Delia Smith's Summer Collection: 140 Recipes for Summer [Hardcover]

"Summer is a special time for cooks, a dazzling time when fresh ingredients present themselves in rapid succession, some of them so briefly that we need to snap them up to enjoy them at their best," Delia Smith writes in the introduction to her now classic Summer Collection. No-one can deny that we live in a privileged age when we can shop all round the world for anything at any time of the year, but that should never eclipse the joy of being able to eat something grown close to home when it's at its peak.

Asparagus, runner beans, baby carrots and strawberries all make an appearance in this book, all enhanced by Delia with tastes from California, Italy, Greece and the East. The cooking techniques range from grilling and roasting vegetables to making homemade ice cream. Recipes include Salmon Steaks with Avocado and Crème Fraîche to Sautéed Asparagus with Eggs and Parmesan. Desserts, breads and baking tips complete the collection. --Amanda James

This illustrated book contains imaginative ideas for light lunches, barbecues, buffets and summer teas, putting a new slant on traditional favourites with exciting flavours from South-East Asia, Italy and California.

Delia Smith is Britain's bestselling cookery writer, whose books have sold over 21 million copies worldwide. Delia's first job as a cookery writer was for the Daily Mirror in 1969 - numerous phenomenal best sellers and television series followed including Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course in 1978 and Delia's Christmas, Summer & Winter Collections in the 1990s. Towards the end of the decade Delia commenced work on a new major project - Delia's How to Cook, publishing three separate volumes and the accompanying TV series. The Vegetarian Collection and The Delia Collection followed. After a five year break concentrating on Norwich City Football Club (where she is a director) and Canary Catering, Delia returned triumphant in 2008 with a new BBC TV series and the fastest selling cookery book of all time 'Delia's How to Cheat at Cooking'. Delia is married to the writer and editor, Michael Wynn Jones. They live in Suffolk. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.