Hodder cooks up storm with 2019 'Bake Off' winner David Atherton

Hodder & Stoughton will publish Good to Eat by David Atherton, winner of "The Great British Bake Off" 2019. 

Nicky Ross, editorial director, acquired world rights from Felicity Blunt at Curtis Brown. 

According to the publisher, Good to Eat "is not a diet book. It's a book for foodies who care about their waistline". The title will have 100 recipes including salads, midweek meals, dinners to impress your friends, bread to "bake when you need to slow down" and special-occasion cakes and puddings.

Atherton is a practicing healthcare professional working in international development, and his recipes have been inspired by his travels, says the publisher, with recipes such as kosambari (Indian salad), bánh xèo (coconut pancakes) and lyuti chusnki (Bulgarian pickled chillies) to feature in the book alongside healthy alternatives to British classics such as eggs benedict, "boozy bakewell tart" and his mum’s "Yorkshire parkin".

Ross said: "Watching David’s success on 'Bake Off' each week, as he tweaked his bakes to make them just a little bit healthier and still taste fantastic, was a revelation. He never compromised on the look or flavours, and was a well-deserved champion. So we’re really pleased to have a whole cookbook of his recipes now. People don’t want to diet, but they do want recipes that won’t pile on the pounds and will help them to lead busy and active lives."

Atherton commented: "People often think that healthy eating means restricting foods or counting calories. But for me this form of 'healthy eating' was not sustainable. Plus, it was dull. I hated cutting out the food I loved best—bread, cake, pizza, Yorkshire puddings! That realisation changed how I approached food. Food should be healthy, but so should our relationship with food. So instead of depriving myself of my favourite dishes, I found new, easy ways to make them better for me."

Good to Eat will be published in hardback and e-book in May 2021.