Book Review: 'Freeze' by Justine Pattison

When I agreed to review 'Freeze', I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting. A cookbook dedicated to freezer friendly recipes, obviously, but this filled my mind with images of 1970's cooking, casseroles, stews, and awful vol-au-vents. I remember dusty tombs of freezer recipes in my Mum's cookbook collection, and in the age of super-foods, organic produce, and multi-cultural cuisines, I feared that freezer cooking was a thing of the past.

'Freeze' by Justine Pattison

My first thumb through 'Freeze' immediately put my mind at rest. When I pick up a recipe book, I always leaf through the pages first, eager to see which pictures and recipes leap out at me and grab my taste-buds and imagination. Thai Chicken and Coconut Curry, Moroccan Chicken with Apricots and Almonds, Toad in the Hole, Burritos and a mouth-watering Chocolate Truffle Cake jostled on the pages for my attention, and it is easy to see that this is freezer cooking for the 21st century. 

Stage two then is to sit down, with a cup of tea and a biscuit, and read the introduction. I like to understand the motivation behind the author for writing the book, and know what they are trying to achieve within its pages. It doesn't take long to realise that this book has been a labour of love for Justine, and the book is not just a collection of recipes, but an education. Justine has spent two years researching and developing this book, and in the process has had not one, not two, but four large freezers in her dining room and garage, and even had to serve Christmas dinner in the kitchen!

The resulting book is jam packed with useful hints and tips, storage solutions, freezer maintenance and how to handle different food types. Each of the recipes comes with instructions on how to prepare, freeze and defrost each dish, along with a guide on how long each will keep when frozen. Each dish however can equally be made and served fresh, which makes it an incredibly versatile book, and one that you can pick up and use day to day, not just on a weekend when you want to bulk prepare freezer meals. The content and detail given to each recipe shows that each dish has been tried and tested over and over by Justine and her family. 

Each recipe has a side bar of handy hints and tips for freezing and serving

In terms of recipe content, the book is divided into eight sections of recipes, based on purpose; Quick Fixes, Meals for One, Family Meals, Entertaining, Puddings, Cakes and Cookies, Food on the Move, and Vegetables. The contents of each of these sections really opened my eyes to the unlimited possibilities when it comes to freezing foods, I'm all in when it comes to freezing the core produce, or making batches of soups, lasagnes and curries to save for a busy day, but some of the sumptuous tarts, cakes and even brownies I would never have thought to freeze (although I'm still not convinced they'd last long enough in our house! 

And so onto the recipe testing! Whilst reading through the book cover to cover, I noted and bookmarked several recipes to try out, and decided to start with the Chicken in Creamy Tarragon Sauce. The key thing that I was looking for in the dish was flavour, as freezing food tends to numb the flavour, and therefore can risk being a little bland when reheated. I didn't need to worry in this instance, these recipes have been well road tested, and this dish was beautiful, fragrant with the tarragon, with a strong flavour coming through from the white wine, onions and garlic, and the sauce has a great creamy texture. There is a great twist in the recipe where the chicken breasts are stuffed with a leek and sun dried tomato filling, and this fills the chicken again with a great flavour that carries itself well with the sauce. We enjoyed it so much in fact that I will be making it again this weekend for my Mum's birthday dinner.

You can find this recipe on the By Book or By Cook blog here.

My attempt at the Chicken with Tarragon Sauce! Delicious! 

In summary, this book is packed full of tasty, flavoursome recipes that thoroughly reflect the trends and tastes of modern day cooking. If you are looking for a really good guide to making the most of your freezer, this is the place to come, but equally if you are looking for a great recipe for a family meal you will not leave disappointed. I certainly will be 'revolutionising' my freezer and my habits after reading this book, and heartily recommend you do the same. 

'Freeze' is written by Justine Pattison, and published by Orion Books. You can order the book from their site here. 

Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of 'Freeze' by Orion Publishing to review, however all the views and opinions expressed here are my own and are not sponsored. 

