My 3 Favourite Cookbooks

Long time no speak! It's been a busy time chez moi - I've just started a new job (whoop) and it was my wedding anniversary this weekend just gone (photos and review of the restaurant we went to are coming soon), so it's been pretty hectic. 

I've had a lot of people message me asking about which cookbooks I love, so I thought it would be good to a post with some of my favourite books!

So my current favourite cookbook is Chloe's Italian Vegan Kitchen, by Chloe Coscarelli.

I bought this book when I was vegan, and even though I'm not vegan currently, this book is my absolute favourite. Whoever said vegan food has to be boring obviously never tried any of the recipes from this book. Skilfully avoiding any animal products, Chloe captures the very essence of good Italian cuisine - rich, creamy and full of flavour. There's even a whole section on how to make all your sauces from scratch which makes this an ideal book for someone who is very new to cooking or veganism. Personal highlights from this book are the mac and cheese with pesto (one of my husband's best dishes), the pizza burgers and the Tuscan tofu scramble.

Next would have to be The Hairy Bikers Great Curries book.

This is a book a former housemate of mine had and we would spend hours flicking through this to decide what to cook. The recipes are really easy to follow and nearly every recipe has a photo to match. Personal favourites from this are the chicken korma (literally to die for), the lamb rogan josh. The entire section on sauces and pickles is heavenly too - homemade mango chutney? Yes please.

We've got another vegan cookbook in my current top 3 books. This time, Oh She Glows by Angela Liddon.

Now, Oh She Glows actually started as blog where Angela discovered veganism and good whole foods as a way of getting over an eating disorder. Her recipes are nothing short of perfection. Everything in this book is delicious, with recipes that will suit even the pickiest of eaters. This was another book I bought whilst vegan, and it's one I use frequently even now. Best recipes from this include the Indian Lentil and Cauliflower Soup, Bean and Sweet Potato enchiladas and all of the smoothies (perfect for me, smoothies are all I ever have for breakfast during the week!)

I really recommend checking out the above books if you get the chance, they have really helped me expand my repertoire as well as my palette. 

I've just bought a new cookbook that I am yet to try, but I need to work out where to source some of the ingredients. 

The Middle Eastern Cookbook by Rukmini Iyer (reduced to a fiver in The Works, for my UK-based readers), is a visual delight, with so many different recipes from all over the Middle East. Recipes vary from the easier houmous, to the more complicated Whole Spice-crusted Red Snapper (drooling thinking about that one). I'm really looking forward to spending a weekend trying out a few recipes from this book including the Iraqi Kitchree, Chargrilled Steak with Harissa and the Spiced Baked Cod with Harissa & Pine Nut Crust & Roasted Cherry Tomatoes.

I'll definitely be trying some of the above recipes in later blog posts, so keep your eyes peeled!

Have a good week!