£30 to spend on cook books what do i buy?

car25

The Dinner Lady by Jeanette Orrey

angeltreats

Oh I love the look of Apples for Jam on Amazon, I keep almost buying it and talking myself out of it!

Sublime_2

I find most of my recipes just by doing a search online, usually google.

My sister bought me Levi Roots, Caribbean Food made easy for christmas. She made this lovely pepperpot stew from it in and adapted for her slow cooker.

cooking-mama

Economy Gastronomy is only £7.99 at the book people,and there is usualy a free delivery code over on the discounts and vouchers board.or possibly free delivery when you register. http://www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?fromPage=category&orderId=7524848&categoryId=48148&catalogId=10051&field2=&productId=173022&errorViewName=ProductDisplayErrorView&lastItemIndex=&langId=100&langId=100&purchaseLocation=&updatePrices=1&storeId=10001&storeId=10001&calculationUsageId=-1&ddkey=http:OrderItemUpdate
another recommended book is River cottage everyday,also a good price with the bookpeople at £9.99 ,this one is on my wishlist http://www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_10001_10051_175635_100_500020__category_

slowandsteady_2

'The Works' book shop is good, i have 'Meals for Beginners' and Meals on a Budget', great books as they tell you about shopping and buying too, think they cost me £2.99 each. I have 'how to feed your family....' to and i like that cos it has real shopping lists recieots in it. Economy Gatsronomy not my cup of tea as it has too many in my opinion long winded recipes, im simple and quick in this house!

beemuzed

I'd check out those recommended above in your local library and then choose a couple you really like and think you'd use - I think cookery books are quite a personal thing! My own favourites include Good Housekeeping, and almost anything by Delia. I have several shelves full - because I love reading them!

[Deleted User]

Don't forget a be-ro book if you like baking - lol! Got mine from the local supermarket. I can highly recommend the BBC Good Food website as well where you can build an online recipe book - print out and laminate if you want to keep a copy.

System

I would endorse "The Pauper's Cookbook" by Jocasta Innes, mentioned in the original post (£4.96 at Amazon at the moment for the current version). I have the previous two versions -- the first is superb, and the second OK, but I can't comment on this current one. Might be worth seeking out the first incarnation on the second-hand market?

I'd also get "Cheap and Easy" by Rose Eliot if it is still in print -- vegetarian, but also generally useful, and worth looking out for. Amazon seems to have several second-hand copies at £0.01 plus postage £2.75.

"Economy Gastronomy" is good but, in a straight competition, I might prefer to recommend my most recent enthusiasm -- Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's latest offering, "River Cottage Everyday" (£11.25 at Amazon, but I have seen it lower elsewhere). Varied and interesting, with a range of recipes suitable both for family meals and for entertaining. Try looking at both in a bookshop to see which you prefer, before going home and ordering online to get the best price.

Then I would get the "More with Less" cookbook by Doris Janzen Longacre, at £9.70 from Amazon -- American through and through, but hiding many priceless gems within its cup measures and vaguely unfamiliar combinations of ingredients.

Which would leave you with £1.33 change, which I would either save towards my next cookbook splurge, or add a further £2.64 of my own to buy "Fresh Bread from your Bread Machine Every Morning" by Annette Yates (which was available for less than £2 when I bought it, but now seems to have rocketed in price at Amazon). Of course, you would need to own a bread machine for that to be a worthwhile investment!

These books would give you a vast range of recipe repertoire, mostly for basic family fare but with flexibility for fancier occasions, and would also give you lots to read (which is what I like best in a recipe book).

Have fun spending the cookery book budget! My New Year's Resolution is to avoid buying any cookery books for the whole year (despite vigorous cutting back and charity shop donation, I still own several hundred). 3 days down, and only 362 to go! :-)

larmy16

I like the Rachael Allen books - they don't seem to have endless lists of ingredients. One of my best ones though is An Indian Housewife's cookery book. Such cheap recipes. I cannot justify buying anymore cookbooks though I keep seeing this Thrifty one mentioned and I have pledged not to buy off Amazon this year!!!!! Pure torture.

Reverbe

I used to love Caz Clarke for budget stuff when I was at Uni..

Have to say have heard a lot about River Cottage Everyday on here so picked it up in Waterstones the other day... can't see much every day about things like Elderflower something or other..