Zola Nene has become quite a force on the South African culinary scene, yet her personal quest to show people that cooking great food needn’t be pretentious or difficult continues in her new book.

Simply Delicious was a triumph and now, as Zola says herself, ‘My food journey is ever evolving and is a continuation of my life journey told through food,’ and so Simply Zola is the mouth-watering result.

The dishes (and drinks) are simple to prepare and each is a taste sensation. Zola doesn’t do bland or shy, so prepare to be swept away by the likes of Barley, grape and pecan nut salad, Prawn, lemon and chilli linguini, Cola-braised beef short ribs, and Rocky road waffles with salted caramel sauce. For those of you always complaining that it’s impossible to cook properly for one, there’s a chapter devoted just to that, while the lazy among you will be cheered by a chapter of one-pot dishes. There’s even a chapter for those who want taste without the gluten.