Cookbook Gift Guide Christmas 2019
Thu Nov 28 2019
written by Melanie May
If you are looking for a Christmas gift for the food lover in your life, a cookbook is a great option, and an Irish cookbook is even better
This year, there have been loads of beautiful Irish cookbooks published designed to inspire, encourage and motivate readers to get into the kitchen and rustle up something delicious.
Whether you are looking for something for a chocolate lover, vegetarian, carb lover or something in between, these cookbooks have got it covered (get it? Covered. Book. I’ll get my coat).
Here are our picks of Irish cookbooks that make great Christmas gifts.
Butlers Chocolate Cookbook: 60 Delicious Recipes from the Home of Butlers Chocolates
Butlers Chocolates began life in Dublin 1932, but would you believe this is the first cookbook from the family-owned chocolate producers? The recipes in the book are inspired by the decadent chocolates available in the Butlers Chocolate Cafes, and cover everything from melt-in-the-mouth mousses, tempting tarts, perfect parfait and scrumptious showstoppers. The I Love Cooking team Sarah & Mandy worked on the recipes and the photography in this beautiful book
Buy from O’Brien Press
Clever Batch: Brilliant Wholefood Batch-cooking Recipes to Save You Time, Money and Patience by Susan Jane White
What to cook nutritious meals but don’t want to spend a fortune in the shops or hours in the kitchen? Well, this cookbook aims to do just that with plenty of tips and particle advice as well as healthy and hearty meals. From breakfasts that will keep fresh all week in the fridge to tasty desserts and dressings, this cookbook covers it all.
Buy from Easons
Clodagh’s Suppers: Suppers to Celebrate the Seasons by Clodagh McKenna
There are 120 gorgeous recipes in this cookbook from Ireland and around the world. The photographs are striking and just flicking through the book makes your mouth water. There is also helpful tips and trick for table dressing and planning menus around foods that are in season. All four seasons are covered in the cookbook and there is a section devoted to “Cocktails, Snacks & Afters”. A perfect book for those who like to be the perfect host.
Buy from Dubray Books
Cornucopia: The Green Cookbook by Tony Keogh, Aoife Carrigy and the chefs of Cornucopia Restaurant
Cornucopia is probably the most famous vegetarian restaurant in Dublin and head chef, Tony Keogh has worked there since 2002. The cookbook is a collection of his recipes, plus those of various chefs who have worked in the Cornucopia kitchen. The recipes have been developed for home cooking so you don’t need a professional kitchen to recreate them. Having said that, there is a section in the book that covers equipment, techniques and ingredients in great detail. The recipes are a good mix of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and desserts as well as soups, salads, sauces and sides. Oh, and they are all vegan.
Buy from Dubray Books
Create Beautiful Food At Home by Chef Adrian Martin
As you can probably guess from the title, this cookbook helps home cooks create prettily plated dishes that wouldn’t look out of place in a restaurant. But it is not all style over substance as there are plenty of practical tips to help you improve your cooking and techniques. Each recipe has a beautiful photo and step-by-step instructions so you can recreate the dish exactly. Recipes include Blood Orange and Thyme Sorbet, Braised Beef, Crab Ravioli, Lobster Thermidor and Pear Tart Tatin.
Buy from Mercier Press
Eat Up Raise Your Game: 100 Easy, Nutritious Recipes to Help You Perform Better on Exercise Days and Rest Days by Daniel Davey
Daniel Davey knows a thing or two when it comes to fueling your body as he is a performance nutritionist for Leinster Rugby and Dublin senior footballers. Using a scientific approach, the recipes in this book help you to align your food choices with your nutrition and energy needs when you are exercising and on rest days. His recipes include lower carb and calorie dishes for rest and recovery days and higher carb and calories dishes for exercise days. There’s also lots of easy-to-understand practical information like how to work out your calorie and macronutrient needs. A great cookbook for sporty types.
Buy from Gill Books
Irish Countrywomen’s Association Book of Bread and Baking edited by Aoife Carrigy
I swear you can smell freshly baked bread when you open this cookbook. Bursting with comforting carbs, this cookbook features recipes by ICA members from all over Ireland. Many of the recipes have been handed down through generations but there are also some less traditional recipes in there too. From brown bread to cream buns, sourdough to scones, the recipes in this cookbook rise to the occasion and is one every baking kneads in their collection.
Buy from Gill Books
Mediterranean Mood Food: What to Eat to Help Beat Depression and Live a Longer, Healthier Life by Paula Mee
Dietician Paula Mee believes that we can control our mood and overall health by following the food pattern in this book, which is an updated version of the Mediterranean diet taking into account the latest research on the gut, and what it needs. The recipes are rich in healthy fats, whole grains, unrefined carbs, and proteins and many of them are plant-based too. With recipes like Spinach, Feta and Egg Bake, Lamb Meatballs, Mushroom Bourguignon and Easy Bake Pears being healthy never tasted so good.
Buy from Easons
One Pot Feeds All: 100 New Recipes from Roasting Tin Dinners to One-pan Desserts Book by Darina Allen
One-pot cooking is perfect for those who don’t have much space, time or energy for preparing meals. It is cooking without the fuss. This is Darina’s 19th cookbook so she knows what she is doing and her recipes work, each and every time. Each dish can be cooked using just a pot, pie dish or baking tray. Whilst this all sounds very simple, the recipes don’t skimp on flavour. Dishes include Chorizo, Goat’s Cheese and Tomato Frittata and Spanish Red Pepper Stew with Haddock and apple and blackberry Traybake with sweet geranium Sugar. Second helpings guaranteed.
Buy from Easons
The Baby-Friendly Family Cookbook: From the Smallest to the Biggest – Healthy, Fuss-free Recipes the Entire Family Will Love by Aileen Cox Blundell
Between the covers of this practical cookbook are 150 recipes suitable for all the family including weaning babies. Dishes include Slow-Cooker Stew, Moroccan Turkey Meatballs and Baby-Friendly Chicken Tikka Masala as well as inspiring ideas for lunchboxes. There’s also plenty of helpful tips and advice for dealing with the challenges parents face when it comes to fussy eaters and getting their children to eat more vegetables.
Buy from Easons
