The British Library hosts an annual Food Season of talks on food writing and food history. This year the Food Season is happening online and we have 20 free tickets to give away.
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Food historian Annie Gray gives a behind-the-scenes look at how she and the English Heritage team brought Avis Crocombe, an unlikely culinary icon, to 21st-century life.
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Durkhanai Ayubi’s book Parwana is a beautifully told story of her family’s struggles and triumphs, and their travels from war-torn Afghanistan to a stable and abundant life in Australia. It also gives insight into the country’s history and its deep-rooted cuisine.
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You may be familiar with the little dab of light green paste that sits next to your sushi. How deep does your wasabi knowledge go? Take our quiz, created in partnership with the first growers of fresh wasabi in Europe - The Wasabi Company, to find out how much you really know.
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Journalist and broadcaster Yasmin Alibhai-Brown is a commentator on diversity, politics, human rights, and multiculturalism. She spoke to ckbk about her 2008 memoir, The Settler’s Cookbook: A Memoir of Love, Migration, and Food. The book weaves together personal and family stories with recipes, creating a moving account of the East African Asian diaspora experience.
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These leavened spiced buns have been an Easter tradition for centuries in the UK. Read about their history and lore, and find out five things you probably didn’t know about hot cross buns.
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Check out the ‘Cooking the Books’ podcast. Each week, Brighton-based food journalist Gilly Smith invites a food luminary onto her show to define, discuss, and detail four defining moments from their book. It’s a great listen.
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We have six books in our Scottish collection (with more on the way), and they are written by some of the finest food writers and culinary historians in the English language, showcase the depth, breadth, and deep-down deliciousness of the country’s food heritage, from the past to the modern day.
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Nowruz begins on Saturday March 20 this year. Celebrate Persian New Year with a feast, guided by “the grande dame of Persian cooking,” Najmieh Batmanglij, using the ingredients in her Persian pantry.
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Deborah Madison, cookbook author chef, has been instrumental in shaping attitudes to meat-free eating – somewhat ironically, given that Madison is not in fact a vegetarian. Deborah spoke to ckbk about why The Savory Way – which won the Julia Child/IACP 1990 Best Cookbook of the Year – remains a favorite, and how attitudes and cooking trends have changed in the 30+ years since the book was written.
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Food is a gateway to human emotion, believes Ramin Ganeshram, the New York City-born journalist, historian, and author. As a child, Ganeshram learned to cook “by osmosis” as her Trinidad-born father wove stories as he chopped, stirred and kneaded. As well as learning to cook, she learned the importance of food as a medium for telling ourselves and others about who we are, and where we come from.
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Chef and restaurateur Denis Cotter opened Café Paradiso in Cork, Ireland, in 1993. It’s been in business for 28 years – a huge achievement in such a fickle industry – and still wins plaudits for doing things differently. The restaurant is closed because of the pandemic, giving Denis time to talk to ckbk about Paradiso’s past, its present – and what the post-pandemic future may hold for restaurants.
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Late winter can be an uninspiring time in the kitchen. Spring vegetables are still on the distant horizon, and the icy temperatures call for dishes that can deliver warmth, simplicity and sustenance. Say hello to grains….
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Paralympic cycling gold medallist Lora Fachie MBE appeared in a special edition of The Food Programme on BBC Radio 4 about Cooking Blind. Read more about how ckbk is proving to be a boon for Lora and other visually impaired cooks.
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Are you a mere chocaholic or a borderline chocolatier? How deep does your chocolate knowledge go? Take our quiz, created in partnership with artisanal chocolate maker Guittard Chocolate Company, to find out how much you really know.
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Lunar New Year, celebrated in many countries in East Asia, begins on 11-12 February this year, marking the first new moon of the lunar calendar. 2021 will be the Year of the Ox. Family and feasting are vital to Lunar New Year, and many of the celebratory banquet foods have symbolic meaning. Learn more and plan your celebratory meal.
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Peter Hertzmann believes that learning to cook involves learning about methods, not simply following recipes. His new book 50 Ways to Cook a Carrot, uses the root vegetable to demonstrate a whole battery of kitchen skills, from julienning and braising, to transforming carrots into meringues, foams, and powder. Peter explains the reasons for writing the book, who it’s for – and why carrots…
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Food writer, author, and stylist Jennifer Joyce grew up in the US and has lived in the UK for 27 years. Her love of good food is matched by her sense of wanderlust, her curious palate, and her brilliant recipe-writing skills (Jennifer’s recipes really work). In My Street Food Kitchen, Jennifer explores the street-food scene in Mexico & South America, the Mediterranean, East and Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, and the US, and delivers recipes that taste as good in your home kitchen as they do on your travels. We quizzed Jennifer about what ‘street food’ is, how she researched the book and tracked down the recipes – and asked about her favorite cookbook authors.
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Giuliano Hazan is a talented cook and teacher, and the author of Hazan Family Favorites, a collection of recipes from his grandparents and parents, his own recipes, and dishes his wife and daughters love to cook and eat. Giuliano recalls the important things his mother taught him, from how to cook, to being true to oneself – and chooses three much-loved family favorite recipes
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