My Christmas 2024 cookbook gift guide

Not one of those ‘the best’ lists but the best for the person you’re giving them to

In the spirit of Christmas - well, it IS now December - this is a free post but if you’d like to benefit from my moneysaving wine recommendations and food, restaurant and travel tips there’s a 50% discount on annual subscriptions this weekend. In other words till 11.59pm GMT today, Sunday December 1st.

You might worry that someone who has a lot of cookbooks wouldn’t want another one but I assure you, as a lifelong cookbook addict, that person can never have too many.

That doesn’t mean they’re not picky. Oh no. Give the latest Jamie - how many books has he written now? - and they may look politely disappointed.

So, as I say every year, it’s a question of matching the cookbook to the recipient. Who may fall into more than one of the categories below, of course.

For example Meera Sodha’s Dinner, which is possibly a candidate for the most useful cookbook of the year, admirably ticks the box for those of us who need midweek inspo but is also a great book if you’re looking for a book for a vegetarian or vegan

And of course they don’t have to be spanking new. Books published earlier this year like Georgina Hayden’s Greekish and Helen Graves BBQ Days, BBQ Nights might be exactly the ones to rock your boat. (I have a friend who barbecues all year round, rain or snow. Maybe you do too.)

Then there are the handsome reissues including Diana Henry’s Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons and Pierre Koffmann’s Memories of Gascony. (Perfect for lovers of old school French food.) And all the books I picked last year …

There are actually a ridiculous number to choose from so forgive exclusions. These are just the ones that have caught my eye or come my way.

If you’re buying for …

…an Ottolenghi fan

Having said unkind things about Jamie (I do have some of his books but never really cook from them) there are some authors whose books you can never seem to have enough of. Every time an Ottolenghi book comes out I want it and Comfort which is full of brilliant recipes including these carrots with curry leaf dukkah which I made a few weeks ago is no exception.

… a good cook, desperately in need of midweek (and weekend) inspo

Meera Sodha’s Dinner, as I’ve mentioned - is full of punchy, largely Asian-inspired recipes. Ideal for a couple of adventurous eaters although most of the recipes are for four. Would anyone else like to see more recipes for two?

And if they’ve got (reasonably adventurous) kids. Claire Thomson’s new Veggie Family Cookbook, is a worthy successor to her Home Cookery Year. As you’ll know if you follow her on instagram (@5oclockapron) her recipes are both down to earth and do-able but by no means pedestrian. I have my eye on the cauliflower biryani with rose and almond milk.

… a veggie or vegan (although we’re all plant-eaters at least some of the time these days)

Goodness you are absolutely spoilt for choice here. This has been a bumper year for plant-based books. In addition to the two books above if you’re shopping for an Anna Jones fan you’re probably going to want to buy them her latest, Easy Wins which is inspired by 12 hero ingredients but I’m going to champion Mark Diacono’s Vegetables: easy and inventive suppers not least because I absolutely love his writing and photography. Is there anything the man can’t do? There are also some particularly lovely pie and tart recipes. I do love a tart.

The other one I’d recommend is Theo Randall’s Verdura which is full of enticing Italian vegetable recipes. The Italians are particularly good at vegetable cooking - much better than the French. I’d buy it for the lasagne recipes alone.

…carnivores (yes there are still some left)

It’s a brave man who pitches a book on meat to their publisher these days but if anyone can nail themselves a commission Tim Hayward can. The result is Steak: the whole story. And it is.

I confess I’m biased about it as it talks about my son Will’s restaurant Hawksmoor but, as the title suggests, it tells you absolutely everything you need to know about buying and cooking steak.

…bakers - and non-bakers

Two categories of recipient here - enthusiastic bakers who will fall on Nicola Lamb’s slightly geeky Sift which I suspect will have already become many bakers’ bible and non-bakers (like me) who need all the help they can get. Edd Kimber has made his name catering for the latter, the latest being Small Batch Cookies. What’s not to love about baking for 1 or 2?

I’m also going to suggest you lay your hands on Sue Lawrence’s New Scottish Baking which I’ll be totally honest and admit I’ve only just got round to ordering but I love her recipes and have never tried one that hasn’t worked.

