food-best-of A good, solid collection of cookbooks is essential for any active kitchen. Cookbooks full of reliable recipes, beautiful artwork, alluring photography and most importantly - the sticky, sometimes floury remants of previously-cooked meals. Christine Gordon, who organises many of our foodie events throughout the year, looks back her favourite cooking and foodie books from 2011.

winter Winter on the Farm
Matthew Evans

Apparently the dream is real. You can move to the country, you can grow your own food, and you can produce meals that look and taste like memories of the past. This is possible, even if it is cold and wet. As we all know Matthew Evans, chef and food critic moved to Tasmania and started out on his own. The food in this cook book suits the winter palate (think mushroom pie and potato and bacon soup) but ladies and gentlemen it is never to warm for cherry and elderflower pudding! Winter on the Farm is the type of book that makes cooking for families and friends easy and keeps the possibility of doing something different on the tip of your tongue.

abuelas My Abuela's Table
Daniella Germain

Melbourne is making a fuss lately of Mexican food and for good reason. It's simple, easy and delicious. Germain brings that simplicity to this book, but with a lovely edge. The illustrations (think botanical type drawings), which she did, are whimsical odes to the very heart of Mexican cooking: clean cut flavours. She learnt it all from her Grandmother(her abuela) and here we have recipes for beef in nut sauce and my favourite, pan de muerto: day of the dead bread. There are recipes for chillies but I’m afraid no TexMex here.

Read a guest blog post by Daniella Germain about the making of My Abuela's Table.

butcher The Butcher, the Baker, the Best Coffee Maker
Gaye Weeden and Hayley Smorgon

This is what I’m thinking: that you, busy person, have no time for cooking yet want food that warms your heart and that of your guests. You have time to source but not to do the sauce. This book, The Butcher, the Baker, the Best Coffee Maker has been produced for you. The authors, and I’m sure what an arduous task this was for them, have travelled across Melbourne to find the products you can proudly call your own. Think mushroom pie from the Mushroom Man followed by limone gelato from Gelobar and you have, what we call, a dinner party.

georgie Georgie Porgie
George Calombaris

This delightful cook book is filled with incredibly easy to follow recipes that kids will love to both eat and cook: think more spaghetti Bolognese than twice braised duck. The pictures are bright and cheery, there is a touch of television glamour about the layout with photos of George doing what he does best. This is a terrific introduction to basics in the kitchen and crowd pleasers for everyone. Good work George!

little_bit A Little Bit Of This, A Little Bit Of That
Isabella and Sofia Bliss, with Sylvana Spina (their mum)

I’m sure there is part of you, oh sensible one, that cannot believe that two 12-year-olds could produce a cook book that is of any culinary value, even if it is written by the winners of the very first Junior MasterChef. I was sceptical also, until my daughter of the same age produced a family meal of homemade gnocchi with eggplant sauce followed by crostoli. Who I am to knock back a dinner made not by me? This book is filled with Italian gems with easy recipes. The warmth and pleasure of this family is evident throughout the book. A joyful cookbook for every child, even the one hiding in you.

zumbo Zumbo
Adriano Zumbo

Roll up ladies and gentleman, roll up! It’s Zumbo time. Adriano Zumbo’s book is Willy Wonka meets mad scientist meets inner child: divine pictures, easy (if lengthy) recipes and all the glamour one needs in a cookbook. Your kids will be delighted to have a little MasterChef wizardry in your kitchen. Spellbind their teacher by producing popcorn macaroons! Spellbind yourself!

home_made Home Made
Yvette Van Bowen

If you are heading down the home-made gift avenue for Christmas this year, there are some great ideas in Home Made, especially if you’re looking further afield than strawberry jam and shortbread. No need to visit a chemist for these recipes. By all accounts, you only need to stroll to the nearest food market – or indeed, out to your very own garden. There’s everything from tea to spicy jams, all ready to awaken the creative in you.

bills_every Bill’s Everyday Asian
Bill Granger

Talking of painless-to-make and simple-to-please recipes, Bill’s Everyday Asian gives you all the tricks for producing mouth-watering Asian tastes in your kitchen. There are recipes here that would work well on a Tuesday night after the school concert round-up meeting, but also recipes for presenting to friends and family on 23 December, when you need something impressive

movida_concina Movida Cocina
Richard Cornish & Frank Camorra

However, if Asian tastes are not your thing, look to the latest book by Richard Cornish and Frank Camorra. These two formidable blokes have been busy this year, both travelling and writing. Their book, Movida Cocina, gives you the inside gossip on signature dishes from the Movida restaurants, as well as Spanish techniques for getting the most out of your tapas. Terrific if you cannot ever seem to get a seat at Movida Next Door. Knock the tinsel off the kitchen bench and produce potato bombs that go a treat with a cold glass of sherry.

cooking_with_beer Cooking with Beer
Paul Mercurio

On the topic of booze, Cooking with Beer is a seasonal stand-out. It’s not only the perfect gift for the beer guzzler in your family, but gives instructions on incredibly easy-to-do meals, the majority made standing around the BBQ (and not all include meat.)

chris Christine Gordon is the Events Coordinator for Readings and is a committee member of The Stella Prize. She can be contacted at events@readings.com.au.

More Food and Cooking books, including World Cooking, Healthy Cooking, Vegetarian Cooking, Celebrity Chef Cookbooks and Baking.

Other 'best of 2011' lists: