Audrey Gordon is My Hero- A Cookbook Review
Yep, you heard right folks, this post has absolutely nothing to do with anything astrological… although never fear, I will pop up a Daily Planets later. For now, though, a cookbook review, but not just any cookbook, this is the cookbook I just had to buy… and those who know me know that I am the cookbook queen.
Not that I am in the habit of promoting anything ( except possibly accidentally or when I am adding to my Essential Guide to Melbourne), but this book gave the office some pretty major belly laughs today on a day when belly laughs were in relatively short supply… but this is unashamed promotion, so switch off now if you aren’t interested & wait for the Planet edition… (I won’t be offended…)
Audrey Gordon’s Tuscan Summer by Audrey & Phillip Gordon is, in Audrey’s own words “a practical guide that will help you plan and carry off everything from a lazy Sunday brunch with friends to a formal sit down banquet for 300 lactose intolerant, diabetic vegans with severe peanut allergies…” How could I resist joining Audrey and Phillip as they eat their way (and, in Phillip’s case, paints his way) through Central Italy- although the fact that the publisher chose not to include any of Phillip’s watercolours is obviously no reflection on his talent.
Initially attracted by the desire to replicate (or attempt to come close to replicating) Audrey’s signature 73 day Slow Roasted Pork, I found myself entranced by Audrey’s journal entries and her clever tips, tricks and etiquette basics. Warnings such as “sadly, many so called ‘water buffalo’ cheeses these days are made using the milk of cows who have been forced to stand in very damp fields” and “if good quality mascarpone is unavailable, a mixture of one part creme fraiche and three parts double cream will make a suitably disappointing alternative” are invaluable.
But then what else can you expect from a woman who has been awarded Britain’s Sternest Chef on three occasions and turned her business around by changing her restaurants name from Audrey’s to audrey’s?
I haven’t actually read the recipes yet…
Audrey Gordon’s Tuscan Summer is from the brilliant Aussie team that brought us the JetLag Travel Guides: Molvania (A Land Untouched by modern Dentistry), Phaic Tan (Sunstroke on a Shoestring) and San Sombrero (A Land of Carnivals, Cocktails and Coups).
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