Cook book addicts !!

I bought Delia's books in the 1980s and she became my 'bible' for Christmas goodies, but her Christmas cake recipe IMHO needs tweaking - the cooking times seem wrong! My first was an 18th birthday present - an M&S cookbook which I used and used and used to the point of disintegration, Clever DD1 b noticed and found me a 'new' replacement on amazon recently. I love Nigella 's programmes and wouldn't mind one of her books as a gift.
Most recently I have bought Mary Berry cookbooks at very good prices in a supermarket and given them as presents. I bought the last one ' Friends for Dinner' just last week - it has a good vegetarian section and I am minded to get another 2 copies now I have given it a proper look as DD and both son's other halves are vegetarians.

I was giving a Margaret Patten cookbook over 40yrs ago, as an engagement present. It was invaluable when I was first married and I hadn't a clue. It's pretty tatty now with no cover.
Elizabeth David was another favourite author for Mediterranean dishes.
Jamie Oliver irritates me, but I do like his recipes and just Google to get ideas.

My name is kitty - I am a cookbook addict!

I like Delia, Nigel Slater and (my favourite) Nigella's Italian one. Oh, and Madhur's battered early book. I collect cuttings from magazines, papers and the Internet.

Whoops!
Mary Berry book is called 'Supper for Friends' .

Oh gosh, yes marguerite patten 'everyday cook book'and snap,I also got it for my engagement present. I have made delias Christmas cake but I go back to a m&s recipe most years.....its when it was st.michael....both of these books are browning round the edges and looking a bit over worn but I can still read the recipes lol...
Are these the ones you have?

Like Marydoll, I had Marguerite Patten's Cookery in Colour in the early days, and still have it. It was a really good guide to things like cuts of meat and how to cook them; and basic stuff that I didn't have a clue about. I also have an early Mary Berry book, All Colour Cookery, which I have used a lot over the years. The only ones I use regularly are my Be-ro book, the book that came with my cooker, a little Tefal book of traybakes, and a plastic bag full of recipes from magazines and newspapers. Upstairs gathering dust are all the others I have bought on a whim over the years, including Pat Chapman's Curry Bible. I only ever make one type of curry because it is the only one that DH will eat! If I want a recipe now, I look on line.

"Shirleyw*, it was a different book by Margaret Patten, Step by Step Cookery. It is falling to bits.
I also found my Marks and Spencer's French Cookbook, an anniversary present!

This was fatal, I have now been looking at old cookbooks, when I should be getting ready to go out.

What a lovely thread this is. Thanks for starting it Shirley.
Brought back lots of memories.

I also started off with Marguerite Patten and a couple of those Good Housekeeping type colourful books featuring dishes 'from around the world.'

I don 't think there was much on offer until Keith Floyd arrived. I loved his books and TV programmes. When we had our own restaurant during the nineties, Floyd on Spain and Far Flung Floyd provided much inspiration.

I'm not keen on Jamie Oliver but he's good for getting young people cooking.

My most used books now are Levi Roots, Persiana and Omar Alibhoy.

I use the internet for gluten free recipes and tweak them.

These are the only two I have decided to keep, had them both since the late 70s. Had a massive clear out the other day and starting to take them to the charity shop in a mo. So easy to google recipes now in the unlikely event I am liable to attempt to cook something.

With some wedding present money I bought the Readers Digest Cookery Year. It taught me so much as I was cluelesss (apart from a quick cookery lesson from someone I used to babysit for - 'put everything in the oven for 2hours then you know it's done" ).
We now have so many different cookery books, but DH tends to look on the internet for recipes now.

We had had Domestic Science at school and my mother was a good cook, although she didn't actually teach us much or let us help in the kitchen, but I wasn't clueless when I moved away from home.

I was given a Good Housekeeping book as a wedding present which was useful for looking up basic recipes. I also still refer to my school exercise books where I have recipes and notes written in my neat 12-year-old's handwriting.

I also still use Family Circle magazines from the 80s which had recipes you can really use and lovely ideas, not too expensive, for every day cookery.

Nowadays, I look online for my recipes - CBA to get those heavy books off the shelf! 9 times out of 10 I cook recipes from my head anyway.

I agree, though, reading cookery books is a joy, especially when they are nicely illustrated.

The one I have is the St Michael All Colour Cookery Book by Jeni Wright - first received as a present in 1981 I think. I have found the meat cooking tables in it really useful and the choux buns became one of my family legendary puds!

I very rarely get books off the shelf now - more inclined to look up new trends of cooking online and the old favourites are lodged firmly in my brain so not a lot of weighing and measuring either - much more by eye, but when I have time I like to find a brand new recipe to try.

I used to have a huge selection, but lost most of them during a house move. I can't remember them all, but they included an old Mrs Beeton, and an interesting one of wartime recipes.
I still have a few, and the one I treasure most is Elizabeth David's French Provincial Cookery. It includes a lot of social history, and is more about cooking styles, than actual recipes (but has those as well.)
I've also got an interesting one about traditions and variations of bread around the world.

I have a very ancient Mary Berry Cookbook illustrated by Dorling Kindersley.
Every type of recipe is in that book, and I used it all the time for years.
It still sits on the shelf, battered and faded, but useful sometimes to check on something.
Like Imperfect I weigh and measure by eye nowadays.
Love cooking and get all new recipes on line.

ps I forgot, another series I loved - beautiful photos - was the Australian Women's Weekly series. I lent them to someone and they were never returned.

I have around 100 cookery books Prue Leith from the 80's,Gary Rhodes ,Larrousse Gastronomique ,Nick Nairns New Scottish Cookery and Richard Cawleys New English cookery ,a few Rick Stein,a few Jamie Oliver( all were presents) ONE Mary Berry given to me last year by someone who doesn't know me well enough to know I'm not a fan ,Roselyn Masselin 's Vegetarian are all one' s I use fairly regularly ,the one I drool over is Thomas Kellers French Laundry ,its a beautiful book ,not for begginers and I think I've only cooked from it a handful of times.Cookery books are my husbands go to for Christmas so I get at least one every year ,along with perfume,good brandy and some CD's .I have a fantastic book of medieval recipes that I have used a lot over the years and love

Persiana (Sabrina Ghayour) and Two Kitchens (Rachel Roddy) are my latest two.
Had a clearout in January and gave at least 50 to local charity shop----Bought most of them back again in Feb

Just remembered..fell asleep in the bath with Nigel Slater!
Had to replace him (Real Cooking)

Jocylen Dimbleby is VG, as is Len Deighton.

One of my very first cookery books was the Dairy book of home cooking which was purchased through the milkman and i still use recipes from it today. My mother did not approve of the alcoholics cook book a friend gave me. All the recipes contain alcohol in some form it's not a cook book for alcoholics!

I used to love the magazine called Home and Freezer Digest (I think!) and I still is the scone and mince pie recipes from it. And, lots from the Dairy Diaries.

Just got nigella 'at my table'...looks good, am bookmarking what to make this weekend lol

Ooh I too have the Dairy book of home cooking. I was given the Good Housekeeping cookery book for a 21st birthday present which became my 'Bible'. So much so that I bought both my children an up to date copy when they left home with an inscription thanking them for all the lovely family meals we shared together and that it was now over to them.....! I am also a huge fan of Delia and Mary. Like most people I also nowadays get a lot of recipes from the internet and from magazines.