A few months ago I reviewed a cookbook by Spanish Australian author Frank Camorra. In the comments to that post, Fay from Read, Ramble mentioned that a Spanish cookbook had just won the International Association of Culinary Professionals award in the International category. A quick check of the library catalogue and it was mine. Well....not mine mine, but temporarily mine! It should give you a good indication of how much I liked this book when I tell you that this book is actually on it's way to me as we speak because I ended up buying it!
First off, this is a huge book! At more than 600 pages long there is bound to be something for everyone in terms of the recipes. Really though, the thing that makes this book stand out from others I have read is that it is much, much more than a cookbook! In fact, in the first 120 pages there is not a single recipe included. Rather there is a fascinating breakdown of the food history of Spain, the way that the Jews and the Muslims influenced the cuisine of the different regions, the influence of classical French chefs and more. In addition, each region within Spain is examined with details on the kind of food that you might expect to find.
Really though, the most important measure of a cookbook is how often are you going to cook from it. I was talking to someone the other day and they said that on average most people only cook 2 to 3 recipes out of any one cookbook. While I haven't cooked anything from this one yet, I did bookmark lots of recipes that I might consder making at some point or another.
I was reading this in bed at night and took a couple of Instagram photos. Hopefully you can see from this photo just how many little bits of paper I had used to bookmark a recipe, and this was only when I was about half way through so there ended up being lots more. It was a bit of shame to have to pull them all out just so I could return this one to the library.
Once you get past the food history part, Roden takes us through a variety of different types of food, but even within the recipe pages there are feature pages that might talk about a particular type of ingredient or a place, and sometimes even features pages on the people that she has come to know through the process of researching this book, people she ate memorable meals with, chefs, ordinary people and more. There is so much information in this book. I can totally imagine myself pulling this book off the shelf and browsing for just a few pages and finding something I had either forgotten about or that jumps out and catches my attention this time around.
If there was one minor niggle with this book it is in the fact that none of the photos that were included in the book included any details of what it was that we were looking at and some of the photos were a bit boring really. If it wasn't for that very minor criticism, this really would have been a perfect cookbook!
When my copy comes, which should have this gorgeous cover, I already know that there are a couple of recipes that I will share for a future Weekend Cooking post. I didn't realise until I was ordering that Claudia Roden is also one of the authors who has been given the Penguin Great Food treatment, so I ordered that book as well. I can also definitely see myself exploring more of Claudia Roden's cookbooks in the future.
In the meantime, if you want to see a few examples of the kinds of recipes that you will find in this book, there are some recipes that can be found on the Guardian website at the following link:
First off, this is a huge book! At more than 600 pages long there is bound to be something for everyone in terms of the recipes. Really though, the thing that makes this book stand out from others I have read is that it is much, much more than a cookbook! In fact, in the first 120 pages there is not a single recipe included. Rather there is a fascinating breakdown of the food history of Spain, the way that the Jews and the Muslims influenced the cuisine of the different regions, the influence of classical French chefs and more. In addition, each region within Spain is examined with details on the kind of food that you might expect to find.
Really though, the most important measure of a cookbook is how often are you going to cook from it. I was talking to someone the other day and they said that on average most people only cook 2 to 3 recipes out of any one cookbook. While I haven't cooked anything from this one yet, I did bookmark lots of recipes that I might consder making at some point or another.
Once you get past the food history part, Roden takes us through a variety of different types of food, but even within the recipe pages there are feature pages that might talk about a particular type of ingredient or a place, and sometimes even features pages on the people that she has come to know through the process of researching this book, people she ate memorable meals with, chefs, ordinary people and more. There is so much information in this book. I can totally imagine myself pulling this book off the shelf and browsing for just a few pages and finding something I had either forgotten about or that jumps out and catches my attention this time around.
If there was one minor niggle with this book it is in the fact that none of the photos that were included in the book included any details of what it was that we were looking at and some of the photos were a bit boring really. If it wasn't for that very minor criticism, this really would have been a perfect cookbook!
