As the culture editor at marie claire, I read dozens of books every year. Iโm a sucker for straight-talking self-help guides and empowering memoirs, and Iโve read more money management books than my bank balance would have you believe, but there is only one book thatโs actually changed my life.
That book is Ottolenghi SIMPLE by Israeli-British chef Yotam Ottolenghi, which features โ130 brilliantly simple recipes that contain all the inventive elements and flavour combinations that Ottolenghi is loved for, but with minimal hassle and maximum joy.โ
Since picking up the bible-like cookbook a few months ago, Iโve become nothing short of a master chef.
Let me explain why this is such a big deal: I cannot cook.
My culinary skills (or lack there of) are a running joke in my family. I once burnt a serving of Alfredo packet pasta, which has a total of three ingredients.
If my boyfriend isnโt home and hasnโt pre-prepared dinner for me to heat up in the microwave (rude), Iโll have cheese on crackers. You canโt burn cheese on crackers.
My sister-in-law buys us cookbooks every Christmas: 65 Slow Cooker Recipes With Six Ingredients Or Less, 30-Minute Meals, Cooking For Dummies. Iโve never read any of them (sorry, Tess).
Ottolenghi SIMPLE is the opposite: I havenโt put it down since I got it. Iโve spent hours flicking through the chicly photographed, beautifully styled dishes, planning meals and writing out ingredient lists for our weekly shop.
There are two things that set Ottolenghi SIMPLE apart from other โeasyโ cookbooks. Firstly, its style: so minimal and crisp. And secondly, its practicality: the recipes actually are simple (if I can cook them, anyone can).
In the last few weeks, Iโve made my way through eight recipes โ a world record (for me).
I started with the โStuffed courgettes with pine nut salsa,โ devoured the โPea zaโatar and feta frittersโ and have most recently tried the โRoasted butternut squash with lentils and dolcelatte.โ All were big hits.
My boyfriend said the โPasta alla Normaโ was the best thing Iโve ever cooked, which isnโt that hard TBH, but Iโll still take it.
When I brought leftover โCurried egg and cauliflower saladโ to work for lunch, my colleagues refused to believe Iโd cooked it.
Tonight Iโm making the โTomato and cucumber raitaโ with green chilli salsa.
Iโm truly a changed woman. And itโs all thanks to Yotam Ottolenghi, the acclaimed food writer who started out as a pastry chef at the Michelin-starred Capital restaurant in London and has gone on to write seven best-selling cookbooks and a food column for The Guardian called โThe New Vegetarian.โ Ottolenghi SIMPLE is a nod to his first cookbook Ottolenghi: The Cookbook and his namesake restaurant chain, and itโs become an instant hit in Australia.
In exciting news, Ottolenghi is coming down under for a book tour this month. In less exciting news, most of the events have already sold out. You can still nab a seat at his Tassie talks here, though.
I missed out on tickets to the Sydney Opera House talk hosted by Adam Liaw, so Iโd like to take this opportunity to personally thank Ottolenghi. Yotam, you have changed my life and made it so much tastier, thank you. Forever grateful, Alley.
Ottolenghi SIMPLE by Yotam Ottolenghi (Penguin, $49.99) is out now.