Pass it on, it's worth it.

This book is great my 19yr old daughter and I love it, it's simple and easy to follow and the recipes always taste great. Some can work out a little expensive when on a low budget but just substitute cheaper versions of what it asks for.

Too many recycled recipes

I've got quite a few of the Nigella books and borrowed this book in the run up to Christmas to see if it's worth buying. For me, it's definitely not. Most of the recipes have appeared in earlier Nigella books, and it's not worth shelling out for something I've already got.

The book is beautifully presented and I'm sure it would be useful if you needed one cookbook for Christmas. However, I'd think twice about buying this and get a copy of Feast instead, as it's much better value. Most of the recipes here appear in Feast, and Feast also includes chapters on Easter, weddings and various other festive occasions. Feast is a lot more useful and costs about the same.

101 One-Pot Dishes Tried-and-Tested Recipes/BBC Books

This is the most useless recipe book if you are wanting receipes for slow cooking, basically there aren't any in the book. I am sure its a good book for normal cooking but that is not what I wanted and if you are after slow cooking/croc pot cooking, do NOT buy.

Disappointing

I was disappointed by this book, after catching and enjoying a couple of episodes of the television programme. I don't know about Indian Food"Made Easy" as I found many of the recipes really fiddly and time consuming. I planned on hosting an Indian Dinner Party, but after spending all weekend in the kitchen on the practice run the weekend before, I simply couldn't face it! Plus, although good, the food isn't GREAT, which is what you'd hope for when it's taken several hours to prepare.
Think this will just live on my shelf gathering dust.

Chinese Food Made Easy, the clue is in the title.

This book certainly, as the title suggests, makes chinese food easy.
Having made several attempts at chinese cooking, over many years and using several different chinese cook books, it is only since using Ching's book that I have achieved the results I wanted.It is the best book I have ever used and Ching must be congratulated on it.
Fantastic receipes and very useful options and tips. When doing chinese food I only use this book now.

What every mother needs!

This is exactly what I have been looking for. I love the fact that the recipes are easy and full of ingredients that are easy to find. I love the weekly planner, as well as the shopping list for the week and also where to get it from!!! Its fantastic. I love the humour in it, the layout of the recipes and the variety of meals and deserts :) Of course, I'll substitute some meals from week to week, but I now have a place to start. My kids have eaten everything we have made so far, which used to be a sore point in this household. Its been a life saver and have recommended this book to all my friends!

Some good recipes that are easy to do at home

I bought this based on the reviews and I didn't want to buy something that required me to get dozens of weird and wonderful ingredients to make. Some of the recipes were great, i could make them straight away, but 25% of them required a trip to the supermarket and specialist stores to stock up, so not quite as an"express" as I had hoped.

Rachel is back

and shows how simple and versatile baking can be, with 'BAKE'!

Looking for that special Christmas gift?
How about a SIGNED copy, from the much-loved Irish cook and TV presenter, 'BAKE' Signed Edition - also available at Amazon, at a sensible price.

In this cookbook to accompany the TV series of the same name, Rachel once again offers the delicious, non-patronising and easy-to-follow recipes for which she has become famous.

From the introduction:-

'Baking has always been one of my greatest joys. I have such happy memories of my sister and I when we were little standing on kitchen chairs so that we could help Mum make biscuits or buns for the family. Even today, the wonderful warm aromas of baking bread, cakes or cookies always transports me back to those times.......
There is no mystery to baking, baking is a simple science which is precisely why it is so satisfying.......it is really just the right ingredients in the right quantities!
I have chosen my favourite baking recipes in this collection to give you a wide range of delicious treats and meals that can be baked in your oven. ....there are also many special recipes for those once-in-a-while occasions and celebrations.
If you can master a set of weighing scales, then you have all the skills you need to bake.......so what are you waiting for?
Get that pinny on and start baking!'

And, 'Bake' encourages just that, with clear and simply laid out recipes with an upper case title, quantity made, a descriptive sentence or two, the list of ingredients and the numbered method and any variations, tips or serving ideas.

Durable board covers open to 288 high quality matt pages, split over 9 chapters:-

Sweet mouthfuls
Cakes
Puddings
Breads and savoury bites
Tarts and pies
Breakfast and patisserie
Baked meals
Holiday and celebration
Basic recipes and techniques, which includes equipment

sandwiched between an introduction and a glossary.
Completed with a concise index and a pastel blue ribbon to keep your place!

Recipes, which sometimes span more than one page, include:-

GINGER AND HONEY SNAPS
BAKEWELL BARS
LIGHT SWEET SCONES
ECCLES CAKES
FAIRY CAKES (butterfly buns)
BUTTER-FREE SPONGE CAKE
DUTCH APPLE CAKE
RED VELVET CAKE
KUGELHOPF
SWISS ROLL
CHOCOLATE CAKE
BAKED ALASKA
RASPBERRY JAM STEAMED PUDDING
EASY SODA FOCACCIA
BALLYMALOE WHITE SODA BREAD
CORNISH SAFFRON BREAD
CHICKEN AND LEEK PIE
QUICHE LORRAINE
TARTE TATIN
BAGELS
WAFFLES
BAKED BREAKFAST OMELETTE
CROISSANTS
ECLAIRS
BAKED RED LENTIL DHAL
SIMPLE SAUSAGE AND BEAN BAKE
PORK, SPINACH AND MUSHROOM LASAGNE
COTTAGE PIE
PARTY DOUGHNUTS

and......
..... not forgetting Mum-in-law's:-
DARINA'S SIMNEL CAKE!

