Give: Seasonal recipes for gifting by Allyson Gofton

In this beautifully presented and inspiring book, well-known food writer Allyson Gofton shares recipes for making ‘small gifts of foodie love’. Sharing homemade food is a thoughtful way to support someone facing challenges, especially if they don’t have the time or energy to prepare their own meals.

Gofton has grouped the recipes by season so that you can ‘bottle, bake, craft and cook seasonal food when its flavour is peak and its price low’. Spring recipes, for example, include Fresh Pea, Lemon and Ricotta Dip which Gofton suggests gifting together with Cheese Sablés, a crisp and buttery shortbread-like biscuit. Winter recipes include Nourishing Beef Broth Bowl ‘to bolster flagging spirits’, Lemon Honey (with tips on which varieties of lemon to use), and a Cheesy Cauliflower Pasta Bake that has an easy alternative to the traditional white sauce.

There’s a good mix of sweet and savoury recipes, covering main dishes as well as sides such as chutneys, pickles and pastes, breads, salads, dips, and soups. Gofton explains how to flavour olive oils and how to make a gluten-free flour blend. There are recipes for scones and syrups, conserves and preserves, and even a Fruit and Flower Wine Bomb (no explosives required).

A short section at the back of the book has tips for preserving and jam-making. Gofton reassures us that her recipes have stood the test of time.

If you are new to preserves, know that the recipes I have included here are ones that have had a long history of being made in my kitchen – or my mum’s …

For food gifts that pair well together, Gofton puts both recipes on the same page. Suggested matches include Strawberry and Rhubarb Syrup swirled over the ‘no-fuss’ Cheesecake Ice Cream.

Many recipes are based on comfort food and Gofton offers variations to make old favourites feel new. For example, by adding chocolate chips to the topping of the Oat and Coconut Rhubarb Crumble, or layering rose geranium leaves beneath the fruit to infuse the dessert. Some recipes can be divided into individual portions, such as the Fresh Apricot Cake Drenched with Orange Blossom Syrup that makes either one large or five small cakes.

Most recipes use ingredients you'll likely already have on hand, while a few may require you to pick up something special – such as the tamarind paste and fenugreek seeds that go into the Aubergine, Garlic and Date Chutney, the juniper berries in the Danish Pickled Cherries, or the pandan essence in the Sri Lankan Cashew Nut Curry. For each recipe, Gofton outlines the preparation time, cooking time, and yield, with the recommended shelf life and storage method sometimes provided too. The fastest recipes (such as the Baharat Spice Mix) take only minutes to prepare, provided that you have the necessary ingredients. If you’re short on time, components of some recipes can be made in advance.

The cover of Give is striking, as are the coloured photos throughout the book. Gofton sprinkles pomegranate seeds on several dishes – including the raspberry-flavoured coconut ice – and the seeds make the treats look even more enticing. As well as the recipes, there are simple ideas for packaging and labelling food gifts with items you probably already have at home. Gofton encourages repurposing, such as wrapping a gift in a “new or clean” (maybe vintage) tea towel, or using a recycled jar for a serving of her Summer Capsicum and Basil Salad. She’s happy for her recipes to be shared and suggests attaching the recipe to your gift.

Gofton is a keen supporter of Breast Cancer Cure who fund breast cancer research in Aotearoa New Zealand, and $30 from each book sold will be donated to this charity. Breast Cancer Cure introduced Gofton to ten fashion and media leaders – including Trelise Cooper, Petra Bagust, and Antonia Prebble – who each contributed one of their favourite recipes.

This is a substantial hard-cover book, 291 pages long. The first few times you use it some of the pages might not sit flat, so you may need to find a way to stop them from flipping while you’re following a recipe. Once you’ve chosen your favourite recipes, the two pink bookmark ribbons will make it easy to find them again.

The recipes in Give are ideal for making homemade gifts for others. You may decide to treat yourself too – I’ve got my eye on the ‘gutsy’ Blue Cheese Scones.

Reviewer: Anne Kerslake Hendricks

Bateman Books