Favourite cookery book?

[Angela]

Maybe this is a bit off the subject, but here goes -

do you have a favourite cookery book? or does everybody get new recipes online?

I have Delia there for the basics, I like Claire Macdonald for fish and puddings & Nigel Slater just for ideas really.

I've just had the BBC Quick & Easy series recommended, does anybody use these?

I know it's a matter of personal taste (no pun intended) but any recommendations would be welcome. I still have a very old notebook of recipes collected over the years, but I'm not sure that anybody still does that!

[Buttercup]

I got rid of most of my cook books a few years back as it had become a bit of an obsession with me. I had dozens but never really used them, just tended to stick to the old favourite recipes. One of my favourite books is the Farmhouse Kitchen one that went with the TV series from years ago and also some old SWRI ones going back to the 50’s. They’re great for basic, down to earth recipes. Nowadays I tend to adapt/make up recipes from my basics or if I see something that looks good on TV I’ll look up the internet for the recipe.

[Angela]

I'd forgotten Farmhouse Kitchen, Buttercup - that was a good one...but somewhere in my many flittings, it's gone awol
I might try and get a secondhand copy....

[mrs n]

i have the farmhouse cookbook also 2 & 3 and cooking for one and two, mary berry's fast cakes is good too, you just mix everything together, the bbc easycook magazine is good for everyday recipes, next issue 29th march it comes out every 3 months but i am a great one for writing down recipes i fancy

[poppett]

"Glasgow Cookery Book" which was on the go when my late mother was in school and was still being used in Thurso High circa 1968. Add a but if common sense and the spirit of adventure and the cookery thingie is well cracked.
My favourite cookery joke has to be when picky folk come to dine. They eat the soup put infront of them and often ask for more. The round table discussion is nearly always who doesn`t like which veggies, then someone pipes up "What kind of soup was that?" ....."Dana Soup"...because it contains all kinds of everything (like the song) in vegetable stock, and usually at least one ingredient that one of the guests would never eat! Blitzed to a nice consistency who would be able to tell one vegetable from another. Cauliflower and Broccoli stalks scrubbed and chopped add a lovely flavour.

[emb123]

The Readers Digest 'The Cookery Year'. It's very big, heavy and worth paying serious money for, though you shouldn't need to on eBay - there are usually a few copies for sale - the postage is the problem .

It covers just about every style of cooking and gives a great deal of general information useful to cooks (and chefs) about preparation etc too. Superb book!