BOOK REVIEW: Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights by Sophie Dahl

I don't like to cook. But I do like to eat. So I was thrilled when the lovely Kirsty at Novelicious sent me model Sophie Dahl's cookery book as a gift.

Dahl is not a trained chef, but she is an enthusiastic cook and, reading this book, I felt almost like it was a scrapbook-type gift from a glamorous friend. Dahl writes beautifully (reading this made me want to read her novels) and she's so enthusiastic about food and open about her own experiences of overeating, being overweight, underweight and, now, a healthy and happy weight.

Like many cookery books post-Nigella Lawson, Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights is a joy to look at and read, even if you never attempt any of the recipes, but the greatest achievement of this book for me was that it made me (me!) want to cook.

I actually thought about challenging myself to cook something from it every day - it's divided into seasons to make seasonal cooking easier - but that was just a post-reading burst of enthusiasm and soon wore off. I've so far attempted two things - beetroot soup and turmeric tofu with cherry tomato quinoa pilaf - and neither of them were hugely successful, though I put that down to my ineptitude and half-hearted substitutions than to Miss Dahl's recipes or instructions.

This book would make a great gift, but, unlike many cookery books, it's also destined to be used for years to come - once I get over my worry about getting it messy (it's so pretty!). 

Comments

[Stella]

That's when you need two books- one to cook from and one to read and look at the pretty pictures. I'm not one of these cookery book collecters but I do love the books I have an wouldn't take them near my kitchen!

[Helena]

Why are there hardly any of the recipes in Sofie Dahl's new book that do feature in her programme? such as the Twice baked Potato recipe or the Home Made Tomato Soup, as the book clearly states "as seen on tv"

[Keris]

From what I've heard, Helena, it's because Sophie Dahl can't actually cook very well! The "as seen on TV" probably just refers to Sophie cooking rather than the actual recipes - or that's how they'd get out of it anyway!