Posts in Behind the Cookbook
Behind the Cookbook: Sydney Seafood School

Roberta Muir ran the Sydney Seafood School for more than a decade and during that time the school hosted a Who’s Who of top Australian and international guest chefs. In Sydney Seafood School Cookbook, Roberta brings together all the key information you need on buying and preparing fish, together with more than 90 battle-tested chef recipes.

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Behind the Cookbook: Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well

The latest book to be added to ckbk’s collection is Pellegrino Artusi’s era-defining work, Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.

The book is a foundational text on Italian cuisine, first published in 1891 (not long after Italian unification) and still of key relevance today. It is celebrated by contemporary Italian chefs such as Giorgio Locatelli (who described it as “life-changing”) and writers including Bill Buford and Anna del Conte.

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Behind the Cookbook: A Sardinian Cookbook, A Lombardian Cookbook and Wild Weed Pie

They say there are two types of people in the world: Italians and those who wish they were. Despite a very Italian first name, I fall firmly into the second group.

I’ve loved Italy since I spent six weeks backpacking down the Mediterranean coast from Rome to Sicily in the early 90s, discovering cacio e pepe pasta, buffalo mozzarella, authentic cannoli and Campari soda. I love its food, wine, architecture and history, but most of all I love its people and the way they embrace life and share it with whoever happens to be nearby, most often around the table.

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Behind the Cookbook: The Friendly Baker

Food intolerances and allergies are an unfortunate fact of life, but luckily ckbk has a whole shelf of books devoted to Free-from cooking. In this latest addition to our Behind the Cookbook series, Lucy Parr, author of The Friendly Baker (newly added to ckbk), tells us how she came to start her blog Lucy’s Friendly Foods, and to write this, her first cookbook.

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The Chefs' Knowledge: the know-how and recipes you need to get started as a chef

Whether you are already a professional chef, or are training to become one, ckbk offers the material you need to develop your skills, explore different culinary specialties, and build your own style. ckbk’s virtual bookshelves offer a treasure trove of inspiration and reference material to support your cooking.

The latest cookbook to be added to ckbk, The Chefs’ Knowledge, is the result of a collaboration between The Chefs’ Forum and dozens of top chefs active in culinary education across the United Kingdom. The book includes 100 basic recipes as well as a wealth of hints and tips for any budding chef. We caught up with several of the chefs who contributed to the volume, to get their take on culinary education and the important role played by cookbooks.

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Behind the Cookbook: Zarela’s Veracruz

Zarela Martinez is one of the US’s leading authorities on Mexican cuisine and currently co-hosts the podcast Cooking in Mexican From A to Z on the Heritage Radio Network with her son Aarón Sánchez.
Zarela’s Veracruz, was published in 2001, and was accompanied by a 13-part PBS TV series. In this edited extract from the original book proposal, the author describes how she came to write about the cuisine of this region, a bustling modern area of Mexico which contrasts in many ways with Oaxaca, the subject of her previous cookbook.

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Behind The Cookbook: The Dessert Architect

Robert Wemischner is a pastry chef and culinary educator who for the past 18 years has taught baking and pastry at Los Angeles Trade Technical College. Robert’s long-standing interest in the flavor potential of ingredients culminated in The Dessert Architect, a text book designed to teach budding pastry chefs the fundamental building blocks and approaches which will allow them to freely express their creativity. We asked the author what led him to write the book…

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Behind the Cookbook: Goose Fat & Garlic

Jeanne Strang’s book, Goose Fat and Garlic, is devoted to the regional and highly seasonal dishes of rural South West France. Patricia Wells describes it as “a book with a ring of authenticity; a must for all cooks with a sense of curiosity and a dose of ambition.” The book has legions of devoted fans, among them Alison Stattersfield, who has recorded her progress in cooking her way every recipe in the book on her blog My Year of French Cookery. Below she explains why this book, and the cuisine of the region as a whole, means so much to her.

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The Twelve Shoulds of Christmas

Food historian Annie Gray is a familiar to many through her regular appearances on BBC Radio 4’s The Kitchen Cabinet. Annie has a passion for cookbooks, the older and more eclectic the better, and we are proud to have several of her own cookbooks on ckbk, including The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook and How to Cook the Victorian Way with Mrs Crocombe. Annie’s most recent cookbook, At Christmas We Feast which was added to ckbk this week, looks at the culinary traditions and mythologies which mark the festive season.

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Behind the Cookbook: The Blue Ribbon Cookbook

In this guest post, ckbk subscriber Francene Connor writes about a South Australian cookbook that is close to her heart: The Blue Ribbon Cookbook by Liz Harfull. Francene discusses the importance of community cookbooks and the vital role they play in preserving rural traditions and supporting local communities.

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Behind The Cookbook: The Quality Chop House

To mark the release of The Quality Chop House cookbook, we talk to co-owner William Lander about the restaurant’s history and that of London chop houses, and how the venue fits into the legacy of the area’s groundbreaking eateries. Located in the area of the city near acclaimed restaurants St. John, The Eagle and Moro, and handily just up the road from Smithfield meat market, it has played a prominent role in the recent success of Modern English cooking.

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Behind The Cookbook: The Eagle Cookbook

The Eagle in London’s Farringdon opened in 1991 and hatched the concept of the gastropub as we now know it. The Eagle Cookbook is a showcase for the gutsy, heartfelt cooking that still comes from its famed open kitchen. We talk to former chefs to find out what it was like to work at the ground-breaking pub, and what they think lies behind The Eagle’s continued success.

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