I decided a couple of weeks ago that, as of Jan 1 2014, I am going to stop being a lazy bum and start confronting my culinary shortcomings by attempting to cook from a recipe book at least once a week. From my photos above you can see that I do like cooking - I just don’t do it very often.

By sticking to my new years resolution I hope to achieve several things:

1. I want to try new foods and broaden our culinary horizons
2. I want to create more time for me and JMG to sit together and enjoy home-cooked meals at our lovely kitchen table, rather than splashing out at fancy restaurants (or on Dominoes pizza…)
3. Budget, budget, budget - we’re saving up for a 2015 wedding so I’m going to try and be a bit more thrifty in 2014. Note: I’m generally more of a splurger than a saver, so this might be hard when it comes to buying ingredients, etc.
4. I want to become a dab hand in the kitchen, build up my inner domestic goddesses confidence by learning some new skills, prepping new foods and try new techniques and ways of cooking.
5. I want to eat healthily and look after our bodies by knowing what we’re putting into them.

I’ve since realised that we don’t actually own many recipe books. Our bookshelf is currently home to just six titles. This could get boring if I don’t invest in a few new ones.

The books we’ve got are:

1. Good Housekeeping Favourite Quick & Easy Meals 
2. Wagamama cookbook
3. Leon Naturally Fast Food
4. Mary Berry’s Baking Bible (I know, this is baking - not cooking…)
5. Gizzi Skinny Weeks & Weekend Feasts
6. The Big Book of One Pot

However, I’ve created an Amazon cookery book wishlist featuring a few of the TV chef’s I LOVE to watch cook. Hopefully, over the next 12 months our cookbook collection will continue to grow in line with my ability to produce some delicious dishes as seen prepared by the likes of:

• Gordon Ramsay
• Rick Stein
• Jamie Oliver
• The Hairy Bikers
• Antonio Carluccio
• James Martin
• Gizzi Erskine
• Nigella Lawson
• Nigel Slater
• Rachel Khoo
• Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
• Lorraine Pascale
• Gino D'Acampo
• Paul Rankin
• Anthony Worrall-Thompson

Some of the things I’d like to learn how to bake/make/cook/do:

• Bread
• Sushi / Japanese
• Chocolate
• Indian
• Fish
• Knife skills
• The perfect steak
• Pasta
• Chinese Dim Sum
• Pastry

I’ve found some great enthusiast courses available at Leiths. You can do evening, one day or one week classes. There are so many to choose from including some of the things listed above.

Other cookery skills courses I found on the web:

• http://undergroundcookeryschool.com/
• http://www.thegingerpig.co.uk/butchery-classes/our-classes/
• http://www.leiths.com/
• http://www.seafoodtraining.co.uk/
• http://e5bakehouse.com/classes/
• http://www.schoolofartisanfood.org/
• https://www.sozai.co.uk/
• http://www.caldesi.com/
• http://www.manoir.com/web/olem/cookery_courses.jsp
• http://www.atsukoskitchen.com/
• http://www.paulayoung.co.uk/events/
• http://www.thelondonfoodie.co.uk/p/london-cooking-club.html
• https://www.rivercottage.net/shop/department/cookery_school_courses/

If you’ve got any cookery course suggestions or recipe/recipe book recommendations please do share them. You can leave me comment or email me at info@luciekerley.co.uk