There are few kitchen tasks more satisfying than baking. Whether bringing together a crumbly pastry, or getting stuck in kneading dough, the alchemy of flour and water, possibly yeast, possibly an egg or butter, into bread, pies, cake, is real kitchen magic. At entry level a batch of cookies is so easy the results far outweigh the effort. At the other end of the spectrum fine patisserie and bread-making are true culinary arts.
Read MoreNick Malgieri is a baking expert and a true master of his craft. He has a long line of bestsellers under his belt, many of which are available now, or coming soon on ckbk. We met Malgieri to look back on an exceptional career and find out how he was able to throw off the early trauma of writing and discover his own style.
Read MoreAfter Easter we look to the new season, to longer days, later evenings, and the promise of weather good enough to cook out in. BBQ starts to seem possible, and deprived of that delicious char over winter we are eager to get started. Take inspiration from a master of the art Marcus Bawdon, and his Consuming Passion: Fire.
Read Moreckbk recently added two new professional cookbooks, Professional Garde Manger by Jaclyn Pestka, Wayne Gisslen and Lou Sackett, and The Advanced Professional Pastry Chef by Bo Friberg. Here we take the opportunity to review some of the books in ckbk’s library which are aimed at chefs and chefs-in-training, and which appear on our Professional bookshelf.
Read MoreSpring is the time when garden and field come back to life, when fresh green produce appears after hardier, earthy winter fare. Much of the spring harvest needs little preparation to be tender and delicious. Fresh leaves, shoots, and stems readily offer up their naturally sweet vibrance. In the Northern hemisphere we find the first asparagus, gather wild garlic, and develop a hankering for lightly adorned salads and young vegetables.
Read MoreRamona Andrews caught up with Sumayya Usmani to discuss her new title, Andaza: A Memoir of Food, Flavour and Freedom in the Pakistani Kitchen, published today. Try her Chicken Boti Tikka, Bundoo Khan Style, and get a taste for her style of “andaza”, essentially “the art of sensory cooking”.
Read MoreThe holidays are underway and the Easter weekend is imminent. If you are catering for a houseful and would like some breakfast ideas, take a look at our cookbook showcase for Making Breakfast or Brunch Memorable. A batch of Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes should keep everybody happy and well fuelled.
Read MoreThe latest new title to be added to ckbk is Simple and Delicious Vegan. Ramona Andrews caught up with the book’s author, social media superstar Michaela Vais, who blogs at Ela Vegan and has more than one million followers on Instagram.
Read MoreEaster marks the point in the Christian calendar when the penitential forty-day period of Lent is over. Named after the Norse goddess of spring and rebirth Eostre, it is a time to celebrate after the winter fast, to share sweetness and abundance. There is regional variation in Easter foods, but what they have in common is that all-important rich sweetness and reference to the new season of warmth and harvest ahead.
Read MoreAs Easter approaches, food writer and Registered Nutritionist Joy Skipper reflects on her passion for chocolate and shares findings from her recent travels around southern India, visiting cacao plantations and chocolate makers.
Read MoreWhen pharmacist Ashley Madden was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in her early twenties, she began to make drastic changes to her lifestyle and career, and looked deeply at the relationship between her food and her health.
Studies in holistic nutrition led her to develop a tasty repertoire of vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, and oil-free recipes and to create a blog, Rise, Shine, Cook.
We caught up with Ashley to discover her top healthy dishes from her best-selling debut, The Plant-Based Cookbook, and to find out how she cuts through the noise around health and food.
Read MoreBrought up in Alsace, and famed for his elegant infusion of classical French cuisine with Asian inspiration, Jean-Georges Vongerichten is undoubtedly one of the most influential chefs in the world. His eponymous restaurant Jean Georges in New York City boasts three Michelin stars, and he is the chef-owner of dozens of restaurants across more than fourteen cities globally. We are excited to bring you his celebrated book Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef.
Read MoreOnce whilst in Malawi, Africa, I visited a local food market and my new friends chose a chicken to buy. We drove 15 miles back home with it in the back of the car, privately promising myself that I wouldn’t give it a name. As soon as we entered the shack, we slit its neck, drained the blood, plucked it, cooked it and enjoyed a delicious and hearty meal celebrating us simply being together. We ate the entire chicken, including the feet, and left only the beak….
Read MoreThere are those who would say that the best part of any meal is the pudding! We’ve put together cookbook showcase A Pick of Puddings to celebrate the joy of the sweet course.
Read MoreAt ckbk we know that there are countless women in food, cooking, writing, teaching, making the world a better and more delicious place. But in honor of both IWD and Women’s History Month, we bring a special handful of them to your attention, showing the great influence they’ve had on food throughout the ages.
Read MoreWith Maze: The Cookbook added to ckbk this week, we spoke to chef and restauranteur Jason Atherton to find out what it was like being part of a movement of chefs who fundamentally changed the way people think about food in the UK.
Read MoreChef, restaurateur, food writer, and leading light of the British food scene, Mark Hix has always had a passion for fish. Growing up on the Dorset coast, initially his focus was on catching them rather than cooking them. As a chef, and in his book Fish etc. his focus is on sustainable enjoyment of the riches the sea has to offer, and on teaching the home cook all they need to know to master any aspect of fish cookery.
Read Moreckbk users in the US, UK and Japan can now order ingredients for same day deliver via Amazon Fresh.
Read MoreMarcus Bawdon is obsessed by cooking with fire. It’s an all-encompassing passion that he loves to share with people via his vibrant Country Wood Smoke website, Facebook group and YouTube channel; through demonstrations and appearances at food and BBQ festivals across Britain, and as editor of UK BBQ Mag. He was crowned king of Meatopia BBQ festival, is a judge at BBQ events such as Grillstock, and makes regular appearances in the media to talk all things related to outdoor cooking.
Read MoreIn the Christian calendar Ash Wednesday signals the start of Lent, and the fast that precedes Easter. This year it falls on February 22. The day before, Tuesday February 21, is Shrove Tuesday, or Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) – the feast before the fast. This is celebrated with rich and sweet foods, ostensibly to use up some of those ingredients before they are put away for the duration. But it is also a chance to indulge before the period of abstinence and reflection.
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