Tuesday 11 December 2018


List #4: FOOD AND DRINK
Have a look through this selection of books we are recommending for summer reading and as seasonal gifts. Click through to read our reviews. Use the 'click and collect' function on our website to reserve your copies. 
If you don't find what you're looking for here, come and talk to us: we have many other interesting books on our shelves.



Khazana: A treasure trove of modern Mughal dishes by Saliha Mahmood Ahmed        $55
Indo-Persian food conveying the flavours and culinary approaches of the Mughal Empire. 


Bread is Gold: Extraordinary meals with ordinary ingredients by Massimo Bottura and friends        $65
Three-course meals from some of the world's leading chefs, all using overlooked, undervalued or waste ingredients. Beautifully presented. "These dishes could change the way we feed the world, because they can be cooked by anyone, anywhere, on any budget. To feed the planet, first you have to fight the waste." - MB
>> See some spreads
>> See some chefs reducing waste


The Cuba Street Project: Place, food, people by Beth Brash and Alice Lloyd         $55
Profiles, photographs and recipes from the eateries on Wellington's favourite street. 



Plants Taste Better: Delicious plant-based recipes, from root to fruit by Richard Buckley       $55
"Cooking plants is a uniquely different art from cooking meat or fish - it requires not only a solid grounding in traditional cooking techniques, but also a deeper understanding of new techniques specific to plant based cookery." Nicely presented. 

Mirazur by Mauro Colagreco    $180
The Michelin star chef shares his gastronomic vision, springing from the area at meeting of France and Italy on the shores of the Mediterranean. Meet the local suppliers of Mauro's ingredients, try the recipes, drool over the photography. 


Strudel, Noodles & Dumplings by Anja Dunk        $50
A celebration of modern German home cooking from Anja Dunk’s young family kitchen. Strudel, Noodles and Dumplings is a long-awaited revival of this national cuisine, proving that there is more to German food than Bratwurst and Black Forest gateau. Anja Dunk’s German food is gently spiced, smoky and deeply savoury. From recipes such as whole-wheat buttermilk waffles to caraway roast pork and red cabbage, quince and apple slaw, her way of cooking is vibrant, quick and deeply intertwined with the seasons and the weather. Featuring over 200 recipes for the everyday family table, as well as for snacks and special occasions, Anja’s cook book is an essential guide to all the basics of German cuisine, providing inspiration for appetising and comforting meals throughout the year.
>> To live the good life
Patisserie: Master the art of French pastry by Melanie Dupuis and Anne Cazor      $65
A beautifully presented large-format book, with stunning diagrams and very clear step-by-step photographs. 



The Black Sea: Dispatches and recipes through darkness and light by Caroline Eden        $45
Eden travels from Odessa to Bessarabia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey's Black Sea region, exploring the interconnecting culinary


cultures. A beautiful book, with very tempting recipes. 
A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That: A Gujarati Indian cookbook for Aotearoa by Jayshri Ganda and Laxmi Ganda         $70
A beautifully presented and very appealing book of delectable and authentic dishes from western India, all absolutely at home in New Zealand. 


Do It the French Way by Daniel Gaujac       $45
As well as building the "hideous monstrosity" that has become France's foremost visual icon, Gustav Eiffel also build the Thuir Distillery in 1873, which was the origin of many of France's iconic aperitifs, including Pernod Absinthe, Byrrh, Lillet, Ricard and Suze. The first half of this book features photographs of the restored distillery, the second contains illustrated recipes from some of the world's foremost bartenders for cocktails based on these aperitifs. All in all a very pleasing book. 


Japan: The cookbook by Nancy Singleton Hachisu      $70
A definitive collection of over 400 regional and traditional recipes, organised by course and accompanied by insightful notes. Soups, noodles, rices, pickles, one-pots, sweets, and vegetables - all authentic and achievable at home. 