Book Review: Paul Hollywood's 'Bread'

With every bakers' favourite 'silver fox' (sorry Schofe, but the title is definitely in contention) due back on our screens imminently, I, along with many others I suspect, am very much looking forward to a great BBC production, some fabulous recipes and great artistic shots of gorgeous loaves of bread... foodie heaven. Now I love a good food show as much as the next person, I ogle the baked treats on The Great British Bake Off, I watch Masterchef with a cocky 'I could do better than that' attitude when really I know I'd freeze in front of the camera worse than anyone, and my Saturday morning cleaning spree wouldn't be the same without James Martin navigating celebs and chefs across the TV screen in the background.

But my anticipation for Mr Hollywood's new series goes much deeper than the superficial love of a good TV show, because, despite many... and I mean many... attempts, I have yet to really master baking a loaf of bread. And it goes to show my faith in the man himself that when I first heard about the new show, and the cookbook that underpins it, my first reaction was 'finally! I'm going to learn how to bake bread!'

'Bread' by Paul Hollywood, is in all good bookshops already, and I have my copy here, ready and waiting for me to painstakingly follow episode by episode. My plan is to watch the show, pick up the tips, learn from the master so to speak, and then attempt to recreate the bakes each week, until I am much more confident in reaching for the strong white flour and yeast and creating good homemade breads.

The blurb on the back of the book gives a clear message about what can be found inside, in Paul's words: 'It's time to take bread off the side plate and put it back where it belongs: in the centre of the table." In short, the book contains a wide collection of bread recipes, from bloomers to sourdough, ciabatta to corn tortillas, flatbreads, brioche and fruit loaves. The twist is that with each bake, Paul has then suggested a full recipe that incorporates the bread. Irish soda bread therefore becomes Irish Rarebit, Malt Loaf is embedded in a Marmalade version of Bread and Butter pudding, and there are stews, curries, and salads galore.

At the first initial thumb-through of the book, I must admit to feeling a little over-whelmed. I couldn't see the bread for the Limoncello Trifle, and I wasn't sure whether I was going to get what I wanted out of this and learn the basics of making good bread. Because the recipes have been grouped together by type of bread, rather than the traditional starters, mains and desserts format that we are used to, the pages jump from pudding to salad to snack and back to pudding again, with pictures of loaves in-between.

I needn't (kneadn't!! Sorry..) have worried though. Sitting down with a mug of tea, and my concentrating face on, I read the book again, as intended from front to back. It truly is an incredible culinary feat. Paul begins by outlining his mission, and quickly moves on to a really good overview of the best equipment, ingredients and techniques to use. The descriptions are clear, and honest - "Bread doesn't need much kit".

Then the real baking begins. We get eased in with a Classic White Bloomer, a few Rye Breads, and Maltloaf. Then, as the book progresses, we graduate from Classic Breads to Soda Breads, then Flatbreads, Continental bakes, and eventually to Enriched Breads, with Danish Pastry Dough and Brioche. The photography that supports each page is stunning, with great action shots of Paul spinning pizza dough alongside rustic style photos of each bake and dish. And what won me over completely are the step by step pictures that underpin the methods for making the bread doughs, so that a novice like me can refer back at each stage and check that the dough looks like it is supposed to do.

This isn't a normal cookbook, and if that's what you are looking for, then this might not be the book for you. There is the odd curry, a few puddings, and a sprinkling of breakfast recipes, and it isn't easy to pick up if you are looking for some last minute inspiration for dinner. What this book is however, is a baker's masterclass in bread-making, with a real clear cut mission to move us away from the classic white loaf, and back into traditional bread-making and thinking about pairing bread with great home cooking.

The more I have studied this book, the more pages I have folded, notes I have jotted, and recipes I have spotted that at first were lost in the masses only to be uncovered like little gems. To summarise, a little daunting at first glance, but actually a really good beginner to baker journey, this is definitely a cookbook to follow and learn from, rather than just thumb through for a random recipe. I await episode one of the show on Monday night with great anticipation, and look forward to sharing my attempts at bread with you all...


Disclaimer: The views and opinions in this post are my own, and are not part of any sponsored or paid for activity.