Perfect for impressing the important people in your life (Cooking for Friends: Food from My Table - Gordon Ramsay)

Member Name: gingerella

Product:	Cooking for Friends: Food from My Table - Gordon Ramsay
Date:	30/05/09 (28 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Succint, clear recipes for great dishes.

Disadvantages: If you don't like him all the colour photos may put you off your soup!

My friend bought me this for my birthday last year...do you think she was trying to tell me something?! In the love or hate Gordon Ramsey debate I most certainly sit in the former camp. He had a tough start in life but through hard work and determination has built a great career for himself but I digress...this is a cook book and judging it purely on that basis it is a winner for me. Before reading this the idea of making pastry scared me slighty but there are 3 recipes for gorgeous pastry in here that turned out well first time for me. The recipes are laid out in a style which lists ingredients and then breaks the method down into easy to follow stages. The language used is very plain (but no trademark swearing!) and I feel someone new to cooking would be able to follow these recipes without much trouble.

My favourite recipes are:

* Cornish chicken pie, which is a very indulgent, creamy winter warmer. Everyone I have cooked this for has loved it!

* Pearl barley mushroom risotto, which is the easiest risotto I have ever made as using pearl barley rather than risotto rice means you don't have to keep stirring it. I sometimes use button mushrooms as a cheap alternative to wild mushrooms and they work just as well.

*Spinach & mushroom cannelloni, this is very simple to prepare but looks very impressive and tastes good too.

Even if you can't stand Gordon Ramsey I would recommend this as a book which does exactly what it says on the tin - your friends will be itching to get invited over to your place for dinner!

Summary: Whatever you think of the man the book is packed with interesting dishes to prepare.