‘Simply Nigella’ Offers Recipes to Soothe Rather than Stress
Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week is Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food by Nigella Lawson (Flatiron Books). In addition to writing nine bestselling cookbooks, Lawson has hosted numerous popular cooking shows and has her own line of kitchenware.
The cover of “Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food” (Flatiron Books).
Fans of Nigella Lawson know that the British cooking legend has a rare and special talent for creating and writing recipes. While dispensing all the little details necessary for success and sprinkling in bits of her kitchen wisdom, Lawson always maintains a breezy, conversational tone that keeps the whole endeavor feeling easy and effortless. In Lawson’s kitchen, cooking is never a task to be accomplished but rather a pleasure to be relished.
Longtime readers have nothing to fear: Recipe-wise this book is hardly a departure from Lawson’s previous work. She continues to favor cozy, comfort food and isn’t afraid to indulge, so you’ll find Sweet Potato Macaroni and Cheese, Barbecuey Pork Butt, and Beef Chili with Bourbon, Beer, and Black Beans. Though her British roots are apparent, Lawson’s cooking is distinctly global and her pantry knows no geographic bounds. Recipes range from Greek Squid and Orzo to Thai Turkey Meatballs and there is ample use of tahini, mustard seeds, ginger, matcha, and coconut milk.
Salmon, Avocado, Watercress, and Pumpkin Seed Salad (Photograph: Keiko Oikawa)
Throughout Simply Nigella, Lawson encourages what she calls “mindful cooking.” But make no mistake: This is not a healthy cookbook. In fact, early on, Lawson quite clearly states that she loathes the term “healthy,” and is “disgusted by the contemporary mantra of ‘clean eating.’” Her interest in mindful eating is rooted in a belief that the kitchen offers an opportunity to be “absorbed in the simple rituals of chopping, stirring, tasting,” and a chance to lose ourselves “in the world of flavor, sensation, and straightforward practicalities.” Food, says Lawson, should make us feel good not just at the table, but also while we stand by the stove making it, and “if the recipe’s right, the activity soothes rather than stresses.”
Lawson’s mindful cooking theme pops up throughout the book and guides much of its organization. The Quick and Calm chapter features recipes for speedy, simple suppers designed to “ensure a calm evening,” while the Bowlfood chapter offers dishes that are “simultaneously soothing, bolstering, undemanding, and sustaining.” Breathe is devoted to slow cooked food that can be made ahead and reheated later, and all in the service of limiting stress: “The happy knowledge that the food is there and, furthermore, that I don’t have to worry or fuss about it, makes me breathe easier.”
The rest of the book adheres less closely to the theme, but is nonetheless pure Lawson. In Dine, she shares her informal and anti-perfectionist approach to entertaining and recipes for Tamarind-Marinated Flank Steak, Butternut and Halloumi Burgers, and Chicken Traybake with Bitter Orange and Fennel. Sides is a collection of easy vegetable dishes, plus a few sauces and a new Lawson obsession, quick pickles. Breakfast is covered in the Beginnings chapter, which features Spiced Apple and Blueberry Compote, Pomegranate Muesli, and Breakfast Banana Bread with Cardamom and Cacao Nibs.
No-Churn Matcha Ice Cream (Photograph: Keiko Oikawa)
In the Sweets chapter, Lawson defends her use and enjoyment of sugar, but gently recommends moderation, at least in terms of finding balance in your diet. Cooking is about providing sustenance, as well as giving pleasure, says Lawson. Maybe you shouldn’t eat dessert every day, but “a life that banishes sweet things is not a balanced life.” Among the cakes, cookies, pies, tarts, and ice creams, you’ll find a few gluten-free and dairy-free options. Lawson is unsurprisingly not a fan of diet trends, but she’s happy to accommodate legitimate dietary restrictions, because she wants as many people as possible to enjoy deliciousness.
Visit Yahoo Food throughout the week for recipes from Simply Nigella: Feel Good Food.
Check out other cookbooks from Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week:
My Kitchen Year by Ruth Reichl
NOPI by Yotam Ottolenghi and Ramael Scully