Or........with the holiday season just around the corner......
CHRISTMAS PUDDING WITH BOOZY TOFFEE SAUCE
CHRISTMAS CAKE
MARZIPAN
MINCEMEAT
ST STEPHEN'S DAY MUFFINS

My favourites...so.... far include:-

BAKED BROWN SUGAR CUSTARDS
'These gorgeous and very simple little desserts are a somewhat like crème caramels or French `flan'. The brown sugar adds a delicious rich, toffee-ish flavour, and this is further enhanced if you brûlée it with a blow torch`.....to make it a lovely crunchy top, as advised by Rachel's closing tip!

and

CHOCOLATE LAVA CAKES
'These gorgeous little puddings should be deliciously spongy on the outside and molten in the centre. Do not overcook them or they will be set all the way through.
They are delicious served with vanilla ice cream.

and they sure are!

More patient cooks than me could try their hand at:-
the 'GINGERBREAD HOUSE AND PEOPLE' recipe, complete with plan.......which takes over 2 hours but well worth the effort, I am sure!

This superb book is finished with a very comprehensive 'Basic Recipes and Techniques' section, including step-by-step photography in places.
Basic recipes include pastry, white bread, sponge cake, meringue, crystallised flowers, icings, chocolate curls, sauces, and strawberry jam.

Footnote:-
The opening notes on the recipes are in quite a small typeface and are in pastel shades, so can be a little hard to read in places.

Most but not all of the recipes include a full colour photograph, but often an 'on-location' shot rather than one of the completed item. This may be slightly negative to those of us who like to see what we are aiming for on the plate!

However, in my opinion, it would only drop maybe half a star not a complete one for this!

All-in-all, this book is a super addition to any cookery shelf, and likely to gather flour marks rather than dust!

Martin O's

Having recieved this book as a gift I feel conned and did not even pay for it. The food is attributed to someone else and in a 270 page book there are approx 20 full page photos of GR, why? the"stylist" must have had a real headache deciding whether GR should appear in a white T shirt and blue shirt or vice versa in ALL of the photos (except for the 2 full pages of an empty table(?)).
The recipes are OK - roast tomatoes, pickled onions, shepherds pie, mixed grill......
One that will stay on the shelf until I do what he says he did with Delia's books

Hmm - aspires to be Nigella, sadly without the substance

As a great lover of Asian and in particular Indian food, I have been following the cookery book scene rather closely for years. Anand aspires to be the Nigella Lawson of Indian cuisine. Unfortunately, she fails to do so for me. Her recipes are either not Indian - and this has nothing to do with the fact that there is indeed a Noveau Indian cuisine out there - or have been presented by other authors years ago (i.e. Mehernosh Mody, Madhur Jaffrey, Mridula Baljekar). Disappointing really. This is the second book I bought from her and I don't think I will buy another one in the future.

I haven't had the heart to say I cheated!!

I'm really impressed with this book mainly for the reason that it's been my saviour recently for last minute meals that I've had to prepare for visitors. I haven't had the heart to say I've cheated but I've had nothing but compliments for the food, even from my fiancee who can't stand capers!
I recommend this for real kitchen cheats who want to guarentee a tasty meal. If you want to sit back and take the full credit yourself, try something else!
It's also good value at the moment. I've not seen it cheaper anywhere else.

WOW

I have never heard of Ottolenghi before and bought this book completely on a whim, after a recommendation from Amazon and reading all the great feedback.
When the book arrived I was a little apprehensive but that soon changed to amazement and excitement after seeing the content, and set about cooking from this wonderful book.
I think it is fair to say this is not everyday food but well worth buying for special occasions or maybe just for when you need something away from the norm.

Best slow cooker cookery book

I own quite a few slow cooker cookery books and this one is by far the best. The recipes are easy to follow and taste wonderful. These recipes, unlike some in other books, have minimal preparation and can be left for the entire cooking time without requiring ingredients to be added half way though (which kind of defeats the object of a slow cooker in my opinion). I would recommend this book to anyone who wishes to make the most of their slow cooker.

Such a good book, we're buying extras as gifts for friends

We've got a pretty complete collection of Jamie Oliver books so you would think there is a possibility he gets repetitive. Pleased to say however that he has come up with a big book (I think his heaviest to date) of fresh new ideas. Again, they are imaginative and appealing, while still being straightforward to reproduce. A sensible book to have.

Fab cook book

I bought this book after watching the series which I loved. The recipes are easy to follow and everything is explained clearly although I wouldn't say its a book for complete beginners. Ive dooked a few of the recipes and they are gorgeous....highly recommended. If you want a taster of her recipes you can actually download them from the ITV website.

My favourite cookery book EVER!

