Cookbook review - Supper for a song - Tamasin Day-lewis

First off I have to admit to having never read another Tamasin Day-lewis cookbook so I can't compare this latest book to her usual style. This latest release is another in a long line of books clearly written with the more cost conscious cook in mind. In it Tamasin provides recipes for making the most of the food we buy and in some cases encourages the reader to cook extra food so there are left overs to be made in to some mouth watering recipe the following day. Yes the book is called Supper for a song but this doesn't involve buying the cheapest food in the supermarket. This book is about using good quality ingredients and making sure you waste none of it. Recession or no recession this book (and the others similar to it) are designed to help us make the most of the food we buy and in the processes eat delicious food.

This book is packed with ideas for using up left over potatoes, bread, meats, chickpeas and fruits (to name just a few). It is filled with delicious looking photos, mouth watering recipes and tips from the author. There are recipes for roasting a chicken and making stock and risotto with the left overs, Shepard's or cottage pie with leftover roast beef or lamb, potato bread and cakes and hummus and chick pea soups and stews. There is a chapter on meat using the cheaper (but more flavourful) cuts of meat such as braised belly of pork, brisket with pickled walnuts and oxtail stewed with grapes. There are also plenty of recipes for those who love to bake such as carrot cake, Earl Grey fruit tea loaf and chocolate brownies.

One thing I would warn some people about is that the title may make you think this is 'budget' cooking. It's not! Its about buying the best quality ingredients you can afford and using them wisely. Recipes use organic ingredients, wild salmon, vanilla pods and many different types of alcohol including Marsala, Creme de cassis and Madeira (so clearly not aimed at those on a tight budget!).

Further information:
Supper for a song. Tamasin Day-Lewis
Published by Quadrille publishing, September 2009
Hardback, full colour photography, pages 192
ISBN 978 1 84400 743 1
£20