Apples for Jam: A Colorful Cookbook [Hardcover]

The food-for-thought, short-and-sweet closing handwritten note from Tessa, honestly summing up the aim of the colourful, nostalgic, 'Apples for Jam', suitably subtitled 'Recipes for Life', which also heads up the introduction:-

'I have collected these recipes over the years. This is food for families, for young people, for old people, for children, for the child in all.....for life.
Some are recipes I remember from my own childhood, others are the food I want to cook now for my family....'

A pair of red sandals adorns the unusual front cover which opens to 432 high quality pages packed full of delicious recipes, interspersed with sweet child drawings along with regular handwritten memories, from Tessa, such as:-

'We blew away our fallen eyelashes and the ladybirds that landed on us, together with our wishes to the nearest star.'

The same picture opens the 'Red' chapter, as this book is also, unusually, split into chapters by colour:-

* Red (page 12)
* Orange (page72)
* Yellow (page 112)
* Pink (page 144)
* Green (page 170)
* Gold (page 208)
* White (page 254)
* Brown (page 286)
* Monochrome (page 322)
* Stripes (page 362)
* Multicolour (page 390)

sandwiched between the aforementioned introduction and an index....oh......and a nice finishing touch:-
a handy peach satin ribbon, to keep your place!

A handwritten menu list fronts each chapter, alongside an appropriately coloured full page picture followed by a page entitled 'memory', generally white text on the appropriate colour, which describes the nostalgic background.

Overall, I think it is fair to say that the main text is difficult to read given that it is mainly in a pale grey, thin font, with the recipe titles in an equally pale appropriate 'chapter' colour, but it is easy to forgive once engrossed in Tessa's style of descriptive writing.

Each recipe has the list of ingredients, the title, an opening note and the method, winding up with the number of servings. Sometimes the recipes span more than one page. The page numbers at the top and the chapter colour at the bottom are handwritten.

Photography throughout, from Manos Chatzikonstantis - mainly of family and relevant familial nostalgia and, arguably, a little on the light side of those of the finished dishes.

Recipes include:-

* Cranberry Syrup
* Chicken Casserole
* La Pizza Rosa
* Rosehip Semolina Puddings
* Roast Rack of Pork with Fennel & Honey
* Cabbage Salad with Oranges & Lemons
* Wholemeal Apricot & Apple Pie
* Mango Sorbet (the photo of which also adorns the back cover)
* Risotto with Fried Egg
* Barbecued Fish Skewers
* Beetroot Gnocchi
* Tiny Cakes with Pink Icing
* Lamb & Green Bean Casserole
* Sausage & Potato Goulash
* Peppermint Crisp Pie
* Steak Pie
* Macaroni Cheese
* Fish Cakes
* Waffles
* White Milk Bread or Rolls
* Baked Fish Parcels
* Lentil Soup
* Hamburgers
* Mars Bar Sauce
* Fish Pie
* Gingerbread Biscuits
* Smoothies (4)

My favourites, to date, are:-

'Tomato Lasagne', not surprisingly from the 'Red' chapter (page 31), with its 'blobs of goat's cheese and dollops of pesto'.....

and.....

'Beef Stew with Carrots', from the 'Orange' chapter (page 92), which I, coincidentally, make in my favourite Le Creuset pot of the same colour, on the hob!

My first ever attempt at 'Banana Bread' resulted in a much lighter consistency and less banany flavour than I was expecting, a slice of which went down very well with a cup of cappuccino!

And......... for the days 'the little ones' want to 'cook' but the cook has a lot to do, this useful family-dedicated book also contains a handy recipe for 'FUN DOUGH', (page 135).......
'not to eat - but just an easy pastry dough for children to work with while you get on with things.........'

'I am ironing a shirt, keeping an eye on the cake and the chicken, and an ear outside as the kids are on their bikes. I am praying that it will rain so I won't have to water the flowers today and it will cool everyone down a bit.
It is almost time for us to leave for tennis lessons.
I notice Yasmine has a hole in her stocking. I call them in 5 minutes early - so that we will only be 5 minutes late - and I hope my petrol is above half.
I love it when it is; such freedom.
Why didn't I fill it up yesterday when I had those spare two hours?'

An average day in the life of a typical Mum, then!

'...Let me forget and just giggle with them, and leave apples lying around the house with just a couple of bites taken out, and fly with the winds of now as I collect the pearls that spill from their mouths. Let me scatter some inspiration onto them and hope to see it in their drawings - hope their suns are smiling, and that I am always drawn next to them. Let me sprinkle more cinnamon sugar on their paths, and hold hands as we collect apples and bright berries and watch them all joining together in the pot for jam.......'

All the books by Tessa Kiros offer not only good recipes but they are a visual treat. Having quince trees I was delighted to find an excellent recipe for Quince Jam, this is a much-neglected fruit, although it is now found more and more in our local Ludlow market each autumn. Many of the recipes are simply made yet offer innovative ingredience. The rack of pork with fennel and honey was a great success with my family.