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The best cookbooks for summer

by Jessica Lockyer-Palmer

published on 25 April 2024

From fuss-free one-tin recipes to sizzling barbecue dishes and the coolest ice creams, make the most of the warmer weather with the most inspiring summer cookbooks.

Sobremesa

by Susana Villasuso

Nothing says “summer” quite like the fresh and vibrant flavours of Mexican cuisine. Taking its name from the Spanish term for relaxing around the table after a heavy meal, Sobremesa is full of recipe inspiration for easy, laid-back and authentic Mexican dishes with a modern twist.

The Green Barbecue

From flavour-packed veggie burgers to mouth-watering grilled sides, Rukmini Iyer’s collection of 75 vegan and vegetarian recipes will have you stealing the show come BBQ season.

Simple

Make the most of summertime produce with Ottolenghi’s latest cookbook, a collection of laid-back recipes that place the best flavours and ingredients at the heart of each truly mouth-watering recipe. Check out this easy summertime menu featuring four recipes from SIMPLE for an idea of just how delicious your summer eating can get with this game-changing cookbook.

Taverna

by Georgina Hayden

For a taste of summertime in the Mediterranean, Georgina Hayden’s celebration of the food of her Cypriot heritage introduces you to the authentic and wonderful dishes passed down through the generations in her family. Expect mouth-watering mezze, crowd-pleasing classics (we’re talking the most delicious moussaka you could imagine), and plenty of dishes you’re yet to discover that will soon become regulars on your summertime table. 

Kin by Marie Mitchell

KIN: Caribbean Recipes for the Modern Kitchen

by Marie Mitchell

Discover the fresh, bold, and varied flavours of the Caribbean with this collection of recipes by Marie Mitchell, featuring Honey Jerk Wings, Piña Panna Cotta with Caramelized Pineapple, and Summer Rum Punch.

5 Ingredients Mediterranean

What could be more summery than the food and flavours of the Mediterranean? From fresh salads to easy desserts to sizzling seafood, Jamie Oliver has developed over 125 fuss-free recipes that use just five ingredients per dish.

Ainsley’s Caribbean Kitchen

Add a taste of the Caribbean to your summer recipe repertoire with Ainsley Harriott’s brand new cookbook. From vibrant meat, fish and vegetable dishes that are perfect for the barbecue to sunny cocktails and Ainsley’s ultimate jerk chicken, bring the sunshine into your kitchen with this collection of inspiring recipes.

A Love of Eating

A Love of Eating is a cookbook to suit all seasons but we can’t get enough of the many recipes that inspire firing up the barbecue or getting out that picnic rug and making the most of the warm weather. From light summery salads to fish cooked on the barbie, this cookbook is currently in prime, easy-to-reach position on our cookbook shelf.

Berber & Q

by Josh Katz

Nothing says summer quite like a good barbecue, and Berber & Q by Ottolenghi protégé, Josh Katz, is the ultimate guide to cooking over coals. With flavours from the Middle East and beyond, this is an inspiring collection of recipes for everything from mezze to grills alongside plenty of invaluable advice on how to get the most out of your barbecue, to help you banish tasteless meats and lacklustre sides and cook up the best barbecue you’ve ever had.

Meliz’s Kitchen

by Meliz Berg

The warming, comforting flavours of Turkish-Cypriot cuisine can be found in the recipes in Meliz’s Kitchen from Meliz Berg. You’ll find nine different chapters covering one-tin oven dishes, slow-cooked feasts, pastries and breakfasts, plus many more. Celebrate this melting pot of flavours and bring a little sunshine and warmth to your kitchen with this creative cookbook.

La Grotta Ices

If you thought the ultimate summer treat couldn’t get any better, think again. Kitty Travers is the undisputed ice cream queen, renowned across South London and beyond for her incredible, seasonal ice creams and sorbets that are the essence of summer. Now, with this collection of 75 of Kitty’s easy-to-follow recipes, you can recreate her iced delights at home and cool down with a scoop (or three) of intensely-flavoured, mouth-watering ice cream. Barbados Custard, anyone?

The Quick Roasting Tin

Having changed our lives for the better with her first two cookbooks, The Roasting Tin and The Green Roasting Tin, Rukmini Iyer is back with a new collection of recipes that leave the hard work to the oven, and this time they’re quicker and easier than ever before. Perfectly timed for lazy summer evenings when the last thing you want to do is spend hours cooped up in the kitchen, these tasty and fuss-free dishes are packed with seasonal veg, hearty grains and creative dressings. Oh, and did we mention there will be much less washing up? Score.  

Eat Happy

Melissa’s 30 minute feel-good recipes saw us through the winter months and now we’re turning to its myriad summery recipes to inspire our midweek meals for warmer days. From super fresh and substantial salads to creative and lighter versions of everything from tacos and curries to desserts, we love the fuss-free instructions that are perfect for laid back summer cooking. 

The Little Swedish Kitchen

From midsummer feasts to crayfish parties, the Swedes know a thing or two about summer feasting, which is why Rachel Khoo’s brand new cookbook, The Little Swedish Kitchen, has a whole chapter dedicated to summer recipes. Try the vibrant Smashed Potatoes with Green Sauce for a brilliant side dish for fish, Pickled Mackerel 3 Ways for a taste of Scandinavia or Poached Chicken with Quick Pickled Strawberry Salad for the ultimate summer salad recipe. 

Med

by Claudia Roden

Med is a glorious celebration of the flavours and dishes of the Mediterranean from the much loved and esteemed Claudia Roden. Thirty years on from the publication of her first Mediterranean cookbook, Claudia presents a set of vibrant and authentic dishes that will bring comfort and joy to our kitchens and a little bit of sunshine too.

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