It’s time for a recap! Maybe the best part of my Cookbooks Worth Waiting For series, is when the wait is over. In this case the wait is mostly over as one title I still don’t have, but I will add my thoughts on it when I do.
Otherwise below are my thoughts on the cookbooks on my Cookbooks Worth Waiting for List for the first half of 2023. As always there are some great books being released this year, so another list will be on its way soon.
Did you add any of these cookbooks to your shelves so far this year? What did you think of them? Or were there other books you have added to your collection you liked more? Let me know in the comments below.
And just a quick note, all books bar one have been purchased by me and the links are just for your reference - I suggest searching around to find the best price or try to support a local/independent bookshop! Links to books on Booktopia removed 15/07/2024.
Dark Rye and Honey Cake by Regula Ysewijn - If you love Regula’s other books, there is no way you could be disappointed with this one. The research and food history is very interestingly explained, in a way I feel only Regula could! Regula seems to have a knack for all elements in terms of bringing together a cookbook - her writing is excellent, her photography is amazing, and along with her husband’s illustrations she’s got a real winning trifecta right there. Of course the recipes are great, though I don’t see myself making many of these (mostly due to the fact I do not own any kind of waffle iron). However I do not think that detracts from this book in anyway. Many cookbooks bring more than the recipes, and it doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be on my shelf. I have learnt a lot from this book already, and if you love food history also, I think you will love it too.
A Table Full of Love by Skye McAlpine - This book presents really well - the design, the photography, the colour scheme. It’s a smaller sized book than Skye’s previous two, and a small part of me wishes it was the same size as the others as there’s something about seeing an authors works all together on the shelf and looking all neat, and having some kind of continuous link via their size (but maybe this is just me?). I have been enjoying the writing in this book, and to me, it stands out more in this book than in Skye’s previous works. I can’t say I am thrilled with the recipe selection however. There isn’t much in this book that immediately draws me in recipe wise, and makes me think I need to cook that ASAP. In terms of recipes this book doesn’t feel intrinsically different than Skye’s previous book, ‘A Table for Friends’, and although the idea of the book is eloquently written about, I struggle to see what this book brings to the table that hasn’t already been done by Skye previously. I suggest having a flick through this one before purchasing, to make sure the recipes and the whole thing take your fancy - though like I said, it looks beautiful and the photography is stunning. What takes your fancy recipe wise will be purely personal preference and is certainly no slight on Skye’s brilliant ability to produce stunning cookbooks.
Sweet Enough by Alison Roman* - I mentioned in my previous version of this list how I was a little disappointed that Alison’s next book was all about baking. I love baking (obviously!), but really associate Alison with her general cooking and savoury dishes. I like this book, it’s very Alison (especially the writing, gosh I LOVE her writing), but I don’t think I’m quite the target audience for it. Alison shares recipes in ‘Sweet Enough’ that suit people not as keen on baking, sweet things (hence the title) and maybe wouldn’t consider themselves dessert people. I am very much keen on baking, like sweet things and am a dessert person, so the offerings in this book don’t draw me in like I usually am with Alison’s recipes. I tried the Salted Pistachio Shortbread (p.173) which I liked but I found mildly too salty (on p.14 Alison says if you think any of the recipes are too salty then she takes that as a compliment, so compliments to the chef I guess!), the Plummy Pudding (p.146) and the Old-Fashioned Strawberry Cake (p.91). I am (maybe oddly considering the the title/point of this book) looking forward to trying the recipes in the savoury subsection in the Pies, Tarts, Galettes chapter as I have a feeling this is where the Alison Roman magic may lie for me in this book. This is definitely the book for you if you aren’t super keen on baking, and find many baked goods and desserts too sweet or too much effort. Alison is catering to a crowd who are probably not usually spoken to in cookbooks focused on baking, and that is a good thing - as everyone deserves to be a ‘dessert person’ in their own way.
