Even with the vast number of recipes available on the internet these days, there’s nothing quite like leafing through a beautiful book full of recipes. It’s a medium that’s stronger than ever before, with cookbooks topping bestseller charts throughout the year. If you’re anything like us then you’ll have shelves upon shelves of them in your home – some kept in pristine condition, others earmarked, stained and scrawled over after years of use.
It’s this national love for cookbooks that has prompted us to start our very own cookbook club. Each month we’ll select a cookbook that we think stands out from the rest and ask you, the Great British Chefs community, to cook a recipe from it. We’ll publish a small selection of recipes on our site so, even if you don’t already have the book, you can still get involved and see how your cooking compares to everyone else’s. Apply to join the Facebook group here and take a look at this month's book (and recipes) below. We've also included the winning post from last month's book, as well as some of our other favourite entries.
These are obviously unprecedented times, and while we normally love visiting food shops and seeking out new and unusual ingredients, many of us are now having to make do with what we can get without flouting government guidelines. That's why for April, May and June, we've decided to take a look back at all the amazing books we've cooked from over the years, rather than focus on something new.
Many existing members will have a few of these titles on their shelves already, and if you're new or missed some, now's the perfect time to order one online and add to your collection. There are some free recipes from each of these books in the collection below, but the full list of books that have been featured in the club are as follows:
March 2018: Hong Kong Diner by Jeremy Pang
April 2018: New Classics by Marcus Wareing
May 2018: Planted by Chantelle Nicholson
June 2018: The Little Viet Kitchen by Thuy Pham Diem
July 2018: Eating Well Everyday by Peter Gordon
August 2018: Happy Food by Bettina Campolucci Bordi
September 2018: The Great British Chefs Cookbook by Great British Chefs
October 2018: Simple by Yotam Ottolenghi
November 2018: 80 Cakes From Around the World by Claire Clark
December 2018: Scandinavian Baking by Trine Hahnemann
January 2019: Andina by Martin Morales
February 2019: Asma’s Indian Kitchen by Asma Khan
March 2019: Crumb by Richard Bertinet
April 2019: Casablanca by Nargisse Benkabbou
May 2019: Bazaar by Sabrina Ghayour
June 2019: Moorish by Ben Tish
July 2019: Island Kitchen by Selina Periampillai
August 2019: Charred by Genevieve Taylor
September 2019: Mandalay by MiMi Aye
October 2019: Salt and Time by Alissa Timoshkina
November 2019: The Book of St John by Fergus Henderson and Trevor Gulliver
December 2019: Adventures with Chocolate by Paul A Young
January 2020: Wok On by Ching He Huang
February 2020: Fire Islands by Eleanor Ford
March 2020: Veneto by Valeria Necchio
Also remember that every Thursday you can post any recipe featured on Great British Chefs with the #ThrowbackThursday hashtag!
The full list of cookbooks can be found above, but we've collated all the previous free recipes from each month in an easily accessible collection. Take a look and keep mealtimes at home varied and delicious.
Last month was the first time we threw open the doors to all Cookbook Club books of the past – and we absolutely loved the results. Congratulations to Sophie Joyce who took the top spot this month – she wins a prize! Take a look at her dish and all the other honourable mentions below.
Make sure you post photos along with commentary of the dishes you cook from any of our past books in our Facebook group to be in with the chance of winning.
