This week we are collaborating to bring your our top 10 list of cookbooks. There is nothing better in our mind than a kitchen with rows upon rows of cookbooks, and we find that each one has something unique to offer.
Some of these have been staples in our kitchen for years, others have only entered our lives in the past year, and already we couldn't live without them.
So, without further ado - our top 10!
1. Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course
Whilst this list is not it rank order, how could we not start with Delia's Complete Cookery Course! It is the best all round cookbook and the book we most recommend investing in. This book has everything from meat cooking times to Lasagne to Yorkshire Pudding recipes. A classic that we would be lost without.
2. Leon's Happy Salads
This is a very new addition to our household, but it's been a good one! It has over 100 pages of salads to choose from, meaning that your office lunches need no longer be boring. Some of our personal favourites include the Hispi and Prosciutto Salad and the BKT. We recommend preparing most of these recipes ahead as they can be quite prep heavy, but it's definitely worth it.
3. Pinch of Nom (All three!)
We bought the first book when Head Chef was trying to lose some weight without investing in monthly subscription weight-loss groups or relying on big-brand ready meals. All the recipes are calorie counted and have carbohydrate information making it perfect if you're one for tracking your macros but also enjoy cooking from scratch. We started with just the one book but are now proud owners of all three and Head Chef has lost over 2 stone!
4. 5 Ingredient Vegan
This was gifted to Sous Chef last year from a friend and has been a revelation. The book is true to it's name with only 5 main ingredients per recipe, meaning that there is often very little prep involved. The recipes are full of flavour and perfect for mid-week meals or even lunches. Look out for the tomato risotto and the country lentil potage - you will not be disappointed.
5. Skinny Pasta
This book lives up to its reputation with all recipes coming in under 500 calories. Sous chef is definitely a pasta queen so this book is right up her street! The book is perfect if you are looking to up your pasta game and like to impress your friends at dinner parties with simple but effective dishes. Again, as with Pinch of Nom, all the recipes in this book are calorie counted.
6. Dairy Book of British Food
Another oldie but a goodie! Just like Delia's complete cookery course, this book details some of the more basic cooking skills but we love it. We use it particularly for Gammon cooking times and for Griddle Pancakes - perfect for Shrove Tuesday or for any day of the week!
7. Mary Berry at Home
How could we write a top 10 cookbook list and not include Mary Berry! We recommend almost any of her books for your baking needs. We decided to include this particular book in our top 10 as it includes Head Chef's favourite recipe - the Pear Tart. Sous chef made this for Head Chef on Mother's day last year - we recommend giving it a go.
8. BBC Good Food
Ok we admit it, this is not a cookbook. However, we use this website so often that we felt we had to include it in our top ten. We consider it our bottomless pit of knowledge and use it for all sorts of recipes from soups to cakes. It's so convenient to search for recipes If we can't find what we want in our books, this is our first point of call.
9. Gino's Healthy Italian
We bought this in Kindle form without knowing much about it. It was in a 99p sale and so we thought why not! We now use a few recipes from this book week after week. All the recipes are calorie counted and have nutritional values making it perfect for Head Chef. The book showcases Italian home cooking at it's finest - and isn't just focused on pasta. Our firm favourite is the Gammon with Broad Beans in White Wine - prefect for an alternative Sunday lunch.
10. Tasty Kitchen
Last, but by no mean least, are the Tasty Kitchen files. These are Head Chef's pride and joy as she meticulously collected the magazines needed to fill two files over 25 years ago! We turn to these files often if we are hosting a party as they include recipes that are a little bit different. The perks of these files are that they include a mixture of cuisines from around the world - from British to Asian, you name it, it's in the files. Some are simple, some a little more involved but there's never a bad apple!
There we have it - our top 10 cookbooks. Some are oldies and some are newbies, however they all contribute to what makes us both enjoy being in the kitchen.
Until next times,
Head and Sous Chef x
Comments
Post a Comment