An Antidote To The Month Of The Hairshirt

This annual self-imposed penury holds no truck with me. Do we all not have enough to deal with as it is? Plus, it not being the most cheerful month for a variety of reasons, is January not the ideal month for being particularly nice to ourselves? I am always tempted by cookery magazines, but less so this month, since they all come in varying shades of bowel-shifting browns and greens, and I'm sure that all of those healthy eating recipes don't include hay as an ingredient, but somehow they just look as though they do. I have always been a huge fan of Donna Hay, and though her magazine is a ludicrous price (€7.35, GULP. I mean, the lovely Trish Deseine's Nobody Does It Better is currently on sale in Easons for €6.99) I couldn't resist this cheering yellow cover. And you wouldn't believe the wealth of simple, tasty recipes within - she does a lovely 'Three Ways' series with simple ideas for four ingredients, there are excellent speedy dinners, menu planners for special, casual, simple and fast dinners, a super piece on brioche, a piece on cooking things in baking paper...I could go on and on. And then there's the styling and photography, oh my. The Australians really do know how to make a beautiful magazine. If you have been particularly good this first couple of weeks of 2011, be nice to you and treat yourself to this beautiful and cheering, yet still very practical, magazine.