The Latest Cookbooks – April 2024

Seasoning

By Angela Clutton – Murdoch Books, RRP$59.99

This beautiful book spans the four seasons with insights into eating and cooking over
50 vegetables and fruits. Award-winning food writer Angela Clutton delves into their seasonality and offers tips on shopping, storing, ways to use, flavour partners and how to preserve to minimise waste. There are fresh, modern recipes that will inspire and delight plus menu suggestions for hosting. Moving to seasonal eating is not only cheaper but also mimics what Mother Nature intended for us nutritionally. Angela notes that her motivation for this book was to empower confidence and know-how in being more confident with eating what’s available seasonally. For some that will encourage stepping out of routine and try new things.

Baker Bleu bake it till you make it

By Mike Russell – Murdoch Books, RRP$50.00

The iconic Baker Bleu bread is famous in Melbourne, regularly selling out and a supplier to many of the city’s top cafes and restaurants including Neil Perry’s Rockpool Bar & Grill. Mike Russell has geeked out on creating bread. He makes loaves that Neil describes as perfect chewy crumb, dark crust and a long lingering lactic sour taste. “This was truly magnificent bread; this bread moved me.”

This coffee table-worthy tome provides recipes, a real-life approach to making bread, ways to upcycle your bread, and a window into running your bakery. We love the baker’s toolkit providing an at-a-glance list of what you need to successfully bake your own.

On Sundays: Long Lunches through the seasons

By Dave Verheul – Hardie Grant Books, RRP$45.00

New Zealand-born, Melbourne-based chef Dave Verheul shares innovative and original recipes for every kind of Sunday feast inspired by the four seasons. This stunning cookbook features recipes that require either a wood-fired oven, a fire built on wood, or both. But a good quality gas-fired pizza oven will do. Those who have dined at Embla will recognize the dishes. Part memoir, there’s a section devoted to trout from Dave’s annual trip to the New Zealand high country with his father and brother. If you feel like his name is familiar, he launched the celebrated Matterhorn in Wellington and also worked alongside Gordon Ramsay at The Savoy Grill in London.