Risotto ~ Chuck Williams (ed)

I've cooked a few risotto in my time, firstly at Tafe when I was studying commercial cookery, and then every so often because someone thinks it'd make a nice meal. I know there are those who love it in all its many variations, but personally it's never really been my kind of dish. Fussy to make, time consuming and although nice, certainly not something that excites me. That said, if you are fan of risotto, I have no doubt you'll be a fan of this book.


The cookbook starts with the basics of cooking risotto - guiding you through cooking out the rice, adding the hot stock and then flavouring the risotto, and if this is all you get from the book you'll probably be cooking a good basic risotto in no time. If you want more then it goes on to provide information on using herbs and cheeses to flavour the risotto before moving into recipes.

The recipes run from the more basic fare of Asparagus risotto, Broccoli risotto with parmesan and Ham, pea and parmesan risotto to the more luxurious Saffron risotto with crab and Lobster and champagne risotto. There are a number of dishes I'd probably categorize as 'things to do with risotto' such as Beef bolognese layered with classic risotto and Rosemary and walnut herb croquettes, some which work and some which just don't. Nonetheless, lots of idea's in the book for those who like the dish.

Suitable for risotto lovers, or those wanting to feed them.

- Kath

The Australian Brand Name Recipe Cookbook

The pretentious foodie snob within me really loathes this book. It is paperback printed on cheap paper with no pictures whatsoever and shamelessly promotes brand advertising - it's even in the title! The rest of me however grew up in Cessnock and is simply not that fussy, focussing on the delightful practicality of the book.


Do you remember those Honey joys recipes your mum would cut off the side of the cornflakes box, or the recipes on the label of the tin of condensed milk? Well that is precisely what you'll find in this little treasure. There is nothing remotely subtle about this book, with the branded product names bolded within the ingredients list of each recipe and the logo appearing at the top, but that's half the fun really. You look at that can of coke in your hand and you'll flick through and find recipes for Colombian banana cake with sea foam frosting, Grecian green beans or Japanese pickled cucumber all featuring this ingredient. And if you don't find them, just turn to the back of the book which contains not only your traditional recipe index grouped by the main ingredient, but also a separate index grouped by the brand name of the featured ingredient.

The recipes themselves range from the not so exciting Tuna spaghetti, Fruity icy poles and Cream of vegetable soup to the more appetising Coconut milk and coriander chicken, Loin of rabbit with apple and calvados rice and Rose petal ice-cream. There is a whole section on beverages that I find hard to fault, with the Classic gin and tonic with a lovely twist of lime, a very special Inca eclipse and a handy Party punch. None of the recipes would prove a challenge to any but the most inexperienced cook.

Recommended for average family cooks looking for simple recipes, and quite suitable for cooking with kids.

- Kath

African, Heartwarming Flavours from a Traditional Cuisine ~ Rosamund Grant

When I bought this book I was looking to fill a gap in my collection. I already had a representative sample of Moroccan cuisine, but that was as far as my African recipe collection went, and I do like to have a reasonably complete coverage. While I do absolutely adore Moroccan fare I am the first to admit that my tastes do not necessarily run to that of the rest of the African continent. Many years ago my partner and I dined at an African restaurant in Newtown and while an interesting meal, it certainly wasn't a favourite. Add to that the nasty dose of food poisoning that both I and several fellow diners experienced after a (very ordinary) meal at an Ethiopian restaurant in Canberra, and it doesn't top my list of regional cuisine. I was pleasantly surprised then, having bought the cookbook primarily to fill an information gap, that many of the recipes are much more my thing than I'd have imagined.


I guess it helps that I really like many of the elements that make up a lot of African cuisine, from the spices to the starchy root vegetables, the plantains, okra, christophene pear (choko, oh I do love choko) and the abundance of pulses. The Yam balls are definitely my sort of recipe, as is the East African roast chicken which comes out a gorgeous golden yellow thanks to the turmeric in the rub. The Mutton with black-eyed beans and pumpkin is a warming comfort dish and would sit comfortably alongside Ground rice for a filling winter meal. The few desserts within the book are also both simple and delicious, such as the Pawpaw and mango with mango cream and the Banana mandazi, making up for the lack of variety (with only four desserts) with simplicity and flavour.

