Cooking writers I have loved.

I was talking to some lady friends of mine the other day when discussion inevitably turned from Global Politics and Feminist Issues, to the making of the family dinners. My line of conversation was, as usual, moaning on about how I had lost my cooking mojo. I know, ho hum.

Yeah yeah, I hear you say, so she opens a tin of beans for the kids for dinner, ho ho, how amusing, oh yes we get it - SLAPDASH - yes, we get it, stop labouring the point already...

WELL guys if you would ACTUALLY let me get a word in, then I would be able to say that I was ALSO talking about how much I used to love to cook. OK? Ugh!

We were also talking about how great it is THESE DAYS how we can just GOOGLE recipes and look them up on Taste.com or whatever those recipe websites are.

Which THEN led us onto the subject of COOKING BOOKS and how much we all used to love them and how they are presumably going to become defunct, what with the RISE OF THE INTERNET, and all.

Which THEN made me think about my own beloved collection of cookery bookery.  Well, mine and M's. He has a prodigious collection himself.  In our courting days we used to spend the whole time cooking each other nice meals and eating them and drinking wine and stuff. Now we just drink.

Here's some miscellaneous thoughts on cookery bookery and cookery writery types for your reading pleasure.

This is the little bookshelf on the end of our kitchen bench wherein we store our cooking books. The bench itself is for storing sunglasses, discarded cardigans, plastic baskets full of assorted miscellaneous household detritus including pencils, notebooks, kindy paintings and fluff. OBVIOUSLY. Also, we have a kiddy gate. Get excited everyone.

I've definitely gone through a few fads cooking book wise but here's some of my consistent performers.

I've already told you lot how much I love Nigella. And that sometimes I am a conduit through which she channels her raw energy. She is my cookery muse. In fact I was inhabited by her body only last week when I spent a good few hours standing in the kitchen shoveling whole loaves of white bread spread with peanut paste into my mouth. Between you and me, I prefer it when she uses me for good not evil. Anyway this is her CLASSIC book that EVERYONE should get. Do it. Has a really good bit in it about cooking for kids too. Everyone who hates Nigella CAN SHOVE IT because I ADORE HER.

This is one of M's and we both love it sick. It is actually falling apart. I think Jill used to be food writer for The Guardian or something. Anyway I used her recipe for Anzac biscuits today, as I always do. I know they aren't hard but it is a real BALANCE of dry vs. wet ingredients, and we all know what happens when the BALANCE IS OUT OF WHACK. It is a veritable DISASTER OF EPIC PROPORTIONS. By that I mean, your bikkie doesn't stick together properly.

OK I should have put these next two up with Nigella but it's too hard to fiddle round with the pics now so we will MAKE DO.  Nigel Slater. I love him so much. I have this book....

...and this one. This is more recent. He has done quite a few. When I am feeling bleak I just flip through this one in particular and it never fails to cheer me the hell up. It has beautiful photos in it from his cool garden at his London house. I mean, you do kind of have to get over your jealousy of reading about how he just trips down the street and picks up odds and ends from fancy butchers and bakers and candlestickmakers when all we have in outer suburbia is Aldi and Woolworths but never mind. Also the recipes are good. And he is a great writer. He wrote a memoir of his early life called "Toast". I borrowed it from my cousin B. It is surprisingly sad and touching. Also he loves Nigella and she loves him. I KNOW! THE BEST!

I couldn't leave Stephanie out. This is THE BEST. M had an older edition but we snaffled this one up for a song when poor old Borders was closing down, and gave our old one to my mum. Beggars can't be chooser eh Mum? I'll thank you to be grateful. Anyway if you haven't got this then do yourselves a favour. It is organised by ingredient, so if you find yourself with a surplus of, say, mushrooms or lamb or tripe then you can look up a recipe for said ingredient. Bob's your uncle! Also it has useful things like a guide for converting measurements. Particularly useful for me at the moment because I broke our digital scales by immersing them in water to wash them. But don't tell M, I am playing dumb.

And speaking of fads, I present to you last, but definitely least, something from my youth.

Up yours Donna Hay. I used to love her so bad. I used to try and master the "Donna Hay spaghetti twirl". Oh how I yearned to twirl it like Donna. I bought her magazines and her cookbooks, even the Marie Claire ones. UNTIL I REALISED SOMETHING! They are crap. The recipes OFTEN don't work. I am sure they aren't tested. Also, I didn't like her on Masterchef. 

 So there you have it readers, some interesting tidbits from my brain to yours.

Do you still use cookbooks? Or the internet? Do you FREESTYLE it like my mum does? Or do you need a recipe for boiling an egg? Do you Donna Hay while the sun shines?

Tell me everything - and bon appetit!