The Book: Topp Country A Culinary Journey. Through New Zealand with the Topp Twins

Author(s): Jools and Lynda Topp

Year: 2018

What it says on the back cover:

Well loved New Zealand entertainers, Dames Lynda and Jools Topp go on a culinary journey around New Zealand meeting passionate food producers, home cooks and lovers of life.

Based on the first two series of their award winning tales from the countryside through the universal pleasure of food and love. Their deep love for the land and its people is interwoven with inspiring stories, poems and 75 recipes including closely guarded family secrets. The Twins’ 👯 diverse appeal is reflected in the people they meet: from free range pig 🐷 farmers in the deep rural south to urban taco 🌮 trucking hipsters. As they travel around New Zealand they discover a land full of top tucker* and great yarns. The Twins’ comedy characters, Camp Mother and Camp Leader, present Saucy Tips, while the Bowling Ladies share recipes and tips for their retro but ever-popular Tasty Treats. Rural blokes, the Ken’s, have penned poems celebrating the country lifestyle and what it means to be a Kiwi, in love with our land and its bounty.

Take two comic cups of TWINS

Whisk together with generous handfuls of EVERYDAY KIWIS

Throw in a dash of everyone’s FAVOURITE FAMILY RECIPES

Sprinkle in SPLENDID SCENERY

And serve with lashings of LOVE

And what do you get? TOPP COUNTRY

As Seen on TV1 “Truly wonderful television” – NZ Herald

What made me pick up this book:

Having met the Topp Twins twice and being a foodie made me instantly pick up this book from my local library. I remembered the show being on television in the weekend and seeing the girls travel around here in New Zealand visiting people and places that showcased our beloved country. It was a very heartwarming show with real people and fantastic food.

Is this book worth reading/buying:

The book is brimming with some delicious recipes. Even if you don’t come across any ostrich in your life or want to try a frozen grasshopper, there are plenty of other options that you can choose from. The seafood paella 🥘 is one and the curries (Duck and Goat) are worth considering as well if you eat those types of meat. My partner and I eat goat and venison, just some of the another types of meat that are used here in the book.

Divided into sections, this book is all about showcasing New Zealand home cooking whether it be something made for meat lovers or learning how to cook Māori bread.

What I also appreciated about the book were the accompanying sauces that went with some of the meat dishes. These are great little sides that go well with a number of different dishes. They mention what it goes well with in the book but as a foodie, I can think of lots of different ways to use these recipes and it’s lovely to have the Topp’s versions in here.

These are listed as Camp Mothers Saucy Tips.

The photography is beautiful making me realise how fortunate we are to live in such a stunning place in the world that offers us so much and for us to develop into farms for food and drink. I enjoyed reading about the history of how some of our animals got here like the goat 🐐 for instance who arrived here by the way of Captain James Cook in and around 1773. Many Kiwi don’t eat a lot of Goat but as a fan of Indian food, I started to see it appear on the menus in the nineties. In this book, three recipes are shared using the goat including a poem, beautiful photographs and of course a story or two from those who shared their recipe for the book.

Quote:

So here, in your hands, is the most sensible thing for the Topps to have done next – a book from the series, so full of beautiful pictures it’s almost like watching TV. And with stories from the Topps, recipes and timeless poetic musings from the (timeless) Kens, not to mention Camp Mother’s Saucy Tips.

A grateful nation heads for the kitchen.

– Colin Hogg

*tucker (food)