Another great way to kick start the New Year is by pulling a book off the shelf with a lovely history attached. The Cookery Book of Lady Clark of Tillypronie is a great example of how people used to eat in the higher societies, offering a great insight into what was eaten 150-200 years ago.

I love the different sections, with concise recipes included. It really is a good read. The section on curries is absolutely fascinating with a Barbados curry from 1891, a very simple dish with mace and curry powder.

This book is a collection of recipes from different folk who, I must assume, visited the large house and over the years a repertoire was created. With so many soufflé recipes it must have been quite a time to be eating in these large houses. There is always a French influence in cookery at this time, from when large, wealthy houses employed famous French chefs to cook for them. But there are some excellent recipes for barley soup, gnocchi using semolina and simple home-cooked dishes.

The names of some dishes fascinate me, like Rabbit Pish Pash. A rum omelette sounds fascinating and calves head, turned out of the mould is very interesting. There are also lots of game birds in detail, as many would have been shot on the estate and handed to the kitchens to deal with.

It takes me back to my youth, working at Ballathie and Kinnaird where many hours were spent in the plucking sheds with a hoover strapped to my back. A classic, and a great read, it was apparently, Elizabeth David's favourite cookery book. In the introduction I read, “I would defy anyone not to become a better cook for reading it”. I agree.