Culinary Italy in rural Victoria

The pages of Rosa’s Farm - Country Cooking are an ode not only to good food but to the town that inspired it. It wasn’t long after Rosa Mitchell’s unexpected “tree change” to the small town of Yandoit in rural Victoria that she was enamoured with the local, distinctly Italian, culture. The pages of recipes are interspersed with images of country life, green fields and plump hens; this book is clearly a reflection of the transformative Yandoit way of life. Rosa Mitchell’s dedication to slow food (Rosa was a founding member of Slow Food Victoria) and the rural Italian flavour of Yandoit are combined to create a truly flavoursome collection of recipes. Enjoy the food of Rosa’s Farm as it is meant to be – over a long lazy weekend with friends and family – and you too will be charmed by country cooking.

Rosa’s Farm - Country Cooking by Rosa Mitchell (Murdoch Books, $49.99)

Turkish hospitality

Sevtap Yuce has made it clear in her debut cookbook Turkish Flavours – Recipes From A Seaside Café that, when it comes to ingredients, the fresher the better. It’s this philosophy that has made her seaside cafe, Beachwood, in the northern NSW town of Yamba, so successful and one that makes the recipes jump off the page of this vibrant debut. Yuce migrated to Australia in the 1980s and brought not only the full and varied flavours of traditional Turkish cooking, but also the welcoming ways of Turkish hospitality. Yuce makes it clear that this food is designed to be shared with friends, family and strangers. And why wouldn’t you want to share such delicious recipes as rose petal jam, garlic chilli squid with saffron, and passionfruit and polenta cake? Get stuck into these recipes and it won’t be long before you are inviting everyone around, these flavours are too good to keep to yourself.

Turkish Flavours – Recipes From A Seaside Café by Sevtap Yuce (Hardie Grant Books, $39.99)

A luxurious lifestyle and recipes to match

French Ties – Love, Life And Recipes is part memoir and part cookbook. The first half of the book shares the author and her family’s experiences after buying the Chateau de Bosgouet in Normandy, France. The family split their time between Bosgouet and Melbourne; the lifestyle is at times challenging but for the most part thoroughly rewarding and utterly magical. The second half of the book is a collection of classic French recipes, broken into five-course sections – a sumptuous reflection of Webster’s move to Bosgouet. As soon as you open the book you are immersed in images of the French way of life, and it won’t be long before you too are wishing for your own slice of the Norman countryside. Although a Chateau may be a far off dream for most, you can still bring Normandy into your home with a slice of Webster’s French flourless chocolate cake or a spoonful of Norman Crème Brulee.

French Ties – Love, Life & Recipes by Jane Webster (Penguin, $59.95)

Make your Grandmother Proud

This classic book will evoke a sense of warm nostalgia in both the young and the old. Jam Drops and Marble Cake – 60 years of CWA Award-Winning recipes is the holy grail of Australian baking.

The simple recipes are punctuated by advertisements from the 50s and 60s as well as pictures of CWA competitions and award winning country bakers. Quite charmingly, the Rules of The Land Cookery Competition preface the recipes, and if you want your scones to taste as good as your grandmother’s, you best follow them. Grab a copy of this cookbook and delight your grandmother and friends alike with Peach Blossom Cake!

Jam Drops and Marble Cake – 60 years of CWA Award-Winning Recipes by Country Women’s Association NSW (Murdoch Books, $24.99)

Keeping Polaroids Alive

Although digital photography has largely superseded film and Polaroid photography, there is a growing community of those holding on to the fun of “shaking it like a Polaroid picture”. Instant Love – How to Make Magic and Memories with Polaroids is a guide to trendy Polaroid aficionados and first timer’s alike, with this handy book you can capture striking images instantly.

Given the popularity of iPhone apps such as Instagram and Hipstagram the lessons taught in this handbook are sure to be useful for both traditional Polaroid and retro digital photography. This bright little book is hip, dreamy and like its subject, so much fun.

Instant Love – How to Make Magic and Memories with Polaroids by Jenifer Altman, Susannah Conway and Amanda Gilligan (Hardie Grant Books, $24.95).