With sunshine just around the corner, this is the pinnacle point in the culinary calendar when the bookshop shelves are littered with cookery guides, novellas and memoirs, with a dash of mouthwatering recipes. Brig Food has lined up five of the best cookbooks that will be lining the shelves in the summer and, what’s more, they are all by up and coming foodies (some of whom may even be your age). So pour yourself a cuppa (or a sunny glass of Pimm’s) and settle down with one of these tasty treats.
Donal Skehan – Kitchen Hero: Great Food for Less
Irish chef Skehan has some great culinary notches under his belt, despite being only 25. The former boyband star recently began to carve out a tastier career in cookery and has since presented his own television show, written a monthly column in delicious. magazine, published two cook books and run a successful food blog. What is more impressive is that Skehan uses his own eye to make, style and shoot his own food, showing real dedication, and skill he possesses, to the craft. His third book Kitchen Hero: Great Food for Less explores home cooking for those whose budget is a little tight, making it the perfect student cookbook.
£12.39
Sam Stern – Virgin to Veteran: How to Get Cooking with Confidence
With five cookbooks under his belt at the age of 20, Edinburgh University student Sam Stern certainly doesn’t hang around when it comes to teaching teenagers, 20-somethings and even 30-somethings a thing or two about cooking. Having released his first cook book aged 14, Sam has gone back to basics with his latest book, with a thick tome of starters, puddings and a great hunking slab of meat chapters. With stylish typography, unfussy photographs and a neat and to the point writing style, this is potentially Stern’s greatest achievement in his culinary career to date. Most recipes include ways to mix it up or use cheaper ingredients, so this is more of a guide than a straightforward recipe book. For all ages and abilities, this book will show you that student fodder is more straightforward than you might think.
£10.00
Alice Hart – Friends at My Table: A year of eating, drinking and merry making
If you are more of a feeder than an eater and enjoy hosting everything from cocktail parties to picnics, then Hart’s cookbook is the one for you. Holding the book in your hand is something else; the soft padded cover opens you into a world of sweet treats, tasty drinks and sumptuous meals. Peppered with advice on everything from table decorations to how to build a safe campfire, the pages are accompanied by pretty watercolour illustrations, gorgeous typography and, of course, stunning photographs. This is the second book by acclaimed food writer Alice Hart, whose foodie credentials include writing for the Observer and becoming the youngest ever food editor for Waitrose Food Illustrated. Steered more towards entertaining, this cook book will be your staple to-go when your friends pop round.
£12.34
Alain Passard – The Art of Cooking with Vegetables
If you are tired of the same old vegetarian meals wheeled out at restaurants, parties and events without much thought or inspiration put into them, then try Alain Passard’s new cook book. Full of delectable meat-free pairings, such as Peas, Pink Grapefruit, Almonds and Thyme, this is a vegetarian cook book with a twist. Perhaps better suited as an inspiration for side dishes and accompaniments to pasta and potatoes, Alain will show you there is more to vegetables than soggy salads, as the world-renowned chef removed red meat from his three-Michelin starred restaurant in 2001 and dedicated himself to a more colourful lifestyle. Although the pairings may seem complicated, the end results will be stunning, beautiful on the plate and, most of all, simple.
£13.00
Christina Tosi – Momofuku Milk Bar
Perhaps one for all you Heston Blumenthals out there who enjoy experimenting in the kitchen, Momofuku Milk Bar is a cook book that is more mind-boggling science than attainable recipe book. The Momofuku chain owns Milk Bars across New York and has cemented its brand with its own blend of milk, thus creating the best cookies, pies and shakes the Big Apple has to offer. Enjoy a slice of the pie this side of the Atlantic, with a fascinating look at the ice cream and flavoured milk making processes that make this eatery more than just your average bakery.
£16.25
All cookbooks available at Amazon.co.uk