Copenhagen Food: Stories, traditions and recipes by Trine Hahnemann      $45
A neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood guide to the best of the Danish capital's food and eating places. Nicely illustrated, and with 70 mouthwatering recipes. 


A Really Big Lunch: The 'Roving Gourmand' on food and life by Jim Harrison      $40
A selection of the best food writing from 'The Poet Laureate of Appetite', and author of the hugely enjoyable The Raw and the Cooked
"A celebration of eating well and drinking even better as a recipe for the good life." - Kirkus
An Anarchy of Chilies by Caz Hildebrand          $45
Profiles and portraits of over 100 chili varieties. 



Vegan: The cookbook by Jean-Christian Jury          $70
Definitive, wide ranging. 
"For a long time, vegan cooking has lived in the shadow of the health food movement of the Sixties and Seventies, but here's a cookbook that blasts away the past and jumps boldly into a multi-culinary future where veganism isn't just about saying no to animal products but is instead about saying yes to hundreds of mind-blowing dishes from Iraq to Ireland, and from the Philippines to Peru."—Amanda Cohen


Zaitoun: Recipes and stories from a Palestinian kitchen by Yasmin Khan        $49
Yasmin Khan harvests black olives from the groves of Burquin in the West Bank, hand-rolls maftool - the plump Palestinian couscous - in home kitchens in Jenin and finds time to enjoy a pint with workers at the Taybeh brewery, which is producing the first Palestinian craft beer. As she feasts and cooks with Palestinians of all ages and backgrounds, she learns about the realities of their everyday lives. Zaitoun includes herb-filled salads, quick pickles, fragrant soups, tender roasted meats and rich desserts, and has a special focus on vegetarian versions of Palestinian classics. 
"A moving, hugely knowledgeable and utterly delicious book." -Anthony Bourdain
Sourdough School by Vanessa Kimbell       $45
Well illustrated, attractively presented and full of clear and useful information on how to make a variety of delicious breads. 
>> It is not as difficult or as time-consuming as you might think


Food & Drink Infographics: A visual guide to culinary pleasures by Simone Klabin        $110
Too compendious to digest in one sitting, this vast, astounding volume contains every possible fact about everything humans eat or drink, beautifully and clearly displayed. 
Family: New vegetable classics to comfort and nourish by Hetty McKinnon        $40
Build a repertoire of enjoyable vegetarian food loved by families of varying backgrounds. The family stories and then-and-now photographs are delightful, too. 

Suqar: Desserts and sweets from the modern Middle East by Greg and Lucy Malouf        $60
The Maloufs' books are always beautiful and a pleasure to cook from. Fruit; Dairy; Frozen; Cakes; Cookies; Pastries; Doughnuts, Fritters & Pancakes; Halvas & Confectionery; Preserves; and Drinks. 



Milkwood: Real skills for down-to-earth living by Kirsten Bradley and Nick Ritar       $50
The skills that we learn bind our lives together. Do you want to know how to grow your own food? Or how to keep bees? How to forage for edible seaweed along the shoreline, or wild greens down by the stream? Maybe you're curious about growing mushrooms or how to grow the perfect tomato. You're invited to make these skills your own. Uses permaculture as a basis for a practical, sustainable and ethical antipodean lifestyle.
>> Visit Milkwood
>> Living like it matters
Barcelona Cult Recipes by Stephan Mitsch        $55
Visit Catalonia's buzzing metropolis through its local dishes. An exciting addition to the excellent 'Cult Recipes' series
The Nordic Baking Book by Magus Nilsson          $70
The absolutely definitive guide to every possible sort of pastry, biscuit, cake and bread originating in Scandinavia (with regional variations). Highly recommended. 



Venice: Four seasons of home cooking by Russell Norman     $65
An intimate glimpse into life in a traditional Venetian neighbourhood (beautifully photographed!), with 130 delicious and achievable recipes of authentic everyday family dishes. Another excellent book from the author of Polpo.


