Cookbook feast

Create good karma by giving (or receiving) one of these culinary books by South Africa’s best foodies.

Bake By Tina Bester (Quivertree, R145)

From her Observatory coffee shop, Queen of Tarts Tina Bester keeps Capetonians satiated with home bakes, from cookie-jar favourites and flaky-pastry pies to sweet cakes and tarts so pretty they defy eating.

In addition to six sections of sweet and savoury nirvana, Bake chronicles the journey Tina herself has taken from a “no bake” cook to a passionate purveyor of home-baked treats.

A Farm in my Heart By Emilia le Roux and Francois Smuts (Tafelberg, R275)

If you dream of providing for loved ones from a real farm kitchen, then Emilia le Roux’s tribute to Doornkraal, a farm near De Rust where she grew up, will inspire you to reconnect with your own piece of land.

Emilia’s story, which she co-authors with her husband, is a cookbook, but also a down-to-earth guide to planting, nurturing and harvesting, and a soulful homage to the simple life.

Be My Guest By Fay Lewis (Struik Lifestyle, R230)

No stranger to the kitchen, Fay Lewis follows up her award-winning From My Oven and At My Table with this do it- yourself guide to successful entertaining.

Designed to remove the stress from playing host, chapters are divided into types of events – everything from a picnic in the garden to a party at the pool – and comes complete with a full menu of recipes, many of which are convenient make-ahead meals.

Colour photos illustrate an array of table setting and decorating ideas, and Fay also includes a number of her own creative party-planning tips.

South Africa Eats By Phillippa Cheifitz (Quivertree, R345)

In this coffee-table-cumcookbook, bestselling author Phillippa Cheifitz has woven a delicious tapestry that’s rich with the variety of South African culinary tradition.

By way of a collection of favourite recipes, 13 of the country’s leading foodies – from Dorah Sitole to Mariana Esterhuizen – share their idiosyncratic family histories, roots, cooking influences and, of course, their favourite personal recipes.

Included in the 80 odd recipes – all of them accessible and conveniently quick to the table – is Phillippa’s own selection of much-loved local meals.

Reflecting our diverse cultural heritage and vibrant people, this is a book to own with patriotic pride.

Gatherings: A Year of Invitations By Nataniël (Human & Rousseau, R314)

In inimitable Nataniël style, this book records a year’s worth of special gatherings hosted by South Africa’s entertainer extraordinaire.

Set in Nataniël’s home and garden, it is not so much a cookbook as a memorable portrait of a selection of meals for good friends, from a Valentine’s dinner and a Hocus Pocus party to Christmas and Easter celebrations, or an impromptu meal with friends.

Infused with Nataniël’s characteristic flair for the gorgeous, the recipes are swanky updates of basics, making this a book for “real” people who nevertheless love a sense of occasion.