Quercus Books have just published The Higgidy Cookbook by Camilla Stephens. I bought it the day it came out and have drooled over the pages since. Now you’ve got a chance to do the same as I have a copy to give away.

The Higgidy Cookbook is full of recipes – 100 to be precise – for pies and so much more.While a few of the pies and tarts don’t have visuals, there’s a lot of end pictures in there – and where I’ve loved previous cookbooks for breaking down each process, for this one all you truly need to know is how to make a good pastry and a good filling and have the right guidance. This book does all that.

The Higgidy Cookbook is broken into sections – Simple Suppers, Party Pies, Quirky Quiches and Tempting Tarts, Pudding Pies and Sweet Treats, and Easy Extras & Perfect Pastry. On the last chapter we may have mistaken some Sticky Onions for Portugese Custard Tarts – they look pretty similar! (though obviously taste different)

Being one who doesn’t like to wait, tonight I decided to try one of the pies – the Strawberry and Apricot Freeform Tart – which starts with the most tempting of sentences:  ‘This is a great recipe for novice bakers and enthusiasts alike’ – plus it looks pretty awesome too.

Being as weight-conscious (and cost-conscious) as I am, I bought Sainsburys Basics strawberries (two packs, £1.50 each), a tin of Apricots (£1ish?) and added some dried ones. I still didn’t have enough fruit to make up the 500g I needed, so added two pears which worked.

Essentially, you make your pastry, leave it to chill for thirty minutes then roll out and put into a dish, bake for 45-50 minutes and voila, you have your dish.

I found the instructions really clear and simple to follow. We were missing one ingredient (cornflour) and I didn’t substitute with anything else which left the tart oozing with juice but not ruined which was a relief. H says “it’s the best tart ever” and Shaun thinks “it’s pretty awesome”. Me? I’m quite pleased it wasn’t a disaster in any way! The pastry was crispy and well cooked, the fruit warm and tangy. The best bit? You can use fruit which is going a bit soft for this too!

I was offered a chance to review The Higgidy Cookbook, but as I intended to anyway and bought it, I am instead offering the copy as a giveaway. Answer one simple question, then there’s a few additional things you can do via Rafflecopter to gain some extra entries. UK residents only please, and the closing date is two weeks today, the 8th October 2013.

All entries will be checked to make sure the rules were followed, as it’s unfair to say you’ve commented and to not leave one, and one winner will be sent a copy of The Higgidy Cookbook from the PR company. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway