"Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights"

When I discovered Sophie Dahl, plus-size model and granddaughter of classic children's author, Roald Dahl, had released a cookbook, it was a must-read...

I readily admit, I'm a lazy, neglectful cook. I've famously declared I don't cook anything with more than four ingredients (if only I'd turned my philosophy into a cookbook before others jumped on the bandwagon!), have ruined a packet cake and still can't poach an egg unless you prefer them rock-hard.

I have, however, improved at this cooking lark enough to covet pretty cookbooks like Miss Dahl's. Being Scrooge McCook, I borrowed it from the library, but having sampled some recipes, I've decided shelling out actual $ for it is a sound investment.

My girl crush on Miss Dahl has intensified. Not only did she pioneer a resurgence in plus-size modelling, proving non-stick figures can be confident and beautiful, she's a cracking cook. And, unlike Gwyneth Paltrow, I can believe Miss Dahl adores eating food and knows her way around a kitchen without all the hired chefs and macrobiotic bullsh*t.

Miss Dahl's cookbook is divided into seasons, making it easy to jump to winter warmers, summery salads or other weather-appropriate picks. One of my biggest gripes about overseas-created cookbooks is the confusing international names for ingredients (courgettes/zucchinis and eggplants/aubergines, for example), as well as impossible-to-source ingredients not grown locally and different units of measurement. These potential problems are side-stepped with ease in Voluptuous Delights and the recipes are simple, yet elegant and impressive. Sophie provides cute snippets of information from her childhood and cooking exploits to add just enough colour.

So what did I cook? I gave the caramelised red onion omelette and breakfast burritos a go and they turned out beautifully, took ten minutes each, produced few dishes (oh, I sound like a boring housewife!) and pleased Mr Big no end. I'd definitely whip them up again. Winner!

Rating: 9/10.

What's your favourite cookbook? Have you tried any of the celebrity offerings?