The book itself is only small, but each recipe is accompanied by glossy photo's and clear, step-by-step instructions, with additional pictures demonstrating these steps in many cases. It is certainly not comprehensive in covering African cuisine, however it's a handy little addition to fill what was a big gap in my collection.

Recommended for cookbook collectors and those after a few simple and tasty recipes from across the African continent.

- Kath

Qantas Hors D'oeuvre Around the World ~ Don Fitzgerald (ed)

I'm really not sure that I should be reviewing this, especially as my brother-in-law is a pilot for Virgin, however I can't let that prejudice me, so I will review away.

The book was published in 1967 and it certainly shows in the food styling and photographs, but putting that to one side it has some good features. The book starts with an introduction outlining the highlights of the cuisine from each region that is represented. I did find it interesting that there was a heading for Australia and a separate heading for Tasmania, but we'll just let that one go shall we. This is also where they really start spruiking the Qantas brand, such as the following handy tip in relation to Japanese cuisine;

A tempura meal starts off with a hot towel for the face and hands (a feature of Qantas in-flight service).

The recipes contained in the remainder of the book are separated into chapters based on region, such as Australia and the Pacific or The Orient. Given the calibre of many cookbooks published at that time, I'm rather impressed at the selection of recipes. Each region has recipes from several nations such as Teheroa soup from New Zealand, Plun Mudda (Banana dumplings) from Norfolk Island and from Fiji the Ika kokanda (Fijian marinated fish) all within the chapter on Australia and the Pacific. This isn't to say that the recipes are quite the same as would be presented in a more modern cookbook, for instance the Tahitian marinated fish is served with chopped boiled egg sprinkled over the top, which strikes me as a very anglo-centric 1960's touch to the traditional cuisine. I give Fitzgerald points for trying though as the aim of any commercial cookbook is to sell copies, and this approach would have been appropriate at the time.


The remaining chapters contain similarly representative samples, with Beef sukiyaki (Japan), Nasi goreng (Indonesia), Satay (Singapore) and Madras curry (India) amongst the offerings from the Orient, and not a mention of Keens curry powder to be seen. The Middle East and Africa have some interesting offerings from Sosaties and Biltong from South Africa, a very delicious sounding Egg plant appetiser from Arabia and North Africa (think eggplant, lemon, garlic, parsley, yoghurt, green chilli), and Circasian chicken Istanbul representing Turkey.

There are chapters on Europe and The America's with highlights such as Swiss cheese fondue, Herrings in steintopf and Pork pie from Europe and Seviche, Panuchos and Nassau beach hotel crab fritters from the America's. On the whole the books does a commendable job (for the period it was published) in presenting dishes representative of regional cuisine from across the globe.

Recommended for anyone after a sample of recipes from around the world, especially if you can't seem to find anything more recent than 1967.

- Kath

Edible Gifts ~ Kay Fairfax

This is a very pretty book, and I enjoy leafing through the pages looking at the beautifully photographed creations contained within. The book is as pleasureable to the eye as it is to the palate, and it is very telling that the cover listed author is identified as the food stylist amongst the publishing details. Fairfax has a very good eye for presenting her creations and it is worth a read for the packaging idea's alone.


Weighing in at only 64 pages it's not really a serious or heavyweight cookbook, but nor do I think it was meant to be. What is does is fill a niche target in the cookbook market and it does this very nicely.

The recipes themselves are surprisingly good, though there are a few which I would be hesitant to present as gifts. The Thai-style bouquet garni for instance, while glossy and fresh and an inventive gift for a foodie friend, would need to be used fairly quickly after receipt or it would become a lifeless wilted mess. A box of the Chinese fortune cookies too might seem less than impressive as a gift, and would probably better suit serving to dinner guests with personalised messages or simply make one with a secret message for someone special.

I would be far more inclined to make the Turkish delight, or perhaps one of the variations on this recipe, the Orange nut delight or the Lemon nut delight. All four varieties of Chocolate truffles would easily please even my fussiest friends, though the Figs in muscat would delight some but not all. The book doesn't pretend to cover the full compliment of preserves, but the representative sample including recipes like Apple, mint and peppercorn jelly, Lemon spice vinegar, Peach chutney and Sweet cardamom mustard are delightful gift ideas.

Recommended for anyone looking for inspiration when making (or simply when packaging) home cooked gifts.

- Kath