Happy new books!

As 2011 takes the final curtain, it’s time for one those lists much beloved by Editors everywhere.  In the past a helpful list of books for purchase with your treasured Christmas Book Tokens was a regular fixture in the New Year periodicals. Now it seems people who are aware of  Book Tokens are an endangered species, and you have to suspect that shortly printed books will be in an equally parlous predicament. Here are a few of my favourites from 2011, the list is in no particular order – each and every one is a good read.

"The Modern Pantry Cookbook",  Anna Hansen, Ebury Press  2011  Anna is one of the handful of chefs who have really got to grips with eclectic fusion cookery. Her flavour combinations are simple, often unexpected and very good to eat.  Amazon link Hansen.

"Tripe, A most excellent dish",  Marjory Houlihan,  Prospect Books 2011 Prospect Books is the thinking cook’s publisher. Academic, pedantic, exhaustive and intellectually rigorous. This book on tripe (and udders) delivers social history and makes you think. Amazon link Houlihan.

"The Good Cook" by Simon Hopkinson,  BBC Books, 2011 Simon is a gifted cook who is wholly confident. If he wants to make a dish in a certain way it is because he has explored – and dismissed – the other methods. There’s something useful to learn in this book for any good cook.  Amazon link Hopkinson.

"Pie Society", Tom Bridge,  Palatine, 2011 Tom Bridge treads the line between historical dishes and modern variations.  He is good at pies and this book makes a gentle and interesting read. We should all be doing more with pies in 2012. Amazon link Bridge.

"The Good Table", Valentine Warner, Mitchell Beazley, 2011 Val Warner’s latest book ploughs the same furrow as his earlier books. Britishness shines through. Ingredients are more likely to be caught, trapped or shot than picked up from the supermarkets. Amazon link Warner.

"Galvin Cookbook Deluxe", Chris & Jeff Galvin, Absolute Press 2011 This book is, in part, the story of a restaurant. There’s some insight into the trials and tribulations of cheffing as a profession. The recipes tend to have classic foundations, good for technique.  Amazon link Galvin.

"Bought, Borrowed & Stolen", Allegra McEvedy, Conran Octopus 2011  Allegra has written a book based around her knives (of which she has a great many), it’s a combination of accomplished travel writing, autobiography and good practical recipes.  Amazon link McEvedy.

"Madame Prunier’s Fish Cookery Book", Quadrille, 2011 A striking range of reprints from Quadrille goes some way to confirm the classic status of these venerable books. The recipes ar amazingly relevant.  Amazon link Prunier

"Let me tell you about Beer", Melissa Cole, Pavilion 2011  Beer is a woefully misunderstood subject. This book is the perfect way to get a decent grounding, it is entertaining and informative and wears its scholarship lightly. Amazon link Cole.

"Good Things to Eat",  Lucas Hollweg, Collins 2011  Sometimes reading a book is exactly like chatting with the author and you can pay “Good things to eat” no higher compliment than to say that it is like talking to Lucas.  Amazon link Hollweg.

"Korean Restaurants Guide England", Korean Food Foundation, 2011  This small, book is printed in three languages – French, Korean and English. It is a useful key to Korean food. There are reviews of British Korean restaurants plus explanations of dishes and ingredients. Very useful.  link Korea

"London Oyster Guide", Colin Pressdee, Graffeg 2011 This is a wild card, I liked it enough to write the foreword. You may not need to seek out oysters in unfamiliar postcodes every day of the year, but when you do this little book while save you heaps of effort. Amazon link Pressdee.