La Base

This book might have been the big hit in Adelaide at the World Food Media Awards last year (Best Hard Cover Recipe Book under $25), but sometimes it takes me a while to catch up. Produced in partnership with Filip Verheyden writing the text and Tonly Le Duc taking the photographs, self-published under the name of Homarus Editions Culinaires, this is a wonderful textbook no chef should be without (provided they read French). It lists and explains cooking techniques and terminology, then goes through Stocks, Binding Agents, Clear and Bound Soups, Potatoes, Rice, Butter Emulsions, Cold and Hot Sauces, Eggs, Mousses, Breads, Doughs, Jams, Desserts, Ice Creams and Sweet Sauces and Emulsions. The photography is exceptional, the text clear, concise and instructive. This is, in my opinion, one of the best textbooks on the market (and would make a fabulous present).

Look for it at Books for Cooks in Melbourne 03 8415 1415

or The Cookery Book Shop in Sydney 02 9967 8211

http://www.homarus.be/labase.php