Olivia Potts

Food writer

This was the first cookbook I ever bought for myself. It's probably not the best of Nigella's cookbooks (that title has to go to How to Eat, with Feast a close second place), but it was a formative one for me. I'm not sure I've ever even cooked a dish from it, but I could tell you every single recipe in it, describe every photograph. Nigella, in a purple pashmina, standing over a barbecue wielding tongs, seemed to 12 year old me like the most glamorous thing. It was the book that taught me that a cookbook isn't just a tool, it can be a delight.

Rukmini Iyer

Food stylist and food writer

I know this isn't the most popular of her books, but it's the one I turn to the most often - for Welsh rarebit muffins, pancakes, the masala omelette and absolutely splendid coriander chutney. The fried chicken is 👌 as well.

John Gregory-Smith

Chef

Sabrina Ghayour

Cook and food writer