Feeding the Fire is by Joe Carroll, a chef known well in Brooklyn, New York for his barbecue and grilled meat restaurants Fette Sau and St Anselm and in this book he shares the knowledge he has accumulated over twenty straightforward lessons and ninety recipes that delve deeper into the magical science of the interaction of smoke, fire and ingredients.

Despite juggling too many dishes, I had fun cooking from China Town Kitchen, enjoyed the feast, and learned about sourcing new ingredients and how to use them.

So how do you go about salting, smoking and curing your own meat and do you have to wear biker boots and have a beard and tattoos? No you don’t and you don’t need a curious name either, although Turan T Turan certainly does.

Roast Haunch of Wild Boar, Fried Suckling Pig Chops, Porchetta Trevigiana, Fat Dirty Rice, Steamed Pork Buns, Stuffed Cabbage, Crispy Pork & Pickled Watermelon Salad, Candied Bacon Pecan Popcorn – you name it he porks it.

In a world of concrete and pre-packaged portioned fruit, Tom tries to find out if a new book from Cinead McTernan can help him become a more self-sufficient cook.

Nick remembers the ad campaign ‘Go to work on egg’, so who better to crack open a new book of eggy recipes?

Does the name sound familiar, how about if spelt Patak? Yes indeed Anjali is the granddaughter of one of the founders of the now massive Patak spice and sauce empire.

We all like a bit of cake it’s true but what a guilty pleasure. A moment on the lips a lifetime on the hips my dear and don’t even mention the sugar! But taste buds gonna crave, as Taylor Swift might say, so what are you gonna do? Well this book could be your sweet salvation.

Spirits Distilled by Mark Ridgwell is primarily a book for industry professionals, bar tenders and mixologists, but if you can look past the necessarily dry sections about processes, principles and classifications, you’ll find a treasure trove of interesting information about the history and culture of spirits.

Five a day has been used as a stick for government health professionals to beat the lardy meat eaters for some time now, but many people still have no more idea of what it means in quantity than they do about what constitutes a unit of alcohol. A glass? A bottle? It’s a bottle, right?