Osteria: 1000 generous and simple recipes from Italy's best local restaurants     $90
A special Slow Food investigation into authentic regional cuisine. 


Simple by Yotam Ottolenghi        $60
Ottolenghi’s cookbooks take us to new levels of appreciation of food. His recipes, mostly with a Mediterranean inflection, are always both reliable and exciting, the food is always a pleasure to make - and even more of a pleasure to eat. This new book, Simple, has everything you love about Ottolenghi - made simple, or quick, or both simple and quick. The letters of the title are a key to the recipes within: S = short on time: less than 30 minutes; I = 10 ingredients or less; M = make ahead; P = pantry; L = lazy [suits me]; E = easier than you think. So, whenever you have the inclination for Squid and Red Pepper Stew, or Roasted Aubergine with Anchovies and Oregano, or Pasta with Pecorino and Pistachios (if you’re feeling alliterative), or No-Churn Raspberry Ice Cream, you’ll be able to whip it up in no time and still have the benefit of Ottolenghi’s subtle mastery of flavours.
Thought for Food: Why what we eat matters by John D. Potter $15
"We are no longer like our ancestors. We no longer depend on our skills as foragers, gatherers, scavengers, hunters and fishers for food. We are only part-time food raisers at best. Our biology, on the other hand, has changed far less. Now there is a mismatch between who we are and what we eat. And it is in the gap created by this mismatch that chronic diseases can take root."


You aren't really interested in glorious prose poems celebrating the finest dining experiences known to humanity, are you? You want a food reviewer to suffer abysmal cooking, preferably at eye-watering prices, so you can gorge on the details and luxuriate in vicarious displeasure. You're in luck.

The Noma Guide to Fermentation, Including koji, kombuchas, shoyus, misos, vinegars, garums, lacto-fermented vegetables, and black fruits by René Redzepi and David Zilber     $90
Four times named the world's best restaurant, Noma has its own fermentation laboratory (headed by Zilber). Here world fermentation traditions are tested, understood and enhanced. This is an astounding book.



In the Restaurant by Christoph Ribbat      $25
The deliciously cosmopolitan story of the restaurant, from eighteenth-century Paris to El Bulli. What does eating out tell us about who we are?





Lateral Cooking by Niki Segnit        $50
A 'method' companion to the hugely useful and enjoyable Flavour Thesaurus, this book promises to be just as useful and enjoyable. The book is divided into 12 chapters, each covering a basic culinary category, such as 'Bread', 'Sauces' or 'Custard'. The recipes in each chapter are then arranged on a continuum, the transition from one recipe to another generally amounting to a tweak or two in the method or ingredients. Which is to say, one dish leads to another: once you've got the hang of flatbreads, for instance, then its neighbouring dishes on the continuum (crackers, soda bread, scones) will involve the easiest and most intuitive adjustment. The result is greater creativity in the kitchen: Lateral Cooking encourages improvisation, resourcefulness, and, ultimately, the knowledge and confidence to cook by heart. Entertaining, opinionated and inspirational, Lateral Cooking will have you torn between donning your apron and settling back in a comfortable chair.
What's Cooking? by Joshua David Stein and Julie Rothman         $23
In answering a lot of silly questions about what can and cannot be done in the kitchen, rather a lot of useful information about cooking is conveyed. A funny and attractively illustrated introduction to kitchen culture for young cooks. 
>> Some spreads here
The Cook's Atelier: Recipes, techniques and stories from our French cooking school by  Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini      $60
A good introduction to authentic French cooking techniques. 
>> Here they are
>> And here


Paladares: Recipes inspired by the private restaurants of Cuba by Anya von Bremzen and Megan Fawn Schlow     $60
Cuban cuisine is notable not only for the appreciation of 'ordinary' ingredients but for the inventiveness in their treatment. This book is meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated. 

Sharp: The definitive guide to knives, knife care, and cutting techniques, with recipes from great chefs by Josh Donald and Molly DeCoudreaux      $55
As it says. 









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