The Book Club
Saturday, 06 June 2009
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.