A new recipe book to covet

He couldn't very well stop at one, could he now? Sam Mannering, author of bestselling (it sold out in five weeks) book A Year's Worth: Recipes from Dunsandel Store, has just released his second cookbook, titled Food Worth Making. And although we could just riff off the contents, or steal from the introductory page, everything you need to know about this book can be uncovered by getting to know Canterbury-born Mannering.

He's not into foams, nor squiggles, and he earnestly goes to great pains to point out that he's "more cook than chef, merely a strapling in the world of food".

His mother set a high standard in the kitchen and Mannering followed suit, although he now miffs that "when we're in the kitchen together, it gets a bit like Stalingrad".

Gadgets don't interest him, just a few good sharp knives, decent chopping boards, and a selection of heavy iron pans will suffice. But, most essentially, he likes to cook no-nonsense and unintimidating food. The result is a compendium of recipes for a new generation of homemakers, from coq au vin and Portuguese peasant bread to the easiest creme brulee and a deliciously retro Bombe Alaska. All will be left nodding in agreement when Mannering proclaims "food is about pleasure - leave the stress to the chefs".

See the recipe for this Bombe Alaska here.

• Food Worth Making, $50, is available at poshgiraffepublishing.co.nz and in selected bookshops.

- VIVA