A stack of good ideas
Sydney Morning Herald
Tuesday December 15, 2009
Any cook will love finding one of these books under the Christmas tree, writes Helen Greenwood. Tender Volume 1by Nigel Slater; HarperCollins, $59.99Growing what you eat and paying homage to plants are the thrusts of Nigel Slater's romantically imagined and produced book. From the deep, dark photography to the poetic prose, the British food writer brings home the power of fruit and vegetables in a package that unwraps to reveal easy recipes, useful tips and moments of food lore and folklore. Australian kitchen gardeners might be frustrated by the different varieties and seasons but better food writing than this is hard to find.The Songs of Sapa: Stories and Recipes from Vietnamby Luke Nguyen; Murdoch Books, $69.95An ebullient cook and television presenter, Luke Nguyen explores the regional food of Vietnam, from Sapa in the far north to the Mekong Delta in the south. His chatty, informative voice and canny understanding of his Australian audience create more than a memoir with recipes and photos. This is a vibrant portrait of Vietnam and its food that makes you reach for your cleaver.Rotis: Roasts for Every Day of the Weekby Stephane Reynaud; Murdoch Books, $49.95The Sunday roast, as conceived by a French chef and an award-winning cookbook author, could be salmon with prawns, duck with sugared almonds or pork with brown ale and prunes, depending on the day. Even a sweet-and-sour roasted venison fillet is unexpected: deglaze with white wine and gin, then add balsamic vinegar and raspberry liqueur. Stephane Reynaud doesn't forget classics and includes a coda of vegetable dishes.Curry Kitchenby Jacki Passmore; Viking, $49.95Jacki Passmore is a veteran food writer with 20 Asian cookbooks under her apron. Her curries travel from India and Thailand to Malaysia and Indonesia, start with the basics and finish with special ingredients. The layout is simple, with photos for each recipe, which is based on a main ingredient and involves varying degrees of chilli heat. For spice lovers, curry beginners and cooks who like to be prepared (curry freezes well), this is a great handbook.Adventures with Chocolateby Paul A. Young; Simon & Schuster, $35If the words temper and mould, truffle and nibs make you think of chocolate, then this neat little book will be right up your ganache. Paul Young is a Yorkshire-born pastry chef who worked in top-nosh restaurants before opening two chocolate shops in London. You forgive him using words such as "yum" because he offers cherry-and-coconut brownies, a four-chocolate trifle and cocoa-bean and mint-tea infusion as penance. Adults-only chocolate cooking?Margaret Fulton's Encyclopedia of Food and Cookery; Hardie Grant , $69.95A new edition and an encyclopedia of Fulton's recipes and ideas make this orange-hued tome a guide for both beginner cooks and long-term Fulton devotees. Fulton's forthright tone is less intellectual than the book's name suggests but more useful. A riffle through its pages reveals milk, followed by mille-feuilles and minced meat, then mince pies and minestrone. No illustrations but there are lots of clear instructions.Donna Hay Seasons; Fourth Estate, $49.99A food postcard to send to folks overseas shivering in cold climates. Shot with sparkling waters for summer, shading into moody, dark tones for winter but always with styled splendour, this is a seasonal compilation of recipes from Donna Hay's magazine. Home cooks of every vintage will bless this for everyday use and special occasions.Peter Gordon: A Culinary Journey; Viking, $59.95Peter Gordon, the New Zealander who made good in London after training in Australia, is an unabashed proponent of fusion cooking, done well. Dubbed the father of East meets West food, he takes 13 ingredients and writes about them in an engaging and fluid fashion, drawing on his trips to Turkey, Japan, Spain, Malaysia and, of course, Australia and New Zealand. The recipes are restaurant-grade but will still translate well for home cooks.Encyclopedia of Pastaby Oretta Zanini de Vita; University of California Press, $49.95An elegant, cloth-bound book that celebrates the Italian art of taking wheat flour and water and turning it into pasta. Oretta Zanini de Vita clarifies the hundreds of noodle shapes with precision and illustrations but the joy of this book is her descriptions of where each shape is found, how it is served, how it's made and her brilliant background notes.Available at Florilegium, 9571 8222.AND DON'T FORGETBourke Street BakeryBy Paul Allam and David McGuinness, Murdoch Books, $69.95.Buon RicordoBy Armando Percuoco and David Dale, Allen & Unwin, $65.Food SafariBy Maeve O'Meara, Hardie Grant, $55.Manna from HeavenBy Rachel Grisewood,Allen & Unwin, $59.99.Movida RusticaBy Frank Camorra and Richard Cornish, Murdoch Books, $49.95.SerendipBy Peter Kuruvita, Murdoch Books, $59.95.Stephanie Alexander's Kitchen Garden CompanionPenguin Lantern, $125.Thai Street FoodBy David Thompson, Penguin Lantern, $100.
© 2009 Sydney Morning Herald
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