I love, love, love the preserves handbook. We had a great time foraging the hedgerows for produce. The rosehip syrup took me back to nursery days..very comforting! Just one suggestion; photos of hedgerow fruits and berries would be useful in order to identify them. I was familiar with rose hips and elderberries, but was unsure about items like bullaces, rowan berries and sloes etc. Cheers

I agree it is one of the best books on preserving in my opinion. The red onion marmalade is lovely!

We've tried the more common recipes (jams, chutneys, etc) with success. And there is 4L of sloe gin in the cupboard maturing (although with only 1/4 the amount of sugar).

We've also tried things like the pickled nasturtium seeds, which we would never had thought of doing. It's great for ideas, then preserving stuff based on what you have, even if you don't follow the exact recipe they are good guidelines.

Preserves has been an extremly popular handbook with plenty of press coverage and great review like the ones above, we'd love to hear more of them.

Oh, I forgot to mention that we've used this endlessly at home and have a cupbaord full of jams, pickles and chutneys. I'm also fortunate enough to have received a jar of chilli pepper jelly from Pam the jam, the author. It was so lovely that despite my lack of kitchen skills I decided to have a go myself and followed the recipe on page 101 and IT WORKED! And to my surprise I really enjoyed making it! I made jam! Who would have guessed that was even remotley possible and it just reflects how well this book is written and how easy the recipes are to follow.

Since this book I have not bought a jam. Every 2 months a pan with oranges and sugar is boiling away nicely, making marmalade. Even in the summer I made strawberry jam. This book is truly inspirational and has made a townie student into a jam maker and lover

Thanks for all those, I need a preserving book and was looking at different ones. I will buy this one based on Hughs new book being great, and your recommendations.

I looked at several before leaving the UK and ended up buying the WI version as it seemed to have more practical tips and useful information to supplement the actual recipes. There is a great book from the ABC Bookshops (on line from Oz) called 'a year in a bottle' which has some excellent recipes.

I just love this preserves book - I borrowed it from the library first to see if I wanted it & had to go out straight away to buy it as the recipes are a good mix of quirky & traditional & the writing is simple to follow yet interesting & fun.

I've got Marguerite Pattens-The Basic Basics Jams, Preserves and Chutneys. It is an excellent resource & it has long been my preserves bible.
And I have to say I think the RC book has now usurped it from the top position for me.

This is a beautiful book laden with faboulous recipes. It has not only sparked my interest, but has made me so excited about getting in the kitchen. The only downside....I was bought it for Christmas and have to wait for July for the ingredients to be ready for harvesting!

We agree,
Just about all the practical recipies on RC in general will come out just right if you follow the instructions to the letter.
This preserve book is very well written and easy to follow hterfore giving us success straight away, our fav is the Rasberry fridge jam , it won an award and now I know why.
M&K

A book of magical wonder
Posted on Feb 21, 2010 at 06:41 PM

I arrived in Poland for a very long work stint (I am still here after 1 year), accompanied by the River Cottage Preserve book. I found myself reading it on the plane; tram journeys; in bed at night. For so many years jam making had seemed like the skill of the magically gifted, I just didn't realise until now that it is magic that everyone can perform. This book has opened out so many wonderful possibilities and creative moments for which I am very grateful. It is beautifully presented -:size, font, layout, photography- in itself it is a lovely object. In addition its explanations are clear and its recipes are a combination of those for everyday use, as well as the more intriguing and exotic. It is brilliant for the novice and upon revisiting, I keep discovering more nuggets of information. I have found this to be the best preserving book out there.