Read

For the novice cook

NEWT: A COOKBOOK FOR ALL by Newton Nguyen

Known to millions of followers simply as Newt, the Vietnamese-American chef and influencer is among the first TikTok superstars to cross over into traditional print media with this cookbook spinoff from his popular videos. The core gimmick remains the same, as Newt’s recipes are all designed for his tiny mobile kitchen, with its gas-burner and plug-in toaster oven, and geared toward the novice. Chapters cover specialities like dishes that don’t require chopsticks, and range across Newt’s particular fixations, including fried chicken and bang-bang shrimp.

For the spice collector

A WHISPER OF CARDAMOM by Eleanor Ford

Ford is probably the best spice writer in the business and shows no sign of exhausting her subject. This new book presents 80 new recipes geared toward desserts, sweets and pastries, most of which make canny, subtle use of the likes of cinnamon, nutmeg and the titular cardamom – all working spectacularly well when blended with sugars and set off by the season. Tarts, custards, gingerbreads and spiced fruits abound here, all photographed in the kind of eye-popping detail that has you putting on your apron almost without thinking.

For the lover of food history and sweets

SUGARCANE: SWEET RECIPES FROM MY HALF-FILIPINO KITCHEN by Arlyn Osborne

As far as desserts go, Filipino cuisine is up there with American, Turkish and even French, as author Osborne knows very well from her mixed culinary heritage. The gist here is to make sweets from a compatible blend of Pacific island ingredients and Western techniques, finding especially creative uses for native fruits such as mango, guava, lemongrass and passion fruit. Between each scone or cookie recipe is a rich contextual essay on some aspect of Filipino history and culture.

Watch

IS IT CAKE?

So we’re already on the third season of this oddly compelling contest based on the viral Internet meme. Each week, amateur bakers set out to create edible replicas of common or household objects (suitcases, sewing machines and so on) so lifelike as to fool the celebrity judges when set against the actual, inedible articles. Host Mikey Day has accurately described the appeal of the show as something to do with our innate human desire “to pick out ‘the disguised something’.”

Netflix

Listen

PASTRY ARTS PODCAST

This is the one the pro pastry chefs listen to – and often contribute to as well. Presenter Tish Boyle is managing editor of Pastry Arts Magazine, and therefore knows exactly what questions to ask prominent bakers about their particular niche. Obviously the programme provides recipes and kitchen tips, but often, episodes cross the breadth of the industry to consider the rising generation of pastry chefs, the challenges of becoming a chocolatier and so on.

Pastry Arts Mag Podcast