3 cookbooks you might have missed this year

This year brought an array of amazing cookbooks; TV icon Mary Berry turned 90 and released a book celebrating the milestone, Rick Stein wrote his first-ever festive food cookbook at 78, US chef Samin Nosrat published the much-anticipated follow-up to Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat – later made into a Netflix show – and Ottolenghi collaborator, Sami Tamimi released Boustany, a celebration of Palestinian vegetables.

But in case you missed some of the other releases, here are some of our favourites from 2025.

1. MENOlicious by Mariella Frostrup and Belles Berry

It’s not a stretch to say there’s been revolution around how openly menopause is now spoken about, from public figures to workplaces, women are sharing their experience and there’s more information and resources around to help.

Nutrition has long been known to be a great way to support physical and mental health during menopause. As women go through profound change, food that once felt OK might need an upgrade, because the way our bodies handle the fuel we put into it changes.

So, for this important cookbook, MENOlicious (DK RED, £22), journalist and menopause awareness activist Mariella Frostrup teamed up with chef and daughter of Dame Mary Berry, Belles Berry, to demystify midlife nutrition.

The two women met on World Menopause Day in 2022, thanks to a mutual friend, and the idea for the book was born. They insist the concept isn’t a diet, but ‘a reboot’, and they worked with Hala El-Shafie, dietician and consultant with more than 20 years’ experience in nutrition and women’s health.

The ‘method’ focuses on six pillars; nutrient-dense food, balancing blood sugar, phytoestrogens (e.g. flaxseeds and legumes), hydration, limiting triggers (e.g. caffeine, salt, alcohol), and finally, exercise.

You’ll find breakfasts like matcha bircher muesli and kale pancakes with tahini butter; convenient lunches like lime, tamarind and green veg noodle lunch pots, and easy dinners such as fisherman’s curry.

The pair note that 90% of the book’s recipes take just 30 minutes or less to make, so most of the meals are simple and accessible – while promising to support bone-strengthening and hormone balancing on a tasty plate.

2. Sugar and Spice by Remi Idowu

Content creator and recipe developer Remi Idowu launched her own baking business at 19 and now has more than million followers across Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest, even making the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

Her 2025 debut cookbook, Sugar and Spice (Ebury Press, £26) brings together her love for the food of her parents’ Ghanaian and Nigerian heritage and her penchant for puddings.

While most cookbooks have a small dessert section towards the end, Sugar and Spice celebrates the sweet and savoury in equal measures.

‘As I started experimenting in my kitchen, I found so much joy in playing with flavours from different cultures. It didn’t take long to discover my sweet tooth’, she writes – and she threw herself into baking at a young age.

Self-taught Idowu learned from her mum’s home cooking how to pack flavour into simple ingredients and it shows in her accessible, delicious-sounding recipes.

The sections cover things like ‘classics with a twist’ – think braised beef short ribs with stilton mash or honey jalapeño cornbread – and ‘better than takeaways’, providing some great, cheaper alternatives (for example, mango habanero chicken wings).

At the same time, she also delves into the food of her childhood, including her mum’s jollof rice, groundnut soup and yam and egusi stew – a classic Nigerian dish. As well as, of course, plenty of puddings (try the cookies and cream cheesecake brownies).

3. Live to Eat by Emily English

Known online as @emthenutritionist, Emily English made a big name for herself sharing healthy recipes on social media. Her first cookbook in 2024, So Good: Food You Want To Eat, Designed by a Nutritionist, was a bestseller, and she returned in 2025 with another banger – Live to Eat (Seven Dials, £25).

These days the 30-year-old has more than two million social media followers who love her ethos that’s all about celebrating delicious food (and also happens to be good for you) without restriction.

A former model, English left the industry when it was starting to impact her relationship with food, and studied for a Bsc degree at King’s College London in nutrition instead. She touts the importance of protein and its role in keeping you full for longer, fibre as the unsung hero and how to balance carbohydrates and sugar in your diet.

English also shares her tips around stress, sleep and movement, as well as daily habits at different meal times that helps keep her on track and feeling good. Think creating a strong morning routine, and going for a 15-minute walk after lunch.

Expect breakfasts like balsamic mushroom-stuffed omelette, or sweet potato fritters with soft boiled eggs; lunches like red Thai coconut gyoza soup, filling dinners including lamb and feta burgers with cucumber slaw and garlic yoghurt, and puddings that won’t make you feel like you’re missing out. Who’s going to say no to toasted oat chocolate tiffin?