…family members who like to read in bed (or possibly even in the loo)

Jay Rayner heads the list here for his appealing Nights Out At Home which I’m currently reading. In fact it’s a book about eating out as well as eating in and the inspiration he derives from it when he’s cooking at home. He not only writes really well but is admirably greedy, two essential qualifications for writing a compelling cookbook.

Nigel Slater’s A Thousand Feasts is a bit misleading as it’s basically a book of reflections about life, some related to cooking, some not. No recipes which might disappoint Slater fans but, as I’ve mentioned, the end papers are just gorgeous.

I reviewed Amuse Bouche by Caroline Boyd for Club Oenologique so you can read what I said about it on their website. (Basically that it’s a lovely quirky book about French food which would be great to have with you on a French road trip.)

Also for Francophiles (and cheeselovers) the latest in Ned Palmer’s books on cheese, A Cheesemongers’ Tour de France would go down well. He writes really well too.

… someone who’s just been to xxxx (fill in applicable country) and wants to recreate the food

I must confess I’m thinking Mexico here and can’t wait to get stuck into my copy of Susana Villasuso’s Sobremesa which is full of recipes based on ones Villasuso inherited from her grandmother.

If you’ve just got back from - or are contemplating going to - India Romy Gill’s beautifully illustrated India features family recipes too. You could make the delicious-sounding paneer burji (scrambled paneer curry) here for breakfast or supper

And although the -ish in Georgie Hayden’s Greekish means the recipes aren’t wholly traditional it’s full of tempting suggestions like One Pan Pastitsio and Baklava cheesecake. My copy is already dotted with post-it notes.

… a friend who lives in Devon (or maybe just the south-west)

You might think The Dartmouth Food Festival Cookbook is a bit niche but the festival has attracted some great cookery writers and chefs over the years and this is a well curated selection of recipes. (I have my eye on the smoked haddock, leek and Quicke’s cheddar pasties) The advantage of a compilation like this is that everyone wants to show off their best recipes.

… the person who doesn’t know what to do with their airfryer/microwave/pressure cooker

If you’ve got an air fryer you’ve almost certainly got an air fryer book - W H Smith seems to sell nothing else - but there are two other appliances you might want help with.

Tim Anderson - better known for his excellent books on Japanese food - has written a gem of a small book on microwave cooking called Microwave Meals which almost tempts me to get a microwave and would be good for someone who loves theirs and wants some new ideas for using it.

And if you’re buying a present for a pressure cooker newbie you couldn’t do better than Everyday Pressure Cooking, the latest book from pressure cooker queen Cat Phipps who is also on Substack.

… offspring who have a stocking (at 32) and like to have a book in it

The brilliant Blasta books, which are published in Ireland, might just about fit if its one of those big wide stockings. The latest are Agak-Agak about Malaysian food and Socafro on recipes from Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago. Great recipes you’re unlikely to find elsewhere and charming illustrations

Smaller still is The Crisp Sommelier, a peach of an idea from drinks writer Neil Ridley. Matching wine and crisps! Wish I’d thought of it first.

… a wine lover who might have stray bottles open

Speaking of booze, can I mention again the reissue of The Wine Lover’s Kitchen (which is this month’s giveaway if you’re a paid subscriber. The offer closes tonight. Click here to enter.) Worth buying for a winelover anyway though obviously I would say that.

I’m also very much enjoying dipping into The Four Horsemen by Nick Curtola which is as much about the story behind his Brooklyn restaurant and the wines they serve there as the recipes although those are tempting too. One for someone who doesn’t like to have the books everyone else has on their shelf.

There are more - of course there are more - and I’m sure some notable omissions but this should hopefully steer you towards some presents that will go down well. Do share any books you’ve bought as presents this year - or would like to receive yourself.

By the way bookshop.org which supports local bookshops and to whom I have linked rather than the dreaded Amazon is offering free delivery until tomorrow night (December 2nd)

I hope you’ve enjoyed this free post - if you have it would be great if you’d give it a ❤️. And a reminder that if you’d like to benefit from my weekly food, wine and travel tips there’s a 50% discount on annual subscriptions this weekend. In other words till 11.59pm GMT today, Sunday December 1st.