I bought this book as my late grandad was Jamaican-but I never asked him how to teach me to cook authentic jamaican food
:-( so thought I'd give this a try!

This book hasn't disappointed so far, the rice and peas were absolutely delicious-they took a fair amount of time to prepare first time round (but then again I'm not a great cook!) but it was well worth it-I was eating them for DAYS afterwards as i couldn't bear to throw away such delicious leftovers!

I made the rum punch and the coleslaw for my birthday and it went down very well! Everyone was asking where I got the receipes from. I'm also really looking forward to making the patties!

I have had to get my family to send some of the ingredients up from London though as many aren't available up north! (i.e salt fish!)The websites in the appendix were a useful touch but the ingredients are expensive on it...

It was also interesting to read about Levi's life througout the book-if buy one cookery book this year make it this one!

learn to love cooking!

I've never been one for cooking, and I was never taught how to cook either.
This book has been great for learning how to enjoy cooking, and both my son and I have really benefited from it.
The recipes are simple, and I still dip into the book now, even though my son's older, for inspiration. The pages are covered in food splashes and half of them are repaired with sellotape, a sign of a well used, well loved receipe book :o)

'Food from the land & sea inspired by travels across the world.....'

....this super book is a COMPILATION of over 130 of his most popular dishes 'evoking the pleasure and flavour associated with the coast', coupled with his own travel stories - all written in the familiar, relaxed Stein way.

BBC Books/2008

'Rick Stein's passion for fresh, well-sourced food has taken him from continent to continent, across magnificent shorelines and to the very best produce the coast has to offer.'

From the acknowledgements:-

Amongst others, Rick pays tribute to his new commissioning editor, 'who saw the sense of a book of recipes as a record of all the parts of the world that have influenced me in my cooking......'

From the introduction:-

'.....I'm just someone with an enthusiasm for food and a curiosity that that's sent me sniffing around all over the place looking for lovely dishes in all corners of the globe....'

....and that is precisely what this chunky tome contains!

Colourful, simply appealing board covers open to 287 high quality pages, split over 7 chapters:-

Britain & Ireland
Western Europe
Mediterranean & Middle East
India
Far East
Australia & New Zealand
The Americas

plus

basic recipes (inc. dashi, duck confit, Thai red curry paste)
preparation techniques (inc. butterflied lamb)
specialist ingredients suppliers

sandwiched between an introduction and a full index.

Each chapter opens with a full page of typical RS banter giving the background to the recipes which follow.
Each recipe has a bold title, (with a translation, if applicable) followed by a general opening narrative, the full list of ingredients, the number of servings and a clear method.
The book has superb full colour photography throughout, but not all of the dishes are featured, which may prove slightly negative to those of us who like to see what they are aiming for on the plate!
However, I feel it is still not worth dropping a full star from five - maybe only a half!

From Pizza Margherita:-

'This isn't any old recipe for pizza - this is my recipe, and it's worth making for the following reasons.
Firstly, the dough will give you the lightest, crispiest, thinnest base.
The buffalo mozzarella will give you a very good-tasting cheese on a pizza, and the use of the best vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled and seeded, then concentrated in hot olive oil, will give you a really fresh tomato sauce.
I add a bit of oregano and garlic, too, but basically this is just a pizza Margherita , which is finished with fresh basil leaves and said to resemble the Italian flag - i.e. red tomato, white mozzarella and green basil.......'

and the finished product is duly photographed on page 115!

Other recipes in this delightful book include:-

Hugo's breakfast fishcakes
Creamy chicken and asparagus soup
Cauliflower cheese
Poached salmon with cucumber and dill salad
North Atlantic prawn pilaf
Stein's classic Cornish pasty
Roast rib of beef with Yorkshire puddings and roasties
Raspberry cranachan
Carbonnade of beef à la flammade
Sole Véronique
Beef Stroganoff with matchstick potatoes
Couers à la crème with raspberries
Crème brûlée ice cream
Moussaka
Crab linguine with parsley and chilli
Matar peneer
Keralan curry with prawns and kokum
Crisp Chinese roast pork
Sri Lankan fish curry
Cured duck breasts with melon, soy and pickled ginger
Pavlova with cream and passion-fruit
Char-grilled beef tortillas
Hangtown fry
Strawberry and vanilla shortcake

......'Really good local dishes tell me more about the thoughts, habits and enthusiasms of a foreign country than museum visits or a walk round a famous cathedral.....'

superb slow food cook book

I bought this after reading the other reviews and I have not been disappointed. Her common sense shines through as always and of the recipes tried thus far, my hungry brood of teenagers have loved them. Thank you for re publishing it.

Good Introduction

I bought this book recently through a desire to understand the countryside around me and try some of its natural foodstuffs.
The book is very well presented and includes an excellent foreword by the author. It provides a basic explaination of the various flora, a little of their natural and culinary history and there are nice photographs with identification hints.
I think I would like to have seen more recipies and ways in which they might be implemented. In the section dedicated to Spring I think there are only three recipies with much of the other suggestions directed towards salads. On balance a satisfactory purchase but I think that if my interest in wild foods develops I will certainly have to follow up my purchase with something more wholly dedicated to the culinary.