Cake and cookie time in June – it’s heaven on a stick for my baking buddies, and then July gets seriously seasonal!
June is going to be busy for the bakers in the Lambs’ Ears Cookbook Club – it’s cake and cookie time for our baking addicts, with two fantastic Australian baking cookbooks to cook from. Some of My Best Friends are Cookies by Emelia Jackson, and The Bakers Book from Ruby Goss bring together all the baking wisdom, skills, and options that any baker could want.
Australians love to bake – it’s deeply rooted in the culture of our country, from indigenous traditions that have been dated back thousands of years, to our fondness for the cake and scone memories of our childhoods. These two baking cookbooks are guaranteed to inspire almost every home cook to get out the flour and the wooden spoon and have a go.
Some of My Best Friends are Cookies offers more than 80 cookie recipes that cover all skill levels, and every possible cookie requirement from basic to fancy. Cookies (or biscuits as we call them here in Oz) are a great gateway to baking for novices – they are simple, require minimal skills and ingredients, are an excellent way to begin learning basic baking skills and are perfectly portable, making them easy to share with loved ones. Oh, and they’re delicious in pretty well any form!
The Baker’s Book celebrates the joy and connection found in baking. In over 60 recipes, from simple small treats like brownies, buns and scones, right up to special occasion fancy layer cakes, it combines the wisdom and creativity of 30 of Australia’s best and most loved bakers. They share their stories, skills, and creativity, making this an incredibly accessible and inspiring collection that makes cake and cookie time something for everyone, from a total novice baker, even the most experienced.
What did we cook in May?
May was a warm, spicy wonderland for our cookbook addicts. As I predicted, it was full of big flavours – it seems that our members couldn’t get enough of the fantastic Indian flavours that Justin Naryan shares in Everything is Indian. Here’s just a few of the creations shared by our members. Head to our Facebook group to see much more.
Masala roast potatoes from Ruth Clark – this was a very popular recipe!
Lucy Young’s samosas
Chicken Curry Tacos with Coriander Green Chilli Chutney from Carolyn Miles
Gigi Annabelle’s Barfi Spiced Caramel Slice
There’s also been quite a bit of kitchen sharing from our year long cookbooks too –
Teresa Reay is cooking from “Everything I Love to Cook” by Neil Perry – this is her Japanese-style chicken meatballs with cabbage
Topical, but totally safe – Mary Mathews cooked up Creamy Mushroom Wild Rice Soup from RecipeTin Eats Tonight
I made Ottolenghi’s Chicken meatballs with potatoes and lemon, from Ottolenghi “Comfort”
What’s coming up in July – it’s seriously seasonal
There’s a bit of a surprise for July in the cookbook club. Rather than buying any new books, next month we will once again be taking advantage of the cookbooks we already own to explore a seasonal favourite – citrus.
It’s winter here in Australia, and we grow some of the finest citrus fruit in the world, so why not celebrate it?! I want Lambs’ Ears Cookbook Club members to dig deep into their own cookbook collections and share their favourite citrus-based recipes – sweet or savoury, whatever floats your boat.
This will be the perfect time to sign up for Eat Your Books. Using their data base of the cookbooks you already own makes searching for recipes easy. And don’t forget – Eat Your Books is offering Lambs’ Ears Cookbook Club members a one-month FREE trial -just use the code LECC25.
But for now, let’s get straight into cake and cookie time. Baking is comforting, therapeutic (see one of my ancient posts from 15 years ago on this here), encourages connection, and results in delicious treats to share with those you care about – all perfectly sound reasons to share the baking love.
IF YOU HAVEN’T JOINED THE LAMBS EARS COOKBOOK CLUB YET, YOU WILL FIND ALL THE DETAILS HERE.
SO, 2025 IS LOOKING LIKE THIS SO FAR
Your whole-year cookbook will be any ONE cookbook from your own collection
June – Some of My Best Friends are Cookies by Emelia Jackson AND The Bakers Book by Ruby Goss
May – Everything Is Indian by Justin Narayan
April – Too Easy by Donna Hay
March – What’s for Dessert by Claire Saffitz
February – RecipeTin Eats Tonight by Nagi Maehashi
January – Salad for Days by Alice Zaslavsky
PLEASE NOTE, AUSTRALIAN ONLINE BOOKSELLER BOOKTOPIA IS BACK IN BUSINESS. IF YOU PURCHASE ANY OF THESE COOKBOOKS FROM MY LINKS, YOU WILL GET A GREAT PRICE, AND I WILL GET A VERY SMALL COMMISSION.
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Oh my, citrus is right up my alley. I have two lemon trees, a lime tree and a grapefruit tree.
Oh my, I’m a bit jealous. I only have one lemon tree, and I nearly lost that a few months ago because of the drought. We had to strip the tree to save it.
Fantastic. I have both these books.
Great – happy baking!