5 of the best cookery books to get you through the lockdown

Now that our favourite central belt restaurants are shut until 26 October, food lovers will have to find comfort through ordering takeaways or cooking for themselves. However, if you exhausted banana bread and amateur sourdough over lockdown, you could always buy or pre-order one of these forthcoming titles for inspiration.

Red Sands by Caroline Eden (£25, Quadrille, out 1 November)

Edinburgh-based journalist and writer, Eden, is the author of the award winning Black Sea and Samarkand. Her newest “destination cookbook” covers Caroline’s gastronomic journey from the Caspian Sea, in Kazakhstan, to orchards in Tajikistan, into the cafes and canteens of Uzbekistan. Recipes include the Friday mosque halva, pink pickled onions and sour cherry borscht. If reading about exotic and colourful lands makes you feel better about not having any proper holidays this year, escape with this book.

Book jacket A Cheesemonger's History of the British Isles

A Cheesemonger’s History of the British Isles by Ned Palmer (£9.99, Profile Books, out now)

For cheapskates, this fab book came out in paperback this month. Written by a “philosopher, jazz musician and cheese historian", it’s a travelogue that covers the history of each cheese, as well as current makers. As far as Scotland goes, there’s a mention of Caboc and Crowdie, made by the Stone Family at Highland Fine Cheeses at Blarliath Farm, the Errington’s Lanark Blue, Ayrshire’s Dunlop and more.

Cottagecore by Daisy Oakley (£12.99, Summersdale, out now)

According to the publisher, cottagecore is this year’s hottest trend. It’s a celebration of wholesome country living, and this book has recipes for jam, pies, picnics and other innocent and olde worlde delights.

Pizza by Thom Elliot and James Elliot (£20, Quadrille, out 12 November)

The Elliot brothers travelled the world on a pizza quest back in 2011, and this book reveals all they learnt. (On page 54, Glasgow’s pizza crunch gets an honorary mention, “it is bloody delicious”, they say), First is mastering the dough, so you don’t end up with a base like a stale Digestive. This book demonstrates exactly how to do that, before progressing onto the Smoked Napoli, with anchovies, capers and purple olives. If all else fails, order from Razzo, East Pizza, Paesano or Civerino’s.

Everyday Fresh: Meals in Minutes by Donna Hay (£20, Harper Collins, out 15 October)

There are almost never any dud pages in a book from Australian chef, Donna Hay. This one won’t be an exception, with lots of low fuss recipes that don’t need 600 ingredients (sorry Ottolenghi). They’re all pretty healthy and include dishes such as the mint pesto broccoli bowl and caramel bliss balls.

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