Bland, stodgy, boring and uninteresting! A fair description of our culinary heritage? I think not! More Tea, Vicar? is a shameless defence of the British eating experience, and an exploration of its magnificent traditions and heritage. Does British food deserve the bad reputation it has on the international culinary circuit? Granted it’s not nouvelle cuisine (a.k.a. small portions, high price), intricate garnishes, or exotic aromatics. British food is traditional, homely, warming and comforting. It is versatile, practical and loyal. Between rants and raves, comments and discussions, you'll find a selection of our favourite recipes, reviews of new and established restaurant, tea shops and eateries, cookbooks and kitchen gadgets. - Food Commentary and Articles
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Saturday, 06 June 2009 |
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I've just received a copy of Galton Blackiston's Summertime from Virgin Books to review. As II had a quick initial flick through I got thinking about how to actually review a cook book. Surely it's only fair to have a systematic and consistent way of reviewing. My thoughts then drifted to the difference between cookery writing and food writing.
A food writer explains and analyses; explores what “good” and “bad” food means; and is on an adventure to understand what food goes together to create mouth-watering taste explosions. I consider myself a food writer. An amateur one perhaps but a food writer none the less. I enjoy sharing my thoughts on food in general. I'm not a trained chef but have been training my taste buds since I was a child in order to delight my passion for food. A cookery writer is a teacher. Explaining the “how” and allowing us to create culinary wonders in our own home. They describe and illustrate, getting us excited by simply reading their recipes – itching to get into the kitchen to start tasting. So where does all this leave me in putting together my systematic approach to reviewing cookery books. For me a cookery book should inspire; I want to be able to read the recipes and look at the pictures and have the smells and textures running through my head in an instant. I want to learn, as part of my ongoing quest to build my knowledge of food; New techniques, new food combinations, new tastes. This means the recipes should be easy to understand and follow. So here will be the scores on the dust jacket: - Recipes: Easy to follow layout, clear instructions which produce accurate results.
- Creativity: New recipes or interesting twists on traditional dishes. Should reflect the personality of the chef/writer.
- Layout: Photography, design, ease of reading.
All marks out of five.
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