S T A R T E R S
you’re interested in preserving, this is a handy compendium that’s sure to have plenty of sticky pages thanks to regular use. MELISSA STEWART
HUNTER GATHER COOK Nick Weston (GMC Publications, £25)
This is no regular cookbook, rather a tool kit for some post-apocalyptic future where we’re all living in the greenwood, foraging. There’s loads on how to skin and butcher a deer (with step-by-step photos), ditto on rabbit and game birds, and page after page of forage-worthy hedgerow plants and mushrooms, explaining how dandelions can be treated as free chicory and why the stew-worthy velvet shank should never be confused with the similar looking and ominous sounding funeral bell. Weston is a freelance chef who jacked London in during the 2008 recession and returned to rural Sussex to live, semi-feral, in a treehouse, not seeing a soul for weeks at a time. Later he’d start Hunter Gather Cook, a cookery school showing soft town-dwellers how to turn a roadkill badger into burgers. Though there’s as much on living off the land as actual recipes here, there are plenty of those too, from rabbit carpaccio to bunny burgers, ‘dirty doe’ tacos to stinging nettle pesto cakes. Fine fare for any modern Maid Marion or Little John. MATT BIELBY
MOB VEGGIE
Ben Lebus (Pavilion, £14.99) If you’re on Instagram and are into your grub, chances are you’ve already hit follow on Mob Kitchen. Ben Lebus is the guy behind it, having become famous for his simple 60-second cooking videos on social media. Following on from the success of his initial bestseller, this second book is entirely vegetarian, offering fresh and delicious recipes, designed to feed up to four people for under a tenner. Divided into six chapters, it has plenty for those needing something simple and easy – veggie satay noodles, say – or, if you’re entertaining and want more of a challenge, the likes of squash, spinach and red pepper pie might be more up your street. The ‘fakeaway’ section is all about recreating your favourite fast food (albeit as a healthier incarnation) and there are plenty of recipes for weekend brunches, too. Whether you are a knowledgeable or novice chef, the easy-to-follow methods and accessible ingredients mean everyone can explore vegetarian cooking. There is even a Spotify song recommendation to bop along to in the kitchen for every dish. NATALIE BRERETON
From The Book of Preserves by Pam Corbin (Bloomsbury, £20); photography by Mark Diacono
LEMON AND HONEY CURD WITH ITS PERFECT balance of acidity and mellow sweetness, lemon is always the most popular of the curds. As well as spreading it on toast and other things, I like to swirl a couple of tablespoons through the uncooked batter of a lemon cake, to create the ultimate fullness of flavour and crumb. MAKES 4 x 200ML JARS 2 unwaxed lemons, zested 250ml lemon juice (5-7 lemons) 125g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces 200g granulated sugar 100g honey 4 large eggs, well beaten 1 Sterilise your jars and twiston lids. Have ready a pan of simmering water that your heatproof bowl will fit snugly over without touching the water. 2 Put the lemon zest, juice, butter, sugar and honey into the bowl and
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place over the pan of simmering water. Lightly stir the mixture from time to time until the butter has barely melted – the temperature on a cooking thermometer should be about 50C. 3 Carefully pour the eggs into the lemon-butter mixture and whisk briskly with a balloon whisk for a minute or so until well combined. Continue to cook the mixture for 9-10 minutes, scraping down the sides every so often with a spatula and giving the mixture a quick whisk every minute or so until it is thick, the surface is glass-like and the temperature has reached 78C. Remove from the heat. 4 Tip the curd into a wide-necked jug with a good pouring lip, making sure you scrape around the sides of the bowl, then fill the warm jars to the brim; seal at once. 5 Store in a cool place for up to 4 weeks. Once opened keep in the fridge and eat within 3-4 weeks.