Cookbooks Worth Waiting for in 2020

I'm sure I'm not the only one, but when the prospect of a new year means new cookbook releases I get pretty excited. Every now and then I check the 'Coming Soon' in the Cookbook section of Booktopia and have a look at what and when things are going to be released. Sometimes I preorder straight away (as was the case for a few below!), others go into my wishlist so I can remember them for another time. 

Below are a few new releases for 2020 I am especially excited about. 

What cookbooks would you add to the list?

1. 'Now for Something Sweet' by Monday Morning Cooking Club - release date 24th February 2020: The highly anticipated fourth book by the Monday Morning Cooking Club ladies is the top of my list, because if the previous three books are anything to go by, it will be good. And the fact that it is almost solely dedicated to sweets means it's right up my alley!

2. 'Beatrix Bakes' by Natalie Paull - release date 1st March 2020: This is the cookbook all those who have visited the bakery Beatrix in North Melbourne have been waiting for. I visited once last year, and the one cake I tried had me desperate to recreate it at home it was that good (recipe here if you are interested). Soon there will be a whole book filled with these glorious recipes, my guesswork will no longer be needed!

3. 'Confidence in the Kitchen' by Emmylou MacCarthy - release date 1st June 2020: If you follow Emmylou on Instagram, or have watched her TV show, you'll know this book is bound to be as fun and jam packed with ideas as possible. Emmylou has showed some of the BTS of the photoshoot for this book, and it has been so interesting to really see more of what goes on before a books hits the shelves.

4. 'Falastin' by Sami Tamimi & Tara Wigley - release date 31st March 2020: Co-written by one half of the Ottolenghi empire, Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley are taking us through Palastine via recipes and stories. I am imagining this book to be in a similar vein to Jerusalem (by Tamimi and Ottolenghi), and I for one cannot wait.

5. 'Table Manners The Cookbook' by Jessie Ware & Lennie Ware - release date 3rd March 2020: If you listen to the podcast 'Table Manners' this is the cookbook for you. Mother and Daughter team up to compile the recipes they made their podcast guests, and I think I'll have to listen to a few more episodes before the book is released!

Links to books on Booktopia removed 15/07/2024.

Off the Shelf - ‘Jerusalem’ by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi

Since buying, collecting, reading, using and dreaming about cookbooks is such a big part of my life and this blog, I have decided to dedicate some space to them here. Every now and then instead of sharing a recipe, I will share a cookbook profile from one of the books on my shelves. What books other people have, how they use them and what they cook from them (if at all) is endlessly fascinating to me so I hope you will enjoy taking a cookbook off one of my shelves and see how it has influenced me and my cooking. 

The first book I wanted to take off my shelf for you is ‘Jerusalem’ by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi. With all the (much deserved) hype around Yotam Ottolenghi’s latest release ‘Simple’, it seemed only fitting to dive back into some of his earlier co-authored works. I also am unable to buy the new book as with it being so close to the end of the year, and having both my birthday and Christmas in December, I am always told by my family not to buy any new books so they can potentially give me them as a gift. So I am feeling an extreme case of FOMO at the moment, as everyday on Instagram I see another post about the book or about someone cooking from the book - and it all looks so good.

Not to mention Yotam’s new podcast ‘Simple Pleasures’, where he invites someone round to his place and they chat and enjoy dishes from his new book. I am already seriously craving the gnocchi he made for Nadiya Hussain on the first episode.

But until I get my hands on a copy, I still have the vast array of recipes from ‘Jerusalem’ to keep me occupied. See below for a little profile of the cookbook, and what I have made from it. It is definitely one I would recommend! 

Bought at: gifted (I have also gifted this book to someone else as well I liked it so much!)

Recipes made: Shakshuka (p.66) & Clear Chicken Soup with Knaidlach (pp.144-5)

I really like making and eating Shakshuka, however this was the first actual recipe for one I have followed. Most of the time I just make it all up using a can of diced tomatoes, whatever else we have that will go with it, plus the egg. It can be quite a simple dish, and after I saw Molly Yeh demonstrate it at a Local is Lovely workshop a couple of years ago I knew I could replicate it at home. I imagine Yotam and Sami’s version is more traditional than what I often make, and includes harissa and ground cumin. It was really nice making a shakshuka without a can of tomatoes and having a slightly spicy chunky sauce to cook the eggs in (I actually found it easier to cook the eggs this way). 

Adaptations: I reduced the amount of harissa to about a teaspoon as I’m not into really spicy foods, and reduced the amount of eggs as I was only serving one. I also used yellow capsicums as thats what we already had! 

Shakshuka

This chicken soup was my first ever attempt at making a Matzo Ball Soup over Passover. It is an involved affair, but worth it. My soup was not as flavourful as I had hoped, so I’m not sure if I should have cooked it longer or maybe it was the cuts of chicken I used (I didn’t 100% stick to the recipe on that one). I also used freshly ground matzo rather than pre-prepared matzo meal for the knaidlach so I think they would have been a bit lighter and smoother with the shop bought matzo meal. Definitely a recipe to go back to! 

Matzo Ball Soup

Favourite things about the book: This book is beautifully photographed and I really love the lifestyle photography from around Jerusalem. It really brings the essence of the city into the book and the recipes, rather than just showing photos of the completed dishes in isolation. 

I also really like the fact that this is more than a cookbook. Whilst reading you take in recipes you want to try and discover dishes you might never have heard of, but you also get a history lesson through food. The introductions for each chapter and recipes are well worth reading as much of the cultural and religious or historical significance of a dish or ingredient are explained. And sometimes personal notes from both the authors are shared around specific recipes too. 

Bookmarked recipes (to make later!): Swiss Chard Fritters (p.54) & Latkes (p.92).

Lifestyle photography in Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi