A complete set of cookbooks by the Ukrainian food writer Olia Hercules (#256)

Olia Hercules was born in Ukraine and lived in Cyprus before moving to the UK to study a BA in Italian, followed by an MA in Russian and English. She worked as a reporter for Screen International before her interest in food as an amateur reached its apogee and she decided to retrain to be a chef at Leith's School of Food and Wine. She kicked off her culinary career working at Fulham's Union Market with Aaron Craze before landing her dream job as chef-de-partie at Ottolenghi's. After having her son, and filming for The Food Network, Olia began writing for Sainsbury's, The Recipe Kit, and The Guardian. 

Olia was awarded the Observer's Rising Star in Food Award 2015. Her debut cookbook, Mamushka, is an introduction to the rich culinary heritage of Ukraine. It was a bestseller and won the Best Debut Food Book award at the Fortnum & Mason Food and Drink Awards, and was shortlisted for an André Simon Award and a Guild of Food Writers Award. Her second book, Kaukasis, is a culinary journey through Georgia, Azerbaijan and beyond. Her current cookbook, Summer Kitchens, looks at the Ukrainian phenomenon of creating little kitchens, separate from the main house, and always positioned near a fruit plot or veg patch so families can enjoy their home-grown produce as it ripens, and preserve the surplus in preparation for winter.

Praise for Olia Hercules:

"Exotic, earthy dishes, vibrant colours, big flavours. This is real cooking, written about with so much love." - Diana Henry

"A sensitive, personal journey expressed through the beauty of food - just wonderful." - Jamie Oliver

"Olia Hercules is a storyteller-foodwriter, and a wholly original voice in the kitchen - there's not a recipe of hers I don't want to cook immediately." - Nigella Lawson