Whether you’re shopping for a keen home cook, a baking aficionado, or someone who just wants fuss-free dinner ideas, a well-chosen cookbook is the perfect gift. But as 2024 has been a year of so many brilliant new cookbook releases, where should you start? We’ve rounded up some of our favourites to help you find the perfect present for every kind of cook on your Christmas shopping list.
Looking for more gifting inspiration? From the best vegan cookbooks to the best cookbooks for bakers, and from stocking filler and secret Santa gifts to the perfect recipe book for the cook who has everything, discover all of our Christmas gift guides here.
Mary’s Foolproof Dinners
Mary Berry is back with a brilliant new cookbook and accompanying BBC Two series. Whether you’re entertaining guests, feeding a crowd, or simply need a quick supper, Mary’s Foolproof Dinners has got you covered with 120 all-new dinner recipes to suit every occasion.
Ottolenghi COMFORT
From hearty stews to perfect pastries, home cooking gets the Ottolenghi treatment in this love letter to comfort food in all its forms. Some of our favourite recipes from this cookbook include Butter-Braised Kohlrabi with Olive Chimichurri, Caramelised Onion Orecchiette with Hazelnuts and Crispy Sage, and Chocolate Mousse with Orange Caramel.
Creative, efficient, and cost-effective recipes that hero simple fresh ingredients.
Clever ideas for meal planning and transforming leftovers into delicious meals.
Stretch the weekly shop further with batch-cooked dinners and freezer-friendly bakes.
Cook Once, Eat Twice
It’s as simple as it sounds: Nadiya’s latest cookbook is all about minimising cooking time and maximising your efficiency with ingenious recipes that will have you enjoying your leftovers in new and exciting ways – with chapters covering meal prep, freezer-friendly dinners and bakes, waste-free homemade condiments, and more.
The Food for Life Cookbook
As awareness grows around ultra-processed foods, and the benefits of reducing our intake of them, many of us are looking for practical tips and recipes to help us enjoy more unprocessed meals and ingredients. Tim Spector, founder of ZOE and bestselling author of Food for Life, shares over 100 amazing recipes to help you boost your gut health and change the way you eat.
Fitwaffle’s No-Bake Baking
Eloise Head (better known to her millions of followers as Fitwaffle), has created the perfect cookbook for the sweet tooth who would rather avoid baking. From no-bake cheesecakes to homemade fudge, truffles, and microwave desserts, these recipes can be made easily with just a few ingredients – and all without switching the oven on.
Simply Jamie
Jamie Oliver’s latest cookbook is all about (re-)discovering the joy of cooking with failsafe, flavour-packed recipes for busy home cooks, with chapters covering 20-minute dinners, trusty traybakes, store cupboard heroes, weekend feasts, and more.
SIFT: The Elements of Great Baking
With her debut cookbook, pastry chef and recipe developer Nicola Lamb offers a comprehensive run-down of everything you need to know about the art (and science) of baking, complete with 100 stunning recipes to try out when you next have a free afternoon or weekend.
John and Lisa’s Kitchen
John Torode and Lisa Faulkner blend the know-how of a professional chef with the accessibility of a seasoned home cook to create must-try recipes ranging from brunch dishes, to one-pan meals, fakeaways, indulgent desserts and more.
Mob One
The Mob collective are back with a new cookbook, this time packed with brilliant one-pot recipes you can rely on for all occasions. Whip up a quick and flavourful salad or midweek meal, impress your guests with effortlessly brilliant dinners, or simply treat yourself to a special supper that’s bursting with flavour.
I’ll Bring Dessert
Nothing rounds off the perfect dinner party quite like an equally perfect dessert, and this baking book by Benjamina Ebuehi has recipes to suit every occasion. Find effortless solutions to all your dessert and baking needs, complete with gorgeous photography throughout.
The Asian Pantry
Make the most of your favourite store cupboard staples like soy sauce, curry powder, noodles and more, to create delicious and accessible Asian-inspired food with big flavours. From easy dinners like Lemongrass Chicken & Sweet Potato Traybake, to inventive desserts like Korean-style Chocolate & Coconut Stuffed Pancakes, the recipes in The Asian Pantry offer endless inspiration for using your store-cupboard heroes.
One Pot, One Portion
Cooking for one? Forget endless leftovers, bland ready-meals, and piles of washing up, with these clever recipes by Eleanor Wilkinson. As well as all being one-pot, the recipes in this versatile cookbook include complementary recipe recommendations to help you use up the remainder of your fresh ingredients – so you can say goodbye to the days of leaving half-used produce to languish in the fridge.
The Green Cookbook
Whether you’re veggie, vegan, or simply want to incorporate more greens into your meals, discover easy and speedy recipes from Roasting Tin author Rukmin Iyer. The Green Cookbook has everything you need to whip up 15-minute carbs, plan a family-friendly dinner spread, or prepare the perfect seasonal menu for your next party.
Rick Stein’s Food Stories
Rick Stein combines his love of travel with his passion for championing the best of British produce and cuisine in his latest cookbook, as he traverses the length and breadth of the UK to explore our varied, changing, and diverse food landscape and help you to recreate incredible dishes in your own kitchen.
Dinner Tonight
With her second cookbook, Meliz Berg shares her go-to recipes for easy, flavourful meals, from one-pot wonders to fakeaway snacks that all ages will love. You’ll also find clever, easy ways to recreate some of Meliz’s favourite traditional Turkish-Cypriot dishes such as börek, dolma and manti.
