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Food and cookbooks 2021

December 12, 2021 Leave a Comment Filed Under: Books, Christmas, Christmas Gifts, Christmas Presents, Food, Food history, Kitchen equipment, Lifestyle, Recipes, Shopping, Travel

The Plagiarist in the Kitchen by Jonathan Meades (Unbound)

Published in 2017, this is not a new book but well worth revisiting as it’s a fun read as well as being spikily full of wisdom about food. It is published by Unbound, a crowd-funded publisher, which means that the books published are ones which would not likely get commissioned, or if so, heavily edited, by a normal commercial publisher. This is why cookbooks are generally so boring.

Jonathan sounds grumpy, bitchy, funny, gossipy and a cook who knows what he is talking about – a rare thing in a publishing climate that is desperate to sign the next TikTok star or bikini-clad influencer or soap actress turned daytime TV presenter. The basic premise is that no recipe is original and we are all plagiarists.

Some of the recipes are very short – “Persillade: garlic, flat leaf parsley; chop finely together” – which is refreshing when the food writer is usually sternly instructed to write recipes in a way that anyone could follow them, step by wearisome step. (Perhaps if people are that stupid, they aren’t cooking from scratch anyway.)

Other recipes are cheeky. ‘Euphemisms’ is a recipe about balls, any balls. “Ingredients: balls, oil/butter, breadcrumbs seasoned with powdered cumin. Whether they belonged to a sheep, a calf or a bull, the preparation is the same. The outer membranes must be removed, then blanch them. Fry them in breadcrumbs.”

At the bottom of each page is a running ticker-tape of various exhortations to the cook: “Don’t walk away… Concentrate… F**k the guests… And all that conviviality malarky… Do not waste bread: oil it and rebake it… Stock!… Get treatment for squeamishness… Vegetarianism is curable.”

He wouldn’t like me, I’m sure, being both squeamish and vegetarian. But I think he’d probably like my cooking.

Several of the stories are lightly disguised mud-slinging at TV chefs and producers. It’s fun to try and guess who they are irl, like the fat arrogant guy that wanted to go to a posh restaurant and that was the last thing Jonathan, at that time a restaurant critic, wanted to do. Jonathan made lunch, a few basics from the fridge seamlessly flung together, probably better and fresher than anything in a restaurant, posh or not.

Eating to Extinction by Dan Saladino (Jonathan Cape)

Dan is a journalist, producer and presenter of BBC Radio 4’s The Food Programme, which is probably the only serious UK broadcast about food. As such, he’s in a great position to write about the world’s rarest foods and the danger of their extinction. What our food lacks today is diversity: it is as uniform as our high streets. Most of the world eats only nine foods, of which three ingredients – wheat, rice and maize – form the bulk.

This is a thick book but easily navigable, divided into a short chapter per rare food story, meaning you don’t have to read it from front to back. It’s an atlas of food for the curious and greedy traveller.

Butter by James Martin (Quadrille)

I’m not a fan of telly chef books, usually ghosted and somewhat impersonal. This is a subject close to my heart, however. Even in the heyday of people thinking margarine was better for you, I never abandoned butter, my one true love. The reason I can’t go completely vegan is… butter. The mouthfeel is exquisite; it melts at body temperature. I can eat it by the slice, no bread necessary. Martin’s book celebrates this ingredient with recipes for flavoured butters and rich paens to full fat glory.

Dirt by Bill Buford (Jonathan Cape)

I’ve read all of Buford’s books, whether it be on football (‘Among the thugs’) or cooking (‘Heat’). His technique is immersive research: he joins the clan he writes about. He spends years undercover, living the life. He is prepared to become a football hooligan, to learn to butcher meat in an Italian village, to work the line in a New York kitchen, to start in his 40s from the bottom, to be abused and humiliated by spotty 20-year-old chefs.

Here he learns to become a classical French chef. He moves his entire family to Lyon, the home of traditional French cooking (not Paris), rents out a flat, puts his kids in the local school, and, by no means a young man, begs for work at Lyonnais ‘bouchons’. It isn’t easy: few want to give him a chance. Follow his journey in Dirt. Does he make it? Will they accept him?

Gastro Obscura by Cecily Wong and Dylan Thuras (Workman)

Authored by the creators behind the website Gastro Obscure, this is a perfect gift for the foodie traveller. If you are travelling, browse the location in the book beforehand and make sure you visit. If you are not, and let’s face it, we haven’t been, the book offers a virtual plane seat on a voyage to far flung gastronomic experiences. For instance, on a recent trip to Egypt I could have visited the 2,000-year-old ‘egg ovens’ for hatching eggs or the ‘wild pigeon towers’.

Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, Shelf Love by Noor Murad and Yotam Ottolenghi (Ebury)

Ottolenghi’s recipes are famous for their long lists of exotic ingredients. This book, first in a series, breaks down his recipe-creating process, which starts with using up what’s already in the pantry. Did you know you should be peeling your chickpeas for hummus? Nor did I. The recipes are illustrated with step by step photos and look so appetising you could almost lick the page.

