My Recipe Books

You may have read about my new dining room space, if not you can find it HERE, but moving from one room to another meant a really good excuse for a recipe book sort out.

As you can see, I had a little help along the way from Millicent Moo. (aka Millie / aka Moo)

I thought I would run through some of my favourite (and not so favourite) books with you.

We have to start with my trusty Bero book - this loyal little fella is completely falling apart - it is badly stained from an accident with a bottle of food colouring, which soaked through a good few pages.

And also has been used at some point as a child's colouring book!  I guess they thought as Mummy had coloured it pink, they could also colour it in.  Never did find out which child it was, but as they are all now in their 20's you can work out how old this book is.

Of course I have bought new ones over the years, but nothing is ever quite the same as your first bero book, the pages fall open at exactly the right spot.  For some reason, I could just not ever bear to throw it out!

Back to the sorting, anything with no photos went in the "to go" box.  I really think you need some sort of image when you are planning a meal - it has to visually look good for you to be interested enough to make it, I don't want to have to imagine what it might look like, I want to get my taste buds tingling before I start.

This silly little hard page book is another of my favourites for recipes.  Delicious Slow Cooker Recipes. But it's really not a nice book - who wants a hard-page book?  Mind you, at least you can stand it up.

The recipes in it should be reported for being misleading really, if you have a slow-cooker you will know that it isnt really possible to make a full on breaded Cordon Bleu chicken dish as shown in the photo below - and strangely the ingredients given do not contain breadcrumbs.  In fact, those ingredients given do not relate to the photo shown at all  :)   

But I will keep this book, for this recipe alone - one of my kid's absolute favourites when they were growing up - Sloppy Joes.

Hey, a mushroom book - a vegetarian mushroom book, The Shiitake Way  - what could be better.   Really, I should be classed as a Fungitarian, as I eat so many of the blooming things.  (no funny jokes about the name please)

And a tomato book - these are things that Vegetarians get for Christmas - "I know, let's get her a book on how to cook a tomato"  even if..........

...... the recipe only actually uses a tomato on the top of a dish for presentation  ;)

And then there are the "strange ingredients" books.  Of course honey is not a strange ingredient in itself, it's just when they make a book out of it and put it in ................

...............MACARONI CHEESE !!!!

This one looks better  :)

Awww, my Tagine book, lovely Moroccan recipes, made in a stone pot.  If you go to Marrakesh the Tagines all bubble away on stalls in the Souks, it's a lovely sight.

So Hubster bought me a HUGE Tagine for my Birthday one year.  He actually carried this beast in our luggage to a hotel.  I would like to say it was romantic, but it wasn't.  After all it was a great big cooking pot.

Having said that, I do love it.   But never use it - Hubster doesn't eat 'stews' and 2/3rds of the chicklets have flown the nest, so it sits sadly up there.... on top of the kitchen cupboards, along with the party platters that get used once in a blue moon.

Poor, lonely Tagine.

Does anyone else do this?  Collect sets of books that really are a little bit pants?  Into the "to go" box they go.

Because I really don't need to read a recipe on how to thread vegetables on a skewer!

Aha!  The obligatory diet books, Slimming World, Weight Watchers and many others that I have seen as a quick fix.   I might keep these ...... just in case.

I love these little cuties.  Favourite Recipes collection. Often found in touristy style shops on postcard spinners, they only cost a few quid each.  Some of these have got a price of £1.30 on them, but I think they are a few quid more these days.  Although, no photos, these really are great little books.

Going back to strange ingredients, check out this Kelloggs book - Sweet & Savoury!

Now, honestly, would you make a savoury flan cake with rice krispies?  Would you?

Goodness me - I think I might sell it...... LOOK !

Hidden inbetween two big Hamlyn cookbooks are all the leaflet booklet things that come with gadgets.  Slow Cooker, Bread Maker, Tajine, Sodastream, Food Mixer, Fondue Set, Smoothie Maker.......

This is one of my more recent purchases, Waste not want not. I got it at The Eden Project when holidaying down in Cornwall.  I love mixing up recipes - although I have not reached the rice-krispy flan ring stage quite yet.

Fish Fingers au gratin!   Does anyone ever really have any left-over fish-fingers?  I used to cook so many per child and they ate them all!  But it's a great book with some interesting ideas.

I tried to limit myself to one shelf on the bookshelf.  I think I did well to get it down to one and a half - leaving half for any new books (or old ones from charity shops) that I might come across.

Which leaves a rather nice large box of books for my 'chef-in-training' daughter-in-law-to-be, Helena, to have a sort through.

Now, should I make a savoury rice-krispy flan do you think?  If I get more than 10 comments, I will  :)

Oh, if you fancy some of the books yourself, they should have links, click on them and you might be able to purchase.  The Amazon links are affiliated and if you do purchase I will make a penny or two, just so you know.