Newsletter: 🇵🇱 Polish bakes, a Yorkshire condiment and French favorites 🇫🇷

🇵🇱 Polish bakes, a Yorkshire condiment and French favorites 🇫🇷

🇫🇷 Celebrate French Classics & save 25% on a ckbk subscription 🇫🇷

New arrivals on ckbk

Two fascinating books arrive on your ckbk shelf this week, celebrating the rich traditions of Polish baking and the unmistakable flavour of an iconic Yorkshire condiment.

Dobre Dobre by Laurel Kratochvila

James Beard Award finalist Laurel Kratochvila dives into Poland’s rich and varied baking heritage in Dobre Dobre, a wide-ranging collection of more than 120 recipes spanning old and new traditions, Jewish baking, and the Polish diaspora. Alongside the recipes, she brings the culture vividly to life, weaving in history and stories that reveal how one of Europe’s most distinctive baking traditions has been shaped – and proved? – over time.

From everyday breads to celebration cakes, there's plenty to tempt home bakers, including Sunflower Rye Loaf, Twisted Krakow Bagels, Karpatka (cream and choux cake) and Chocolate and Whipped Cream Warsaw Cake. You'll also discover inventive bakes such as Horseradish, Beet and Summer Greens Bialys, Plum Butter Carnival Donuts and Rose and Almond Jewel Rugelach.

Strong and Northern: The Henderson's Relish Cook Book

The recipes in Katie Fisher's cookbook are a different but equally inviting proposition. Strong and Northern celebrates the bold, spicy flavour of Sheffield's famous Henderson's Relish, a much-loved Yorkshire condiment that has inspired fierce local loyalty for well over a century. Often described as Yorkshire's answer to Worcestershire sauce, Hendo's has long enjoyed a good-natured rivalry with Lea & Perrins, with many devotees insisting there's simply no substitute.

Expect comfort dishes such as Steak and Henderson's Pasty, Chilli Con Carne, Macaroni Cheese, Welsh Rarebit and Sausage Casserole, alongside plenty more inspo for making this iconic relish the secret ingredient in everyday cooking.

Whether you're already devoted to Hendo's or discovering it for the first time, you’ll be chuffed t’bits.

Pictured above: Meringue and Cream Layer Cake with Fruit from Dobre Dobre: Baking from Poland and Beyond by Laurel Kratochvila

Our favorite French Cookbooks

Bastille Day arrives next Tuesday, offering the perfect excuse to bring a little French flair into the kitchen. From rustic bistro classics and regional specialities to refined techniques and timeless favorites, this week’s Cookbook Showcase celebrates the richness and variety of French cooking. Explore the full French bookshelf on ckbk.

You’ll find everything from the masterful Classic Koffmann and regional explorations gathered by Fran Warde, to the elegant simplicity of Daniel Galmiche’s countryside-inspired dishes, alongside Escoffier’s timeless Le Guide Culinaire — a reminder that, at its heart, French cooking often returns to simplicity: “Surtout, faites simple” (“Above all, keep it simple”).

It’s the ideal moment to lean into summer French cooking: think vibrant tomato salads, grilled fish with herbs, summer quiche, ratatouille made with peak-season vegetables, and golden tarte tatin served warm for long, sunlit evenings.

Super cool (said in a French accent bien sur!).

Ingredient focus: blueberries

Continuing our French theme, blueberries are as at home in a rustic French tart as they are in an American pie. Prized in France for jams, tarts and pâtisserie, these jewel-like summer berries (les myrtilles) bring a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity to everything from breakfast to dessert. Their vibrant colour, versatility and 'superfood' credentials make them a winner.