Books for Australian cooks and gardeners, and people who love to do both

57
rate or flag this page

By judyoz

The Bookshelf of Oz


It's getting closer to 'that time of the year', when we all wonder what to give to special people. Something that will actually be cherished and used, and won't just get put somewhere and forgotten about. With keen cooks and gardeners it's easy, they can never, ever have too many cookbooks or gardening books.

Here are some great books which great gift ideas. Some are recently published (hint for present buyers: newly published books by old favourites are always well-received!), some are classics, and some are 'just a bit different'.

Cookbooks by Australian cooks, chefs and restauranteurs

Maggie's Harvest by Maggie Beer

Just published, Maggie's Harvest brings together over 350 of Maggie Beer's signature recipes, detailed descriptions of her favourite ingredients and inspiring accounts of memorable meals with family and friends. Beautifully presented, the cover is embroidered fabric, and the photos and recipes inside are suberb!

The Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander

Second edition, published 2004. The complete book of ingredients and recipes for the Australian kitchen. The book for a lifetime of cooking!

Thai Food by David Thompson

Thai Food by David Thompson is the most comprehensive account of this ancient and exotic cuisine ever published in English. Beautifully presented hardcover book, with bright pink Thai Silk cover, it's a visual and culinary masterpiece.

French by Damien Pignolet

Brand new hardcover book by one of Sydney's top chefs, published 2005, 403 pages. Includes gorgeous full-colour photos and recipe index. Bon Appetit!

Daily Italian by Toby Puttock

New cookbook from Tobie Puttock, the executive head chef of Fifteen Melbourne, and good mate of Jamie Oliver.

Books for Cooks who like to Garden, and Gardeners who like to Cook

Kitchen Garden Cooking with Kids by Stephanie Alexander

The story of a kitchen garden for kids and the recipes they cooked with the food they grew. Loads of gorgeous colour photos.

Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

Cook Your Way to the Good Life. Brand new hardcover book, full of fantastic colour photos and recipes. Perfect gift for all cooks and gardeners

Preserving by Oded Schwartz

The Ultimate Illustrated Guide to every type of preserve from around the world. Step-by-step colour photographs of all techniques and easy to follow recipes.

And finally, some books for gardeners and nature-lovers

A Slice of Organic Life by Sheherezade Goldsmith

Do you dream of growing your own vegetables, making jam from freshly picked fruit or keeping a couple of chickens? Are you and your family longing for a cleaner, greener, more wholesome life?

The Perfect Garden by Andrew Seccull

From how to prepare soil and make compost to choosing the right plans and growing your own vegies, there's an answer in this fantastic little book to every gardening question.

Waterwise Gardening by Kevin Walsh

Our gardens are guzzling between one quarter and one half of all domestic water. With our very dry land, where fresh water is a relative trickle, we need to get waterwise .... and fast!

The Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds by Peter, Pat and Raoul Slater

The Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds. Revised and Updated. 344 pages, includes colour illustrations, colour plates, line drawings, distribution maps, 14 new species, illustrations of all eggs and nest descriptions.

Australian Parrots and Finches by Malcolm McNaughton

New hardcover book, featuring fifty species of parrots and eighteen species of finches. Beautiful lifelike watercolour paintings.

Buy cookbooks online

  • DESSERT BIBLE To see other Cookbooks click here Brand new softcover book 252 pages gorgeous mouthwatering colour photos. What meal is complete without a sweet finale? There's nothing like a home-made dessert to put a smile of satisfaction on everyone's face. Desert Bible has a vast array of delicacies to suit every occasion and season so the possibilities for indulging your sweet tooth are endless. Try a fresh and healthy fruit salad sundae or sorbet in summer or warm up with a comforting pudding pie or crumble in winter. For special occasions an elaborate cheesecake or melt-in-the-mouth souffle is sure to impress. And there are plenty of quick and simple treats to please family and friends extra info.....

  • Perry hardcover Harmony new Neil Balance cookbook

    BALANCE AND HARMONY Asian Food by NEIL PERRY To see other cookbooks by Celebrity Chefs and Favourite Cooks please click here New hardcover book with dustjacket superb photography recipes ranging from basics to banquets. 400 pages published October 2008. One of the things I love most about Asian food is that it is made for the shared table and that is how I love to eat. A bowl of rice a few dishes some friends and family and a nice glass of wine or two; I can’t think of a better way to spend an evening. - Neil Perry In Balance Harmony Neil Perry revels in his love for Asian cooking: the great flavours the contrasts in tastes and textures and the way that just about anything can be cooke more details.....

