Dan Toombs

I’ve been cooking as far back as I can remember. In 2000 my mum sent me a copy of this cookbook. It was everything I had always wanted in a cookbook. I think I’ve made every recipe in the book, some many times. The techniques I learned from The French Laundry have helped me to progress as a cook and inspired me to take many of my own recipes to the next level.

The recipes in this cookbook are not very challenging but Vivek Singh is famous for pushing the boundaries and I like that. I refer to this book all the time for recipes and ideas.

The late Barbara Tropp was one of my first food heros. This book is packed with amazing Chinese recipes and ideas.

I am a big fan of Rick Bayless and have been for years. I love all of his books. If you enjoy Mexican food, give this one a try.

I love all of Atul’s books but this one is probably the most challenging. I like a good challenge. I read this book often not just for the recipes but to get inspiration to develop my own new recipes.

An oldie but a goodie. I lived in Germany for three years and brought back with me a lot of fantastic recipes. I love German food especially from the south of Germany. I have a lot of German cookbooks, but this one has been with me for many years so it has to be on my list.

I have a large selection of Italian cookbooks. This one I couldn’t be without. I think I’ve now memorised all the recipes but still like having it in my collection.

I love Mexican and Caribbean food and this book is full of tasty recipes. Turtle Bay is an amazing low cost restaurant near where I used to live in Monterey, California. This book is no longer in print but if you can get your hands on a used copy, it’s worth doing. I use mine all the time.

This book reminds me of summer and eating outside with friends. Probably because I use it all summer long.

There are so many excellent and challenging vegetarian recipes in this book. I used to say there was no way I could ever be vegetarian. If I had the time to cook the amazing recipes in this book every day, I could be.