Bought, Borrowed, & Stolen: Recipes & Knives from a Travelling Chef

A seasoned traveler by age eight, British celebrity chef McEvedy (The Good Cook) began keeping a diary of her travels, mostly focusing on what she ate. Pretty soon she found herself collecting knives as well. Here, she pairs the two in a terrifically entertaining travelogue/cookbook. Each of the 20 entries (one for each country) begins with a knife she picked up on her travels, as well as an overview of the country and/or key cities, and a handful of recipes for local dishes. Those looking for the best dish to eat in Marrakech or Barcelona will be disappointed%E2%80%94she singles out the memorable, not the iconic%E2%80%94but readers with a sense of adventure will find her garrulous prose and the book's eye-catching photos difficult, if not impossible, to put down. Essays on topics ranging from the suction-free knife she picked up in San Francisco's Japantown to life on the river in Burma will inspire readers to update their passports, while recipes taken from her travels (Pumpkin & Ginger donuts inspired by NYC's Donut Factory, simple venison hot dogs with mustard and pickled gherkins from the Arctic Circle) make for a charming read that far surpasses the standard celebrity chef cookbook. (Oct.)