  • Used

    STEPHANIE'S SEASONS by STEPHANIE ALEXANDER with foreword by Claudia Roden See a wide range of cookbooks click here Used hardcover book with dustjacket in very good condition no marks writing tears loose or missing pages. A very clean tight copy. This book is now out of print. First edition published 1993 316 pages. Stephanie's diary of her culinary year in 1992 includes accounts of preparations for Melbourne's annual Harvest Picnic a month spent in an old farmhouse in flood-torn Provence the trials of running a restaurant devoted to excellence in a recession the passing of her mentor Elizabeth David and constant adventures in the quest for new and superior produce. Beautifully illustrated wi click here.....

  • Ministry cookbook new hardcover

    JAMIE'S MINISTRY OF FOOD Anyone Can Learn to Cook in 24 Hours by Jamie Oliver See other cookbooks click here Brand new hardcover book 360 pages. Published October 2008 'The aim of this book is to completely inspire people who have no interest in food to have a go' Jamie Oliver Sixty years ago food was in short supply and malnutrition rates were high. The Ministry of Food was set up to teach the public how to make the best use of the food available to them. Fast forward to the present day where we have unlimited choices and plenty of food yet we're living in a world of junk food additives and preservatives. Our war is now against obesity as most people have little or no idea about how to cook more details.....

  • book recipe new

    THE COMMONSENSE COOKERY BOOK by the Home Economics Institute of Australia Inc (NSW Division) New hardcover book 378 pages published 2008. This classic book was first published in 1914. The classic step-by-step cookbook - for absolute beginners and experienced cooks alike. It′s what every household needs: a cookbook which tells you how to literally boil an egg grill a chop or make a great scone. The Commonsense Cookery Book has helped over a million readers navigate the kitchen teaching them the basics of food and cooking and helping them make the transition to more confident delicious meals - satays roasts casseroles and risottos. With information on measurements cuts of meat and cooke find out more.....

  • Ingredients Kim cookbook new

    4 INGREDIENTS GLUTEN FREE by Kim McCosker Rachael Bermingham See other 4 Ingredients Cookbooks click here New softcover book 256 pages over 400 recipes. Published July 2009 Over 400 New and Exciting recipes all made with 4 or fewer ingredients and ALL gluten free! You may think that living on a gluten free diet means living with a taste free diet but this book proves it's far from it! Following the success of the first two 4 Ingredients books 4 Ingredients Gluten Free has over 400 easy and economical recipes that will turm your taste buds into a frenzy! Rachael and Kim have collected and cooked thousands of recipes free from gluten to bring you this fantastic new book. If you have Coeliac di more details.....

  • Pizey hardcover New book Small

    SMALL CAKES by ROGER PIZEY photography by Sian Irvine To see other Cake Cupcake and Baking books at The Bookshelf of Oz click here Brand new hardcover book 64 pages gorgeous mouthwatering colour photos. Published 2008 Roger Pizey's small cakes have led the way in a huge home baking revival. From fondant fancies to florentines and chocolate cheesecake battenburg and brownies and lemon drizzle and blueberry muffins the classic bakes in Small Cakes provide comfort moments during a busy day make great accompaniments to afternoon tea and are a perfect excuse for sharing precious time with friends. In the creative hands of leading pastry chef Roger Pizey perfectly formed miniatures such as profite find out more.....

  • Fed Sue Up softcover new

    FED UP The revolutionary approach that changes parents' lives. by Sue Dengate See other books by Sue Dengate click here New softcover book minor cover creasing 352 pages. Fully revised and updated published 2008. Sue Dengate's bestselling books Different Kids The Failsafe Cookbook Fed Up and Fed Up with Asthma have opened the eyes of thousands of desperate parents over the last fifteen years to the adverse affects of synthetic additives and natural chemicals in foods. Based on groundbreaking research Sue's books show that learning difficulties behavioural problems and minor chronic illness in children and adults can all be the result of intolerance to food chemicals. Now in this long-awaited find out more.....


Print   —   Rate it:  up  down  flag this hub

working