Last year’s New Zealand Masterchef Winner Chelsea Winter has released her debut title, At My Table. If I’m honest, when I first flicked through the book I would have given it two stars! But read on – because I did, and my perspective changed somewhat.
I’m liking
The recipes I tried in this, although variations on classics, were very good indeed. The chocolate cake is beautiful, the cheesecake simple and delicious and the sausage casserole is the perfect midweek family meal.
The book is well organised with clear sections that cover the full gamut of home cooking: breakfast, baking, lunch and small plates, burgers, pizza, mains, desserts and the basics. It’s a lot to cover in one book – the sections aren’t extensive, but there’s enough range to choose something useable in each for every palate. Many of the recipes display a sophisticated foodie-flair while still being very at-home, edible and mainstream. It’s actually quite a nice balance. Each recipe also states how many it serves, which is very useful.
Chelsea obviously has dutch heritage and I like the traditional Dutch dishes that appear – there’s a nice thread of them woven throughout.
Things that made me go hmmmm
The reason I would have initially only rated this book two stars, as it starts out with such basic recipes I found myself raising my eyebrows. French toast, afghans, lemonade scones – moving onto cheese pizza, mozzarella-tomato-basil salad and Edmonds-like truffles… I was a little bit dismayed. But when I got into it, I realised this is kind of the book’s charm – these are largely simple recipes and Chelsea does often put her twist on them. She’s not necessarily going to train you to be NZ’s next Masterchef with this book – but you will be able to competently replicate most of the recipes.
There are also many pictures of the tall, lovely Chelsea who is tiny, tiny, tiny! How much of this delicious food can she possibly eat herself?! But then that’s just my jealousy talking…
The conclusion
The book’s RRP is $55.00 and personally I think it’s a little pricey for it’s softcover, somewhat no-fuss offerings. But if you’re a fan of hers, and I think she probably has quite a few out there, you’ll enjoy the charming chatty introductions to each recipe and the homeliness of the whole deal. Just give it more than a first flick through and I’m sure you’ll appreciate its charm.
At My Table – Chelsea Winter – Published by Random House New Zealand – RRP $55.00
Other reviews from Chelsea Winter include Everyday Delicious, Homemade Happiness and Scrumptious.
4 Comments
To put it simply, I don’t think there is one day that I’m not flicking through my copy of At My Table looking for inspiration for my Family’s dinner – and it doesn’t disappoint. The winner for me was that all of the ingredients in nearly all of the recipes are things I already have in my pantry! I don’t have to do that awkward trawl through the supermarket looking for the most obscure items, things that I would never use again. Without a doubt this is the most loved and the most used book in our household – it NEVER fails to deliver and is the best thing I have purchased. Thanks Chelsea for an awesome book! Keep it up!
The beauty of this book is the twist that Chelsea gives on the classics. Simple but delicious fare given some extra punch with Chelsea’s little tricks. I particularly love her Pea and Ham soup with all the extra veges packed in, the Barrier Beer Bread – you can’t beat fresh homemade bread and this one is delicious, and the crispy fish wraps. She doesn’t use difficult to source ingredients and the focus is always on fresh and tasty – and with loads of veges, which I love.
It’s very difficult for me to rate a cookbook well – lets just say I’ve been “burned”by a number of books that appear to be what I’m after then end up being overly complicated – whether its the instructions, the prep or the ingredients.
AT MY TABLE is an absolute godsend – never before have I been able to trust in a book so much to not just be a crowd-pleaser for family and friends, but also the fact that all of a sudden I’ve become this amazing cook in their eyes. Honestly I’m almost scared to share my secret that it’s Chelsea’s recipes that absolutely smash it every time!
One of my many favourites in this book is her signature piece – Chelsea’s Chicken Pie.
My partner is a very picky eater, and this dish absolutely blows his mind!! Served it to his family and now I’m the favourite.
Reliable, easy to follow, twists on favourites, and recipes that I’d never think I could dream of making are suddenly being served up.. by me!
Absolutely 5 stars for AT MY TABLE – Love love love. ★★★★★
Hi Drizae, I have to say the book has really grown on me over time. And her new book is fabulous too (I have also reviewed it). My husband loves the dishes from Chelsea’s books as well, I think she sure knows the way to a man’s heart 😉