I’m often asked what cookbooks I have in my collection, and believe me to list them all here would make for some rather devoted reading, so instead I’ve picked out ten books with great recipes and techniques that I find myself coming back to time and time again for ongoing inspiration. In no particular order…

• French Provincial Cooking - Elizabeth David
• The Cook’s Companion - Stephanie Alexander and all others
• Cooking of South West France - Paula Wolfert
• The Kitchen Diaries - Nigel Slater and others
• Heart and Soul - Kylie Kwong and others
• French - Damien Pignolet
• The Food I Love - Neil Perry
• The Babbo Cookbook - Mario Batali and others
• Roast Chicken and Other Stories - Simon Hopkinson
• How I Cook - Skye Gyngell