Josceline Dimbleby

I've been a great fan of Josceline Dimbleby as a cookery writer since her "A Tastes of Dreams" well over thirty years ago. Well the passage of time has I no way diminished her skills, and this latest offering is brim full of interesting and appealing dishes.

I must admit I was initially a little wary of "Orchards in the Oasis", described as it is as "recipes, travels and memories", thinking perhaps the recipes would be taking second or third place. But this is not so, almost every other page contains a recipe, it is still very much a cookbook in the true sense.

As for the recipes, well I was going to list some of the more interesting ones, but soon found I would end up listing the entire contents of the book, everyone looks and sounds truly delicious, I want to try them all. I will just mention one though, and that is an old favourite, Queen of Puddings, but here with a new twist and is aptly named Goddess of Puddings - check it out. The recipes originate from all parts of the world, but are usually presented in the author's own version, and all seem to be straight forward and sensible, and use readily available ingredients.

In addition to the enticing photographs of the dishes, the book is crammed with photographs from Josceline Dimblely's travels and of course her memories, which do make interesting reading, if you can tear yourself away from the recipes.… (mer)