Love is A Pink Cake by Claire Ptak - To say I am enjoying this book is an understatement. It is everything I expect and want from Claire Ptak, great recipes, interesting flavour combinations and new ways to cook things or new ways to use flavours I hadn’t considered. If ‘Sweet Enough’ by Alison Roman is for those not traditionally keen on baking or desserts, ‘Love is A Pink Cake’ is for those who are, and who want to explore the baking world that Claire has created with her bakery Violet and her previous books even more. Everything I have made from this I have thoroughly enjoyed - except when I swapped crema di pistacchio for peanut butter in the recipe for Blondie Peanut Butter Cookies on page 29, it did not work and that was because I made my own changes! I have made the Sticky Toffee Date Pudding (p.77) twice (it’s even fantastic on its own, no sauce, no ice cream, nothing!) and the Eve’s Pear Pudding on page 81 got a traditionally not pudding loving family very keen to eat the leftovers and make it again as soon as possible!
The Flavour Thesaurus More Flavours by Niki Segnit - While this book has technically been released, getting a copy seems to mean waiting a while and paying anywhere from $40-60AUD. I saw a copy on Amazon (AU) for $29.99 with a release date of early August and locked in my preorder, so I will add my thoughts here after that! Unfortunately that price has gone up now on Amazon, however it is currently at $39.99 which is still less than other retailers currently.
14/08/2023 - I finally have my copy of ‘The Flavour Thesaurus More Flavours’, and it was certainly worth the wait! It is so well researched as is everything Niki does, and I am really enjoying the various flavours/ingredients which have been included this time around. There are things like quince, passionfruit, pistachio, date, lychee and so many more that really complements Niki first book ‘The Flavour Thesaurus’. I really appreciate how Niki explains the plant led focus of the book, without the book being exclusively vegan or vegetarian (many of the flavours omitted from her first book happened to be plant based so the flavours chosen for this book naturally had that in common). As Niki says “The book would neither be quite vegan nor even vegetarian but loosely, forgivingly, non-dogmatically plant-led or flexitarian..” without getting into the well known arguments about eating less meat and more plants. I think the focus on plant based ingredients for this second volume makes sense as a compliment to the first (many meat/animal products were already covered there like egg, cheeses and various types of meats), but also as so many ingredients/flavours we use in cooking and baking come from a plant based source (think lentil, raisin, garlic, mint etc). If you have ‘The Flavour Thesaurus’, you also need ‘The Flavour Thesaurus More Flavours’.
Heartbake by Charlotte Ree - This book surprised me in the best way. I am not, unlike Charlotte, a lover of love, so I wasn’t sure if the memoir part would be for me. I ended up listening to the audiobook of the memoir section and I was hooked early on. To hear Charlotte speak so thoughtfully and eloquently about her life and how food has nourished her in more ways than one, felt like a privilege. It’s amazing to follow someone on Instagram for a while and think ‘wow their life looks great’, and then to hear that SO much was going on behind those little squares on that app. It really shows we don’t know what’s is going on behind closed doors and that Instagram is really a highlight reel most of the time. I think Charlotte’s story also highlights the healing power of food, and the deep connection food has with our memories and emotions. And maybe also the fact that being true to oneself and not hiding the hard bits of our lives all the time can be massively freeing and, maybe in a small way, be helpful to others. The recipes in this book are also really good. David Lovett’s Focaccia (pp.245-8) is AMAZING, and I am constantly thinking about when I can make it again! I think the only downside to this book is despite the amazing cover, the fact that it is covered in fabric makes me worried to use it in the kitchen as it might get dirty/ruined! I am one of those few people who like my cookbooks to remain in as pristine condition as possible despite being used, so fabric covered cookbooks always bring me a level of stress I know is probably ridiculous (I have already considered using a sticky lint roller over this beautiful cover as it is getting little bits of fluff and dust on it, please tell me I’m not the only one!). Let’s just say if a paperback edition was ever released I’d probably buy it solely for kitchen use to allow the original to remain her in glorious yellow pristine condition (hopefully minus the dust etc, where is that lint roller….).
* this book was gifted to me by Hardie Grant. There was no obligation to talk about the book, and my opinions are my own. And honestly, I love Alison Roman so I would have bought this book myself anyway!
