Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Food/recipes

For related content, visit our food content hub.

Original poster

Cookery bookclub - who is with me?

448 replies

Curioustiger · 05/04/2013 10:19

I love cookbooks and have picked up a ton of recommendations since joining mumsnet. I am keen to set up a cookery book club - anyone else interested? I propose:

  • we select one book each month
  • we go away, try out the recipes and generally revel in the deliciousness
  • we chat about it

We could alternate between books people are likely to have eg Nigella, Jamie, Delia and something a bit more unusual. If we have a rolling three month list, that gives people time to borrow / buy books they don't have (from the library for example).

What to you think?

OP posts:
Soupqueen · 22/04/2013 20:43

I made the mushroom bourginion from smitten kitchen tonight.

smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/01/mushroom-bourguignon/

It was really good - rich and satisfying and filled the kitchen with lovely smells. I couldn't get pearl onions (not sure I have ever seen them in the uk?) so used shallots, adding them with the mushrooms before the 20 minute simmer. I also misread the recipe and didn't buy enough mushrooms so had to alter the liquid quantities- all worked beautifully though. I didn't use half a carrot, used the whole one because it seemed daft not to. apart from all that, I followed the recipe exactly......

I haven't found the box that Feast is hiding in yet, so it'll be the weekend at the earliest before I can rediscover it.

Pantah630 · 22/04/2013 21:03

Do you remember back at the start when tiger tweeted Nigella and she recommended her custard cream hearts? I made those tonight and they're going down a storm here, more popular then the lemon bars by a mile :). We had leftover custard filling so DS2 is sandwiching rich tea biscuits together to use I up!

Also made the bread sauce potato gratin to go with sausages stuffing and veg. Also delicious but very heavy on the cream and milk so will only be an annual dish I fear or we'll all be the size of houses Grin

Looking forward to May now.

Pantah630 · 22/04/2013 21:04

Oh should have read the new posts first. pregnant prioritise the biscuits, you won't regret it :)

kneedeepindaisies · 22/04/2013 21:49

There's only 8 days left of April and I need to do 3 recipes!

Smitten kitchen blueberry muffins tomorrow.

I've got kitchen diaries from the library. It looks fab!

greensnail · 22/04/2013 21:53

I was considering doing the creamed chicken too. . I think I've done it before and wasn't that blown away by it but I have cream and chicken in the fridge so maybe I'll give it a whirl for tea tomorrow.

Have spent most of the day stuck under a poorly toddler on the sofa but going she'll allow me to make lemon bars tomorrow.

pregnantpause · 23/04/2013 07:16

Greensnail- I also added a clove of garlic as had no garlic oil, it was lovely. Not the best meal ever, but easy and most importantly in this house, the DC wolfed it down.

Thanks pantah, I will make a go of the hearts todayGrin

greensnail · 23/04/2013 13:08

Lemon bars are cooling in the kitchen, I'm looking forward to trying them later.

I use garlic oil a lot so always have that in, but might try adding a bit more garlic anyway. I think I would prefer it with added sweet corn but that would not go down at all well with the dds. They are side salad sort of girls!

kneedeepindaisies · 23/04/2013 14:08

I made the Smitten Kitchen blueberry muffins and they're very nice and light.

I'd probably make them again but that will depend on what the chief cake testers think when they come home Wink

Original poster
Curioustiger · 23/04/2013 14:22

I'm either going to make the leek fritters tonight or broccoli fritters which I think are on the blog, as an accompaniment to steak. I am dying to try the custard creams!

OP posts:
greensnail · 23/04/2013 14:45

Ooh, like the sound of broccoli fritters. Might try them too

Original poster
Curioustiger · 23/04/2013 14:52

here you go!

OP posts:
Pantah630 · 23/04/2013 15:47

They sound good tiger and I have some broccoli languishing in the salad draw. Looks like tea is sorted.

cakeandcava · 23/04/2013 17:46

Planned on doing the stuffed Lebanese aubergines from Smitten Kitchen tonight, but DS is not well and DH is out so going for something simpler, will try the aubergines tomorrow and report back.

Can't wait to get stuck into Jerusalem, it looks amazing. And Nigel Slater is always great, so May should be a good month :)

kneedeepindaisies · 23/04/2013 18:54

The blueberry muffins are "immense" according to the DC.

Success!

Gerrof · 23/04/2013 19:18

What a fantastic thread. I would love to join if I may. I am unwell so won't be cooking this week, but love Feast and can heartily recommend the Tunisian stew. It is delicious and I cook it often - you can get the rose harissa in Sainsburys. I use more harissa than she says.

I also adore the Georgian feast and the eid curries. The curries in particular are very simple to cook.

pregnantpause · 23/04/2013 19:35

Gerrof- do you really have to do the Curries the day before? I'm making the chicken one, have all the ingredients to make tonight ready for tomorrow, but with the cream in it I'd rather not let it sit overnight. Will I be okay just cooking and eating it tomorrow?

TheRealFellatio · 23/04/2013 19:38

I so wanted to join in with this but I cannot get hold of the book you are doing now for a quite a few weeks as I live abroad and have to get it shipped. I will try to 'jump on' as soon as you do a book I already have.

kneedeepindaisies · 23/04/2013 20:22

Thanks for the recommendation Gerrof. I haven't looked at anything apart from cakes in Feast but I like the sound of the Tunisian stew.

kneedeepindaisies · 23/04/2013 20:23

Fellatio, you can use recipes online if that's easier.

I haven't bought Smitten Kitchen, I'm just looking at the blog.

Original poster
Curioustiger · 23/04/2013 20:25

gerrof great to have you join us. Get well soon!

pregnantpause I made the curries on the day and think they're good, interested to see what gerrof says (it would be a minor miracle in my house for DH not to 'sample' them if made in advance.

realfellatio no problem at all. You know that you can get a lot of Feast recipes online at nigella.com, and similarly Smitten Kitchen is a blog as well? As the months go by we will always try to have at least one book which is popular so people may have it / be able to borrow it easily, plus one which may be a bit more unusual.

OP posts:
greensnail · 23/04/2013 21:00

Did the creamed chicken this evening but chucked in a loss of grated parmesan too and it was really yummy. Dd1 threw a strip because she wanted pesto and dd2 wanted hers with no chicken so not a great success with them but I enjoyed it.

I really liked the lemon bars. Dh thinks they need more sugar to balance the lemon so I might have to end up eating his share too.

Gerrof · 23/04/2013 21:16

No, you can make the curry on the day, I usually do anyway because I am never organised enough. Like all curry and stew it will be better the next da but it is still delicious as it is.

Original poster
Curioustiger · 23/04/2013 22:11

greensnail/pantah did you make the broccoli fritters? I tried them; my DH loved them, I thought they were quite good if a bit messy ... Did yours fall apart a bit in the pan?

OP posts:
Pantah630 · 24/04/2013 14:07

No I'm going to do tonight, along with the Guinness cakes think...should be a good combination for a healthy diet. Greens, carbs, protein in the topping and a good old fashioned helping of stout for some iron.
When my Nanna was pregnant during the war, her doc regularly prescribed her stout. :)

pregnantpause · 24/04/2013 14:27

Damp apple and almond cake is beautiful. Very easy, and lighter than air. I have never succeeded quite so well with any cake, I'm a terrible baker. It looks and tastes wonderfulGrin Grin

I must say that it wasn't cheap, ground almonds are 1.80 for 150g in asda and this takes 325g, but well worth it.

I have done the chicken murhali, it's waiting to be reheated and eaten this evening. I hope it goes down as well as the cake.