book. I’ve not really liked any of his books since Kitchen Diaries.

I reached a point where I missed not having cookbooks so much so have bought a few:

Weligama, recipes from Sri Lanka, Emily Dobbs, arrived today. I love the cafe she cooks at so much (Italo in Vauxhall) and can’t wait to make something from her book.

Lemonade, April White. A whole book with only lemonade recipes

Taverna, Georgina Hayden which is Cypriot food and just beautiful. I love her recipes.

Sweeter off the vine, Yossy Arefi which is a seasonal fruit dessert book. The rhubarb and rye upside down cake I made was really good

[Kenickie]

I love that one of your top essential cookbooks is purely lemonade recipes.

[Mountain Goat]

I haven't bought one for ages, and kind of should because I'm at an inspiration impasse for tomorrow (no occasion, just I have the time and space to do something nice). Nothing particularly appeals. I have every protein/grain/spice known to man and a garden full of herbs and adequate if unexciting veg. And yet.

[absley]

I'm interested to hear what you think too, Ella.

Sorry you're bereft of inspiration, Goat. I know the feeling - I did some roasted veg earlier this week and was thrilled with myself.

Season by Nik Sharma is what I'm trying to inspire myself with ATM.

[Ella77]

I’d forgotten how much Nige likes the passive voice . “Hunks of bread are passed around. Watermelon is eaten from the hand” .

It’s ok. It’s meant to be a book of quick ideas for what to cook after work, and some of the ideas look quite nice. Quite a lot of vegan-friendly recipes in there too.

[emma_p]

I'll seek it out in a book shop to have a look.

[absley]

How're you getting on with your new books, Emma and Ella? Have you got your mojo back, Goat? I didn't get far with Season but have a couple of new books.

I bought Provence to Pondicherry by Tessa Kiros and blitzed the Pondicherry chapter, which includes the most wonderful lemon pickle; most of the other dishes I did were also good and I will revisit them - a mix of curries, dips and rice dishes. Each chapter focuses on a place with French/ French-inspired cuisine - the others are Provence, Guadalupe, Vietnam, La Reunion and Normandy. Some are definitely more appealing than others!

And this weekend I finally succumbed and bought Six Seasons by Joshia McFadden which is vegetable-led recipes and looks wonderful - I want to cook so much. Has anyone else got it?

[Hamm]

Here you go...

I'm menu planning for this week and was intrigued by a t&t butter chicken but I'm assuming it was a victim of The Cull. Could you possibly reshare, please?

[Mountain Goat]

I hadn't heard of Six Seasons but am looking at it now and it sounds lovely.

I'm not particularly in a rut right now (actually that's a lie: I just had gum surgery and I have to eat soft food no hotter than lukewarm, which is not the greatest for inspiration ) but this thread made me have a look at Amazon to see if there's anything I fancy. And it's hard to know what it is that I want in a book that I don't already have. What I would really like is a book about fish cookery that focuses on the unglamorous fish that I often get in my fishbox. I have tonnes of fish cookbooks, and use all of them a lot, but with one exception (Nathan Outlaw's British Seafood) they are very keen on the glamorous stuff (crab, lobster, prawns, turbot) and don't bother much with the sort of fish that leaves me most uninspired - pollock, ling, tusk. I'd love something that did for the plentiful, sustainable fish we have in the UK what the rush of interest in vegetarian and veganism has done for the more humble vegetables. Something that makes pollock shine, rather than hides it. I mean, if I get sea bream or a lobster, I don't really need much help with a recipe, it's going to be delicious just as it is. Well, maybe cooked first.

And I don't mean the obvious stuff, there are a million easy recipes for any old white fish like fish pies, fish cakes, curries, etc etc. Which is good. I don't lack in ideas for that sort of thing, I just don't care very deeply about them. But I'm not looking something quick and easy for a tired Tuesday, I want something special and exciting and inspiring. Maybe it can't be done. I'd also love it if someone had something really exciting to do with some smoked haddock. I love smoked haddock, but I have done it so many times with either warm spices, with rich dairy, or with mustard/alliums/potatoes, or a combination of these, in a million different formats, and I wish I could find something exciting and different that worked with it.

So I want that cookbook. It just doesn't seem to exist. So instead I'll just get the new Nathan Outlaw and yell "I'm hardly likely to have oysters and turbot in the same bloody box, Nathan" over and over. While really wishing that I did.

[Hamm]

Write one.

The best smoked haddock I ever had was served stacked with black pudding and whiskey sauce. It was a starter but I think you could add mash. And you could sub with good haggis.

[Mountain Goat]

Oh that's an interesting idea, and it makes sense with the Scottish produce theme. Plus I ALWAYS have black pudding and whisky in this house. I'm wondering how they stacked something as flaky as smoked haddock, was it just normal or was it as a mousse or something?

[Hamm]

No, it was pieces and firm. Maybe baked? Skin on? Dunno.

It was amazing.

[Princess Morripov]

Here you go...

I'm menu planning for this week and was intrigued by a t&t butter chicken but I'm assuming it was a victim of The Cull. Could you possibly reshare, please?

Yep, here you go!

[Kenickie]

Excellent nail!