At Home by Rick Stein (BBC Books)

Stein is probably the nearest scion of Keith Floyd in telly heritage terms: warm, enthusiastic and knowledgeable. Most TV chefs use a ghost writer for their books; if this is the case here, they’ve done a great job channelling Rick. Like the Ottolenghi book, this has a lockdown vibe. He talks of doing his daily steps, revisiting his greatest hits, simplifying those recipes, growing things, doing DIY, buying gadgets from Amazon, the sundowner drink and of cooking dishes he’s never the time to try, restaurants being off-limits. He even had the prototypical urge to perfect his sourdough. In short, he was all of us. The recipes are simple yet considered, and of course the fish dishes are stellar.

Tools for Food by Corinne Mynatt (Hardie Grant)

This is probably a book for the kitchenalia freak, an obsession to which I freely admit. I’ve actually gone through the book and counted that I already possess 75% of the tools mentioned. Good cooking is easier, quicker and more enjoyable when you have the right equipment. Mynatt details the provenance, date and inventor of the best kitchen tools: peeler (Rex, Alfred Neweczerzal, Switzerland); grater (Microplane, Lorraine Lee and Richard Grace, 1994, Canada/USA); rubber spatula (Frank J Sullivan, 1996, USA) are just some examples, with dozens more, from ancient times to the modern day, spanning the globe.

 

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MsMarmiteLover aka Kerstin Rodgers.

Chef, photographer, author, journalist, blogger. Pioneer of the supperclub movement.

This is my food and travel blog, with recipes, reviews and travel stories. I also stray into politics, feminism, gardening.

