Recipes for Success

THIS year has been a bumper year for cookbooks with more beautiful, desirable and, dare we say, useful tomes jockeying for shelf space than ever before. From timeless classics to beginner's guides, nerdy textbooks to filthy food porn, there's something for everyone. So which to choose? Take a look at what's under our tree.

Cuisinier Gascon: Meals from a Gascon Chef, Pascal Aussignac
(Absolute Press £25)

If you've ever tried Cellar Gascon's tourte Gasconne, a duck and wild mushroom pie from Gascony, then you'll want to spend some quality time with Cuisinier Gascon. Author Pascal Aussignac has condensed the cuisine of southwestern France (and his London empire comprising a Michelin starred restaurant, comptoir and wine bar) into this attractive book.

   Cuisinier Gascon, image courtesy of Jean Cazals

Momofuku, David Chang and David Meehan
(Clarkson N Potter, £24.28)
It's not big and it's not clever, but potty-mouthed Korean-American chef David Chang's liberal use of the F-word has made Momofuku the cognoscenti's book of the year. Some obscure ingredients and complex recipes will deter some readers but most will relish the introduction to hot chef Chang and his trio of cult New York eateries.

  

Momofuku 
I Know How To Cook, Ginette Mathiot
(Phaidon, £24.95)
Je Sais Cuisiner is where those annoyingly perfect French women you love to hate learned how to cook. Out in English for the first time, the French bestseller (first published in1932) feels more relevant than ever as our appetite for bourgeois French classics like tarte tatin and boeuf bourguignon continues to grow. Delia seems clueless by comparison.		    I Know How To Cook

The Fat Duck Cookbook, Heston Blumenthal
(Bloomsbury, £35)
After last year's Big Fat Duck Cookbook - all 5.44kg and £125's worth of it - the new downsized version feels positively featherweight. Only the form has changed; the content is exactly the same. One caveat: unless you have ice baths, dehydrators and ready supplies of transglutaminase, this 'cook' book may not see much kitchen action.

    The Fat Duck Cookbook
Larousse Gastronomique
(Hamlyn, £60)
First published in 1938, the 'bible of French gastronomy' has been brought bang up-to-date for 2009 with a seriously stylish new look, 900 new photographs, 85 chef biographies and such 21st century entries as 'nitrogen, liquid'. The ultimate reference tool for those who don't need another conventional cookbook.		    Larousse Gastronomique
Rôtis, Stéphane Reynaud
(Murdoch Books, £17.99)
Reminding les rosbifs that roasting is not just for Sundays, bestselling French author Stéphane Reynaud dishes our "roasts for every day of the week". Poultry, fish, oven and pot roasts are all given Reynaud's signature rustic treatment and look all the more mouthwatering for it. One of the best-looking books of the year.		    Rotis
Easy Tasty Italian, Laura Santtini
(£20, Quadrille)
Among the terrific Italian cookbooks jostling for shelf space this year, Laura Santtini's stands out for its almost alchemical approach to transforming every day cooking with pastes, rubs and marinades and simple techniques like pounding, chopping and beating. As Waitrose Food Illustrated’s 'agony aunt', Mrs Santtini is one signora worth listening to.
 		    Easy Tasty Italian

Coco, Feran Adrià et al
(Phaidon, £29.95)
The latest in art publisher Phaidon's '10x10' series that sees the stars of today anoint the stars of tomorrow. Discover who the likes of Ferran Adrià, Alain Ducasse and Fergus Henderson are tipping for the top along with a first look at their recipes, menus and behind-the-scenes action at their restaurants.

    

Coco
The Vegetarian Option, by Simon Hopkinson
(Quadrille, £20)
The first new book in eight years from Simon 'Hoppy' Hopkinson, author of Roast Chicken and Other Stories. Geared towards lovers of vegetables more than vegetarians per se (you'll note the recipe for chicken stock), this is a useful collection of recipes for kick-starting your 'meat-free Mondays'.		    The Vegetarian Option
Supper for a Song, Tamasin Day-Lewis
(Quadrille, £19.99)
Mindful of January's call to tighten our belts (following the annual festive loosening), we must include one pennywise tome in our pick of the best. Acclaimed cookery writer Tamasin Day-Lewis's accessible comfort food collection proves that thrifty soups, stews and home-baked puds can be imaginative and, most importantly, tasty.		    Supper for a Song
Floyd’s Food, Keith Floyd
(Absolute Press, £7.99)
A timely reissue of the late Keith Floyd's first and still best known work from 1981. The introduction by Rising Damp's Leonard Rossiter dates it somewhat but Floyd's much-imitated-never-bettered take on the classics easily stands the test of time.		   Floyd's Food