Gordon Ramsay, like Marco Pierre White before him, is the current holder of the position of Top Temperamental Chef in London and the embodiment of that paradox of haute cuisine, under which the most exquisite food emerges from the most furious white-hot hell of the professional kitchen. You wouldn't know it from A Chef for All Seasons, Ramsay's beautiful new collection. All is sweetness and light here. The word "pretty" is occasionally dropped. This may or may not be the result of the moderating influence of Ramsay's co-author, Roz Denny.

The theme of the collection is freshness and seasonality of ingredients, about which Ramsay is "passionate" (unlike, one must assume, all those other tin-opening top chefs). It is arranged by season, with Ramsay introducing each season by discussing his favourite foods, then showing his virtuosity in a set of recipes designed to show them at their best. The recipes are, as you would expect, supremely stylish, but cunningly designed to be simple enough in execution to tempt the home cook. Ramsay and Denny have, for once, actually achieved that rare balance between restaurant and domestic kitchen. Lots of fish recipes, the luxurious use of foie gras, the odd modish touch like crushed peas, desserts made with fashionably unfashionable fruits such as rhubarb and prunes, all make up a delectable set of recipes. --Robin Davidson

Gordon Ramsay is Britain's most celebrated chef and restaurateur - the only London chef to hold three coveted Michelin stars for his restaurant, Gordon Ramsay, in Chelsea. He accepts nothing less than the best - every dish must be superbly cooked and perfectly presented to receive his stamp of approval. In A Chef for all Seasons, he presents a delicious range of utterly contemporary recipes that are totally accessible to the home cook. Focusing on four seasonal chapters - Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter - Gordon discusses his favourite ingredients, giving culinary tips and suggests unusual and innovative taste combinations, such as lavender and chocolate, and peaches with aromatic thyme.

Gordon Ramsay has earned an extraordinary 12 Michelin stars for his restaurants in London and New York. Now a celebrated television presenter too, his award-winning television series include Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, The F Word and Hell's Kitchen. His other bestselling cookbooks, Just Desserts, Secrets, Gordon Ramsay Makes It Easy, Sunday Lunch, Fast Food, Healthy Appetite and 3*** Chef, are all published by Quadrille.

2003-10-21 It is good but, be careful ...

Good recipes. Great inspiration and very nice descriptions of the ingredients. I cannot add anything that was not already said in the previous reviews on this, but be careful. the recipes are most of the time wrong in timings. So far I found that cooking times should be twice as much as indicated in the book. For example, I just completed the orange and lemon tart and the cooking time is (obviously) at least 60 minutes and not 35 as written. Same errors on timing are everywhere on the book. So, if you are a beginner ... be prepared for a lot fo frustation because of this!