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Food/recipes

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Cookbook recommendation for the new year

32 replies

NetflixViewer · 02/01/2023 11:19

Most years DH and I pick a cookbook at the beginning of the year and use it for dinner inspiration for at least the first few months to get us out of a winter-takeaway-can't be bothered cooking rut. Previous successes have been books like The Green Roasting Tin, the first Helmsley sisters book and Ottolenghi's Simple.

I'm trying to pick this year's book but am not inspired by anything I've seen so far.

Ideally I'm looking for:

  • Something that has recipes for things which can be a single central dish rather than smaller mezze or side dishes (i.e. most Ottolenghi).
  • Covers a range of cuisines
  • Usually quite vegetable-focused but not necessarily vegetarian or vegan.
  • Recipes which are relatively quick to prepare on a busy weeknight

Does anyone have any recommendations?

OP posts:
Tessisme · 04/01/2023 09:36

BBC Good Food magazine is a great idea. If you're ok with a digital version, library apps often have it for free, so nothing to lose if you don't like it or don't find anything inspiring.

NetflixViewer · 04/01/2023 10:17

@SummaLuvin I think using my phone is part of the problem, it's small, screen keeps switching off, etc. I'll look into cloudreader.

@mynameiscalypso I also like the idea of screenshotting recipes, another issue I have is not being able to stick a little marker in interesting recipes (kindle bookmarks seem too fiddly somehow).

@kittenkipping thank you, I haven't heard of two out of three of these so will look them up now. I have kaukasis on kindle and liked the few recipes I made but they were quite involved entertaining type recipes so an "at home" version sounds great.

And looks like I'll get out my One: Pot and give it another go!

OP posts:
SwedishEdith · 04/01/2023 10:20

We use this one a lot. An oldie but still reliable. I've seen the price for a hardback copy 😮😲 Tamarind & Saffron: Favourite Recipes from the Middle East amzn.eu/d/6xYbtJn

SwedishEdith · 04/01/2023 10:22

Not sure what's happened to the link but Claudia Roden's Tamarind and Saffron.

mackerella · 04/01/2023 18:22

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie DD doesn't like tomatoes or aubergine either, so we've tended to avoid those recipes anyway!

Particular favourites in our household are:

Muhammara chickpea stew (p. 31)
Pan-roasted cauliflower with saffron butter (p. 83)
Courgette and halloumi fritters with chilli jam (p. 92)
Cashew nut pakoras with green dipping sauce (p. 100)
Sticky squash and pistachio flatbreads (p. 103 - we don't make the flatbreads, though, and just use Crosta & Mollica piadine instead)
Green olive and herb Welsh cakes (p.111 - these were a bit salty the first time I made them so I've since reduced the capers/olives slightly)
Broccoli miso salad (p. 125)
Flash-fried sticky tofu (p. 186)
Carrot and peanut nasi goreng (p. 200)
Leek and potato traybake with quick romesco (p. 258 - I often pair this with the muhammara chickpeas as it uses up the other half of the jar of peppers)
Sticky sesame-baked cauliflower (p. 262 - I make this every week or two as it is the DC's most requested dish - we all love the sticky sauce and the way that the battered cauliflower goes creamy in the oven)

The One Veg section (which has 10 ideas for various vegetables) is useful, as the recipes tend to be quicker and simpler than in the rest of the book - good for lunch or quick dinner.

The only miss for us was the creamy parsnip, leek and white bean crumble (p. 250), which we all found a bit bland and too sweet. Apart from that, it's been great!

RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie · 04/01/2023 19:42

@mackerella Thanks so much for that list. I'll check the book out again later with this list by my side. Sticky cauliflower sounds particularly good.

rosiewalker · 12/01/2023 17:13

Pinch of nom books are absolutely brilliant

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