The Kitchen Bookshelf: August

 The Kitchen Bookshelf: August
Photo provided

The Kitchen Bookshelf: August

This month’s roundup includes thought-provoking drinks books worth savouring over a cocktail or two, a homage to the tomato, and a cookbook that conjures up the fiery flavours of Sri Lanka.

The South American Wine Guide  

Journalist Amanda Barnes self-published this book in May 2021. It quickly scooped three eminent awards: the John Avery award in the 2021 André Simon Awards, the Fortnum & Mason Best Debut Drink Book Award and the Best World Wine Book at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2022, and a second edition has recently been published by the Académie du Vin Library.

Barnes, who has been based in South America since 2009, spent a decade researching the book, working with a network of 40 local experts and tasting some 3,000 wines from producers across Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. Painstakingly compiled, it has detailed colour maps, lush photography and copious information about individual producers, grape varieties and the various regions’ terroir.

The book is beautifully produced – and an absolute joy to read. Barnes writes with verve and clarity about local history and culture; it’s a travel guide as well as a wine book. You don’t need to be a wine geek to love this book, but reading it may turn you into one…
£35, Académie du Vin Library

The Perfect Tonic

Drinks writer Camper English’s deep interest in science fuels The Perfect Tonic. The book explores the history of fermented and distilled beverages, from the Indian Vedic period (2500-200 BCE) to the modern day, via the Ancient Greeks, and venturing into China, Persia and beyond. (Yes, there are cocktail recipes, too…)

“A large number of liqueur brands sold today have their roots as cures for cholera, dysentery, fevers, indigestion, constipation, or as all-purpose health elixirs and pain relievers,” he writes. The book itself was inspired by the Negroni, the components of which (gin, vermouth, Campari) were once thought to cure bubonic plague, intestinal parasites and depression, respectively. It’s an intoxicating book, combining equal parts medicinal lore and history, and fizzing with factual oddities. An entertaining read that deserves to be savoured slowly over a Negroni or two.
£16.99, William Collins

Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol

“Where did the concept of a ‘girly drink’ even start?” asks Mallory O’Meara. How has drinking become a gendered act, one that all-too-often casts derision on female imbibers? The LA-based writer, podcaster and independent film producer has written an unapologetically feminist – and, frankly, eye-opening – examination of the cultural rules that surround alcohol.

A committed craft-cocktail lover, O’Meara set off to learn all she could about the social history of alcohol – and was quickly disappointed to learn that women simply did not figure in any of the materials she came across, despite the fact that women have been involved in brewing and distilling since the beginning of time. So she decided to write one. This James Beard Award-winning book is the result. It focuses on 15 stories of women from around the world, through the centuries. Soundly researched, funny and revealing, it will have you reaching for the cocktail shaker and raising a toast to dismantling the patriarchy. Drink umbrella optional…
£14.99, C Hurst & Co Publishers

Rambutan: Recipes from Sri Lanka

“Rambutan is the story of an immigrant kid in England trying to cook her way out of the profound sense of loss about the place her parents called home,” writes Cynthia Shanmugalingam in the introduction ­– making it abundantly clear to the reader that this cookbook was not penned while wearing rose-tinted spectacles. The Coventry-born youngest child, whose parents who left Sri Lanka for England in the 1960s, also warns that the book does not shy away from the country’s painful history of war, colonial oppression and poverty.

That said, this is a hugely rewarding book to read, contemplate and cook from. Shanmugalingam’s love of food comes from her mum and grandmother, and many of the recipes are based on their dishes and those of her extended family, gleaned and tweaked during long periods spent on the island. Part memoir, part travel guide, this is a very personal book and a practical guide to putting together dishes with all the fire and flavour of Sri Lanka.
£26, Bloomsbury

Tomato: 80 Recipes for Celebrating the Extraordinary Tomato
Photo provided

Tomato: 80 Recipes for Celebrating the Extraordinary Tomato

For some people, the tomato is merely a salad ingredient. For others, this fruit masquerading as a vegetable is a major food group, one to be celebrated and enjoyed on a daily basis. Zimbabwe-born, Bristol-based chef, food writer and Instagrammer Claire Thomson (her regular Insta recipe videos on @5oclockapron get thousands of views) is in the latter group – and I’m right there with her.

Many of the 80 recipes are dedicated to summer’s fresh, ripe, fragrant fruit, with recipes for salsas, sauces, soups, salads and lighter mains – ideal for cooking right now. Thomson is known for her flavourful, cleverly spiced recipes that draw on cuisines from around the world, yet they’re easy to put together and family-friendly, with a veg-centric emphasis.
£22, Quadrille

Susan Low
Discover more
The Kitchen Bookshelf: July
Reading & Books
The Kitchen Bookshelf: July
Welcome the first monthly roundup of the best upcoming and recently published food and drink books....
By Susan Low
Find out more
Astrid Lindgren's literary career did not begin until she was 37 years old.
Food & Beverage
Art & Taste: Astrid Lindgren
From Afrikaans to Zulu, Astrid Lindgren's works have been translated into over 100 languages. Her...
By Judith Hecht
The Kitchen Bookshelf: July
Reading & Books
The Kitchen Bookshelf: July
Welcome the first monthly roundup of the best upcoming and recently published food and drink books....
By Susan Low