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Kerstin Rodgers/MsMarmiteLover
Midsummer supperclub 17th June book tickets here h Midsummer supperclub 17th June book tickets here https://msmarmitelover.com/product/midsummer-supper-club-tickets-june-17th at London’s pioneering supper club. Tickets £50 BYO. Scandinavian inspired summery food. #supperclub #msmarmitelover #midsummer #northwestlondon #londonevents #popups
Tina sweating through a gig at Brixton academy cir Tina sweating through a gig at Brixton academy circa 1987 pic: kerstin Rodgers #rip #tinaturner #rockphotographer #kerstinrodgers #teenagephotographer
Attended an incredible talk with @frenchpete_1 on Attended an incredible talk with @frenchpete_1 on war photography in the Ukraine . Go to the exhibition @thebppa @thebargehouse in SE1 last few days 
Had to stop filming cos I was told off. The photographers would be less forthcoming if they were filmed I was told. 
Anyway @frenchpete_1 should be followed by a camera crew cos he’s a star.
For yesterdays lunch I made a blue cheese puff pas For yesterdays lunch I made a blue cheese puff pastry quiche and a little one with less blue cheese & no salt for my 7 month old granddaughter. She absolutely loved it. I’m enjoying seeing her experience and explore new foods with baby led weaning. Avocado, strawberries, kiwi & buttered crumpets are a hit. Pasta less so. Who is this child? Are we even related? #babyledweaning #quiche #homemadepuffpastry
Nice to be featured as The Great Read in The natio Nice to be featured as The Great Read in The national newspaper again. These are the stories I love to do: I go off on an adventure, take my time, interview people (especially women), photograph them in their environment and create recipes on site. This story cost me a lot more than I made as I had an accident and lost my excess. My own damn fault though! Loved loved loved having a campervan. Thanks for lending me it @camperdays.international and sorry about the hole in the side.  https://www.thenational.scot/news/23505593.foraging-seaweed-western-isles/
My terrace on a sunny May morning. The builders @l My terrace on a sunny May morning. The builders @lk.general.building left yesterday. They’ve been working since January. I had the awning installed, the encaustic Minton tiles removed and put back with green grout. The terrace was causing damp so this had to be done. My calamondin plant is looking lovely. The benches which I repaired with hard wood & I repainted using a mix of 2 colours. The marble table I bought in Suffolk at a car boot. Everything is still dusty & I’m waiting for the window cleaner to arrive.
Last but very heartfelt thankyou to @cideriswine f Last but very heartfelt thankyou to @cideriswine for their contribution of these beautiful dry ciders for the coronation street lunch. Gorgeously illustrated labels. #stcuthbertsrd #kilburn #london #cider #artisanaldrinks
When it comes to vodka I much prefer potato vodka. When it comes to vodka I much prefer potato vodka. It’s smoother. Artisanal distillery @devoncovevodka contributed some bottles to my coronation lunch which gave everyone a feeling of being at a classy party. Thanks so much. And also @rawfoodanddrink for arranging. If you want to read my blog post about how and why I organised this event, copy and paste this link: https://t.co/GWNNW2XKba #coronationstreetparty #biglunch #community #kilburn #london #forthepeoplebythepeople
I’ve been a fan of @luscombedrinks for years now I’ve been a fan of @luscombedrinks for years now. They sent a selection: elderflower bubbly, st. Clements orange 🍊 Sicilian lemonade, @belvoirfarm_uk lemonade, which were all delicious and just the tickets for the fortuitous mini-heatwave that occurred on the Sunday coronation lunch. #thankyou #community #coronation #streetparty #biglunch
Our street party. Double page spread in The Sun! T Our street party. Double page spread in The Sun! Tiny bit in the guardian. Decent pic in the Mail and The Star credit @asproider #coronationlunch #kilburn #stcuthbertsrd #kingscroftrd #fordwychrd #templarhouse
My coronation quiche with Broad beans, tarragon, s My coronation quiche with Broad beans, tarragon, spinach, cheddar. I used crème fraiche and blind baked puff pastry shells. I was up at 11 last night making these for todays street party, which featured in the mail, telegraph, mirror, metro courtesy of photographer Gavin Rodgers @asproider
Seaweed foraging at Spring tides in the Outer Hebr Seaweed foraging at Spring tides in the Outer Hebrides with @outerhebrideanforager Fi bird. She’s cutting sea spaghetti. I drove my campervan @camperdays.international from london to the Hebrides- using my gas stove to cook foraged and local ingredients. A real food safari. With the sea spaghetti I made a sea spag vongole with giant parlourdes picked up from the sand at the same time. Great fun, beautiful weather and, the day of the full moon, a wonderfully low tide. This was on south Uist.
More flavours, the flavour thesaurus is a plant-ba More flavours, the flavour thesaurus is a plant-based version of the original. Beautifully constructed, designed and written by @nikisegnit it’s vegetarian rather than vegan but recommended for both. She widens the sensory vocabulary around plant flavours in this book- encouraging new delicious sounding combinations. Now she includes new categories such as flower & meadow, caramel roasted, zesty roost- just the words make me salivate. #foodbooks #bookstagram #newbooks
Yesterday I attended @marmaladeawards @dalemainman Yesterday I attended @marmaladeawards @dalemainmansion I found out so much about marmalade. I’m going to make it this winter. I found out the worlds best maker is Japanese, in fact I was most impressed by the Japanese marmalades in general. Everyone wore orange. I must have tasted 50 marmalades. I met Paddington’s sister, karen jankel who is michael bond’s daughter, born in the same year as Paddington. She gave a charming talk on Paddington, mentioning how the queen insisted on having real marmalade sandwiches in her @launerlondonofficial handbag during the shoot. The house itself is Tudor and Georgian. I stayed in my campervan from @camperdays.international in the car park, cosy in the rain. Another freewheeling adventure. #yorkshire #marmalade #travel #food #ontheroad #campervan
I had a piece in @thetimes on Sunday about being a I had a piece in @thetimes on Sunday about being a vegetarian rather than a vegan. How I still need butter. And how restaurants & plane meals are now vegan rather than vegetarian. But, there are still more the double amount of vegetarians as vegans in the UK. I’ve written a vegan cookbook V is for vegan (link in bio) and am a big fan of vegan foods. I’ve not eaten meat for over 40 years. This is a sustainable diet, in terms of longevity. Vegans that I knew from the early noughties have reverted to meat eating. #newpuritanism? #vegetarian #vegan #foodwriter
Scrambled croft eggs (bright yellow yolks) with a Scrambled croft eggs (bright yellow yolks) with a seaweed that tastes just like truffle. Just done a little kelp foraging at low tide with @thetempleharris’ Amanda Saurin. Isle of Harris. Turquoise sea, white sand, cloud hovering just above. @camperdays.international @roosterpr
I went to Wembley in north west london to talk to I went to Wembley in north west london to talk to Sophie of @tobia.teff she uses the iron-rich, gluten free teff grain from her homeland Ethiopia. She showed me how to make injera, the Ethiopian flatbread which is fermented. She also talked about the coffee ceremony, 3 cups, which they pair with toasted barley or, currently, popcorn! I’d love to visit Ethiopia and find out more about their ancient food culture, history, 3.5k year old monarchy and religions.
Doing a spring budget recipe cooking demo for @bre Doing a spring budget recipe cooking demo for @brentcouncil Willesden library. I’ve been doing this a few times a year for the last few years. Wouldn’t it be great if they had a kitchen set up permanently. Libraries are community centres and could be used to teach how to cook from scratch.
Mother’s Day flowers from @siennamarla who is ex Mother’s Day flowers from @siennamarla who is experiencing her own first Mother’s Day with Ophelia. I’m still living in chaos & work was slow yesterday due to rain. Only another month…
Last week I did a wild foraging walk with @luciath Last week I did a wild foraging walk with @luciathewildkitchen in Kent @kent_downs_aonb just outside Canterbury. I’m going to help out during her May wild asparagus workshop. This chef lived in France, is a brilliant forager and cook. Her campfire meal of lentils, wild garlic raitha and a dukkah of alexanders, Parmesan was genuinely delicious not worthy like so much foraged food.
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