Photo by Benito Martin and Jess Johnson
I smiled when I read the title of this book: it is a kitchen mantra I so heartily endorse. I was anyway so happy to have this in my home, for I love Danielle Alvarez’s food. I came across it last at Fred’s in Sydney, where she had arrived by way of Boulette’s Larder in San Francisco and Chez Panisse in Berkeley. This pedigree shows in her recipes, which are bright, seasonal, and unshowily full of flavour. I’ve already lined up a gratifyingly long list of recipes I want to cook from it, which includes Fennel braised in chicken fat; Warm camembert with roasted mushroom and spring onions; Barley risotto with pumpkin, sage, roasted radicchio and balsamic; Pappardelli with borlotti beans, pancetta and rosemary; Poached beef short ribs with horseradish and breadcrumb salsa verde; Slow-roasted lamb shoulder with white beans and harissa; Buckwheat, brown butter, almond and apple cake. And believe me, that’s just to be going on with. This book is crammed with riches: I love that the more involved or time-consuming recipes have their own little chapter at the back for times when you want to stay in the kitchen to potter and learn; and the pre-index “What to cook” recipe-suggestion pages are as smile-inducing as the title. Above all, this is a book that inspires you to make the most of the ingredients in front of you, written by someone with a palate you can trust.
It was hard to choose just one recipe to share with you, but after much delicious dithering I plumped for the Celeriac schnitzel with salsa verde. I adore celeriac, and now is the perfect time of year for them. Added to which, I found this just irresistible.
Extracted from Always Add Lemon by Danielle Alvarez (Hardie Grant, £26).
Photography © Benito Martin and Jess Johnson.
