To help make Christmas shopping a little less stressful this year, here are our top picks for home & garden, food and cocktail books bound to impress friends and family. As well as the perfect stocking-fillers, these books are also full of inspiration to make your festive celebrations unforgettable!
Home & Garden
“Hilary Robertson is a sought-after interiors stylist, an intrepid globe-trotter, and a British expat with an eye for synthesizing far-flung finds into warm, eclectic spaces” Martha Stewart Living
Nomad at Home dissects the desire to wander the globe from the point of view of the design-led traveler, those for whom “it is a better thing to travel hopefully than to arrive.” As well as offering inspiration from homes all over the globe, Nomad at Home also contains champion shopper Hilary's nomadic sourcebook, which allows readers to hit the ground shopping in destinations all over the world.
There are a multitude of different ways in which we use our outside spaces, and in this book, Sara Bird and Dan Duchars explore ways to create and style an outdoor haven that will suit your lifestyle. With a focus on sustainability and reclaimed materials, there are suggestions for choosing garden elements, from décor to lighting to furnishings and accessories, as well as easy craft projects that add quirky personal touches.
Selina Lake celebrates the new nostalgic mood in interiors, using vintage and inherited furniture and other accessories in a fresh, original fashion. It’s not only a comforting style, but also a sustainable one, built around pre-owned and vintage pieces sourced at online auctions or on Instagram and given a new lease of life in modern homes.
Layout, colour, texture, scent, lighting and more can be used to create a calming or stimulating environment according to your family's unique needs, including for neurodiverse individuals. This book offers hints and tips as well as long-term solutions to bring your vision of a warm, inviting and harmonious home to life.
Creativity before consumption is about reinvention and sustainability for the sake of the planet, and also for the joy and satisfaction of creating a home that is truly unique. Stylist and set designer Emily shows how to create a home with style, dash and personality aplenty without relying on acquiring yet more disposable ‘stuff’.
Food
Designed for effortless entertaining, this book contains the perfect combination of how-to instructions, shopping lists and recipes to create sharers for unforgettable snacks, meals and social events. The cheese board is often the most anticipated delight of any festivity, and here the concept is taken to the next level, with recipes to suit all tastes and occasions.
***THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER***
Nutritionist Jenny Tschiesche has developed 101 tried-and-tested recipes to help you get the very best out of your air-fryer. Her appealing ideas take their inspiration from all styles of world cuisine, and there is something here to suit every occasion, from snacks and sides to complete meals and sweet treats.
“We’re all looking for quick routes to great dishes and Orlando Murrin does it so well in this beautiful cookbook.” Tom Kerridge
Following the success of Two’s Company, this time Orlando Murrin turns his attention to super simple food designed for two people to share. He brings 75 more recipes to the table, encompassing everything from week-night quick fixes and easy-yet-impressive mains, to indulgent desserts.
Otsumami is the Japanese term given to snacks and simple dishes, designed to be eaten alongside a drink. There are countless delicious flavour pairings to be enjoyed and included here are small bites and dishes to tempt everyone, from existing devotees of Japanese food to new-comers keen to discover more.
Starting with the well-known melted cheese fondues from ski resorts around the world, recipes here include classics from the Alps, such as the archetypal Fondue Neuchatel, based on local cheeses and local wines, and the variation Raclette.
Cocktails
The Curious Bartender: In Pursuit of Liquid Perfection
Tristan Stephenson is back to shake up the cocktail world once more, perfecting classic cocktails and offering his signature reinventions using his world-renowned mixology skills. You’ll find 64 of the finest cocktails: 32 perfected classics and 32 game-changing reinventions of classics.
As family and friends come together to eat drink and be merry, let this collection of drinks and nibbles guide you through advent right up to the new year. You’ll find everything you need to host at home, with recipes for everything from an elegant New Years Eve Soirée to a light Christmas morning brunch.
Enjoy your cocktails on the sweeter side? Or struggle to find room for dessert but fancy a little something to end your meal? Then try one of these deliciously indulgent recipes and satisfy your sweet tooth and cocktail craving at the same time. This book has options to suit all tastes, from chocolate, caramel and coffee concoctions to fresh and fruity treats, as well as rich, silky and creamy sippers.
The Art & Craft of Coffee Cocktails
Enjoy two of life’s greatest pleasures – coffee and alcohol – with this comprehensive guide to mixing perfect coffee cocktails. World-class mixologist Jason Clark will inspire, excite and educate you by taking you behind the bar for a masterclass in creating coffee-based cocktails.
With more flavours and brands of gin on offer than ever before, it’s no wonder that this spirit is so treasured and beloved by many. Perfect for a post-work tipple, a cooling drink on a hot afternoon or the perfect treat for a weekend get-together, the possibilities that gin provides are endless.
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