Julie Friend

Chef, food writer and Masterchef winner

https://juliefriend.co.uk

Julie's recommendations

Keep it Simple

Alastair Little and Richard Whittington

Part of my prize for winning MasterChef was an Alistair Little cookery course in Orvieto. One of the best weeks I have ever had, full of simple classic Italian cooking, lots of laughs and in a dreamy setting.

Ballymaloe Cookery Course

Darina Allen

I was lucky enough to visit the school and meet Darina Allen. I have bought this book for lots of budding chefs as there is everything you need in one place.

Secrets from an Italian Kitchen

Anna Del Conte

Anna is a dear friend of mine and her recipes are the perfect failsafe dinner party offerings.

Breakfast, Lunch, Tea

Rose Carrarini

Baking is my thing. I love the photography in this book and have visited both the London and Paris sites. Plus my wonderful friends, the Demes from Chegworth Valley, make an appearance which makes me very happy.

How to be a Domestic Goddess

Nigella Lawson

Again, heavy on baking and lots of wonderful recipes which never fail.

Marcella Cucina

Marcella Hazan

An Italian bible - not much else to say really.

Rick Stein's Complete Seafood

Rick Stein

My food hero. My copy of this book is well thumbed and covered in various splatters of sauce. Love it.

Sue Lawrence's Book of Baking

Sue Lawrence

Sue was a MasterChef winner a few years before me and I used this book for many of the cakes and biscuits I used to sell in my London delis.

The River Café Cookbook

Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers

I went to the River cafe on a first date, many years ago and whilst I couldn't tell you much about the date, I could tell you everything about the food. Simple, delicious, genius.

Ottolenghi: The Cookbook

Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

I remember visiting the first Ottolenghi in Notting Hill and standing spellbound in front of the window display. It influenced much of what I did i my delis and for my private catering.