Why Gordon Ramsay’s Great British Pub Food?

So by now you know I plan to follow Carol Blymire’s example and cook my way through every recipe in a cookbook and blog the experience for your dubious viewing pleasure. If you’ve been paying particularly close attention you might even know that I have taken as my weapon of choice Gordon Ramsay’s new book “Great British Pub Food”. Why this book and not another you may ask? After all, I have piles of unused and unloved cookbooks already at home, any of which I’m sure would relish being on receiving end of my cook through experiment.

Well, let me try and explain. First of all, I wanted to choose a book sight unseen, so as not to bias my choice towards something too easy. I wanted my new project to be a real challenge. Secondly, I wanted to choose a book that would prove popular, so that my “cook through” experience might ultimately prove of interest to others. And finally, I wanted to choose a book that would hold my interest throughout the project – as difficult and popular as it might be, I’m not sure Rosemary Conley’s Low Fat Cookbook would really motivate me to pull on my apron on a cold and lonely winter’s evening – I needed something a bit more bloke friendly!

So what could be better than Gordon’s new book about British pub food? Its not yet released – so I have no idea exactly how hard the recipes will be, plus it will cover three of my most favourite things – pubs, beer and great food – what could better! I know Gordon is the marmite of tv chefs (you either love him or you hate him) but I admit to being a fan. I like his no nonsense approach in the kitchen and I can relate to his liberal use of expletives (and if you had born witness to any of my many cooking disasters you would understand why).

In addition, I hope to get the chance to blog a few things outside of the cook through attempts; in particular I plan on visiting Gordon’s pubs here in London. It will be interesting to see how his book (and my attempts at the recipes) measure up to the real thing. I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into this project – let’s just hope my enthusiasm lasts the course!