Mitchell Beazley snaffles Ginger Pig Christmas Cook Book

Mitchell Beazley has acquired Ginger Pig Christmas Cook Book from butcher The Ginger Pig, written by Tim Wilson and Rebecca Seal.

Publisher Alison Starling acquired world all-language rights from Anna Power at Johnson & Alcock. Ginger Pig Christmas Cook Book will be published on 5th October 2023.

The publisher says the book provides “all the recipes you need for the most important meal of the year, plus all the other get-togethers of the festive season".

In addition to more than 80 recipes there’s “a wealth of helpful advice, from how to stuff a bird to the art of building a festive cheese board". The book includes recipes for turkey and goose, as well as alternatives, like stuffed porchetta, rib of beef or celeriac steaks. 

“Because families and friends get together before and after the big day, the book includes ideas for breakfasts, lunches, dinners, canapés and puddings for the days between Christmas and the New Year, together with advice on alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks,” the publisher continues.

Previous books by Wilson, founder and owner of The Ginger Pig chain of butchers, are Ginger Pig Meat Book and Ginger Pig Farmhouse Cook Book, both co-authored with Fran Warde and published by Mitchell Beazley.

Seal has written about food and drink for the Financial Times, Evening Standard, the Observer, the Guardian, Red and the Sunday Times. Her cookbooks include Istanbul: Recipes from the heart of Turkey and Lisbon: Recipes from the heart of Portugal (Hardie Grant) and LEON Big Salads (Conran).

Starling said of the acquisition: “The Ginger Pig’s many loyal customers already turn to them for the best possible Christmas fare and it’s exciting to be able to share their expertise more widely, with a fabulous selection of recipes for the entire festive season. Tim Wilson and Rebecca Seal, working with photographer Sam Harris and food stylist Annie Rigg, were a dream team and the book has been a complete joy to publish – as befits the subject. We’ve already seen keen media in the project, and it looks set to be the Christmas cook book of 2023."

Wilson commented: “It has been 25 years since the journey of The Ginger Pig began and it is flattering to see our customers continuing to trust us with their most important meal of the year. Christmas is always a rather demanding time for all, yet it has been and always will be a pleasure to work with our highly skilled butchers, providing fantastic quality meat to the public.

"Extending the service to produce the Christmas book with Rebecca, comes with a lot of pride and I do hope people will put their trust in the tips and recipes, helping them treat their loved ones to a festive feast they will remember.”

Seal added: “I’ve been a fan of The Ginger Pig ever since its very earliest days as a business, back when I worked on Observer Food Monthly Magazine in the early 2000s, which was when I first met Tim. Being asked to work with him and The Ginger Pig on this book was such a delight – the team went above and beyond to help make the book a success, even though our timings meant that I was trying to get their attention during one of their actual Christmases and so their busiest times of year. Christmas can feel stressful for anyone from the novice host to a seasoned pro, so our hope is that this book can help make the festive season easier, and a little bit more delicious.”