The Kew Gardens Christmas Book is a beautifully illustrated celebration of the plants and animals central to Christmas. Jenny Linford, author of the highly successful The Kew Gardens Cookbook weaves together history, folklore, botany and stories about Kew, as well as a selection of delicious plant and fungi-based Christmas recipes. From the history of the Christmas tree to the intriguing story of frankincense, the book is filled with fascinating festive facts. In short, it’s the perfect Christmas present.

A celebration of mushrooms and fungi - from folklore to foraging. Plus a collection of more than 65 deeply delicious recipes where fabulous fungi take centre stage. Mushrooms - part of the fungi kingdom - come in an array of sizes, shapes and colours, making them a fascinating ingredient to cook with. From regular humble cultivated button and oyster mushrooms, to wild mushrooms such as chanterelles and porcini, and not forgetting the VIP of the ingredient world, the truffle, this book covers them all. So much more than a tasty side for a fried breakfast, there are many things that make mushrooms a wonder-ingredient. Many mushrooms - such as the Shiitake, beloved in China, or Enoki, enjoyed in Japan - are carriers for the savoury umami fifth-taste. They are wonderfully diverse to cook with - natural allies with butter, herbs and garlic but also able to work well with all manner of spices. They can be eaten raw in carpaccio, plump in a fragrant bowl of noodles, or bound in buttery, flaky pastry. Their distinct yet delicate earthy flavour goes perfectly with luxurious foods like steak and cheese, but also bring body, bite and satisfaction to light plant-based meals, making them popular among vegetarians and vegans. Most varieties of mushrooms are inexpensive, low in calories and contain valuable vitamins and nutrients. Food writer Jenny Linford's mouth-watering selection of recipes include: Small Bites and Sharing Plates such as such as Pesto Ricotta Stuffed Mushrooms, Shiitake Dumplings and Truffle Mushroom Crostini. Satisfying Soups and Stews, like Thai Mushroom Soup or Pumpkin and Lentil Stew. Hearty and delicious meat and fish dishes like Beef Porcini Ragu with Pappardelle and White Fish Fillet with Wild Mushrooms. Light Salads and Vegetable Dishes include Fennel, Mushroom and Crab Salad and Wild Mushroom Carpaccio. To conclude, Eggs and Cheese incorporates decadent dishes such as White Pizza with Funghi, Parma Ham and Truffle Oil. Woven into the recipe chapters are seven informative essays, with topics that range from how to grow mushrooms to mushroom folklore.

There are some ingredients that are so adaptable they appear in dishes all over the world. This book looks at the seven most important - the culinary wonders: rice, salt, honey, pork, tomato, chili and cacao. These are the ones ones that have played a long and valuable role in human life, and this book traces their epic journeys, as they have been transported around the globe to feature in cuisines far away from their countries of origin. As well as telling their diverse culinary and cultural stories, there are 63 traditional and innovative recipes - with one of the ingredients in the starring role - for readers to try. This is the fascinating history of the world's seven most important ingredients and an enchanting exploration of world cuisine.

'Brilliant and original ... From slow feasts to fast food, Linford shows that, no matter what we are cooking, time is of the essence' - Bee Wilson, Sunday Times The Missing Ingredient is about what makes good food, and the first book to consider the intrinsic yet often forgotten role of time in creating the flavours and textures we love. Written through a series of encounters with ingredients, producers, cooks, shopkeepers and chefs, exploring everything from the brief period in which sugar caramelises, or the days required in the crucial process of fermentation, to the months of slow ripening and close attention that make a great cheddar, or the years needed for certain wines to reach their peak, Jenny Linford shows how, time and again, time itself is the invisible ingredient. From the patience and dedication of many food producers in fields and storehouses around the world to the rapid reactions required of any home cook at the hob, this book allows us to better understand our culinary lives.