When my copy comes, which should have this gorgeous cover, I already know that there are a couple of recipes that I will share for a future Weekend Cooking post. I didn't realise until I was ordering that Claudia Roden is also one of the authors who has been given the Penguin Great Food treatment, so I ordered that book as well. I can also definitely see myself exploring more of Claudia Roden's cookbooks in the future.
In the meantime, if you want to see a few examples of the kinds of recipes that you will find in this book, there are some recipes that can be found on the Guardian website at the following link:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/mar/18/spanish-recipes-exclusive-claudia-roden
If you have any interest at all in Spanish food, I would highly recommend that you take a look at this exceptional cookbook.
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If you have any interest at all in Spanish food, I would highly recommend that you take a look at this exceptional cookbook.
That sounds great, I appreciate it when cookbook authors include information as well as simply recipes, it always makes me more keen to get cooking!
ReplyDeleteI think it means that you can look through it more times, not only for recipes but also to just pick up and read.
DeleteYou've reminded me of my task today--culling the cookbooks and getting rid of the ones I don't cook from. Most of them were gifts--I try to be much more discerning when buying cookbooks now. I can't believe that I've only just now thought to go to the library for cookbooks!
ReplyDeleteI quite regularly use the library for cookbooks I think I might be interested in. Cookbooks are often quite expensive here and so it is good to KNOW that you like it before you actually purchase it!
DeleteWhat a treasure trove of Spanish foodie goodness! Hahaha, I was going to say something about the many pieces of paper in the library book, but you preempted my remark ;) Please post about this book again after you've tried some of the recipes?
ReplyDeleteI am hoping to post a couple of pretty simple recipes from it once I receive the book, so hopefully in a couple of weeks.
DeleteSounds like a great book, esp. because I know next to nothing about Spanish cuisine. I do agree that the thing with the photos is a bit of a bummer, though.
ReplyDeleteit's a small thing, but yes, I really would have liked to have known what it was we were looking at.
DeleteOle! there is nothing as nice as a bright, colourful paella on a cold Winter's night, it warms the soul.
ReplyDeleteI love cookbooks of all kinds and this one sounds great.
Mmmm, have such fond memories of eating Paella in Barcelona. I haven't actually cooked it myself and have had a couple of average versions when I have been out and about.
DeleteOh this is perfect for me. I love cookbooks that include history or stories as well as the recipes. Oh yes. Despite the photo thing, I think I need to order this ... Off to do that now. Can't wait to see what you make first.
ReplyDeleteI hope you like it!
DeleteOh ha, ha! I actually own two or three of her books! Too funny. I didn't recognize her name but I do recognize the covers of her books. :)
ReplyDeleteWhich ones do you own Beth?
DeleteI don't really know much about Spanish food. I should check out those recipes...
ReplyDeleteI don't know a huge amount but I am looking forward to reading more.
DeleteSounds interesting -- I'd like to learn more about Spanish cooking. And I do enjoy cookbooks with history, personal anecdotes, etc. I like the new cover!
ReplyDeleteOften that is what makes a cookbook for me! I like the blue cover too! that is the one I am expecting to receive. Hopefully I do!
DeleteI haven't ever really given Spanish food a go. Interesting. Have a god week.
ReplyDeleteThere's some interesting food, and some that have made their way into mainstream food.
DeleteOoh! Looks really interesting - going to look for it at my library.
ReplyDeleteHow interesting that it contains so much history. I haven't cooked too much Spanish food, though I love the flavors. I look forward to your future posts on this.
ReplyDeleteI've only recently learned of Claudia Roden - but I've been wanting to check out some of her books. Cookbooks w/ history entwined are my favorites!! Thanks for this review.
ReplyDeleteI also love food books like this - the ones with more than just recipes. In this case, I'd enjoy learning more about Spanish culinary history. I'm going to see if my library has this one.
ReplyDeleteOh,no. I got a little behind on reading the Weekend Cooking posts and did not see your nice mention here. So glad you like the book. Roden is such a talented chef.
ReplyDelete