Jamie Oliver’s new book – Jamie Does… Spain (and a variety of other European countries!)

With beautiful photography, as usual, arty layout and design, and simple twists on everyday European recipes, this is definitely the book for me. It’s the latest offering from Jamie, and as regular readers know, he is someone whose books I often refer to for their sheer easiness when it comes to chucking things in and making a delicious sauce or marinade to add that extra specialness. He does do less rustic meals, as in Jamie’s Kitchen, but I prefer to make (and eat) the more traditional ones with deep and well-planned flavours.

So when this pre-release book arrived on my doorstep, and was signed by the man himself, no less, I became rather over excited! After having had a very brief flick though, I placed it squarely in the middle of the coffee table and didn’t allow myself the pleasure of opening it until I’d written the first three paragraphs of this post and sorted out a few other things that needed doing. Oh, the temptation.

The note I received alongside the book simply said that they thought I might enjoy a few recipes from it. Obviously, I’ll certainly give them a try and let you all know how it goes, but I also wanted to say thank you let others know if I’d spend my hard-earned money on it!

My fingers were itching to caress the thick, matt paper, but I managed to restrain myself until I had time to do it justice and actually read the descriptions at the beginning of the sections rather than simply look at the pictures.

The recipes are a range, from very simple and rustic to a little more extravagant and time-hungry. All, however, look very do-able and, more importantly, tasty. After a little discussion with other foodies, we decided the Swedish section looked ‘interesting’ (lots of fish) but I like the idea of many little dishes. This is also seen, more obviously, in the Spanish section, which looks particularly traditional. As for the French, with classics like Steak Tartare and Tarte Tatin, you really can’t go wrong. Now all I have to do is try them out – and the Easter holidays will be a perfect time!

(I almost forgot to tell you the best bit…the page numbers are written in the language of the title! A nice touch I thought.)