How often do you come across a really good cookbook, one that you want to recommend to all your friends? The truthful answer is, not very often. The Really Helpful Cookbook is destined to be one of those books, a genuine classic that you pick up again and again. Written by Ruth Watson, one of Britain's best-loved food writers, it contains recipes that are the very best in modern, stylish home cooking, along with priceless information on everything from the best brand of sugar to use for baking, to advice on whether it is really necessary to skin tomatoes. With over 150 recipes, the book is divided into Winter and Summer, and dishes range from Cod with Garlic Saffron Mash to Plums on Panettone. When time pressures dictate, cheating - with style - is fine in Ruth's book and there are many ideas for clever shortcuts. Ruth writes with passion and humour, always placing her recipes and advice in the context of our daily lives, making this a book that is as enjoyable to read as it is to cook from.