Customer Reviews

The Duchy Originals Cookbook

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While the review below is correct about the content of this cookbook, Such a low star rating is a bit unfair ... if one is looking for a very handsome, lovingly produced collection of recipes that highlight regional fare & natural ingredients, this is a great book to pick up. The food - as expected - is hearty, and the pictures provide a real incentive to make the meals. If the taste of a big, freshly prepare English Breakfast sounds good to you, you'll probably enjoy most of the recipes this book provides. And if you want to learn a little bit extra about the ideas behind this return to slower, more organic methods of producing (not just the food itself) you can sense the people behind the cookbook really care about what they're doing. Probably a 4-star book, but I gave it 5 to balance the measly amount of stars below ...

What fun. Gives real insight into how the Brits are thinking about food and where it comes form... Prince Charles is to be commended as is everyone of these food and drnk suppliers. Anyone who still thinks the Brits do not eat well will be in for a surpirse. Too many don't know that take-out and restaurant food in England can be Gourmet in every sense of the word. Great fun to read and the recipes are very clear. In many ways England is way ahead of us in "organic" farming and high-class food for the masses.

This is more than a cookbook, it is a food book. If you are Michael Pollan fan, slow food fan, or care a bit about what and how you eat this is a marvelous resource. Yes, it isn't chock-a-block with recipes but ideally with a book like this under your belt, you will have a better appreciation for your ingredients and foodstuffs, and all around be better in the kitchen no matter what recipe you have at hand.

I like this book. It's handsome and the recipes are interesting. However, I admit I doubt I'll try more than a few of them. There's a great deal of text about Duchy Originals and about cooking and food in general. If you like that, you'll love this book. If you'd prefer more recipes and less background information, you probably won't care for this book. This book would make a marvelous gift for an Anglophile who wants to learn more about British cooking. Howevever, I admit I rarely open it when I'm in the kitchen and in the mood to try something new. My idea of a successful cookbook is one that is dog-eared, stained with ingredients and has tons of notes scribbled in it. This one sits quietly on the shelf and has few notes.